0%

 

Hi everyone, my name is Romy Fryer and I’m a Tottie #select17 girl! I’m 17 and based in South Devon with my two steeds. I’m currently studying psychology, maths stats and geography at a sixth form, which I love! Psychology is probably my least favourite as theres so much content but its mostly interesting, a lot of writing though! Maths is my guilty pleasure, I really enjoy it, and theres something so satisfying about getting questions right, but the A level course is very tricky (touch wood I’m keeping up so far!) Geography is my true love...

 

though, I’m a massive nerd when it comes to the subject, and can often be found doing extra work in my spare time… In my defence, geography is something that I would love to go on and study at Uni, specifically conservation so if anybody has any question (about any of the subjects) please don't hesitate to approach me on social media and I’ll do my best to help!

 

Now that I’ve revealed my inner geek to you all, welcome to my life! As I mentioned earlier, I live by the beach in sunny Devon, with my Mum, Dad, 2 labradors (Nelly and Cleo) and the ponies. My brother is currently studying engineering at Exeter Uni so he isn't far away at all. As well as horses, I love to read, (you’ll often find me with a book), as well as enjoying photography! You’ll see quite a few photos on my social media that I’ve taken. I mainly do nature shoots but I have done humans as well as an alternative to mix things up! I’m a firm believer in the idea that you don't need the most expensive equipment to create a piece of work that you like, its the thought and creativity that goes into a photo that shows more in my opinion. I use a Sony A58, mostly with a 55-200mm lens for landscapes and equine photography, as it picks up moving objects really nicely, but also has the zoom range needed for the natural side of things. For humans, I tend to use an F1.8 SAM lens because you can move a bit more easily with it, and it is really good in low lighting for portrait shots!

 

Onto the horses (finally do I hear you say?), first up is my main man Oaklyvaile Golden Boy, aka Sprout (yes, you can have a laugh). Sprout is my 9 year old 14.2 Welsh D x Arab x Connemara event pony. I bought him out a field in the Cotswolds in March of 2013, when I was just about 13 years old as a 5 year old, unvetted, barely ridden but with a *sweet persona* (oh how we laugh about that now!). Sprout was my second project pony, but by far the biggest challenge! He had the attitude of a 17.2h, and his personality certainly fills the room… when you're stood in a field, thats a very large “room” to fill! 2 months after he came home, Sprout broke his pedal bone, so found himself on box rest for 7 months which nearly killed both of us (literally…) but I have those tales planned for another blog, so watch out for that. Despite his tantrums, I wouldn’t change Sprout for the world, we've grown up together and it’s crazy how in sync we are (without sounding soppy). He’s the most talented pony I've ever sat on, popping 1.50m without batting an eyelid, and can produce a mighty fine dressage test when he wants to! Harnessing him is an ongoing battle but so long as I stay out his way and let him express himself, I get to stay along for the ride in return! We’ve had our ups and downs theres no denying that, but hey, if it makes other people smile, we’re doing our jobs. Sprout and I compete at 1m-1.10m showjumping, Stressage at elementary level, but eventing is where my heart lies, and together we’ve competed at 100 level for the past season and hope to do so this year as well!

 

Onto the other pony child in my family, definitely a crowd pleaser, its Yogi Bear (or Noodle as we call him). Yogi only joined the family at the end of October 2016, but already its hard to imagine life without him! Yogi is an 8h, 7 month old, dartmoor hill pony, rescued off the moors. He was completely wild when he came to us, only having been in contact with humans for five days, but he is getting a lot more confident with new people as time progresses, and follows me round the farm like a duckling which is sweet. That’s not to say he hasn't got attitude though, because boy does that foal throw some shapes! He makes me laugh though and that’s the main thing! Noodle has adopted a lot of Sprout’s personality traits (not all good ones) so I have to keep my wits about me when they're together, but all their actions are playful, never malicious!

 

I hope this blog has given you some insight into who I am, and what I do! I’m really looking forwards to 2017 as part of the Tottie team, having seen how much fun Faye had last year! My Instagram is @rf_equine where I post regular updates about the ponies and I, don't hesitate to get in contact with any questions you have!

Thanks very much for reading,

Romy, Sprout and Yogi Bear :)