Water-skiing and horses don't seem like a practical combination. If anything, mixing the two sounds quite dangerous. But the ACT's inaugural Unbridled Festival, a celebration of everything equine on November 15, will showcase the Australian debut of horse-boarding. "Its like water-skiing on land behind a horse," said festival director Greg Nugent. "You need a horse, you need a mountain board, a ski rope and safety equipment. The rope is attached to the back of the saddle of the horse. The board rider rides the board and a horse rider rides the horse and off they go." Mr Nugent, who is also the general manager of ACT Harness Racing, said four teams had been practising the activity on a private property over the past few months. Riders will tackle two courses, one with obstacles and penalty points and one purely based on speed. "We're hoping to generate interest," Mr Nugent said. "We want to showcase [events] to the equine community but also the non-equine community and generate that interest for some of the more obscure sports." While horse-boarding practice is three months in the making, the festival itself has been three years in the pipeline. Unbridled was originally dubbed Summernats in the Saddle - and is coincidently getting off the ground as the annual car festival prepares to drive to the Northern Territory. The festival would include the whole equine community, Mr Nugent said. It was modelled on events in the US and was expected to attract at least 5000 people to Thoroughbred Park in Canberra. Jousting and dancing Clydesdales will be among horse-related highlights, alongside musical performances and good food. "I was looking for an idea to showcase horses to the non-equine community just to show people all the different things horses can do," he said. "A lot of people have a perception about horses and what they can do. What we're trying to do is broaden the appeal of the horse. "People might think, 'that looks interesting, I might give that a go'." Minister for Racing and Gaming Joy Burch said the ACT government supported Unbridled as an innovative festival that would attract visitors from across the region and beyond. "The ACT has the highest ownership of horses per head in Australia, but Unbridled is not just for horse owners or riders," she said. "I know how dedicated our racing codes are to providing entertainment while also promoting an understanding of the horse as an integral part of the region's history." To buy tickets, visit unbridledfestival.com. Tickets will also be available at the gate on the day.