Horse Hound – 26 March 2026

Summary

Horse & Hound 26 March 2026 (Volume CXLII, Issue 12) leads with CAN AI JUDGE DRESSAGE? and Carl Hester riding Fame at the Paris Olympics, photographed by FEI/Benjamin Clark. The cover also carries Strawson soars — Harborough ride, and Stuart Ladd, Alamy and Hannah Cole Photography are credited.

The Dead Slow ten-year figures are the issue's hardest numbers: 2,810 incidents reported to the BHS in 2025 and 19,528 since 2016, 59 horses killed in 2025 and 559 since 2016, with 82 horses injured, 86 people injured and no people killed in 2025.

The tack rule change at p5 is the story riders are arguing about: British Showjumping announced amendments on 6 March, banning Cheltenham gags with roundings and Stephens continental hackamores immediately, with Beris Mullen Comfort Tandem bits, hammerhead spurs and bridle clips banned from 1 April.

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Content Guide

▸ Cover Story — Can AI judge dressage?

p.32 · Can AI judge dressage? We investigate — Oscar Williams
Oscar Williams investigates whether AI could judge dressage, a practice being explored and already introduced in other sports. AI meets appreciation and disgust in the workplace: work may be more efficient, dull tasks a thing of the past, more time for creativity and expert judgement — or machines may take people's jobs. Those who work with AI repeat that "it's only as good as the data it has been given," and one of the most important jobs now is teaching AI correctly, which is hardest where there is subjectivity or dispute — judging, movement assessment, artistic impression. Editor-in-Chief Sarah Jenkins writes that we are reconsidering a "code of points," an idea discussed for decades: a hard mountain to climb, but what if AI could help judges do the impossible task of assessing countless things at once, when there is also a shortage of people willing to take the role and the blame. The source gives no test results or conclusion. Judge one test yourself and see how many things you can hold at once.

▸ News

p.4 · Ten years of Dead Slow marked as road incident figures released — Eleanor Jones
The BHS published ten years of Dead Slow figures. In 2025, 2,810 incidents were reported, 59 horses killed, 82 horses injured, no people killed and 86 people injured. Since 2016: 19,528 incidents, 559 horses killed, 964 horses injured, 8 people killed and 999 people injured. The 2025 total fell 10% on 2024, but 59 horses died, one more than the previous year, and 86 people were injured, up 8%. BHS safety director Alan Hiscox says "I'm really disappointed to see the number of horses killed has gone up slightly but the number of incidents reported has fallen," adding "You could say if there are fewer incidents, fewer horses will be injured and killed. The number injured has gone down, so the slant of the curve is going in the right direction." Campaign achievements include the 2022 Highway Code change. In the past year a ride from Lambourn to Windsor with Project EDWARD (Every Day Without a Road Death) led to a parliamentary debate and proposed legal change. Hiscox says "I don't want momentum to drop off… It's really important that impetus doesn't fall away," notes horses were not specifically included in the government's national road safety strategy, and says MPs have since written to the DfT: "It's keeping it talked about in the corridors of power. The strategy also means we're in conversations; now there's this basis to work towards." He has also spoken to the transport select committee, and says "I'm a one-trick pony… I just keep getting our message out. At the start of this, my main aim was Highway Code changes and if someone had offered me that, I'd have bitten their arm off." He stresses that reporting every incident matters so action can follow — close-pass driver education, signage, driver training — and notes that if a racehorse's death at Lambourn in 2024 had not been reported, there would have been no progress. He writes: "Over the past 10 years, the equestrian community has come together in an extraordinary way… But 59 horses lost in one year is 59 too many. Behind every statistic is a devastated owner, traumatised rider and community feeling loss deeply… Until the number of horses and riders killed on UK roads is reduced to zero, the campaign's work is far from complete." Project EDWARD founder James Luckhurst says "This has been a decade defined by determination, influence and progress… Alan's work operates at the highest levels, ensuring equestrian safety remains firmly on the agenda." Fifty-nine in one year is the number the campaign is judged by. Report every near miss you see this month.

p.5 · Riders left confused by unexpected jumping tack rule changes
British Showjumping announced amendments to tack and equipment rules on 6 March after a recent national sport committee meeting. Cheltenham gags with roundings and Stephens continental hackamores are no longer allowed with immediate effect. Other bits including the Beris Mullen Comfort Tandem, plus hammerhead spurs and bridle clips, are banned from 1 April. The announcement prompted social media discussion about notice periods and reasoning: some riders had recently bought bridles with clips or bits now banned, and others worried about finding a new bit for a particular horse at short notice. Rider Derek Morton told H&H he thought those affected should have had more chance to input on the changes; the source truncates here. A ban with immediate effect is the rule change riders remember. Check your own tack against the new list before 1 April.

p.6 · Supporting the workforce through midlife and menopause
Workplace support for midlife and menopause is covered. Menopause is the workplace issue yards discuss least. Ask one employer what support exists.

p.9 · Badminton 2026 entries revealed
The 2026 Badminton entries are published. Entries are the list a season is planned around. Check one entry against your own calendar.

▸ Opinion and People

p.12 · Letters of the week
Reader letters run here. Letters are where a magazine's community shows. Send one letter this week.

p.14 · Dressage — Laura Tomlinson
Laura Tomlinson writes the dressage column. Named columnists make opinion accountable. Take one point into your next test.

p.16 · Showjumping — Carmen Edwards
Carmen Edwards writes the showjumping column. Her column is where riders' views reach the sport. Read one before the rule change bites.

p.18 · H&H interview — Flat racing star Billy Loughnane
Emerging Flat racing star Billy Loughnane is interviewed. Rising flat jockeys are the story a new season is built on. Watch one of Loughnane's rides this season.

p.22 · All in a day's work — The mental health doctor
The mental health doctor is profiled. Mental health is the issue riders talk about least. Ask one rider how they are, properly.

p.74 · Goodnight — Tessa Waugh's hunting diary
Tessa Waugh closes with her hunting diary. Her diary is the most honest writing in the issue. Read it last, as the editor intends.

▸ Vet, Property and Kit

p.24 · Minimal fuss — The benefits of minimally invasive surgery techniques
The vet clinic cover story covers minimally invasive surgery. Keyhole surgery is the advance that changes recovery times. Ask your vet which procedures are now minimally invasive.

p.28 · In your court — Yards with courtyard stabling
Courtyard stabling yards get the property page. Courtyard designs are the layout owners argue about. Compare one yard's layout with your own.

p.28 · Hoof haven — Easy-to-apply topical hoof dressings
Topical hoof dressings are tested. Hoof dressings are the purchase owners buy on habit. Check one dressing's ingredients this week.

▸ Features, Hunting and Reports

p.38 · Action stations — Is your insurance crisis-proof?
Insurance is examined. Insurance is the purchase owners hope never to use. Check one policy's exclusions this week.

p.40 · 'An experience like no other' — Welsh stallions in the streets: Barley Saturday
Barley Saturday in Wales, with Lowri Reed and Felinmore Limited Edition pictured. Traditional shows are the heritage the sport forgets. Look up one local show before the season.

p.66 · Strawson soars — Harborough ride
The cover hunting story. Day reports are the closest thing to being out. Read it before planning a meet.

p.68 · From the field
Hunting notes from the field. Field notes are the column followers read first. Read one before the season ends.

p.46-62 · Reports
Showjumping Winter Championships at p46, eventing at Oasby at p56, dressage at Bury Farm and Forest Edge at p58, racing at Newbury at p60, and point-to-point at Belvoir and Holderness at p62. Sage Soldier won the Open Intermediate at Tweselfown Horse Trials with Tom Jackson, owned by Richard and Diana Midmer and Alice Mead. Reports are the results service readers rely on. Check one result against your own entries.

▸ Advertising — TopSpec

Feeding plan and contact
TopSpec advertises Comprehensive Feed Balancer, TopChop Sport and CoolCondition Cubes. For a 16.2hh (600kg) horse in medium to hard work: ad-lib good hay or haylage plus grazing, two feeds a day each with 300g Comprehensive Feed Balancer, 300g TopChop Sport and up to 1.5kg CoolCondition Cubes, adding 10:10 Joint Support, Calmer, Digestive Aid or Electrolytes as needed. A 20kg bag lasts a 500kg horse 40 days; a 500kg horse needs 500g a day, two servings. Contact 01845 565 030 or (062) 85401. Dodson & Horrell's ELITE SPORT Muesli and BETA also appear. Sponsored feeding plans are not evidence on their own. Ask your vet before you change any ration.

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Editor's Take

The Dead Slow figures are the reason Horse & Hound 26 March 2026 matters: 2,810 incidents and 59 horses killed in 2025, 19,528 and 559 since 2016, 86 people injured, and Alan Hiscox's "59 horses lost in one year is 59 too many" alongside the honest note that the curve is bending the right way is road safety argued with real data rather than slogans. The British Showjumping tack ban — 6 March, Cheltenham gags and Stephens continental hackamores immediately, the Beris Mullen Comfort Tandem, hammerhead spurs and bridle clips from 1 April — is the practical story riders need before the season starts. The AI judging feature is the most interesting idea, though the source gives no test result or conclusion, only "it's only as good as the data it has been given" and Sarah Jenkins on a code of points. Weakest is that p6, p9, p22, p38 and most reports are titles only, and Derek Morton's comments truncate. The TopSpec advertising gives a more precise ration than any editorial page. Buy this for the road safety numbers and the tack rules.

Strengths
• Dead Slow gives 2,810, 59, 19,528 and 559
• Hiscox and Luckhurst are quoted in full
• Tack ban gives 6 March and 1 April dates
• AI feature asks the right question about judging

Weaknesses
• AI feature gives no test result or conclusion
• Derek Morton's comments truncate
• Several pages are titles only

Verdict: Recommended — the road safety numbers and the tack rules.