HN Best of 2015 #10: 16 Sidesaddle Foxhunters Who Are Braver Than We’ll Ever Be

My own astride jumping will never feel quite as impressive to me anymore. Photos courtesy of the amazing and talented Nico Morgan!

Last weekend was the Belvoir Sidesaddle Hunt in the United Kingdom, and apparently everyone lived to tell the tale! Photographer Nico Morgan got some incredible candid shots from the field of these brave women (of ALL ages!) tackling a brush fence, and also shared with us some additional amazing sidesaddlers tackling the Quorn Hunt last October.

To me, these photos prove to me as an eventer that there’s a whole other level of insanity I’ve yet to breach in my horse career, but I’m glad to know there’s something out there for me if I ever want to confront my own mortality. You, sidesaddle hunt ladies, are my heroes, and get this week’s HN Insanity Salute.

Let’s all (of legal age) drink up before we start, shall we? It’s going to be a wild ride.

The Belvoir Hunt at Holwell. Photo by Nico Morgan Photography

1. This that’s-so-Downton-Abbey duo.

The Belvoir Hunt at Holwell. Photo by Nico Morgan Photography

2. This beautiful pair that must not only jump, not only jump sidesaddle, not only jump sidesaddle with like five things in her hand, but must also jump sidesaddle with like five things in her hand and also duck so as not to hit the beautiful berried tree.

Quorn Hunt Opening Meet. Photo by Nico Morgan Photography

3. This splendid partnership that makes a death-defying muddy autumn hunt look like an easy and stylish neighborhood jaunt. I want to be her.

Quorn Hunt Opening Meet. Photo by Nico Morgan Photography

4. This gal’s face full of gleeful exclamation and her gorgeous pinto. I want him.

The Belvoir Hunt at Holwell. Photo by Nico Morgan Photography

5. This fabulous woman who defies any silly ideas of settling down and choosing a more “reasonable” hobby as you get older. PFFSHH.

Quorn Hunt Opening Meet. Photo by Nico Morgan Photography

6. This little lady and her little companion making small work of this hedge that would make me cry.

The Belvoir Hunt at Holwell. Photo by Nico Morgan Photography

7. This incredibly handsome golden hunt horse and his fearless lady. ‘Dat Face. MMMM HMMM!

Quorn Hunt Opening Meet. Photo by Nico Morgan Photography

8. This woman with ice in her veins totally not reacting to her mount’s spectacular effort here.

The Belvoir Hunt at Holwell. Photo by Nico Morgan Photography

9. This woman’s slightly less icy veins who looks totally terrified but still less terrified than I would be. Also, one-handed, as it were.

Quorn Hunt Opening Meet. Photo by Nico Morgan Photography

10. This incredibly photogenic horse.

The Belvoir Hunt at Holwell. Photo by Nico Morgan Photography

11. This pair that’s half freaking out, half bored, and 100% adorable and gutsy.

The Belvoir Hunt at Holwell. Photo by Nico Morgan Photography

12. This totally earnest horse and his cool-as-a-cucumber young rider. (And that shadbelly. I have no excuse to own one, but I WANT one.)

Quorn Hunt Opening Meet. Photo by Nico Morgan Photography

13. Absolutely positively every single thing about this picture.

The Belvoir Hunt at Holwell. Photo by Nico Morgan Photography

14. This glorious midnight pair that look like they could star in your spooky haunted foxhunt campfire story. (In a good way.)

Quorn Hunt Opening Meet. Photo by Nico Morgan Photography

15. This gal’s wicked cool top-hat and horse demonstrating the jumping method known as “close your eyes, jump, and pray we land on the other side.” Hey, that’s how I do it, too!

The Belvoir Hunt at Holwell. Photo by Nico Morgan Photography

16. And this gal, who may be wishing that her top-hat were just an inch or two shorter, but still looks freakishly put-together in the moment.

Quorn Hunt Opening Meet. Photo by Nico Morgan Photography

See more of Nico Morgan’s equestrian photography at www.nicomorgan.com, and Go Foxhunting!