RIDERS from Worcestershire and Herefordshire should book early for an event where they will learn skills from one of the world’s top horsewomen.

Lucinda Green will be teaching at a clinic at Ledbury’s prestigious Hilltop Cross Country course in April.

She is the only rider to have won Badminton Horse Trials six times on six different horses and was world and twice European champion, as well as an Olympic silver medallist.

Now a selector for British teams she is passionate about helping riders understand the way that horses think and relax, while tackling the challenge of the cross-country course.

And Hilltop at Wellington Heath, near Ledbury, is the ideal setting for the clinic – another will take place in September. It is built professionally to British Eventing standards and uses the farm’s natural features of woods, streams, hills and banks. There are more than 100 jumps (1ft 6in to 3ft 6in) built on 40 acres of welldrained old turf which dries quickly. There are all-weather take offs and landings, and the ground and jumps are well maintained. The course is endorsed by Green and other world class eventers including Matt Ryan, Marie Sleet, Leslie Law, Nick Burton and William Miflin.

Green said: “The important message that I try and impart in these clinics is that cross-country riding isn’t about sitting on a horse going flat out.

“There is a science to it and as a rider your job is to do three things – keep the horse’s engine going, keep a good line into a fence and keep both you and your horse’s balance. A horse that thinks for itself and in equal measures listens to its rider is going to be a safe cross country horse.”

In her Petplan Equine Safe Way clinics, Green gives expert advice on riding across country and shares some of the techniques and skills that have brought her so much success in the tough sport of eventing.

The clinics – which are being held nationwide – have become famous among pupils for building or restoring confidence. They can be tailored to suit riders of all standards – from those preparing for their first event to those aiming for Badminton.

To begin, both horse and rider should be confident jumping fences of at least 2ft 6in to 2ft 9in.

Each clinic involves a session incorporating cross country technique work using poles and stands before going out on the cross-country course.

To apply for a place visit petplanequine.co.uk/events.