General

2023 has been a truly exciting year for us so far, and it just keeps getting better and better! We’ve unveiled a rebrand to become FR Vincitore, been working around the clock on the new Eventer Reins behind the scenes, heading to events whenever we can to cheer on our sponsored riders and, we can now reveal, also being the first ever business invited to join the Charles Owen Innovation Hub!

The Charles Owen Innovation Hub is an exciting business accelerator which has been set up to support people who’ve had amazing ideas to help improve the safety of riders and their horses but need some help to develop it into a product and reach consumers. Some lifesaving ideas may never see the light of day as there’s such a wide range of knowledge needed to launch a product. However genius the idea is, the people behind them, just like our founder Laurie, need help, and Charles Owen is there to provide it. Whether that help comes in the form of developing an idea into something that can become a real-life product, to advice on manufacturing and quality control or support developing a marketing and promo strategy, the Innovation Hub is a much-needed addition to the equestrian business landscape and one that we are thrilled to be part of.

Charles Owen is a legendary riding helmet brand that was founded by Mr. Charles Owen himself over 100 years ago in 1911, and ever since the company has had a laser focus on making equestrian sport safer for everyone taking part in it, whatever their level of ability, Now the trusted choice of leading riders, brand ambassadors and grassroots riders alike, Charles Owen has decided to enable support for everyone who has an idea, however small, that could make equestrian sport safer. With an inhouse team boasting highly experienced designers, engineers, marketers and more, Charles Owen is perfectly placed to pass on their knowledge to the next generation of safety innovators.

Here at FR Vincitore, we had already developed our product and gone through robust testing in conjunction with AMRC Cymru, part of the University of Sheffield, when we partnered with the Charles Owen Innovation Hub. What we needed was support and advice to help more riders and retailers learn about our product. The sales and marketing teams at Charles Owen have been a huge help and been connecting us with more people in the industry. We’re excited to see what comes next!

Our founder Laurie adds: “As an inventor, no matter how good you know your idea is, it can be lonely and expensive trying to make it a reality. I’d seen first-hand what happens when a rider or horse gets caught in the reins, yet it was harder than I ever thought to get people to sit up and take notice of my safety reins. Every day has been a learning curve, and something like the Charles Owen Innovation Hub would have been an enormous help to me when I was starting out. I really do urge people with an idea to get in touch with them - you never know where it might take you!”

The Charles Owen Innovation Hub is now open for applications from all British-based inventors and businesses. If you’ve ever had an idea for a product that you think could help riders stay safer in the saddle or protect horses when they’re doing their job, why not apply?

https://www.charlesowen.com/innovation-hub

Accidents are sadly an inevitability for most horse riders - it comes with the territory when you care for and ride a half-tonne flight animaI! Even with the most well-behaved horse and experienced rider there’s the potential for a bad step, slip, spook or bad driver to set the wheels in motion that end up with a fall. That’s why there’s so much innovation and focus on safety kit for riders, to try to ensure that when an accident does occur, the risk of injury is as low as possible. From modern riding helmets and jockey skulls with low-friction layers to reduce the risk of brain injuries to air jackets utilising motorbike technology to protect the spine, we’re safer than ever before in the saddle.

 

But one obvious area of risk was being ignored, until a rider and horsey mum called Laurie Williams decided to do something about it. Laurie has over 32 years of riding experience and runs her own equestrian business alongside taking her keen showjumping daughter out competing. She kept seeing incidents where riders would become tangled in their reins, and they really worried her. It was sometimes due to a fall, at other times when they were opening or closing a gate while mounted, but always creating a dangerous situation for horse and rider. One incident was the catalyst for Laurie to start investigating rein safety and to find out if she could find a solution herself.

A terrifying accident

Laurie saw a young girl become tangled in her reins after a fall, and they were wrapped around her neck. The conventional reins didn’t break despite the pressure and forces being exerted, putting both the girl in immediate danger and her pony in considerable discomfort. With quick thinking and intervention, Laurie managed to secure the pony while the girl's mother helped free her. The experience left the young girl shaken and with burns around her neck. This worrying event motivated Laurie to find a solution to prevent such accidents from happening in the future.

Designing a safer solution

Motivated by her personal experiences and a passion for rider safety, Laurie began contemplating the design of reins with a quick-release system. Her vision was to create a simple, lightweight solution that could separate the reins in an emergency, allowing riders and horses to be easily freed from dangerous, dangling reins. Of course, the reins needed to stay connected even if the horse and rider jumped a huge drop fence or a pony suddenly dived for grass and snatched at the reins, so there was a lot to work on!

Partnering with experts

To bring her innovative idea to life, Laurie sought the expertise of the product testing team at AMRC Cymru, a part of the University of Sheffield's Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre. Collaborating with these professionals, Laurie extensively tested her safety rein ideas and developed the design. Eventually, Laurie unveiled the patented FR Vincitore system, an innovative and practical solution that met her vision for safety.

A helpful analogy is to think of the quick-release binding on a ski (bear with us here!). The skier can race downhill at 80mph, take off and land from huge jumps and take corners at crazy angles, and their ski boots will stay firmly in the bindings. But if they fall, and their legs are pulled in dangerous directions and awkward angles that can break limbs and rupture tendons and ligaments, the binding instantly releases. That’s what Laurie has invented for riders - reins that are seriously tough and stay connected when you need them to!

Craftsmanship and quality

As Laurie progressed in her mission to create safer reins, she knew that as well as safety, riders want attractive, high-quality tack. In 2021, she approached an experienced bridle maker renowned for their craftsmanship and use of fine English leather. This collaboration was the finishing touch to the FR Vincitore product line, ensuring both safety and style.

Today, Laurie is on a mission to spread the word about her quick-release safety reins, and that’s led her to collaborate with equine scientist Dr. David Marlin and other industry experts. She’s also completed her BSc in Equine Science to equip herself with the knowledge and expertise needed to further the brand’s aims. By taking this approach, we can continually enhance our products and develop new ones. Make sure you follow us on social media for updates, sponsored rider updates and our latest news! The brand was born out of a genuine desire to make riding safer for both children and adults, and our reins prove riders can prioritise safety without compromising on style.

We’ve recently given our business a huge rebrand to become FR Vincitore, and we are so excited to share it all with our customers both old and new. While a big part of that is telling our story and spreading the word far and wide about our quick release safety reins, we’re also reintroducing our sponsored rider team. Our sponsored riders help to boost awareness of our products by sharing them with their followers, and we are lucky to have a really good bunch on our team! They are both junior and adult riders competing enjoying a range of disciplines, and we’re proud to support several young para equestrians too. Let's introduce you to each of them.

Holly Davies

Holly is a talented show jumper based in Cheshire who competes all over the north of England and further afield. We’re following her and her very promising young horse Forrests Rock n Roll to see what heights that they can reach together. She recently qualified him for the five-year-old finals at Northcote Young Horse Show and we can’t wait to see what she achieves next. Holly runs a busy breeding and training yard along with her partner and fellow show jumping rider Levi Critchlow and it’s becoming an operation to watch.

Flo Norris

We also sponsor another show jumper, the talented Flo Norris! Flo is based between the UK (where she’s at Ben Maher’s HQ) and Belgium, and in 2021 competed for Team GB in the young rider Nations Cup in Cabourg France! We’re proud to support Flo and love following her as she moves up the levels in jumping with her exciting string of horses. Flo’s brother is used to competing with a very different kind of horsepower - he’s British F1 star and McLaren driver Lando Norris.

Hayden Hankey

Hayden is a top event rider based just down the road from us here in Cheshire and we’re proud to support him on his competitive journey. Hayden enjoyed a stellar May, the result of lots of hard work over the winter and through the spring, with a trip to Belsay Horse Trials with four horses resulting in a first and third place in the Open Intermediate fourth in the Six-Year-Old class and second place in the Novice! How’s that for a good outing?! We’re excited to see what happens in the second half of Hayden’s season and will bring you plenty of updates.

Carmen Edwards

We’re delighted to also sponsor showjumper Carmen Edwards. Carmen is based up here in Cheshire and his career is on an excellent trajectory, winning at 2* and 3* level in 2022 and really building on his successes with a win in the Bramham Classic 1.40cm recently. Carmen also produces horses for sale will his brother and fellow showjumper Will and we love hearing about the successes of partnerships he’s helped to put together.

Frankie Townsend

We’re proud to support the incredible Frankie Townsend on her horsey journey and love seeing her updates! Frankie is a ten-year-old para rider who has epilepsy, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and Mast Cell Activation Syndrome, making her day-to-day life far more challenging than it is for the vast majority of her peers. Frankie remains so upbeat and enthusiastic and shares her horsemanship and riding adventures with her ponies Bean, Aurora and Biscuit on Instagram. Make sure you check her out at @frankies_ponies!

Francesca Lugo

We’re delighted to share that we support eventer and show jumper Francesca Lugo. Francesca took five years away from riding to focus on school and university and is now back and training hard with her stunning flea bitten grey Fils. Her mare Fefe is currently in foal to Olympic gold medal-winning stallion Big Star, so we’re excited to see the foal when he or she appears!  (I couldn’t find masses on what she’s been up to bar schooling etc, but do let me know and I can add in)

Laura Cocking

Laura is an event rider based in the stunning hills of north Wales and has previously been part of the Great Britain young rider squad! Now a senior Laura is out and about competing on the BE and BS circuit in Wales, the Midlands and the North of England, which certainly keeps her busy! Her exciting string of horses includes the smart German-bred gelding Christoff, gorgeous mare Coirban Miss Sarco and the lovely grey gelding Luxley.

Beau Williams

Beau is our founder Laurie’s daughter and she’s an up and coming young showjumper with two lovely ponies – Emma and KoKo! It was whilst accompanying Beau to show jumping competitions and Pony Club rallies that Laurie first came across the idea of quick release safety reins, having seen children getting tangled in falls. Now Laurie knows that Beau – and lots of other children and adult riders, can enjoy their riding and stay safe thanks to FR Vincitore safety reins. Beau is competing up to 110cm and we love following her progress on her Instagram account, so make sure you take a look! https://www.instagram.com/beau.williams.sj

Dylan Flack

Last but by no means least, we also support another incredible young para equestrian, Dylan of @panaero_and_peppers_adventures on Instagram. Dylan has Ewings Sarcoma, a type of cancer that most frequently appears in the bones and soft tissue in the legs. Dylan is an absolute warrior who manages to have a smile on his face regardless of everything he goes through and adores his ponies  Inki, Pepper and the youngster Karuso. We really are in awe of Dylan and his mum Jess and are honoured to be part of his riding story.

A new name for Free Reins: we’re thrilled to announce our new brand name, FR Vincitore!

We are thrilled to announce that Free Reins Equestrian has undergone an exciting transformation and will now be known as FR Vincitore. Vincitore means ‘winner’ in Italian, and we believe it reflects our commitment to horse and rider safety and positions us as the ‘free reins winner’ when it comes to our brand's values and aspirations.

FR Vincitore was first founded by Laurie Williams in 2021 and manufactures top-of-the-range safety reins that offer unparalleled protection and peace of mind to riders. These reins are specially designed to quickly release in the event of a rider or horse becoming entangled.

Working in close collaboration with product testing experts at AMRC Cymru, a division of the University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre, Laurie has ensured that our quick-release system activates only under significant load. That means the reins function just like traditional reins, providing a secure communication with your horse even during high-intensity activities such as navigating large hedges and drop fences cross-country or dealing with unexpected bucking and other ‘helpful’ behaviour! They will only release if you have a fall and become entangled in the reins, or if your horse accidentally snags a leg or catches them on something around you. The connector can be reattached and used up to three times before it needs replacing, and we sell service kits if you ever need to buy a new connector!

We are proud that our reins are not only loved by riders of all ages and abilities, but they are also recognised by prominent industry experts. Renowned equine scientist Dr. David Marlin and elite show jumping coach and five-time Nations Cup winner Mark McCourt have both provided their stamp of approval. Our reins are also British Eventing, British Showjumping and FEI competition-legal, so you can use them all the time - at home or on the biggest days out.

The rebranding to FR Vincitore comes at a time of exciting growth for our brand. We are delighted to have an ever-expanding stable of sponsored riders and our passionate fan base of grassroots riders continues to grow. We're in the process of establishing an innovative collaboration with a renowned equestrian helmet manufacturer, with a shared focus on pushing the boundaries of excellence and safety, and there’s a new product coming soon too.

So, make sure you stay tuned for more exciting updates and news, and valuable insights from the world of FR Vincitore. Ride confidently and embrace the spirit of a true FR winner!