'I don’t see why another thoroughbred or ex-racehorse with the correct training couldn’t do the job'

Of all the new vocations that former racehorses can go on to enjoy, there will be few more unexpected than carriage driving.

The sport, a favourite pastime of the late Duke of Edinburgh, is technical and precise and generally involves a horse either demonstrating dressage ability or navigating obstacle courses.

Key among the attributes is for the individual to accept a harness and be hitched to a carriage, before being controlled by a driver and assisted by a groom, or 'back-stepper’.

For Joanna Broadbent, a British champion and world medallist, to believe her ex-racehorse Act Of Bravery had the potential to reach a significant level of competition, is a real seal of approval and yet another example of the thoroughbred’s range.

The Invincible Spirit gelding, now known as Archie, is from the Group 1 family of Divine Proportions and Whipper, and raced a couple of times, finishing second at Chelmsford, for owner-breeders Gary and Lesley Middlebrook and trainer Roger Varian five years ago.

Broadbent, who is based near Taunton, was looking for something to ride in the autumn when her driving horses are having a break and spotted Archie advertised locally.

"I hadn’t ridden properly for about 20 years so I was really nervous but he was pretty shut down actually," she says. "He’d had a few issues going on so actually it was perfect and we built up our confidence and fitness together."

Act Of Bravery was originally purchased so that Joanna Broadbent could get back into riding

Broadbent and her husband Mark are both competitors and trainers who even have a carriage driving centre and museum on their farm. Naturally enough, they had to have a try with Archie. 

She adds: "Everything we asked him to do he’d say, 'Oh yes I can do that' and one day we just popped the harness on him and before we knew it he was driving.

"He was bought as a happy hacker, no more than that and we didn’t actually think we would drive him. We introduced the stages of training to drive over time, but to be honest he’d have broken and been on a carriage in a day. Most horses would take four to six weeks just gently doing it."

Warmbloods and native ponies tend to be the specialists in the driving world, but the couple have been blown away by the intelligence of the thoroughbred ex-racehorses they have worked with.

Archie has been a true all-rounder, trying dressage, showing, hunting, side saddle, going on a riding holiday and even playing the part of a highwayman’s horse.

"He made a very good driving horse and was lot of fun," says Broadbent.

"I took him to one competition but unfortunately he’s the clumsiest thing on the planet and managed to cut himself the day before. He’s a bit high-maintenance but I don’t think that’s any reflection on thoroughbreds, I think that’s just him.

“He has back problems, which made it a bit too much like hard work for him at the level I want to do.

"I could work quite hard and he’d probably get to open level, but I’ve got to concentrate most of my time on the young warmbloods I have coming on, I have high hopes for them at an advanced level."

Act Of Bravery - 'He made a very, very good driving horse and was lot of fun'

She says, like with many of the other equestrian disciplines, numbers in competitions are a little down at the moment, but she has been encouraged by the amount of younger faces that are becoming involved.

"It’s an incredibly strong sport and very social," she says. "There’s access for people with all types of animals, from Shetlands to Dutch Warmbloods and everything in between.

"You need to have someone with you, a groom or a back-stepper, and as a team you have two helpers, so it’s very much team spirit. I certainly see a future for it, and on the continent it’s huge."

In assessing a horse’s suitability, Broadbent explains that it is entirely down to the individual’s character. She felt that Archie was particularly cut out for it as he had arrived already being content and trusting of people.

"You’ve got to be 100 per cent sure before you attach them to into any sort carriage!" she says.

"If someone was thinking of doing it, it’s best to seek professional help. Archie’s not everyone’s drive, he’s quite sharp but he loved it. We have trained thoroughbreds in the past and I don’t see why another thoroughbred or ex-racehorse with the correct training couldn’t do the job."

So, even if the world championships are a little beyond Archie’s ambitions, he remains a beloved family pet.

"He loves to drive through cones and obstacles, and he can actually do a half-decent dressage test in the carriage," says Broadbent. "If the warmblood doesn’t make the grade you may well see him out and about!”

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