Nicola Sime-Riley

INTERVIEW: AMELIA CAMPBELL-HORNE PHOTOGRAPHY: LC PHOTOGRAPHS

The SA Champion

At the beginning of August this year, one of the most coveted titles in equestrian sport in South Africa was up for grabs; the title of “South African Show Jumping Champion”! For the second time, Nicola Sime-Riley bagged the title, this time on her cheeky imported Belgian Stallion Insaghi DB, and she did so in fine style, jumping the only double clear! HQ had the opportunity to catch up with Nicola Sime-Riley to hear more about her latest win with the special “Ziggy”!

HQ: First of all, congratulations on your latest win with a horse that seems to be going from strength to strength! Nicola: He (Sunny Park Stables Insaghi DB) was amazing, simply AMAZING!

HQ: Well, you have been on quite the roll recently, winning everything on double clears! Nicola: Well, I always joke with people saying the only time I ever win is when I jump double clear and no one else is clear. You must remember that this horse won President’s Cup this year and last year with a time fault at both! I couldn’t believe it.

HQ: At least you won SA Champs without a time fault! Nicola: (Laughs) Listen - I don’t think there was any chance for time faults at this show it was just go, go go!

HQ: For sure! But you haven’t had the easiest year this year? Nicola: Ya, so I broke my wrist, well, shattered my wrist before the World Cup at Kyalami at the end of April. I was riding a young horse on the flat. I wasn’t even doing anything serious… But he had stumbled with me on the Monday and on the Tuesday, I was doing some lengthen and collect, and I had lengthened him, and just before I collected him, we lengthened headfirst into the ground! My arm looked like a duck’s beak! And then I got COVID, and I was very sick. I haven’t been that sick in my life - it was terrible!

HQ: That is quite an ordeal! And then, of course, being a “good” equestrian, you followed the doctor’s guideline on coming back from injury? Nicola: Yes, the rough guideline… I only rode eight or nine horses at SA Champs…

HQ: Well, you clearly managed well! Tell us about your SA Champion “Ziggy”. Nicola: He was imported by Ronelle Gilbert of Manor D’Or and Fred De Wae to sell. Fred, with whom I have dressage lessons, saw potential in this cheeky, spirited boy whilst in Europe and so they decided to bring him into SA. He was not noticed by the riders and was a little difficult to ride so Ronelle asked me to ride him to produce and sell. To begin with, he was a thug! Well, he’s still a thug, but he was worse. But, I said I could work with him, and she sent him to me. Now I was riding him to be sold… And obviously, the more work I put into him, the better he got and the better he jumped. He has always been such a game horse for me - “Just show me the jump and let’s go” - so we’ve really got a good tune together. So that is basically how it started.

I remember Gonda (Betrix) liked the horse, but she was never crazy about him. I still remember we jumped the Derby in the 1.40s that year (2017), and he jumped the first few classes well, but then had a ‘whoopsie’ at the water and then started spooking at everything. Like planks and fillers, and I just thought this horse is not a Derby horse, so I didn’t jump the final class on him. Then I jumped the 1.35s at Maple World Cup, and Gonda said, “You need to geld that horse”. But I said it’s not the horse - I know he is strong, but we just need to find out what works for him. Obviously, we didn’t geld him, and a few months later, Gonda said, “you better buy this horse”! Ronelle had people coming to try him the following week, so I called her up and said, “we need to make a plan!”. I spoke to my husband, and we made a plan, and the rest is history!

HQ: He is now licensed with the SA Warmblood Horse Society, so you must have been glad you didn’t geld him! How many foals does he have on the ground? Nicola: Only the two that I’ve bred, a filly out of a Rendement mare that jumped out of her paddock when I

sent it to be weaned, so that should jump! And the other is out of a Connoisseur, Wedekind mare, so that should be quite nice too.

HQ: Well, we look forward to seeing those Ziggy babies in the ring in a few years! So, let’s get back to SA Champs; how did you feel going into the competition? Nicola: I rode Lazer first, so I was fortunate enough to have two horses to ride even though they are very different. But you know I always say to people, when I go and ride, I just love it. I just love being in the ring, and I just love what the horses do for me! I say to my clients a win is a bonus, and a place is a bonus… But Zig jumped the most fabulous first round. I suppose it was good not to be the top qualifier because there was no pressure on me, so I just went in there and rode, and he just jumped amazingly, so I am very chuffed.

HQ: And what about Lazer, (Sunny Park Stables Eagles Lazer), your other 1.50m ride? Nicola: Lazer is very cheeky. He was also sent to me to be sold; the problem was he kept throwing everyone off! And when I say lighting fast, I mean it. A noise can set him off, and he just explodes off the ground and bounces around like a kudu. He is very naughty. I always say I put a knot at the end of my reins for the first jump; as I jump, the head goes down, the front feet start bouncing, and I just stick my leg forward, sit up and hope for the best!

HQ: It seems you like them a bit quirky? Nicola: Well, they find me! I always get sent these naughty horses! Lazer was the same. He has been a bit trickier to go up the grades. He can get a bit anxious, and then he runs himself deep and almost stalls on take-off… He wants to be careful, so that is how he tries, but he is now feeling so brave and game and ready to go.

HQ: Well, we know they have a way of finding you, but is there anything specific you look for when looking for your next top horse? Nicola: I never go looking - every horse I’ve taken to the top has found me! Sharp Colt I bought as a ‘learning horse’, but when I brought him home and started feeding him, he was a lunatic! I used to be the entertainment at a show. With Connoisseur, I was told the owner was looking for a rider but when I got there, they wanted to sell him, so I made a plan and bought him. El Paso is the only horse that I 'chose' in that I asked the girl if she had any more Consuelo’s, and she showed me this little grey thing… ugly, skinny, no shoulders, and a tail as short as a warthog’s. So, I took him on trial for a week, and my ex-husband told me, ‘It’s rubbish, don’t buy it’, but the last horse he said that about ended up jumping the 1.40m with Lexi Carter! So, I decided to go on my gut feel and took him. My husband says to me now, ‘when your angel wings talk, listen to them’.

HQ: Tell us a bit about your training regime between your competitions? Nicola: I don’t work them hard. I do quite a lot of flatwork with them – lengthen, collect work and my famous three canter poles on a circle just to make it a little less boring. I don’t jump them often; I’ll maybe have a lesson a week before a big competition and jump once at home the week before that. Other than that, I don’t do much jumping at home, mostly fitness. The younger horses train a bit harder; they jump at least once a week, but not a lot and not big. It depends on what I need to do with them.

HQ: You also have a reputation of keeping your horses going and sound for a long time at the top; what would you credit that to? Nicola: I think it’s because I don’t put too much pressure on them! A lot of riders do lots of exercises; for me, I find it puts too much strain on them, so I won’t do exercises unless they need them, and I find my horses don’t need them, so why would I waste their legs on that?

HQ: Finally, how do you fit it all in? Nicola: I ride and teach in the morning, so in summer I start at 05.30 and finish at 10:30. I then coach each afternoon. I have Musa and Lovemore who help me work horses as well, so I choose which horses are ridden by who and send a list before bed each night. I currently have about 12 horses that I jump and compete with two Levubu babies and a Rendement filly being backed and on their way to me soon!

THANK YOUS

Nicola would like to thank her coach Gonda and her sponsors Fulvic Health and Western Shoppe. Last but not least, she wishes to thank her husband, who always believes her gut feel on horses and is super supportive of her career!