‘She saved me as much as I saved her’: standardbred found in supermarket car park overcomes the odds to qualify for eventing finals
The owner of a mare who faced being put down as a youngster has shared her story to inspire others
A standardbred found in a supermarket car park whose ridden career – and life – were in doubt aged three has qualified for the Cotswold Cup finals, with her “best friend”.
Katie Bird met Friday, named as this was the day she was found outside a Sainsbury’s, as a youngster, at a time she was considering giving up horses, and “felt a bit lost”.
“She’s my world,” Katie told H&H. “She saved me as much as I saved her.”
Katie had just graduated from the British Racing School but realised her “heart was in eventing”.
“I lost a lot of confidence doing the racing, I didn’t really want to go back to having lessons at a riding school and I didn’t have the money to buy my own horse,” she said. “I was at the age when you need to get a job anyway, and thought ‘Maybe this is it now’.
“But then my old riding school, Park Lane Stables, called to say this horse had been fly-grazed, got loose and into the car park; the police called them as they were local, and they ended up taking her as the owner was away. They said did I want to do some work with her to keep her ticking over, and that’s how I met Friday.”
Katie said she was scared of Friday at the start; she had not had much handling, and Katie thinks she was “quite shut down”.
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“She’s got an abundance of personality now!” she said.
By the time the owner returned, Katie had become attached to the mare, so she bought her for £1,800. But a couple of months later, Friday was very lame. The vet diagnosed early arthritic changes.
“I was told I would never ride her and probably the best thing would be to put her to sleep,” she said. “But I couldn’t. She was three, hadn’t had much of a life and even if she was just going to be in the field, I couldn’t do it. We did loads of rehab and groundwork, just to get her field sound.”
Katie said she was offered steroid injections but declined owing to the negative effect this can have on the joint in the longer term. Friday had BozMerix for a while, shockwave therapy and extensive physio and groundwork.
“When the vet came back, she was a lot sounder than we thought she’d ever be,” he said. “He said ‘Try hacking; if she wants to trot or canter, let her; let her tell you what she’s comfortable with’, and she got stronger and stronger.”
Katie said the timing was good; it was during the Covid lockdown so she had plenty of time to dedicate to rehab, but she was told Friday would never jump.
The mare was in work but then became reluctant to go forward. She was diagnosed with gastric ulcers – and asthma.
“She was very poorly for a while,” she said. “When we went for the rescope, there were no ulcers but we scoped her lungs to see what the asthma was about and they were 95% blocked, with mucus and stuff. The vet said he didn’t know how she was still standing.”
Friday’s lungs were flushed and she was treated with steroids. She now has to have steamed hay and a nebuliser on every day but is doing well.
“She got so much stronger as we had to slow things down,” she said. “She had a lameness and asthma check-up and the vet said I could try to jump her, so we started and she loves it.
“She’s forward, not spooky, she’ll jump anything. It’s like she was bred for it.
“There’s a lot of maintenance; she’s on a good joint supplement, we know her limits, she has a lot of rest time, but it’s manageable.”
Katie and Friday started doing some small hunter trials, and Katie said the mare took to it like a duck to water.
“She learned her job so quick,” she said. “She knew to look for the jump, she was fluid, brave, through water, ditches, anything. If I said ‘We can do this’, there’s no hesitation.”
They started eventing in 2025 and Katie said she was aiming for a consistent season in the 70cm Cotswold Cup this year, to build Friday’s confidence.
“She’s been in the top 10 at every event, and qualified for the final [on 27 September]” Katie said. “It’s exciting as there’s going to be a long dressage arena and two judges and everything.
“It’s so cool but I hope by sharing her story, I can show that eventing is inclusive. We have had comments from other riders and judges as she’s a gaited horse; they’re not meant to canter! People think she’s lame or struggling, I think gaited horses aren’t as accepted in equestrian sports yet.
“Her jumping technique isn’t traditional in any sense and I’ve had people saying there’s something wrong with her but they don’t understand gaited horses exist in eventing. But I think it’s a lovely thing to show that you don’t have to have a lovely big warmblood to do everything, you can put the effort in and do what you want to do on a budget.”
Beating the odds
Katie added that Friday’s overcoming of all her issues may also inspire others.
“It’s mad as I later found out that where she used to be fly-grazed was on my way to school; I walked past her every day, and now she’s my best friend,” she said.
“She’s got such enthusiasm for life, she loves everyone, she’s always got a cheeky, happy face. She taught my mum to ride, she takes my boyfriend on hacks, she’s so emotionally intelligent. I feel I really have a partnership with her.
“My mum calls her my champagne horse on a lemonade budget! I was having a really bad time with my mental health when I got her so I always tell people she saved me as much as I did her.”
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Eleanor is an experienced journalist who spent over eight years working for local and national newspapers before joining H&H as news editor in March 2016. Passionate about equine welfare and exposing the truth, Eleanor has reported on all aspects of the industry, from Brexit to anti-bullying campaigns, and from dressage rules to mules. Her sport of choice is showjumping, in which she competes her own horses, and she also enjoys reporting at local jumping shows through to international championships.