EquiRatings Eventing Podcast

On today's episode of When Nicole Met, supported by Bedmax, we sit down with five-star rider and producer Kate Rocher-Smith to unravel a career built as much in the sales yard as in the start box. From a first Badminton to eight- and nine-year-olds at Aston le Walls and a stable full of rising prospects, Kate explains how Dassett Eventing has become one of the sport's most influential pipelines for top horses and top riders.
Highlights
Badminton 2025 and the first-five-star learning curve
How Dassett Eventing reshaped the sales + production model
The traits that matter most in young horses today
Why team culture drives performance and longevity
Ones to watch for 2026 and the next generation
Guests
Kate Rocher-Smith, five-star rider and founder of Dassett Eventing
Hosted by Nicole Brown
This show is kindly supported by Bedmax, purpose-made, natural horse bedding designed to protect respiratory health, support hooves, and provide a clean, comfortable stable environment.

On today's Connolly's Red Mills Special, we've got a brilliant double act: former European Champion Tina Cook and one of the most exciting young names coming through, her daughter Izzy. With the 2026 season in sight, we look back on a year that included Boekelo, Young Rider medals and a first full run at four-star, and ahead to under-25 Worlds, Bramham ambitions and the next crop of homebreds coming through the yard.
From the call that cost an individual medal at Strzegom to the seven-year-olds they both hope to take to Le Lion, the Cooks open the door on what's to come.
Highlights
Four-star lessons, Boekelo and the Young Rider Europeans
Team orders, pressure and delivering under championship conditions
Under-25 Worlds: why the pathway matters and how riders get selected
Breeding, bloodlines and the next generation of Cook horses
Horses to follow in 2026: Mexican Law, Moony and the seven-year-olds
Guests
Tina Cook - Former European Champion & Red Mills Ambassador
Isabelle Cook - U21/Young Rider medalist & Red Mills Ambassador
Presented in partnership with Connelly's Red Mills
Sponsors:
Connolly's Red Mills are offering 15% off Foran Equine products to Eventing Podcast listeners! Use the code EquiRatingsPodcast15 to receive your discount. View the full collection here.
Note this does not apply to the already discounted Pre-Fuel & Refuel combo packs.
If you have any other questions regarding feeding click here to ask the Connolly's RED MILLS experts.

Welcome back to the Eventing Podcast. We have teamed up with the USEA and for this New Year special, we're taking on one of the biggest conversations in equestrian sport: social license. What it is, why it matters, and how every one of us plays a role in the future of eventing. Olympic champion, five-star winner, USEF Chief of Sport, and USEA EA21 Director of Coaching David O'Connor joins the show to unpack trust, education, safety, and responsibility, and how the sport can evolve while keeping its core values at the center.
For the latest in U.S. eventing, competition highlights, rider interviews, expert insights, and more, follow the USEA and subscribe to the USEA podcast channel to stay up to date!
EquiRatings Eventing Podcast
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Andy Heffernan steps into the stable and we go well beyond course plans and CV lines — from winter escapes and family life to AI fence drawings, Olympic dream seats, and why Bramham still means everything to him. 
HIGHLIGHTS
Why winter never really slows him down
Using AI to turn fences into drawings
The advice from Andrew Nicholson that shaped his career
Why Bramham is still his favourite event
Olympic finals, jump racing, and skiing envy
"More tolerant than I used to be" - summing himself up in a few words
GUEST
Andy Heffernan - international course designer, coach, and rider
To find out more about Strawmax bedding and how it could work in your yard, head to: https://www.strawmax.co.uk 
EquiRatings Eventing Podcast Follow the EquiRatings Eventing Podcast for more data-led insight, top-tier guests, and everything you need to keep up with the 2026 season on Instagram and Facebook.

Today on When Nicole Met, supported by Bedmax, we meet someone whose life has touched every corner of eventing. From growing up in a family steeped in eventing history to carving out her own path in advertising, creative production and now commentary and podcasting, Annie Bishop talks storytelling, sport, and why fresh voices matter. She also gives an inside look at the US Equestrian Open podcast, working alongside riders across dressage, jumping and eventing, and how the Open format is helping develop combinations and build fans in the lead-up to LA.
Highlights
Parents who rode at Olympic and World Championship level
Advertising, production and crisis comms, and what eventing can learn
Commentary, data and storytelling as gateways to the sport
The rise of the US Equestrian Open and why the series matters
Representation, female voices and growing US commentary talent
Hopes for 2026 and building new fans for equestrian sport
Guest
Annie Bishop – Producer, commentator and host of the US Equestrian Open Podcast. Part of the EquiRatings team, working across eventing, jumping and dressage.
This show is kindly supported by Bedmax, purpose-made, natural horse bedding designed to protect respiratory health, support hooves, and provide a clean, comfortable stable environment.