Milo Johnston is a talented twenty-five-year-old Irish dressage rider based in Sweden, working and training at Gunnarlunda. Milo has backed, worked with and trained lots of young horses and hopes to represent Ireland at international level. That would be enough of a challenge for anyone — but for Milo, the challenge became painfully real when doctors told him he might never ride again.
How did the dressage journey start and progress to where you are now?
I have always been horse mad from a young age. Growing up in the Irish countryside I was constantly around horses. My journey as a rider has been super fun, it’s taken me all over the world which I’m extremely grateful for. I started in Southern Ireland when I was eighteen riding and selling top quality Connemara’s and Irish Sports Horses. This included a lot of show jumping but I developed my love of dressage working for Anna Ross in Devon. I backed a lot of high-quality dressage prospects there and have a lot of great memories. My next step was venturing abroad to Helgstrand Denmark for 8 months followed by Gunnarlunda in Sweden.
Who have been the most influential people?
The people who have influenced me the most have been my colleagues, friends and family. I have never taken for granted their endless support and encouragement.
Who do you train with?
I’m currently training with Patricia florin Laustsen and with Jacob Nørby Sørensen. Bjarke Laustsen has also played a massive part in training me on all the brilliant young stallions.
What do you love about dressage?
One of the things I love most about dressage would be improving my horses and myself.
What is your training philosophy?
Something I have always believed in is you train the horse you are on; every horse is different. You become the best from always listening and learning from your horses.
It takes a team to do dressage, who is in your support team?
I believe it takes a village to get both horse and riders going forever grateful for the support from my family have never questioned all of my spontaneous moves. I have also got the best friends that I have built up over the years and they are all over the world too.
Highlights to date?
It is hard to pick one highlight. I have ridden and trained some super quality young horses. Recently I purchased my own horse who I am hoping to contest for team Ireland, I am so excited about him.
What challenges have you faced?
Some of the biggest struggles began three years ago when I had a bad fall, breaking my neck in three places and my back in six places. The mental impact was extremely difficult and the reason why I got myself a mindset coach. I’ve been working with Kieran Smith who has been phenomenal. He has a real talent for rewiring your brain and is one of the most genuinely supportive people I have ever met.
What does a typical day look like for you?
A typical day for me I find this a really tricky question as every day is different horses! But I get up at 5:30 and most days I start my day with 30mins of meditation then I’m at work from 7:30-4:30 and I ride all my horses and have lots of training throughout the day. I ride my own horse after work and in the evening I then move on to zoom where I have some clients that I teach.
Your Top Tip
A top tip from me is keep going, even if it feels impossible. Horses take time, and riding is not so black and white. There many ways to get to the end goal.
What is the best piece of advice that you have ever been given?
I think the best bit of advice I have been given was to “just sit in the middle of the saddle” Bjarke Laustsen
Want More?
If you enjoyed meeting Milo you might like to view more dressage rider “chatting with” interviews here. You can keep up with Milo’s progress and visit his instagram page here