Sarah Johnstone of Apt Cavalier is a fresh face on the equestrian blogging scene launching mid July this year. Through the Facebook group Equestrian Bloggers the idea arose for us to review another writers blog. I have thoroughly enjoyed become acquainted with Sarah and her blog.
At heart Sarah is an avid eventer.
“I was very much a Pony Club all rounder in my youth so tried everything but it was very much the XC that attracted me to eventing! My last horse, Snug, who I got when I was 14 and had until my early twenties, was a XC machine and really sparked my love for it! I am so lucky that Woody [Sarah’s cob] shares my bravery and love for XC!
But I think it’s the whole day at BE that makes me love it- it’s a unique sport- some people dread the
So what is Apt Cavalier?
Apt Cavalier equestrian clothing based in the U.K. was created by Sarah. It is evident through her writing just how much passion she pours into her business.
Like many great developments, Apt Cavalier was born from Sarah’s desire for lightweight, comfortable clothing that would not leave her drenched after galloping across country. Sarah combines her formal training (she holds a BAHons in Fashion Design) with an understanding of what riders need.
Breaking into blogging
Sarah explained to me that she got into blogging out of necessity, but found something unexpected in the process.
“I started the blog for a couple of reasons – first and foremost because I needed a “blogging page” for my business, but once I started writing I realised I loved it! I write exactly how I speak (very casual) so writing comes very easily to me! I also do a bit of vlogging so it’s nice to have a change and do some writing in between vlogs!
An unexpected discovery is certainly that writing makes me feel better! A good example of this is that recently my horse has been diagnosed with a hole in his Tendon and his future in eventing is really unclear. I was really upset (obviously) and very frustrated to not be riding, as this is my escape from the world! Every night I was coming home from the stables more disheartened than the day before and my other half didn’t quite know how to handle this (he is non-horsey!). However I then wrote my season review: part two which detailed about Woody’s injury and getting it down on paper and having a good cry about it really helped! It was like a weight off my chest that it was out in the open!”
The content
The posts on Apt Cavalier strike a brilliant balance between providing insights into why Sarah started the business, what it is like to run a business as well as the highlights and realities of life with horses.
One thing that I particularly connect with in this blog is Sarah’s honesty. It is easy enough to fall into the trap of project the image of success at all times. I can imagine this would be particularly tempting for business owner. But I love that Sarah is open about the challenges she has faced in making the jump up to BENovice (read more).
One of my favourite posts on Apt Cavalier ‘This one is for the Wobble Berries’ where Sarah draws the reader in to the world of eventing competitions, explaining the intricacies of the sport. It also acts as a great guide to eventing for newcomers to the sport or those returning after a break.
Overall impressions of Apt Cavalier
The whole website, including the blog is clean and easy to navigate. Sarah combines stunning photo’s with an engaging and thoughtful writing style. Her vlogs offer cool behind the scenes insights!
You can follow Apt Cavalier on Facebook, and Instagram.
