Visit to Denmark Royal Stables
The Royal Stables of Denmark are located at Christiansborg Palace in central Copenhagen, Denmark. Today, there are about 20 horses in the stables. The stables are open to the public. I visited The stables in May 2016.
The status is built in remembrance of King Christian IX after his death in 1906. Four artists were invited to compete for the commission. Sculptor Anne Marie Carl-Nielsen, won the competition with her proposal for a new equestrian statue. In the proposal, the statue was shown on a high pedestal.
The office of the Prime Minister of Denmark is located at the left side of the following photo. Throughout my visit, I have only seen 1 security guard. You can probably imagine how confident the Danes are with their security.
I visited The Royal Stable on Saturday. The entrance fee is 40DKK (equivalent to RM24). There is a free guided tour at 1.30PM (I don’t exactly remember the time but it is around this hour), every Saturday. Any other time you can still walk around by yourselves.
There is a showroom known as The Harness Room to display paintings and old uniforms of the Royal Stables. The entrance of the room is the place where you can get your ticket. I arrived The Royal Stables slightly early. While waiting for the guided tour to begin, I killed some time in the The Harness Room with the attractive displays.
The Harness Room
The Royal Stables
Next, I proceed to enter the Royal Stables. The horses are all white in color. They probably have a better life than I do – they get released into the grass during summer to run freely for 2 months!
Coach Hall
The Royal Stables also contains the Coach Hall with old well-preserved state coaches and carriages. The coaches and carriages were actually used for various royal ceremonies. However for practical reasons, they are being preserved for display now.
Thanks to our tour guide, she generously brought us to visit the other side of the Royal Stables which is usually closed for public. The “behind the scene” visit surprised me how clean the place is kept although it is not open for public.
Riding School
There is also a riding school in the Royal Stables. The indoor arena is huge. Since it is indoor and the weather in Denmark is mostly wet and cold, the sand is not as fine as the sand in Malaysia.
Students are learning in the Royal Stables. 
Generally it was a really pleasant time to see the royal horses and to understand the history of Copenhagen through horses. If you happened to be in Copenhagen, remember to visit the Royal Stables on Saturday to catch the guided tour.
Hope you have enjoyed a virtual tour to the Royal Stables, Christiansborg Palace, Denmark!
MM2020 Horse Adventure
MM2020 Horse Adventure is located in Putrajaya Equestrian Park. They have an active Facebook page, unfortunately they do not have a website. The following information is collected through my personal riding sessions with them in Putrajaya Equestrian Park.
This is a photo of the office. It is a little hard to notice if you do not intentionally look for it. Once you parked your car, walk through the entrance and turn left. You will find the office at the end of the walkway.
Upon reaching, you will likely find the friendly administrator, Athirah working at her desk:
I have been with another riding school prior to switching to MM2020 Horse Adventure. I have to give acknowledgement to Athirah that she has been pretty helpful and attentive to my needs. I’m happy to recommend anyone to ride with MM2020 Horse Adventure. I truly believe she has gone the extra miles to help me in many occasions. Thanks Athirah!
This is a trail ride video:
You can check out more of the videos here >> Canter in Putrajaya Equestrian Park (riding school)
Here is a beautiful photo of the facility:
You can book a session for your wedding photo shooting as well:
MM2020 Horse Adventure Activities and Lessons:
If you are new to riding, you are recommended to sign up the Combo package to practice to be reasonably comfortable in riding different horses.
Another impressive service provided by MM2020 Horse Adventure is they provide helmet for student to use, at no cost. This is really thoughtful because most new riders have yet to decide whether riding is really the sport for them. Spending RM200-RM300 for a helmet to “try out” a sport is obviously a little high up front cost. The free helmet provided by MM2020 Horse Adventure is really handy for students’ first few sessions. If the students have decided to be more serious with horse riding, the student can buy a personal helmet at the shop next door.
MM2020HorseAdventure instructor, Wan. He is an experienced horse riding instructor. He has been riding horses since young age. I have met several instructors throughout my riding lessons. I believe instructors who have high expectation of you and are hard on you are good instructors. It really is for your own good. They will pinpoint the smallest mistakes you are making while riding, again and again, to ensure you have the right posture and right habit while riding. Wan is definitely one of such instructors. He is a tough coach during lessons but he is also a really nice guy when you chat with him privately. While Wan is away, other guys (Sam and Anil) working at the saddle can also coach and watch you riding at the paddock and polo field.
Here are some details about the facilities available in Putrajaya Equestrian Park.
Riding School Paddocks
- 2 x Sand Paddock 20m x 60m
- 1 x Lunging Sand Paddock 15m in diameter
Practice/Grazing Paddocks
- 1 x Sand Paddock 40m x 60m
- 1 x Grass Paddock 40m x 90m
In other words, this venue is meant for serious business.
This is one of the paddocks available in Putrajaya Equestrian Park. Students learn to trot and canter within the compound during lessons. The lessons are done under instructor’s supervision. It is a good idea for student to practice in paddock to build up skill and confidence before heading to more challenging rides. In fact, the following paddock is the place where I spent a lot of my lesson sessions practicing trot and canter.
Last thought…
Don’t be surprise if you happen to meet Tun Mahathir in the facility because MM2020 Horse Adventure is founded by Tun Mahathir.
I have yet to meet any of them personally in the facility. But I would imagine it will be totally awesome if I get to ride with them one day!
Overall, It has been a pleasant experience to ride with MM2020 Horse Adventure. Most horses are easy to ride. The lesson fee is affordable and reasonable. The staffs are friendly. I’m happy to recommend anyone who want to try out horse riding to give them a visit. Oh… and don’t forget to try out the Joyride for RM10 if you are visiting for the first time. You get to ride on a horse walking around the stable for few minutes guided by the staff. The last I heard from Athirah they are moving to Paya Indah Wetlands, Dengkil. However, I have yet to get any notification they have moved. Until next time!
Hacking at Putrajaya Equestrian Park (outride)
Dengkil is sitting right next to Putrajaya Equestrian Park. If you request for an escorted hacking session, the following is the place you will be riding at.
On that day I went out with Wan (the instructor), Athirah (administrator for riding school) and her friend. I was about 10 minutes late but they were kind enough to wait for me.
In the following you can see we ride through some pretty breathe-taking views. We ride inside a palm oil field and we were also riding along a lake.
Canter in Putrajaya Equestrian Park (riding school)
This is a video of riding inside the riding school field. My instructor (Wan) get me to canter for a round in school before heading out to the park located next to the riding school. We used the sandy track to head out, which is a much smoother ride when horse canter on sandy track.
This is a video of us riding in the park next to Putrajaya Equestrian Park. The whole track is about 3KM (a rough estimation). It takes about 20-30 minutes if you canter all the way. It will be 40-50 minutes if you trot or walk occasionally. You can see from the following video, the track is pretty clear so it’s possible for you to canter all the way in the track. There will be some 90° degree sharp corner (like the one in the beginning of the video) so it might be a good idea to trot over instead of cantering.
There is a playground (accessible by public) right next to this park. The following is a video of us walking through the playground
Horse Riding in Malaysia – Getting Started
Hello rider! This is Daniel Foo, an equestrian enthusiast. This page shares information about Horse Riding in Malaysia.
If this is the first time you are looking up for information about horse riding in Malaysia, I’d like to welcome you to the exciting world of equestrian in Malaysia.
Horse Riding Schools in Malaysia
The first thing you need to look for is a horse riding school in Malaysia. A riding school is the place you will get proper training on how to ride a horse safely.
Since there are not many riding school in Malaysia, my suggestion is to find one nearest to you.
Of course, if there is any reason that you do not want to attend the one nearest to your home for other reasons (for example, if you only want to train with a specific coach), that’s totally fine too as long as you do not mind the traveling time.
I will not include too many details on lesson fees here as the lesson fees inflate over time.
Some schools charge based on packages along with a small membership fee, while some schools charge averagely around RM90 – RM110 per 45 min lesson.
Lesson fees will vary depending on your levels, packages and schools.
Some of the bigger riding schools in Malaysia are: Denai Alam Recreational and Riding Club, Selangor Turf Club, Putrajaya Equestrian Park, etc but you have a lot of other options too if you want a less busy riding school.
So, head over to the Malaysia riding school page or make a Google search to find a riding school.
Horse Riding Equipments in Malaysia
As the up-front cost for the equipment can be a little overwhelming compared to other sports, I generally recommend new riders to only spend the minimum to get started.
It’s only when you know for sure to continue for longer term, you should then invest into better quality gears and some of the nice to have.
Helmet
On your first day of attending your riding lesson, you will be able to loan one from the riding school. Perhaps, even for the following few lessons. Some schools might charge you a few Ringgit for each use, most will let you use for free.
If you think that horse riding is a sport for you after completing a few lessons, then you can consider to get a helmet for hygienic purposes. Consider allocating a budget of RM200-RM300 for a reasonably good entry level model.
Pro tips: The size of your helmet plays an important role. Make sure you get the right fit by trying out the sizes. You should always try on the helmet when you buy one to ensure it doesn't move around when you shake your head. Refer to the sizing guide from each brand if you are getting from online store.
Gloves
In the first 1-2 lesson you won’t be working with the reins too roughly, so it’s ok to ride with bare hands. Once you get into trotting on your own, getting a pair of entry level gloves will be good enough.
A pair of gloves will protect your fingers from too frictions with the reins. The reins might cause blisters if you get an active horse and you try to slow your horse down. Proper riding gloves also provide better gripe on the reins. So, highly advisable to get a pair.
Pro tips: It's much cheaper to buy the gloves online once you know your size. Personally, I do not buy an expensive pair anymore because they will still break at some point. A pair that costs around RM50 is good enough to use for 2 years, depending on how often you ride. When it breaks, simply throw it away and get a new pair.
Riding Boots
In your first 10 lessons, you can probably get away with just wearing sport shoes. But soon you will realize it will be too much of hassle to clean your sport shoes after each lesson. Then, you know it’s time to get a pair of boots.
You can start by buying an affordable short rubber boots and pair it with half chap. That will get you going for your riding journey for a long time.
In my early days, I used to complete endurance competition with just short rubber boots and half chap so it’s totally fine with basic setup.
This is where things can get expensive if you get too fancy with your equipments too quickly.
I have seen friends who bought long boots for over RM1,000 and I also have friend who wears custom boots for over RM2,000.
Pro tips: You don't practically need a pair of expensive boots in the early days (at least the first one year or so). I'm still very much in love with my long rubber boots (that cost less than RM100) for almost all my rides. I just spray it with water after use and leave it in my car until the next ride.
Half Chap
Half chap goes together with your short boots. It will protect your calf from stirrup. Get the affordable endurance type to begin with. Probably a little over RM100.
Half chap normally can last surprisingly long. The endurance type is easy to clean and dry, so it’s a good choice if you are just getting started.
Pro tips: Wear your breech along while picking one to ensure it fits tightly and comfortably. Avoid buying online if you are not sure of the size as the calf size might vary.
Breeches
Breeches is commonly called the riding pants. Similar to boots, you can get away with your first 8-10 lessons with a pair of jeans or long pants.
If you are interested in horse riding for longer term, get a pair for more comfortable riding experience. A good entry level pair will cost you around RM 200-RM300.
Pro tips: Get a dark color to save the hassle of cleaning the stain.
Well, these are the basic to get you started.
If you want to go a little further, maybe you want get a whip too. There are short whip for jumping and long whip for dressage.
Usually your riding school will be able to provide one for you. You can get one for yourselves if you want to be a more little fancy.
If you go for trail ride when you are more comfortable with riding, you might also consider getting a camera (like a GoPro or other brands) that can mount on your helmet to record the fun moments.
Here are some shops that you can visit to get some gears.
Shops for Horse Riding in Malaysia
- G05, Ground Floor, 50450, Plaza Ampang City, Jalan Ampang, Kampung Berembang, 55000 Kuala Lumpur, Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur
- 012-207 2990
- Bukit Kiara Resort Bhd, Bukit Kiara Equestrian, 60000 Kuala Lumpur, Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur
- 03-2096 1228
- Royal Selangor Polo Club, c/o, No 1, Lorong Kelab Polo Di Raja, Desa Pahlawan, 55000 Kuala Lumpur
- 014-331 4900
I’m going to leave you here with this…
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step
– Ancient proverb
I hope I have provided you a little bit more information about horse riding in Malaysia to get you started.
I will see you in the arena soon!
Riding Lessons
For many Malaysians who live in city (like I am), it is not common to have horses as pet. Therefore most of us do not have experience in riding horses. It become really important to take up proper riding lessons before going for more advanced activities with horses.
Riding lessons in Malaysia are offered in packages. You will often see riding schools offer different riding packages with different pricing and different number of session. However, generally you will find the packages as following:
Beginner Level
Beginner Level package is usually short sessions from 20-30 minutes for each session. Reason why it is designed to be short session is to allow the student to get used to using specified part of their muscle to ride a horse. In Beginner Level, instructor will pay 1 to 1 attention to the student to ensure the student’s safety. The fee for this package range from RM350 to RM450. The number of session range from 5 sessions to 8 sessions – depending on package offered by different riding school. In this level, student will learn
- the correct posture to sit on horse
- different types of horse movements (walk, trot, canter)
- different aids to communicate with horse (leg, hand, sound)
- different terms for the gears on the horse (stirrup, rein, etc)
At the end of your Beginner Level, you should be able to comfortably ask your horse to move forward, bend left / right, and stop. If you are a quick learner, you will be able to trot comfortably as well.
Intermediate Level
Intermediate Level package is usually longer sessions around 45 minutes each session. In Intermediate Level, the instructor will pay 1 to 1 attention OR the instructor will coach a group of Intermediate Level student together. The fee for this package range from RM450 to RM500. The number of session range from 5 sessions to 8 sessions – depending on package offered by different riding school. In this level, student will practice
- consistently displaying correct posture to ride on horses
- riding on different horse movements (walk, trot, canter) and the transitions
- riding horses using different aids to communicate with horse (leg, hand, sound, whip)
At the end of your Intermediate Level, you should be able to comfortably ride your posing trot and sitting trot. If you are a quick learner, you will be able to canter steadily on different horses. Some student might need to take up more than one Intermediate Level package to be more solid on the riding skills. A good benchmark is when the student can confidently and effortlessly trot and canter on different type of horses.
Instructor
How to spot a good instructor? I have taken up lessons with couple of instructors, some are harsher, some are friendlier and some just don’t really care. For me, a good instructor is someone who gives me constant feedback by telling me what is my problem and how to fix it. A good instructor should also have strict standard on his students. In other words, do expect a good instructor to shout to you across the paddock “YOUR LEG IS TOO INSIDE!”, “LEAN BACK!”, “OPEN YOUR SHOULDER!”. It might get embarrassing at times but this is the cost to being a good rider.
Other matters…
The number of sessions in the packages offered by riding schools could be a little too short for someone totally new. Do not be discouraged that you have finished up all the session yet you are not good with riding. It takes at least 6 months (which is 20-30 sessions) for someone totally new to be fairly comfortable with riding different horses.
Should you ride the same horse all the time or should you ride different horses? Unless you own a horse yourself, generally it is a good idea to ride different horses to learn the different rhythm in horse movement. It help you to develop your adaptability to quickly adjust your tempo for different horses, so that you can ride on any horses in the future.
One thing to take note is while riding ex-racer (horses which are retired from racing). They are often being bought and retrained to be used in riding school. Please be careful while riding an ex-racer. Although they have been retrained, they could still get pretty excited while cantering. If you are new to cantering or you are learning to canter, it is best to avoid ex-racer.
Equipment for Riding
Half Chaps
Half chaps is a protective gear that cover from the ankle to just below the knee. Half chaps are made of either leather or fabrics, and have a zipper or hook and loop closure on the outside. The purpose of wearing a half chaps is to prevent the stirrup leathers from rubbing and pinching your legs. It also save your breech (riding pants) from being dirty quickly. I find half chaps a great choice over full chaps for a few reasons. First, Malaysia whether is HOT, half chaps allows better air circulation. Second, if you are new into horse riding you want to get the basic with minimal cost to keep you going, see if you really like horse riding before investing into better gears. Half chaps is cheaper than full chaps. An entry level pair of half chaps I bought cost RM105 (in 2015). When trying out your chaps, ensure you get your chaps fit perfectly to your leg. If you can’t find one that fit “perfectly”, get the one slightly tighter. Best if you wear your breech (riding pants) while trying out the chaps.
Gloves
Gloves protect your palm and finger from directly rubbing with reins. It could make your palms or fingers red and painful when you are new and still learning how hard you should hold and pull the reins. A pair of entry level horse riding fabric gloves will cost below RM50. I got one pair for RM35 (in 2015). You can opt for the higher end leather glove. Leather grade will last longer however price will be more expensive and hotter compared to fabric gloves. Again, while choosing gloves do choose a pair that fit your palm comfortably (not too tight and not too loose).
Breech
Breech which is more commonly known as riding pants. Breech is a tough yet comfortable wear. I wear my breech for leisure hiking sometimes. Although a lot of people (including the experienced riders) wear a pair of jeans to ride horses, it never hurts to wear the proper attire for riding. It fact it looks much better in breech than in jeans. Breech is slightly tighter than your usual pants but the material is flexible and expandable. Breech has extra padding around the knee level (inner facing). The extra padding serves as an additional layer to prevent your breech from worn out quickly, as riding will be using that part for gripping while riding. An entry level of breech will cost around RM200-RM300.
Whip
A whip is an aiding tool to help you to communicate with your horse. The main purpose for using your whip is to ask your horse go faster. The image above is a short whip. You use this type of whip to tap on the horse shoulder. You can also use it to tap at the back but that will require you to put your hand slightly behind. Personally, I prefer use such whip to tap on the back instead of shoulder because it is more effective in asking to ask the horse to go forward. A basic whip will cost around RM30 (in 2016). There is another type of whip which is longer. Riders use it for Polo. It cost slightly more but it is more comfortable to use because it can reach to the back of the horse effortlessly. I personally use a short whip because it cost less and it is easier for storage.
Helmet
Of all the gears, helmet is the most important because a helmet might just save your life. Needless to say, the helmet is for your head protection. It is to spread the impact of your head on any hard object (for example a rock) if you happen to fall from horse. Touch wood! An entry level helmet cost around RM300-RM400 (in 2015). If you are buying a helmet for your child, consider one that the size is adjustable because your child head is going to grow over years. If you an adult and you are buying one for yourself, buy one that fits your head perfectly. When you are choosing a helmet, be sure to put it on and shake your head a little to test out how firm does it fit into your head. If you buckle up and shake your head yet the helmet moves around even slightly, it’s a sign that the helmet is too loose for you. You should choose one that does not move around even when you shake your head. The degree of “bumpiness” on a horse is much greater than shaking your head yourselves. If the helmet did not survive your shaking, be sure that it will not able to handle the “bumpiness” while you are riding. It will be really uncomfortable if you have to adjust your helmet every 100m while you ride. Having said that, also be sure not to get a super tight helmet as it will feel like your head being squeezed all time during riding that might lead to headache.
Camera (nice to have but not necessary)
A camera that can mount on your helmet is a really great addition to your riding experience. It is not a necessity but definitely something nice to have. Personally I did not get a camera until 1 year into my riding. I like to use the camera to record my outride session to keep it as record for every unique route or place I visit. Click here to look at some of the videos I created from my camera.
Boot
A pair of riding boot is essential for riders. It serves 3 main purposes. First, it has a heel which will stop your leg moving too inside into stirrup. If you wear sport shoes which does not have a heel and your leg move way into the stirrup, it is extremely dangerous if you fall from horse at this point because you leg will be hooked inside the stirrup. Your body will be on the ground, your one leg (or maybe both) inside hanging on the horse. It is a really ugly scene you wouldn’t want to imagine. Second, it is water proof. It does not look dirty easily when going through muddy path. It is easy to clean the surface. Third, the back of the boot is pretty high which allow your chaps to wrap your boots tightly. When you are buying boots, be sure to try it on with the socks that you will be wearing while riding. It is alright to buy boots that is slightly tight. As you wear them for a few more times the boots will expand slightly to fit your feet. For beginning, you can consider getting rubber boots rather than leather boots as the price difference is significant. A pair of rubber boot cost around RM200 (in 2015).
Last thought…
While buying your gears, be sure to try it out yourselves personally physically. Remember, you do not want anything that is too loose or too tight. Horse riding is not a “gentle” sport, you need to have your gears tough and fit perfectly well to you. As you probably notice, the upfront investment for gears is slightly on the high side compare to other sports. It might be a good idea to get the minimal basic to keep you going. Once you are in the game and your gears started to get worn out, it’s never too late to upgrade your gear one by one. Have fun!