Coach of the Month – September 2025

When Jess Somerfield started giving a few riding lessons after school as a teenager, she never imagined it would turn into a lifelong career.

“I was probably 14 and just started getting asked to give a few kids lessons after school,” Jess recalls. “I ended up using one of my little ponies as a bit of a lesson horse and somehow had 30 or 40 riders a week. I had no intention of being a coach or a trainer. I wanted to ride at the Olympics and World Games, but I also thought I’d have a real job outside of horses.”

University plans soon gave way to a growing coaching business. “I was so busy coaching that I ended up deferring uni and thought, let’s just give this a go. I really enjoyed where I was at,” she says. “I began my Intro Coaching qualification and I’ve been full-time ever since.”

This year marks a major milestone for Jess, who has just achieved her Level 3 EA Coaching Accreditation, the highest coaching level in the national system. “It’s been an amazing full-circle moment,” she says proudly.

While Jess continues to ride and compete successfully at five-star level in eventing, she says coaching brings its own unique satisfaction.

“There are two things I love most,” she explains. “One is the challenge of being able to see something with the horse, interpret how to fix it, and then convey that to the rider. You are constantly balancing horse biomechanics, rider biomechanics, confidence, and psychology. I love that complexity.”

“The other is watching riders enjoy riding and improve. Those little light bulb moments, or when someone achieves a goal for the first time, that’s what you live for as a coach.”

Jess’s coaching philosophy has developed alongside her growth as a rider. “Being able to train with incredible coaches and take what I learn as a five-star rider, then pass that on to my students, has been huge,” she says.

She has also developed a strong interest in the mental side of performance. “I’ve taken a real interest in rider psychology, helping people understand their nerves, mental blocks, and how to work through challenges,” she says. “Sharing my own experiences helps riders realise that what they are feeling is completely normal. Whether you are jumping 60 centimetres or five-star, we all go through it.”

Jess encourages open communication and flexibility when helping riders deal with setbacks. “Every rider processes challenges differently,” she explains. “Sometimes it’s talking things out, sometimes it’s hopping on a different horse, sometimes it’s me riding their horse. There is always more than one path to get to the other side.”

Though best known as an Eventing coach, Jess’s students come from a wide range of backgrounds. “I coach riders across multiple disciplines including Eventing, straight Dressage, stock horse riders, even western pleasure and campdrafting,” she says.

Living in the Upper Hunter region, she enjoys working with the area’s diverse horse community. “My favourite sessions are when an older stock horse rider walks into my Dressage arena,” Jess laughs. “Finding the crossover between disciplines and seeing riders from different worlds learn from each other is the best challenge.”

Jess has also extended her coaching to riders with intellectual disabilities. “I’ve been fortunate to work with Andrew, who represented Australia at the Virtus World Games, and last year I travelled with the Australian team to the European Championships,” she says. “That experience taught me so much about adapting communication and finding ways to connect through feel and understanding, not just words.”

When asked what makes a great coach, Jess doesn’t hesitate. “You have to be relatable and empathetic for both riders and horses,” she says. “We are moving into a time where coaching is about creating independent riders. It’s not just about telling people what to do; it’s about helping them understand why. The best feeling is when a rider goes home and can recreate what they learned because they truly understand it.”

Her own mentors have played a key role in shaping that approach. “I grew up training with Pollyann Huntington and Sonja Johnson in Western Australia, who were incredibly influential. These days I work closely with my coach Vicky Lymbery, and have also been mentored by Ben Netherfield and Stuart Tinney. Working with Mary Longden overseas was another incredible experience.”

For Jess, being both a high-performance rider and an active coach is a unique advantage. “It’s the most amazing dynamic,” she says. “Sometimes I’m the student, sometimes I’m the coach, and both roles make me better at the other. There are times when I give advice to a student and later realise I need to take my own advice in competition,” she laughs.

Completing her Level 3 accreditation involved intensive study in elite sports psychology, something Jess found particularly valuable. “I was working with a sports psychologist myself as an athlete while studying the same material as a coach. The overlap was incredible.”

Asked to describe herself in one word, Jess laughs. “Talkative. No one can shut me up,” she admits. But behind the humour is a deep gratitude for the life she has built.

“I feel really lucky,” she says. “At 33, I’ve built a career doing what I love. I might have missed my engineering degree, but I wouldn’t change a thing. Coaching wasn’t my plan, but it has turned into the most rewarding job I could have imagined.”