Norah’s equestrian journey began like so many others – among dusty stable aisles and worn saddles at the local riding school. She spent countless hours riding, braiding manes until her fingers ached, and competing in club-level jumping on beloved school ponies. But despite loving every second, she felt that something was missing – a deeper understanding, a closer connection.
Everything changed when she met Conny at age eleven. He was the horse who turned everything she thought she knew upside down. He came to her lame in three out of four legs, and his injuries forced her to listen in a way she never had before. Hours spent in the pasture, sitting on a rock and studying the horses’ language, marked the beginning of Norah’s true journey – a journey that would teach her to let the horse take the lead, to understand strain and balance based on the horse’s own ability.
Her curiosity led her to explore countless lessons and encounters. She has studied jumping, dressage, liberty, classical art of riding, clicker training, western riding, driving, and more. She has trained with Maria Gramén, Honza Bláha, Susanne Lohas, Arne Koets, Wolfgang Krischke, and Christofer Dahlgren, but the horses themselves have been her greatest teachers.
The Friesian mare Leia could shift in an instant from extroverted to introverted, from explosive energy to complete withdrawal, and through her, Norah gained a deeper understanding of how strongly a horse’s emotional world is reflected in its relationship with humans.
Jaquetão was the first horse Norah got with the thought that he would be “problem-free,” but just over a year into their journey, he suffered severe injuries when, during a colic attack, he kicked both hind legs through a wall. Months of wound care, stall rest, and rehabilitation taught Norah the art of keeping a horse both physically and mentally well, even in the most challenging times.
Aramis was never meant to be Norah’s horse. She found him neglected in Portugal, and soon after, he came home with her to Sweden. He turned out to be the most complex horse she had ever worked with. He would pull down the stars for her if she asked – but that was also the challenge. Through him, Norah deepened her understanding of how small nuances can mean the difference between joy and anxiety.
For Norah, discipline and equipment matter less – they can change, but a horse is always a horse. Her goal is to create harmony between horse and human, where communication and understanding lead the way. When both the horse and the human feel like winners, that is when training is at its most beautiful.
Since 2011, she has run her business full-time, teaching both in Sweden and internationally. Every perspective, every method she has explored, has become part of her toolbox. But the common thread is always the same – to understand the horse as the individual it is and to let every encounter be a new opportunity to learn.
Joakim’s journey into the art of riding did not begin in the stable but in the shadows of history. As a child, he loved stories of knights and kingdoms, of ancient battles and magnificent horses. But it wasn’t until he saw a jousting tournament at the Medieval Center in Denmark as a teenager that fascination turned into longing – a desire not just to read about history, but to feel it, to live it.
Determined to ride like a knight, he began training in dressage and jumping with his mother’s Oldenburg mare, Freja. Riding was initially just a means to an end, but the more he learned, the stronger his love for horses and their movement grew. When he met his future warhorse in 2009, the young PRE stallion Absalon, he knew their journey together would be something truly special.
To give Absalon a solid foundation, Joakim took an apprenticeship at Engaarden – School of Academic Equestrian Art and later at the Fürstliche Hofreitschule in Bückeburg, where he and Absalon trained intensively for seven months under Wolfgang Krischke. When they returned, Absalon was nearly a complete warhorse – he mastered the lateral movements, was ridden in full armor, and had taken his first steps toward canter pirouettes and jousting.
Riding is more than just technique – it is a philosophy, and Joakim began to see the horse’s training as an art form where precision and lightness were the goal. He learned that every detail of the seat, every nuance of contact and energy, influenced the whole. Through his interest in refinement and communication, he discovered a timeless beauty in how horse and rider can move together in harmony.
Alongside riding, Joakim studied history at the University of Southern Denmark, specialising in knightly culture. He has worked as a guide, storyteller, and teacher at some of the Nordic region’s leading historical institutions, where he combines his academic knowledge with his love for living history. He is passionate about “edutainment” – bringing history to life in an engaging and entertaining way. Joakim and Absalon have performed in countless jousting tournaments, demonstrating that performance and harmony can go hand in hand.
His work with historical riding has provided valuable insights into horses’ mental and physical well-being. In training Absalon, he realised the importance of allowing the horse to develop its own balance and self-carriage. Instead of shaping the horse to fit a mold, he began listening more to the individual’s needs. This mindset became the foundation of his work – to guide the horse toward strength and pride without taking away its self-confidence. With a keen understanding of different personality types, Joakim helps horses and riders learn from each other, always respecting both inner and outer well-being.
Since 2020, he has been teaching historical riding and continues to develop his own skills through regular lessons. His philosophy is simple yet profound – to recreate historical riding where precision, lightness, and history meet, where the horse is both an athlete and a work of art, and where humans have the honour of following its movement through time.
