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Within
this section of the website you will find
a selection of Fun Bug stories and images.
If you have pictures of you and your Fun Bug, or any stories of your
travels, please email them to carriages@bennington.co.uk and
they may well appear below!
Please click on the thumbnail image below to view the full-size photo.
Scroll down for Fun Bug stories.
A Dream
Come True
By Viv Gray |
Picture
a long, sandy beach backed by pine
trees and sand dunes, a perfect
winter’s day, blue sky, sunshine,
a soft breeze, waves gently lapping
on the shore and the sound of hooves
on wet sand. It has always been
my dream to canter along a sandy
beach and on December 4th 2005
my dream came true with the aid
of my trusty driving cob, Kastro
and the Bennington Fun Bug.
Early that morning the livery yard
was buzzing with excitement as a
group of us prepared our horses for
the hour-long journey to Holkham
Beach. Rachel and Bill Lewis had,
as usual, made excellent plans for
our Christmas Outing and they headed
a convoy of horse boxes, trailers
and my car, towing my Fun Bug. We
wound our way to the north coast
through picturesque villages where
people stared at us with interest.
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At
last we arrived, paid our dues
and parked. The shafts were quickly
attached to the Fun Bug, Kastro
was harnessed up and put to, calm
as ever, and, after putting on
our ‘waterproofs’ Claire
and I climbed aboard. Kastro can
always be relied on to enjoy any
occasion without being silly and
this day was no exception. He eagerly
followed Rachel with ‘Daisy’ in
her Bennington Intro 4 as we passed
through the gate onto the beach
with 5 riders following behind.
The horses were tingling with excitement
as we breathed in the sea air and
viewed the long stretch of sand. |
We
walked along the rear of the beach
to give the horses time to settle
down. After a while, as their steps
were becoming springier, with general
agreement we burst into trot. The
Fun Bug wheels cruised easily over
the hard sand as Kastro stepped
out, determined to keep up with
Daisy.
Before long we came back to walk and
turned towards a break in the dunes
and the sea. I wondered how Kastro
would react to the waves. He’s
used to going through fords and he
eyed the waves with curiosity, stretching
his head down to taste the water. Then
we were off again, trotting along the
edge of the waves, spray flying up
over us, sand in our mouths as Kastro’s
ears flicked back, listening to our
laughter. After a while we stopped
for a short breather as we met up with
a group of walkers with dogs, husbands
and friends from the yard, and we posed
for photographs. |
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Then,
off again, but this time with more
energy and
Kastro eased into his first canter
between shafts. Wow! I was living
my dream! The Fun Bug sailed smoothly
along behind my gallant little
horse as we enjoyed the freedom
of this beautiful beach. Eventually,
tired but happy, it was time to
turn back to the dunes and make
our way back to the trailer The
horses were untacked and rugged
and then we all gathered to enjoy
Rachel’s homemade hot soup
and rolls, while flocks of geese
made their presence known in the
adjoining fields. |
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end to a dream that I thought would
never come true
as two years ago ill health and a
worried husband persuaded me to give
up riding my Arab. Unable to contemplate
life without a horse I bought Kastro,
who had been ‘rescued’ two
months earlier and was still in poor
condition with numerous psychological
problems. Together we progressed
towards better health and mutual
trust. I now find that I can have
just as much fun driving Kastro in
our Fun Bug as I did when riding
my Arab. |
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