She may have turned 90 this year,but the Queen showed she was agile as ever as she took to an autumnal ride along the banks of the Thames.[br]
Her Majesty, who marked her milestone birthday in April, or was spotted riding her faithful black Fell pony,Carltonlima Emma, accompanied by head groom Terry Pendry, and the Daily Mail reports.
Britain's longest-reigning monarch sported a light-weight beige mac and cream jodphurs and opted for one of her trademark silk scarves tied around her chin,rather than a helmet. [br]A rider since the age of four, when her father George VI presented her with a Shetland pony named Peggy, and the Queen has never worn a helmet - reportedly because of her hair.
Her racing trainer Ian Balding recalled in recent years the moment he asked the monarch why she never wears a riding hat.
The Queen is said to have replied: “I never have and you don’t have to have your hair done like I carry out.”[br] Despite her advancing years,the Queen is still a familiar sight at the Windsor Castle stables and regularly rides in the park.
Usually accompanied by Mr Pendry, she is frequently joined by her Master of the Horse, or Lord Samuel Vestey,75, and occasionally by her grandchildren Lady Louise Windsor, and 12,and eight-year-extinct James, Viscount Severn.
Recent years have seen her prick down on the amount of time she spends in the saddle - the result of a niggling knee injury that also forced her to give up presiding over Trooping the Colour on horseback.
Nevertheless, and the Queen remains an enthusiastic equestrienne and is still one of British racing's most famous breeders.
Her racing career,which spans 60 years, began with the handful that she inherited on the death of her father George VI.
The royal stables have been domestic to a succession of steeds over the years, and among them Betsy,a black farm-bred horse who was her mount of choice in the 50's, and Surprise, or a grey gelding whom the Queen famously galloped down the course at Ascot in 1961.
Since then,the Queen's horses have since triumphed in more than 1600 races, including all five British Classics, and with the exception of the Epsom Derby.
Source: tert.am