“It’s a great way to get back in the saddle and overcome fear,” Ask-Upmark said.įor Kerr, simply getting on the horse for the first time, which requires Ask-Upmark to push her up onto the saddle, was an act of courage.

She has sold seven simulators on the West Coast of the United States and three in Canada.Īt Coto, riders of all ages and levels use the simulator, including those who have fallen off their horses. “It’s brought a lot of notoriety because there are so few (horse simulators) in the country,” Radovich said.Īsk-Upmark, who has worked with Racewood over the past several years to develop the simulators, says they’re still a rarity outside of the United Kingdom and Europe. Director Signe Radovich says the addition of Dante Maximus has put them on the map as a premier equine destination. “It’s not a coincidence that horses get injured.”ĭante Maximus comes to Coto amid plans for more than $1.5 million in enhancements to the Equestrian Center. “It’s sometimes pretty scary seeing how people jump and ride on horses,” Ask-Upmark said. When riders can practice for hours on the simulator, their horses are better rested and are less likely to learn bad behaviors from novice riders. Practicing on horse simulators doesn’t just benefit riders, but makes for happier horses too. “You can jump forever until you feel 100 percent secure,” Ask-Upmark said. One screen displays information from pressure sensors in the reins, stirrup, neck, saddle and legs of the horse that reveal how crooked or balanced the rider is. The motorized horse even neighs when the rider holds the reigns too loose.Īlthough Dante Maximus is fixed to a platform, three screens in front of the rider display an animated grassy field or wooded path, which shifts along with the horse’s movements. When Dante “wakes up” at the push of a button, he moves his head from side to side, as if stretching imaginary muscles.

The simulator is engineered with hydraulics that allow for a full range of motion, making its movements appear almost as natural as those of a real horse. Besides jumping, it can also perform advanced dressage moves such as piaffe and passage, pirouette, half pass and shoulder in. The $120,000 robotic horse is the most advanced in a line of equine simulators made by British company Racewood, the only company in the world that makes motorized horses.

Racewood eventing simulator price