Looking to explore more of the countryside with your horse? An app for that is coming...
A rider is creating a paid app to help equestrians discover more hacking routes.
There are around 20,000 miles of bridleways in England – but how many of these would you feel confident exploring outside of your normal hacking routes?
A rider is creating a paid app to help equestrians discover more places to ride.
BridleNav, which has been trademarked and is set to launch in the spring, will feature routes across the UK, uploaded by riders.
The aim is for it to include the essential information you would give on to a friend who was going to hack one of your favourite routes for the first time. For example, where to park, directions at key points and other useful information such as gates, boggy patches, or where a bridleway marker has fallen over.
Riders will be able to see an overview of the route before they go, then the app will give them audio directions while they are riding. It will also include an SOS alert function.
“It’s an idea I’ve had in my mind for a long time,” BridleNav creator Charlotte Lowe told H&H.
She said there was a moment a few years ago where she boxed up to try a new hack for a change of scene. The faff of trying to map-read on a horse and paths’ being poorly signposted spurred her on to develop something better for riders.
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“I wanted to build something that’s really convenient and easy to use, to take that pressure off riders and hopefully try to help them get out more,” said Charlotte, who also has a livery yard and runs guided rides in the Peak District.
She added that she knows travelling with horses on unfamiliar roads and not knowing the horsebox parking situation – or if there is somewhere to turn around – is a very real concern for some equestrians. That is why this is one of the key parts of the app.
Riders can opt to edit the start and end points of their route to avoid giving their yard location, for safety and security reasons. Information about platforms used by the app, the data collected and how it is stored can be found on the BridleNav website’s privacy policy page.
The number of rides in the app is growing and Charlotte is keen to hear from riders across the country who would be interested in uploading routes over the winter.
Each route upload requires a minimum of two photos, plus “turn by turn” details so the app can give other riders directions. Equestrians submitting rides will also have to tick a box to confirm that these are rights of way on which horses are allowed.
For more information and to contact BridleNav, visit: https://bridlenav.com/index.html
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Lucy is an experienced news journalist, reporter and presenter. Since joining the Horse & Hound team in 2015, Lucy has reported from major global sporting events including the Tokyo Paralympic Games and multiple European Championships, as well as Badminton, Burghley and London, to name a few. She has covered current affairs and sports news across the full spectrum of equestrian disciplines and racing, as well as human and equine welfare, industry news and court cases.