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History of the Sport

It is difficult to believe that man was completely dependent on driving horses for centuries to move freight, build roads, plow and harvest fields, deliver milk, ice, mail and coal, gallop over city streets with huge pieces of fire equipment, pull ambulances, move circuses, haul street cars and do any other work that had to be done. Less than a century ago, horses were the only reasonable mode of transport.

Suddenly the world was introduced to the automobile with its apparent efficiencies. People became eager to trade in their horse for the convenience of anything that was pushed or pulled with the power of a combustion engine. Horses quickly diminished in numbers and only a few individuals kept them for pleasure, sport or companionship.

For a generation the knowledge, the skills and the art of driving horses seemed to be fading away. Those who still drove them became oddities. Old harness, horse drawn implements, carts, carriages and wagons were used as props or landscaping items left to rot and rust outdoors. Museums, heritage fairs and parades, old movies and the Amish were the only place one could find horses being driven. Horse equipment became collectables and antique items.

Some people still maintained an interest in horses. Riding horses for recreation and as a sport lost some popularity but still experienced slow growth. The fact that Equestrian sports were included in the Olympics was an important factor in sustaining this growth. With the help of a few people who maintained an interest in driving horses, others realized that a good driver is a thrill to watch, and the art of driving is just as full of enjoyment, thrills and challenge as is riding. Today driving horses has become the fastest growing equestrian sport and recreational activity in the world.