Show Circuit Magazine - June/July 2019 by Show Circuit Magazine

JAIME AMIAN - LATERAL THINKING | JOHN COTTLE - REFINING THE BASICS

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Equestrians everywhere are winding down for the winter months (although there are still always chores to be done!). On its worst days, winter can seem bleak, dark and never-ending, but it’s also an excellent time for reflection and re-evaluation of your goals and plans for the future. Our winter issue is star-studded and stacked with insider tips from across the codes. We spoke to six top equestrians from a range of disciplines and asked them all the same questions about their secrets to success. While there were plenty of common threads, each person answered with their own experiences in mind, resulting in a fascinating read that gives a real insight into a champion’s mindset and what it takes to be one of the best. We also discovered while putting together this issue that we have a lot of successful riders who are also involved in the racing industry. Taylor Burnett recently took out the Rising Star Saddle Hunter Horse of the Year title, fitting his showing commitments in around riding track work in the mornings, including riding his own racehorses. Catherine Cameron is well-known in show jumping circles, having had plenty of wins at Grand Prix level, and is also notching up wins as a racehorse trainer. Kelly van Dyk comes from a successful dressage background, and now, along with her family, she has developed Prima Park racing stables, selecting and training young horses for racing careers. It was our great pleasure to speak to a real stalwart of the show ring, Betty Lennard, for this issue. I have always admired Betty, and she has always shared a smile and a cheerful hello when I see her on the showing or dressage scene. She shares some stories from her past as well as giving her advice on picking a promising youngster. With winter descending upon us, we have also included some helpful articles to see you through, including a feature on hoof care and maintenance, and our top 40 tips for surviving winter. See how many of these you can tick off! These colder, quieter months are ideal for learning, so whether you’re taking lessons, watching lessons or reading about lessons, now is the time to increase your knowledge base. Spanish-born rider and trainer Jamie Amian regularly visits New Zealand to hold dressage clinics, and we were fortunate enough to sit in on a training session with Cassandra Dally as she consolidated her lateral work. We also had the wonderful experience of joining show jumping great John Cottle, and listening to his wise words as he worked with eighteen-year-old show jumper Eden Johnstone, who is looking to move up to Young Rider level. The topic of mental well-being is one that often crosses my desk these days. We regularly get calls regarding bullying, which I find, at my age, to be disheartening. Without sounding too crusty and old, ‘back in my day’ we were competitive while being equally supportive of our fellow equestrians. In this issue, we talk about gossiping and drama and give some tips on how to best defuse such destructive behaviour. So kick off your muddy boots, sit back, and enjoy a little winter pick-me-up with this jam-packed issue of Show Circuit.

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COVER IMAGE Clarke Johnstone with ACES HIGH IMAGE Eye Witness Photography

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Winter Top Tips Dealing with Drama Riding After a Fall Equine Legal Advice

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Jaime Amian | Lateral Thinking in Dressage John Cottle | Refining the Basics for Jumping

HEALTH 122 126 129

Winter Hoof Care Rider Fitness Recipe

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ON THE COVER

“I just think I needed a rest from eventing and had this idea that show jumping was going to be the thing for me.”

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Clarke Johnstone

UNFINISHED BUSINESS WORDS Diana Dobson MAIN IMAGE Eye Witness Photography

Clarke Johnstone’s world of horses has come full circle. The 32-year-old Olympic eventer felt burnt out a year ago, and decided to take a step back from the sport he loved so much. Now, he’s back and riding better than ever, and has his sights set on competing for New Zealand once more, this time at the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2020.

or Clarke, a year off from eventing was exactly what he needed. He spent a season focusing instead on show jumping, competing up to World Cup and Grand Prix level, and it’s no secret that he has both the talent and the horsepower to succeed in either discipline. But now he’s back on the eventing scene, with his outing at the New Zealand Three-Day Event Championships in May marking his first three-day event since Puhinui in 2017. “Eventing is a tough sport,” he says. “I’ve had a lot of highs but also a lot of lows. Horses get injured, which is tough because you put everything into it emotionally, so when things like that go wrong, it’s pretty hard to deal with.” He is quick to add that he’s also had plenty of successes. “I just think I needed a rest from eventing, and had this idea that show jumping was going to be the thing for me.” But after notching up four events at the end of the eventing season, Clarke has found himself in a good space – he’s happy, relaxed, has a plan, and says life is good.

The UK beckons Clarke had planned to head offshore earlier this year, but decided that the timing just didn’t feel right. “I really want to do another stint in England...it sort of feels like unfinished business,” he explains. “I didn’t hate it over there, but I had a bit of a run of things going wrong. Though admittedly, I have had a pretty good run on the whole, and the ups and downs are the same for everyone in the sport. Just look at Piggy French winning Badminton, because far out, she’s had some dark years.” Clarke is planning to take his top horse Balmoral Sensation to the Northern Hemisphere next year in the lead-up to the Tokyo Olympics, but quickly backs that up with an acknowledgement that there is a lot of water to go under the bridge yet. “All the stars have to align,” he points out. Accompanying him will likely be his head girl Madison Crowe and her mare Waitangi Pinterest, who have just made themselves an outside chance for Tokyo after winning the DVS Home Ventilation CCI4*-L National Three-Day title. For

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“Eventing is a tough sport. I’ve had a lot of highs but also a lot of lows. Horses get injured, which is tough because you put everything into it emotionally, so when things like that go wrong, it’s pretty hard to deal with.” Clarke competing on DOLLY BLUE in the Gold Tour at Takapoto Show Jumping. Image: Eyewitness Photography Clarke, seeing her win felt as good as a win of his own. “I am hugely proud of her,” he says. “When she wins, I feel like I have won as well. We have a very special relationship, and she has worked so hard, so it’s exciting. That’s why it was such a popular win. She’s a nice person and is really well-liked by everyone on the circuit.” As her coach, mentor and mate, Clarke had every belief in Maddy’s ability to win. “As a rider, if I go into a competition and know I have not left any single stone unturned, I think ‘well, why shouldn’t I win’? It has been the same with Maddy and Pinterest.” According to Clarke, the mare had been “absolutely perfectly prepared” and certainly proved to be fit enough. It was just the combination’s second attempt at that level, and the time hadn’t been right before for Maddy to throw caution to the wind and go for time on the cross-country. But Taupo was the day to do just that. “She rode like a champion, and despite one little mistake in the show jumping, she was still good enough to win,” he says proudly. “She just looked all class, as she had from the first day.” Clarke says he loves coaching, although recently he has pulled back on it a little. “I especially enjoy teaching people who I work with regularly, so you really feel you are on the journey with them.”

Oodles of talent Meanwhile, Clarke’s own journey continues with a stable of horses that he describes as “absolutely gorgeous. I am very lucky. I honestly couldn’t tell you who my next superstar is going to be – they really are all special.” He figures that Deo Volente (owned by Jean and Rob Johnstone and Paula Milburn), the horse he rode to second place in the NRM CCI3*-L Championship, has the most ability, but is also the most difficult. Clarke has had the Dutch-bred 11-year-old for four rather rocky years. The horse was injured when he came to New Zealand and had a year out, then Clarke had trouble gelling with him so he gave the ride to Maddy for a season, before taking him

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back and show jumping him up to Grand Prix level. Watermill Glenneagle is another classy horse in Clarke’s stable. At just eight years old, he has already won both the one-day and three-day CCI2* championships. “To do that takes not only a really nice horse but a consistent horse as well,” he says. He also has Glenneagle’s seven-year-old full brother Watermill Hadley, who has already shown his class by winning the CCN105-S one-day championship this year. Both Watermill horses are owned by Keith and Amanda Walker. Then there’s Dolly Blue, owned by the Johnstone family. “Dolly Blue is probably the crowd favourite, I guess,” says Clarke. “She could do anything. She’s still only eight and is jumping 1.50m clear rounds. I’ve ridden her cross-country and she feels like Ritchie, to be honest – she’s like a Rolls Royce. She is smart, light on her feet and fast – she is the one I am scratching my head about the most, because I think she could be a top show jumper, but I know she could be a top eventer. I guess it is a nice problem to have! There are very few horses who could do that.” Aces High is a new horse to Clarke’s string. The Aussie import, also owned by the Johnstone family, had only been in the country for two weeks before he started him in the CCN2*-L Open at Taupo. The combination looked to have gelled very quickly, as they were leading after the cross-country, but unfortunately a stone bruise saw a withdrawal before the show jumping phase. “He’s competed up to 4* and I hope he will be one of the horses I will have qualified for Tokyo, all things going well,” Clarke says. And finally there is Balmoral Sensation – otherwise known as Ritchie. He’s the stunning David Goodin-bred grey who placed fifth on debut at Badminton, was fifth at Aachen, won at Adelaide, was the NZ Eventing Horse of the Year and Kihikihi One-Day Champion, and was the best of the New Zealand team at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, finishing in sixth place. The 14-year-old Johnstone familyowned grey has been out with injury for a while, but Clarke says he is now just about ready to be able to crack on for Adelaide as

“I am very lucky. I honestly couldn’t tell you who my next superstar is going to be!” Did you know we can build you a beautiful Country Home?

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Clarke and DEO VOLENTE in the NRM CCI 3*-L Championship at the National Three-Day Eventing Championships, finishing in second place overall. Image: kampic.com the start of his tilt for Tokyo. “I think for those big events, there is absolutely no substitute for experience, and he is just so experienced. I think he is potentially the best eventing show jumper in the world.” Clarke hopes to have a couple of horses qualified for Tokyo, but his money is on Ritchie. “When the pressure is on, in a team situation, you can rely on him. I think New Zealand has some good combinations, but we haven’t got a lot of really experienced horses in the mix. That’s even more important with the new format, where all three team members have to finish the cross-country to even be in with a chance.”

Experience rules While Clarke admits that he doesn’t love the new format, he agrees that keeping eventing in the Olympics is the number one focus. “If this is how it has to be, then it’s how it has to be. It is the same for everyone, so we just have to make it work. The biggest takeaway for me is that the whole team has to finish the cross-country, and for the top placings you have to be fast and jump clear in the show jumping. I think it is tougher now, because if you fall off, the team is basically stuffed. So you have to keep your heels down!” For now, he’s happy to have everything ticking along. “I like to have goals I can be working on day-to-day, rather than too much big picture stuff. Tokyo is going to come around so fast. You have to be meticulous with all your horses, even those you think are a real outside chance.” He’s hopeful that a few of the combinations who are knocking on the door will step up. “It would be nice (for New Zealand) to have a few of the more experienced horses available. It is a bit of a weird space at the moment but then, only three people will get to compete. Ideally we need four coming on the right form at the right time. The team will be named in 12 months and a lot can happen in that time. Look at Maddy – who knows where she will be in 12 months’ time. When you look at where she was 12 months ago...and I’m not the only one saying it!” One thing is for sure, Clarke has his sights set on making that team and he would like nothing more than to have his wingman by his side. C

Call Laura Daly 021-722 578 E: laurad@harrisonlane.co.nz www.harrisonlane.co.nz

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SPECIAL FEATURE WORDS Cheyenne Nicholson IMAGES ON ALL PAGES: Bruce Goodin - Libby Law Photography, Wendi Williamson - Libby Law Photography, Vanessa Everton - Show Circuit, Daniel Meech - Libby Law Photography, Laura Van Velthooven - Michelle Clarke Photography, Jock Paget - Nico Morgan Photography

Successful riders share their secrets Success is the topic of countless articles, books, films, podcasts and videos – explaining how to attain it, and outlining the difference between successful people and everyone else. So, what does it take to be successful in the equestrian arena? To help answer this question we caught up with six top-level Kiwi riders from around the country (and abroad!) and got their views on what makes a successful rider, found out their habits for success, and asked their advice for riders aiming to progress. Veteran show jumper Bruce Goodin encourages riders to question what success means to them, and discusses finding a balance between family time and riding commitments. International eventer Jock Paget shares some home truths about riding at the top level and how to cope with the pressure that follows, and successful Show Hunter rider Laura van Velthooven reminds riders to listen to their horses – and to their mum! Dressage champion Wendi Williamson passes on some tips for combatting show day nerves, while showing superstar Vanessa Everton gives us her key ingredient for success. Show jumper Daniel Meech, currently based in Germany, shares some valuable information he learnt from his time with top German rider Paul Schockemöhle, and tells us what he has learned from coaching other riders.

“Success is walking from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.” Winston Churchill

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BRUCE GOODIN - SHOW JUMPING

WENDI WILLIAMSON - DRESSAGE

VANESSA EVERTON - SHOWING

DANIEL MEECH - SHOW JUMPING

LAURA VAN VELTHOOVEN - SHOW HUNTER

JOCK PAGET - EVENTING SHOWCIRCUIT MAGAZINE

BRUCE GOODIN

Olympic show jumper Bruce Goodin made an immediate impact on the show jumping scene back in 1988, winning the Olympic Cup at Horse of the Year aged just 18. Now with four Olympic Games under his belt – Barcelona 1992, Sydney 2000, Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008 – he is New Zealand’s most capped international show jumper.

What is your measure of success?

Success for me is measuring how I’ve improved. I can have a round where I have a rail down, but the ride itself was really great and as a partnership, we improved on something. Winning is the icing on the cake but it can’t be your only recognition of success.

aware of what I’m doing and importantly why I’m doing it, and because I have to explain it to other people, that helps me to understand the processes and in turn that helps my own riding.

What are the biggest challenges to progressing in a riding career and how have you overcome them?

You have to be a hard worker, have a ‘never give up’ attitude, and a real desire to just keep learning.

It’s not good enough to just be a good rider. You also have to be a good manager of horses and be good with people. In the top levels you’re going to need sponsors and other people around you. It’s something you get better at as time goes on.

What are the most important traits for a horse?

Are you a ‘stick to a routine’ or ‘go with the flow’ sort of person?

What are the most important traits to have as a rider in order to be successful?

I look at its conformation, health and overall soundness – these are always needed. I want a horse with a good brain and attitude. It has to want to do its job. Technique, capacity, scope and carefulness are four things I look for – a horse has to have at least two of these to be good, and three or more to be really good.

Instinctively I’ve been a ‘go with the flow’ person but I’m finding now I prefer having a good routine. I always thought going with the flow was easier and routine meant restriction, but it turns out the opposite is true!

How do you handle road blocks in your riding progress?

I’m a really hard worker and I don’t give up, which sometimes is probably a weakness. Not all horses will work out and sometimes you have to move on. Maybe I can get too emotionally attached.

I talk things over with my go-to people, mainly my wife and a good friend of mine who I train with a bit. We’ll throw around ideas and come up with tools to get around the issue. If it’s a specific problem, then I’ll seek help from people.

What are your strengths and weaknesses as a rider?

How do you balance riding with the non-horse related aspects of life?

How do you deal with stress or nerves at competitions?

I try to have systems and routines in place so that I can focus on what I’m doing. At events I try to really work at staying in the moment. I do breathing exercises to help focus and relax me as well.

At the stage of life I’m in now, with my family, it’s hard. At this level you have to be away a lot and that’s hard on all of us. We try to talk about it often and figure out the middle ground between being away enough to support riding at this level and being at home with family.

What do you look for in a trainer?

Any advice for junior riders aiming to progress?

Someone who is down-to-earth and not about creating something flashy, but understands how I want to get my horses working.

Do you have more than one trainer?

My friend and trainer is generally my ‘main’ trainer. He understands what I’m trying to do with my horses. I trust him a lot. If I need help in other areas, I will train with other people.

Are you a trainer for other riders, and if so, how does this influence your own riding?

A little bit yes. I get a lot out of training other riders. It makes me

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Learn as much as you can and keep learning. Work out what success means for you. If success is only about winning in the ring, then you’re going to end up being a miserable person, because it doesn’t matter who you are, you’re going to lose more times than you win. Winning isn’t everything – and it shouldn’t be.

What are your habits for success?

Having good routines and support, and always looking at how I can improve. I enjoy my riding more now than I ever have, because I better understand it’s all about improvement and learning to be a better horseman and rider.

WENDI

WILLIAMSON Grand Prix dressage rider Wendi Williamson cut her competition teeth as an eventer. In 2000, she made the switch to dressage and hasn’t looked back since. A regular on the New Zealand dressage scene riding her stunning Hanoverians, Wendi recently crossed the ditch to the Sydney CDI, where she placed second in both the FEI Grand Prix CDI 3* and Grand Prix Freestyle, on her horse Don Amour MH. The duo previously performed a beautiful Grand Prix freestyle to win the 2019 Dressage Horse of the Year title. What is your measure of success?

Do you have more than one trainer?

What are the most important traits to have as a rider in order to be successful?

What are the biggest challenges to progressing in a riding career and how have you overcome them?

Seeing progress in my horses and myself. Take my Grand Prix horse, for example – last season he was butt up, head down and very inconsistent. But towards the end of the season, he really improved.

As with any sport, you have to have an ability to handle pressure. A lot of people forget that they’re also training themselves, not just the horse. It’s a partnership made up of two athletes, which is important to acknowledge.

What are the most important traits to have in a horse?

I like mine to have a little bit of quirk about them. They have to be a bit of fun. I prefer what people sometimes describe as a ‘hot’ horse – a horse with the desire to go forward, and with a bit of attitude.

How do you handle road blocks in your riding progress?

I break down the problem. First, I look at all of my management. Am I doing anything differently, is my gear fitting correctly, is the horse sound, am I sitting straight? If it’s not a physical issue, then is it the way I’m presenting things to my horse? Don’t be afraid of getting outside help, as sometimes it’s easier to see an issue from the ground.

How do you deal with stress or nerves at competitions?

I find that sticking with one trainer helps to create a good baseline, and they get to know you and your horse well, which means they can better help you develop.

Number one is horse power. I used to ride OTTBs, show jumpers who didn’t want to jump, and people’s problem horses. You don’t need to go out an buy an expensive pre-trained horse. I believe you can learn a lot from every horse you ride, and the more horses you ride, the better your tools become. When I realised that I wasn’t ever going to be able to buy pre-trained horses, I started buying foals and training them myself. Having good facilities to ride in and finding the right trainer can also be challenging.

What are your strengths and weaknesses as a rider?

My strength is my determination and drive to be as good a rider as I can be in my lifetime. I’m dedicated to training myself and my horses to be better and achieve our potential. I feel that I owe it to my horses to do a good job. My weakness is that I’m quite impatient, so I do admire riders who have more patience than I do.

Almost everyone gets nervous at shows and it’s totally normal. For me, I don’t ever focus on the result. We can all dream about winning a big competition, but it can’t be your whole focus. The focus must be on how the ride went for you and your horse as a partnership. It helps to have someone you trust on the sideline – for me, that’s my daughter or my husband. I also do a lot of visualisation the night before, which usually puts me to sleep and really helps.

Are you a ‘stick to a routine’ or ‘go with the flow’ sort of person?

What do you look for in a trainer?

Support from family, friends, and even trainers. It’s a team effort.

I want someone that’s honest. If it doesn’t look good, then tell me! I’m fussy and a perfectionist, so if it looks awesome, I’d expect it to feel awesome. I also look at how the trainer rides and whether I want to ride like that. Experience is important, and I’m really open to international trainers that come over.

I like routine, but I keep it flexible. I ride in the morning, sticking to a routine and a regime that I follow in terms of their training pattern, but I am a bit flexible, as every day is different. Some days the horse isn’t feeling quite right, or one of us has got out of the wrong side of the bed!

How do you balance riding with the rest of life? What are your habits for success?

Be disciplined but flexible. Make horse management a top priority – it’s just as important as training. Keep on top of horse health, saddle fitting, ride preparation, feeding…everything.

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VANESSA EVERTON

Vanessa Everton has won 11 ridden, two runner-up and three led Horse of the Year titles over her successful showing career to date. Vanessa and her show hack, Lady’s Honour RP, won their third Hack of the Year title at this year’s Land Rover Horse of the Year show, having first won the title together in 2015 and again in 2017.

What is your measure of success?

It’s not about what you win, it’s about going to the show, having fun and always coming away feeling like you and your horse have gone well.

What are the most important traits to have as a rider in order to be successful?

I think you always have to take your wins with your losses. Be friendly to other competitors, be kind to your horse, and work really, really hard.

What are the most important traits to have in a horse?

Their temperament is most important. They have to be willing to please and to try. You’re not going to succeed with a horse that isn’t happy in their work.

How do you handle road blocks in your riding progress?

It’s hard for a horse and rider to do some the same thing every day, so I mix it up and do something different. It could be weekly lessons or hacks, or simply a change of scenery. By doing this, I find that roadblocks don’t tend to pop up too often. I’m lucky here because we have 40 acres, an arena and a river, so there’s lots of different places for us to work in.

How do you deal with stress or nerves at competitions?

learn new things and even you only take away one new piece of information, it’s totally worth it, in my opinion.

Are you a trainer for other riders, and if so, how does this influence your own riding? When time allows, I give lessons to friends’ children, which is really fun. It’s something I’d love to do more of but finding the time between my own riding, my family and my work is hard.

What are the biggest challenges to progressing in a riding career and how have you overcome these?

For me, my biggest challenge has been giving my daughters enough of my time. When they were younger, I gave up riding for a while so I could focus on them. They did lead-rein classes and progressed up from there once I knew they remained interested in ponies. When they didn’t need me as much, I got back in the saddle so to speak. Trying to juggle riding and competing with everything else in life is a big challenge. If you’re passionate about it though, you find the time.

Are you a ‘stick to a routine’ or ‘go with the flow’ sort of person? I have a loose routine, but the horses have to fit around the rest of my life and daily jobs.

What are your strengths and weaknesses as a rider?

A bottle of wine – joking! I’m quite lucky that I don’t really get nervous. I thrive off competition day. You can only go in and try your best.

My passion is definitely my strength. I love competition! Weakness would probably be staying motivated week to week and especially over the winter months.

What do you look for in a trainer?

Any advice for junior riders aiming to progress?

I look for someone who has the same interests as me, usually people who have done some showing. I train with Christine Weal, who does dressage but has shown before. Like me, she likes to compete, and she knows how to get the best out of me and my horse. She’s a humble person who has done well for herself.

Do you have more than one trainer?

I mainly train with Christine, but I always take the opportunity to have lessons with visiting international riders. You can always

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If you’re passionate about equestrian sport, then it doesn’t matter if you don’t have a lot of money or the newest gear. If you have the passion and the drive to do well, then everything else has a way of falling into place. If you put 100% into what you do and make sure your horse is fit, conditioned and happy, then you’ll get there.

What are your habits for success?

Passion, hard work, and have fun with it!

DANIEL MEECH

Show jumper Daniel Meech was just 20 years old when he packed up his life and moved to Germany for an apprenticeship with top German rider Paul Schockemöhle. He rode for New Zealand at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, finishing 12th, then went on to win the Kuala Lumpur Grand Prix that same year. Daniel is currently living and working in Westfalen, Germany. What is your measure of success?

We are in a difficult sport where we ride different types of horses. So, although winning is the overall measure of success, it’s not always realistic. For me, I measure success by the development of a horse’s talents to make the best of them. If you have someone who can run 100m in 14 seconds, and you train them well enough to bring it down to 12s, then for me that’s a great measure of success.

What are the most important traits to have as a rider in order to be successful? For a rider to be successful, you need to have great discipline. You have to be able to perform in high pressure situations. You also have to be able to communicate well; this plays a big part in gaining sponsors.

What are the most important traits to have in a horse?

A horse, I think, needs to want to be a real fighter. There are also the technical things around being careful and having scope, but most importantly, they have to be able to stay sound.

How do you handle road blocks in your riding progress?

I always try to stay positive and bring everything into perspective. I try to concentrate on my strong points as a rider, and trust my own talent and that of my horses to bring me through those issues.

What do you look for in a trainer?

I look for someone who has common systems and routes. Last year in Tryon, we had Helena Stormanns as our trainer. She was born English but rode for the German show jumping team. As I started out at Paul Schockemöhle’s stable and predominately showed in Germany, we had a lot in common. She is very honest which suits me well.

Do you have more than one trainer?

I don’t generally have a ‘trainer’ all the time. I find that at big shows, riding with the top riders raises my level. Talking and strategising with other riders motivates and invigorates me to ride better.

Teaching encourages me to expand my own learning to pass on to them.

What are the biggest challenges to progressing in a riding career and how have you overcome these?

The biggest hurdle in my career has been having access to competitive horses that I can ride at the highest level. I have been quite lucky in that when I rode with Paul Schockemöhle, I had some very good horses to ride. Since then, I have gone on to buy horses and produce them to the top levels myself. My ride at least year’s WEG was a result of that. Fine was owned by myself and a syndicate of loyal supporters back in New Zealand that I’m so grateful to have backing me.

Are you a ‘stick to a routine’ or ‘go with the flow’ sort of person?

I think I’m a bit of both. In this job, you need to have a lot of flexibility. It’s always interesting to ride different horses and discover their different characters. Sometimes I need to go with the flow, and other times I need to enforce a bit of routine and discipline into the operation.

What are your strengths and weaknesses as a rider?

I’m very much motivated by big championships. I’m very good at focusing on a long-term goal and seeing the bigger picture. But when it comes to lower level competitions, my concentration waivers a bit, so that’s something I always need to work on, as I know I should have the same concentration and put in the same effort for the lower level shows. I feel like I ride better when I’m challenged more. Riding for Paul was a huge pressure-cooker situation. There were so many big-name riders around, so when you trained, the standard was set, and brilliance was always expected. It gave me a lot of confidence to be able to handle that at such a young age.

How do you balance riding with the non-horse related aspects of life? I don’t really have much time for anything non-horse related, to be honest, so balance at the moment isn’t really a thing. I hope in the future that will change!

Are you a trainer for other riders, and if so, how does this Any advice for junior riders aiming to progress? Be disciplined! influence your own riding? I don’t do a lot of training of other riders, but when I do, I find that I have to be flexible. People are built differently and ride different horses, so you have to be flexible with the way that you teach and explain things.

What are your habits for success?

Have faith in yourself and never stop learning.

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LAURA

VAN VELTHOOVEN Laura van Velthooven is a familiar sight on the New Zealand Show Hunter circuit. Aboard her 18-year old grey mare Sirocco Daisy, she took out the 2019 Amateur Show Hunter of the Year title at Land Rover Horse of the Year as well as both the National Open High Points and Equitation Series.

What is your measure of success?

Getting the best out of my horse and myself in a round – the ribbons will come!

What are the most important traits to have as a rider in order to be successful? My top three traits are persistence, empathy, and confidence.

Horses won’t give you an amazing ride every single time! I’ve learned you have to persevere if you want to achieve consistency and get results.

Are you a ‘stick to a routine’ or ‘go with the flow’ sort of person?

What are the most important traits to have in a horse?

Before a round, I always like to have a plan. It helps me stay focused. If that waivers, and often it does, I still try to carry on with my plan as much as possible.

How do you handle roadblocks in your riding progress?

How do you balance riding with the non-horse related aspects of life?

They must be sound in mind and body.

Think of the bigger picture. Don’t sweat the small stuff and know when to call it a day. I’m a believer that horses have ‘off days’ just like we do!

How do you deal with stress or nerves at competitions?

I simply try to take it as it comes. I have an established show routine where I work with the horses and each of their quirks, not against them.

What do you look for in a trainer?

Someone who is like-minded, and passionate about seeing you get the best out of your horse.

Do you have more than one trainer?

One trainer, plus my mum – Mum knows me and my horses inside out! My trainer also knows my horses well, and together, we get the best out of them in Show Hunter.

Are you a trainer for other riders, and if so, how does this influence your own riding?

Yes, I enjoy coaching kids. Being seen as a role model encourages you to ride the best you can, and to show them what comes with hard work.

What are the biggest challenges to progressing in a riding career and how have you overcome them?

Maintaining focus and drive when things aren’t going as planned.

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Be prepared to make some sacrifices. Although when you’re enjoying the sport, you don’t often feel like you’re missing out on ‘non-horsey’ events.

Any advice for junior riders aiming to progress?

Study other riders – nothing will inspire you more. If possible, ride green horses, as you will learn a lot from them and become creative, because they won’t do everything for you. Think of yourself as your horse’s coach – you’re trying to teach him skills and develop the fitness he needs to be able to perform at his best. Don’t be afraid to give other disciplines a go…and listen to your mother!

What are your habits for success?

I think you need to have an objective or plan every time you ride. I like to vary the work between hacking, flatwork and pole work. My two horses are polar opposites, so it’s important that I recognise what they each need. Sirocco Daisy (Glendevon Commander) is 18 years old and she knows the gig, so we usually focus on fitness and suppleness. Eight-year-old Montbelle Donahue (Donnerubin) still has a lot to learn, but he loves the work, which makes him a pleasure to ride. I work full-time so there are some time constraints. I’m super lucky to have great support from my family. Often Mum will have the horses in the yard ready for me when I get home from work at 5:30 pm.

JOCK PAGET

New Zealand eventer Jock Paget is no stranger to the international eventing circuit. His lengthy competition record includes the Rolex Kentucky Three Day Event, FEI World Equestrian Games, Burghley Horse Trials and the London Olympic Games, to name just a few. In 2013, he became only the second rider to win the Badminton Horse Trials on debut, following in the footsteps of a fellow Kiwi, Sir Mark Todd. What is your measure of success?

Success with horses can depend on the type of horse you’re sitting on and their capability, but ultimately, I consider success as having a goal, doing the work required and achieving it.

What are the most important traits to have as a rider in order to be successful?

Having a high level of resilience – it’s a tough sport! And you have to be a good learner and be willing to keep learning.

myself that I don’t have to train them to ride like me. We all have a different natural style and to get the best out of each rider might mean building on what comes naturally to them, even if it’s different to what I would do.

What are the biggest challenges to progressing in a riding career and how have you overcome them?

Like with a good rider, a horse has to want to learn. They have to have a good brain, and I look for horses with great natural balance as well.

Similar to most sporting careers, if you want to be the best at something you have to push the limits. This means you have a much higher chance of failure; coping with all those failures and being brave enough to keep pushing it to the edge is hard, until it starts to work. For me, I had good people around me and just kept trying!

How do you handle road blocks in your riding progress?

Are you a ‘stick to a routine’ or ‘go with the flow’ sort of person?

What are the most important traits to have in a horse?

There is always going to be something that you’re grappling with. At a competition which I’m trying to win, I always play to my strengths and protect my weaknesses. I always work hard on my weaknesses.

How do you deal with stress or nerves at competitions?

Both are unavoidable, so knowing yourself is important and simply focusing on the things you can control. From there, just deal with one problem at a time and do the best you can. Try to remember to have fun while you’re out there.

What do you look for in a trainer?

I want someone technically good but most importantly, they have to be brutally honest! If something is not right, tell me and we can fix it.

Do you have more than one trainer?

I have specialist trainers in each area of riding and an all-around go-to person who deeply understands all parts of the sport which covers all my bases.

Are you a trainer for other riders, and if so, how does this influence your own riding?

I like to stick to a routine, but you have to give yourself the freedom to make adjustments, as nothing with horses ever goes exactly to plan.

What are your strengths and weaknesses as a rider?

My strength is my ability to stay focused. My weakness is that I can sometimes over-do things.

How do you balance riding with the non-horse related aspects of life?

I’m still learning to do this! In reality, if you want to do this sport at the top end, having any sort of balance is very difficult.

Any advice for junior riders aiming to progress?

Keep it fun! And don’t be afraid of failure, it’s part and parcel of this sport. Never stop learning.

What are your habits for success?

Work hard, accept that there are going to be plenty of knocks, and find a way to enjoy the challenge. Learn from everything and have a high level of self-awareness. Most importantly, love your horses.

Yes. It has positives and negatives. It’s important to remind

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INTERVIEW

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KIRSTY

SHARAPOFF

NEVER A DULL MOMENT WORDS Ashleigh Kendall IMAGES Michelle Clarke Photography

Last season may have been a mixed bag for Kirsty, with a few hiccups along the way, but this South Island eventer is ready to bounce back next season with her two starry horses.

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esilience in the face of adversity is something that secondary school PE teacher Kirsty has always accepted as normal in any sport, and it is something she has had to practice this past season. “I am good at going north and screwing up,” she laughs, when reflecting on how the season went for her. “It has been a bit of a higgledy-piggledy season, really. I moved Shoot the Breeze (Merv) up to 4* level, and for the most part it went well, but I decided that we needed to step back down to consolidate some training and build more confidence. We came second in the FEI 3* at South Island Championships – he was outstanding there – then went north to Puhinui, where I managed to catch a gastro bug, and fell off at the fourth jump, so that wasn’t ideal. We also missed a fence at another event! Then we came back home, won the 1.25m Speed Horse title at South Island Show Jumping Champs, and finished off the season with a win in the 3* at Ryal Bush.” Kirsty also acquired the starry gelding The Little Prince from Sarah Young at the beginning of the year. “Henry and I have only been together for a couple of months, so we are still getting to know each other,” she says. Despite their short partnership, they have started well, placing second at Ryal Bush in a competitive 2* class. “He’s pretty exciting, and it’s nice to have another horse competing at the higher levels. Having one horse at those levels can make it pretty tough to go out and always do well, so having more rides will hopefully help me progress a little.”

Bouncing back Kirsty had been hoping to carry on the good form she’d shown in previous seasons, so was disappointed to experience some setbacks. However, she is realistic about the nature of the sport. “You have to get back up and carry on,” she says philosophically.

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“Bouncing back is crucial – it’s a resilience thing. You are never going to be always up, as there will always be things that go wrong. But this is a sport, and if it wasn’t tough, everyone would do it!” “If you can’t do that, then the only other choice is to quit and do something else! I’ll have a bit of a sulk for 24 hours, then try to kick myself in the butt and get going again. I will look at what went wrong and try to figure out why it happened. “Bouncing back is crucial – it’s a resilience thing. You are never going to be always up, as there will always be things that go wrong. But this is a sport, and if it wasn’t tough, everyone would do it!” Given the unevenness of her season’s results, Kirsty made the difficult but practical decision not to venture up to the Taupo Three-Day event this year. There were a few deciding factors for her, but overall she just felt that she had some more work to do in training. As if to cement her decision, her car broke down, ending any possibility of changing her mind. “It’s such an expensive undertaking to travel such a long way, and our results have not been good enough,” she explains. “So I decided the money was better spent elsewhere – on my car repairs, as it turned out!”

Sitting on the sidelines The sideline is not a comfortable place for any motivated rider to sit, but after dislocating her ankle a couple of years ago in a nonhorse-related accident, damaging all of the ligaments, Kirsty has elected to have the joint reconstructed over winter so she can be back up and running before next season. “I will be off a horse for about six weeks, but I hope to bring them back into work at the start of July to be looking towards the first events in August,” she says. “I have been coping with my ankle not functioning 100% for the last couple of years, and for the most part it hasn’t been too bad, but now and then it rolls, which can be a bit annoying and is not ideal for riding.”

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Kirsty and THE LITTLE PRINCE (Henry) at Eventing Southland’s FEI event at Ryal Bush, where they placed 2nd in the 2*. Henry was purchased from Sarah Young at the beginning of 2019 by Kirsty’s mum, Merle Ogilvie. IMAGE Sophie Simson Photography The focus over winter will be on sitting back and regrouping. “I am going to pop Merv back down to 3* next season and focus on consolidating his training, so that he is pinging and confident. He has all the ability in the world, and it’s just me that lets him down quite a bit – like when I forget to jump a jump! Silly things like that.” She is also looking at adding a couple of North Island trips to her calendar, and all going well, will aim to be back up to 4* in the autumn season – but she is happy to play it by ear for now. “I’m also quite keen to show jump Merv, and have a crack at the Pro-Am Series. He’s a pretty clever show jumper, and with the way our seasons are run now, we can easily do that alongside eventing.” For her new teammate Henry, consolidation is also a key theme for Kirsty. “I would like us to get to know each other a bit better, and hopefully target 2* in the spring. Maybe we will be ready to do a 3* in the autumn, but we will see how it goes,” she says. “He is a very different ride to Merv. Sarah has done a fantastic job with him, and he has all the buttons and the bells and whistles. It’s just about me getting used to him.”

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“I like to know that my horses are ready for the task at hand – that they are fit enough, and that their bodies feel good.”

Next season and beyond Looking forward to the more distant future, Kirsty’s larger goals haven’t changed. “I would like to get Merv back up to 4* and nail it. He has potential, but we need the time to make it good. I also want to give Mini Prix a bit of a nudge, show jumping-wise, and also get some consistent flying changes! We are working at those.” For Henry, Kirsty says it’s a matter of waiting and seeing what the partnership eventually evolves into. “He’s a lovely horse and amazing on the flat, so I just want to see how we gel together and to keep moving forward,” she explains. “I haven’t got plans as such for him, as it’s early days, but I would like to get him up to 3* level and see how he goes there.” However, she admits that her plans are always subject to change. “I always tentatively plan with horses, and I’m always ready to change plans at a second’s notice,” she says. “They are all sound and happy, and are looking and feeling good at the moment. I have some fantastic help from my coaches Christine Weal and Andrew Scott, and Emily Cammock lets me pick her brains at regular intervals, too. “I am also so lucky to be supported by some amazing sponsors: Mitavite, Living Anatomy of the Horse (Nicolette Gelderman, who attends to my horses’ bodywork needs), Carousel Equestrian (who supply me with amazing lambskin saddle pads and other products), Rangiora Equestrian Supplies, Sophie Simson Photography, and Beyond the Bit.”

LEFT: Kirsty on SHOOT THE BREEZE during the cross-country phase in the CCI3*-S at Eventing Southland FEI event at Ryal Bush, on their way to winning the class. IMAGE Sophie Simson Photography ABOVE: Kirsty’s routine involves hacking the horses out regularly, even at sunset. IMAGE Michelle Clarke Photography

“I used to compete in athletics, 400m hurdles in particular, which taught me that preparation is everything. I’m always training like it’s money in the bank, and I like to come in as prepared as possible,” she says. “I like to know that my horses are ready for the task at hand – that they are fit enough, and that their bodies feel good. Nicolette is great at looking after them in that respect, treating them before and after events so they can perform at their optimal ability.” She is focused on improving every aspect of her riding, and knows that mental focus is crucial for both horse and rider. “I was a little slack at walking courses at the start of the season and managed to miss a jump, so I need to be a little more focused,” she admits. Always ready to do the hard yards, Kirsty will leave no stone unturned in the lead-up to a big event. “I’m also on the organising committee at Eventing Canterbury, so can spend a lot of time organising and emailing and doing all the administration that goes with that, as well as getting my horses ready to compete,” she says. “That side of things can be distracting, Kirsty’s sporting background and knowledge has been very helpful but it is the only way we can compete, so it needs to get done. We all with her eventing preparation. need to do our bit.” C

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PROMOTION

SIR MARK TODD to headline EQUITANA Auckland! EQUITANA Auckland is beyond proud and excited to announce that the legendary master of equestrian sport, Sir Mark Todd, will be a Star Presenter this November.

The iconic rider needs little introduction. He has two Olympic gold medals to his name, has competed at seven Olympic Games in total, is a three-time medallist at the World Equestrian Games and has amounted five Burghley wins and four Badminton Horse Trials wins. Sir Mark Todd is a legend of the sport of eventing, with a career spanning nearly 40 years and innumerable accolades. A fixture at the highest level of his sport, Mark Todd has won all that there is to win in his career and has already left an indelible mark on the history of eventing. At 62 years old, he was also named by the FEI as the 'Rider of the 20th Century' and continues to target the top spot on podiums around the world. EQUITANA is renowned for bringing the biggest stars in the world to New Zealand and there are none more impressive than the master himself. Sir Mark Todd will be attending all four days of EQUITANA Auckland, giving you the chance to learn from and meet your hero. “It is the first time I have been to EQUITANA anywhere in the world and for it to be in New Zealand is something quite special,” said Sir Mark. “There is always so much to soak in at an event that offers so much – from masterclasses to buying whatever your heart desires and learning from some of the best in the world. I can’t wait.” He is New Zealand’s most crowned Olympian with seven caps to his credit and is loved the world over for his talent, success and generosity in sharing his knowledge. Sir Mark’s back-to-back individual gold medal wins at the Los Angeles (1984) and Seoul (1988) Olympic Games aboard the mighty Charisma won the hearts of the nation. He’s also won two Olympic team and one individual bronze medals. His World Championships record is just as impressive, with two team golds, an individual silver and a team bronze. To spend time with him in the public eye is akin to being in the presence of a rock star – a constant flow of people keen to chat, shake his hand, ask a question or have a photo taken with him. He takes it all in his stride and seems to have all the time in the world for each person. EQUITANA Auckland’s Kevin Hansen has known Sir Mark for decades and says it is a real treat to have him coming home for the iconic event. “Sir Mark is the most extraordinary athlete. I doubt his achievements will ever be met by another rider. We are beyond proud to have him come back to New Zealand for EQUITANA this year and can’t wait to share him with you all,” he says. As a Star Presenter at EQUITANA Auckland, Sir Mark will be presenting an exclusive Eventing Masterclass and evening show on Thursday, along with several other educational sessions and special events.

Tickets for EQUITANA Auckland are on sale June 19. We have something very special in store for you this year and you will not want to miss it. Stay tuned for more announcements this month.

www.equitanaakl.co.nz

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HUGE ANNOUNCEMENT! Sir Mark Todd is coming to EQUITANA Auckland as a Star Presenter

Tickets on sale June 19 www.equitanaakl.co.nz

INTERVIEW WORDS Ashleigh Kendall IMAGES Michelle Clarke

TAY L O R

B U R N E T T

Originally from the small town of Opotiki, Taylor has gone from just dreaming of riding to running his own successful equestrian business.

rom a young age, Taylor has always been prepared to work hard and to embrace a challenge – both qualities that have often been necessary in his chosen career. ”Riding was something I’d always wanted to do, but I didn’t start until I was 12 years old. My first pony was a crossbred, green-broken three-year-old who I got after only a few months of lessons,” he recalls. “Not the easiest pony to start with! But we learnt a lot together.” These hard-earned lessons helped to set him up for future success. His passion for horses never left him, and Taylor now rides full-time, running his own business Taylor Burnett Equestrian from West Melton, Christchurch. With the business growing all the time, Taylor is feeling positive about his future.

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“It was the only class Quest competed in at Land Rover Horse of the Year, so to go out and win it was really cool. He really deserved it, and I was absolutely thrilled!”

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ABOVE: Once the racehorses are worked in the morning, Taylor concentrates on his show horses. LEFT: Taylor riding his saddle hunter, QUESTIONABLE, the star of his showing stable. BELOW: Taylor riding WPS VAVOOM during their round in the Working Hunter Horse over 148cm title at the Land Rover Horse of the Year Show 2019, where they finished as Runner-Up.

A busy schedule Taylor’s day starts early at 5:20 am, when he heads to the racetrack to ride trackwork for Court Co. Racing. “I normally ride about four or five horses on the track, and I also do a few breakers there too. They have amazing facilities, and I’m fortunate enough to be able to base my breaking-in business there, which works well. Typically, I’ll have around three to five breakers on-site for outside clients.” Once he has finished his work at Court Co. for the day, Taylor starts working his own racehorses. “I started training racehorses in August last year, and I have three in work which I own shares in, along with my supportive partner

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Duncan Norrie and good friends Michael and Sarah Fitzgerald.” Once the racehorses are done, Taylor heads home to work between three to five competition horses and any schoolers that are in, as well as fitting in lessons and anything else that needs doing for clients. “My day with the horses normally ends when it gets dark, or when everything is worked and fed – which can be well after dark!” he confesses. Taylor’s evenings are spent cooking and doing any admin required for his business. “I try to have Sunday off from riding whenever I can, though that doesn’t happen often – during the show season we go competing, and in winter we could be at the races.”

ABOVE: WPS VAVOOM waiting for the presentation at the Land Rover Horse of the Year 2019 during Working Hunter Horse of the Year. Below: Taylor and QUESTIONABLE on their way to winning the Rising Star Saddle Hunter title at Land Rover Horse of the Year 2019.

No question about talent Taylor has enjoyed many successes in the show ring with his impressive team of horses. At the top of his list is the current Rising Star Saddle Hunter of the Year title holder, Questionable. Quest, as he is known at home, is a powerful 17.1hh bay gelding by Corlando who stands at Goldengrove Stud, and was bred by Bert Elstob. “Quest is an easy horse to have around, and he has no real quirks,” Taylor says. “The most annoying thing he does is try to sit on the wheelbarrow or quad bike when you’re mucking out his paddock! Taylor was really impressed by the horse in their first season together, and sees him as having a huge future ahead in multiple disciplines. Unfortunately for Taylor, the combination’s future together is unknown at this stage, as Quest will soon be available for sale. WPS VaVoom is known at home as DJ – or more affectionately, Mr Versatile, as he can turn his hoof to anything. The eight-year-old Voltaire II gelding stands at 17hh and has an impressive presence. “Although he’s not old, he is called the grumpy old man of the team and can often be seen jumping from paddock to paddock when he is in a mood!” Taylor laughs. “I was lucky enough to be offered the ride of him from Duncan when he became busy with work and his other show horse.” Taylor had a very successful Land Rover Horse of the Year Show on DJ, taking home the runner-up placing in both Working Hunter

of the Year and Round the Ring Hunter of the Year. Rounding out the team is WPS Valentino, a full brother to DJ. The 16.2hh four-year-old bay colt is the baby of Taylor’s team. “He is pretty green, but has won a lot in-hand as a young horse, and I am really excited about him for the future. I aim to get him out and about more over winter and then we will look towards competing in the five-year-old show jumping classes next season.” No team is complete without support from the ground, and Taylor is grateful to his partner Duncan, who is the farrier and truck driver for shows, as well as showing him the ropes in the show ring. “I am pretty new to showing, so I had a lot to learn regarding

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It’s not all about schooling in an arena! Hacking out the show horses is an important part of their routine, as Taylor believes it prevents them from becoming stale and bored.

“It was the only class he competed in at Land Rover Horse of the Year, so to go out and win it was really cool. He really deserved it, and I was absolutely thrilled! Typically I'm not a showie, and had never shown at Horse of the Year before,” he admits. “Quest is a horse with a huge amount of ability and a trot to die for. I was first out for the workouts, so I thought to myself ‘just do a nice even workout’, and it paid off. He has a lot more to give and I'm very lucky to have the ride on him.” On the racing side, the highlight so far for Taylor was winning his first race as a trainer with a gutsy little mare called Gifted. “She is very special and will be with me forever. There is nothing like watching a horse you’ve trained cross the line as a winner.” turnout. In the beginning, Duncan or Sarah would turn my horses out for me for the show ring, but now I can do most of it myself – apart from putting in false tails and forelock plaits!”

Treasured moments Taylor looks back fondly on the horse that really started his competition career. “I was lucky enough to own a super mare called TM Marjay, and we went from Young Riders to jumping Grand Prix together,” he recalls. “I remember being told not to buy her as she was ‘only a 1.20m horse’. But we went on to jump to Grand Prix successfully, and although we never won a Grand Prix class, we did place second a couple of times amongst some very good horses. I owe my riding career to that mare.” Another highlight for Taylor was his recent Rising Star Saddle Hunter Horse of the Year win on Questionable.

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A complete approach When preparing for a big event, whether it be racing, jumping or showing, Taylor’s main focus and priority is to ensure that his horse is sound and happy in body and mind. “If I am competing in showing that weekend, I like to finish my schooling and training session with some basic workouts that we might be given in the ring on the day,” he says. “I also like to take them to do something different, like a ride at the forest or beach; or if I am showing quite often, I will refresh their mind with some jumping so they are motivated and don’t become bored with the work.” Taylor is grateful for his partner Duncan’s encouragement and backing of his career, and for the support he has received from Ubersnug Horse Rugs. A rising star in every sense, Taylor Burnett will definitely be one to watch in the coming season. C

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INTERVIEW

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REBEKAH VAN TIEL Finding Her Way WORDS Ashleigh Kendall IMAGES Show Circuit

On a quiet autumn morning, a bright-eyed Rebekah van Tiel walked in our door, giving us the chance to catch up with this talented young New Zealand show jumper, back in New Zealand for a short break after working for top stables in France, Holland and, most recently, Florida.

hree years ago, Rebekah eagerly set out on an overseas adventure that would take her to heights she had previously only dreamed of reaching. Having already enjoyed success on the New Zealand circuit, including winning Junior Rider of the Year, placing in the Young Rider series, jumping in the World Final in Venezuela and competing in Australia – all on her wonderful horse Adeaze – she was ready for a new challenge living overseas. Rebekah initially joined Samantha MacIntosh’s stables in Bordeaux, France, where she started to find her groove under Sam’s watchful eye. As well as being allowed to ride some of Sam’s horses at home, she was also given the exciting opportunity to

compete some of the horses out at shows, with a highlight being a sixth place finish in a 1* Grand Prix. “Everything I know, Sam taught me,” Rebekah says gratefully. “I learnt so much from the year I spent with her.” With her year in France almost over, the next step in Rebekah’s journey came when Sam hosted the famed Dutch trainer Albert Voorn at her stables, and she offered Rebekah the ride on a couple of horses in his clinic. Albert was impressed with her riding, commenting that she had a lot of talent and it would be a shame for her to leave Europe so soon. He suggested that she stay on and find a riding job, then introduced her to Bart and Miriam van der Kloet of van der Kloet Jumping, a show jumping stable based in Holland.

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Next stop: Holland Rebekah moved to the van der Kloets’ stables to become their top rider, responsible for keeping 15 horses in work at a time. “It was really amazing there, because I was able to have a say and decide what the horses did each day,” she explains. “Although I had 15 to manage, I would work it out so my six-day working week usually involved riding up to ten horses per day. The younger ones would have just a few days of work each week, while the older horses all were worked six days a week.” She also competed the horses at shows – her successes included winning the 1.35m Grand Prix in Delft on a horse called Jolien van ‘t Vennehof – where she relished the opportunity to rub shoulders with some of the best.

“It’s no secret that I did think about

giving up horses for a while. I would see my friends working their 9-to-5 jobs and having weekends off, whereas with horses, the days are long and you only get one day off a week.” “One big high point about Holland for me was simply being in the warm-up ring and looking over and seeing top riders warming up for the same class as me,” she admits. “That was pretty surreal at first!” Rebekah stayed with the van der Kloets for two years before deciding that it was time for a change. “It’s no secret that I did think about giving up horses for a while,” she admits. “I would see my friends and others working their 9-to-5 jobs and having weekends off, whereas with horses, the days are long and you usually only get one day off a week, so you are quite limited as to what else you can do outside of horses. I did consider returning to New Zealand then, and finding something else that I am good at.” But while she was considering her future, she was offered a job grooming for Lauren Hough in Florida, and admits that her curiousity was piqued by the opportunity. “I was at a crossroads, so I thought ‘why not?’ It wasn’t a tough decision – I was interested to see where it would take me. And it is incredible to be working with one of the best female riders in the world.”

Other people’s horses Before Rebekah returned home to New Zealand after her successful stint in Florida, Lauren asked if she would consider meeting them in England in May for their European season. “They spend five months of the year in Florida, and then the rest of the time in England for the European circuit,” she explains. “I couldn’t think of any reason to say no; I had such a positive experience in Florida, so it made perfect sense. We both agreed that we will see how it works, and what she can do for me and what I can do for her. I am excited to see where the opportunity might lead. It would be amazing to be able to ride some of her horses for her – or maybe I will be in a position to find another riding job, like the one in Holland.”

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Perhaps surprisingly, Rebekah doesn’t miss having her own horse at the moment, as she enjoys the perks of riding for owners. “When you ride for other people, they pay for everything!” she points out. “I just need to make sure that I do my job, and do what needs to be done to get the horse to the ring. Any vet bills or anything the horse needs is taken care of by someone else, so I find it to be much less pressure from a financial point of view. I also feel fairly secure as I know that if I do what I am meant to do and do it well, then they won’t take the horse off me, so I don’t really worry or think about that. “It is so expensive to have competition horses over there, and you are playing with people who have huge amounts of money, so it would be difficult for me to set up my own yard and own horses at this point. Riding for someone else is the best way forward for me.” Determined and dedicated, Rebekah isn’t happy to settle with riding at the same level for the rest of her life. She is working hard to progress through to the higher classes and wants to enjoy success there. “I am the kind of person that wants to go as far as I can. I am all in or not at all, so I am really looking to move on up and hopefully make it to the top of the sport.”

“One big high point about Holland for me was simply being in the warm-up ring and looking over and seeing top riders warming up for the same class as me. That was pretty surreal at first!”

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Rebekah and HAVEL VAN DE WOLFSAKKER, one of her favourite rides at Peel & Maas in the 1.30m final in Holland, 2018. Image FotoTrailer bogs snowday mid boots

Learning curves The difference in horse management between New Zealand, Holland and Florida have been a huge learning curve for Rebekah. “In Holland, the horses were all kept in stables, and they were lucky if they got to go in a paddock for any time during the day, as they only had two paddocks and so many horses,” she explains. “They also went on the walker a lot, which isn’t that good for them to do all the time, and there was less attention paid to grooming and things like that. “In Florida, all the horses would go in their own paddock before the riders turned up, then they would work the horses until around

lunchtime. After lunch, all of the horses were groomed and washed, and we would get them ready for any shows they were going to that week. At Lauren’s stable, there was no detail left untouched. The horses were cared for to the highest standard, and I learnt a huge amount from being there. It was really beneficial to be there as a groom and take everything on board.” As Rebekah finds her way in the international jumping scene, she is continuously learning and taking each opportunity to progress. An exciting future lies ahead for this 22-yearold, and the world is truly at her fingertips. C

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INTERVIEW WORDS Rebecca Harper IMAGE: Dark Horse Photography

& Hansen

Sophie

Daniel

Making Magic

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Zebedee’s Magic has always danced to the beat of his own drum, but the small but mighty ‘bush pony’ took out fourth place in the Open Saddle Hunter title class at the 2019 Horse of the Year Show before heading off on his annual hunting holiday.

hen she first clapped eyes on the ‘hairy bush pony with a terrible attitude’, neither Sophie Hansen nor Zeb, as he’s known as home, had ever set foot in the show ring. Fast-forward four years and the pair have forged a true partnership, going from strength to strength and footing it with the best in the showing arena. But Zeb isn’t your standard show pony. He loves nothing better than getting out on the hunt field, and just two weeks after placing at HOY he was out whipping for the Wairarapa Hunt with Sophie’s husband, Daniel. The couple moved to the Wairarapa a year ago and live on a 2,000-acre farm in Martinborough, where Daniel is the stock manager. Sophie, who studied Commerce at Victoria University and is a Chartered Accountant, is the Group Financial Controller for a local family-owned business, Pain & Kershaw.

Starting young

Sophie grew up on a farm in Hawke’s Bay, where her father always had a stock horse. “He farmed bulls and liked to use a horse. I just nagged him until he got me a pony, a little Welsh Cob called Prince. I was allowed to do pony club, and eventually I wore Dad down and stole his hunter. I show jumped that horse for a bit, competing him up to 1.20m.” The lure of the city drew Sophie into Wellington to study, and she subsequently gave up riding for a while. “After I finished uni, I was working in Wellington, and I

had a friend with a couple of horses in Lower Hutt, so I started going out for a ride with her.” When Sophie moved back to Hawke’s Bay in 2011, she knew that the time was right for her to get her own horse again. “That’s when I got my other horse Felix from Laura Harris. I’ve known her since I was teeny-weeny and Felix had been sacked from polo, so the idea was that I’d school him a bit and then we’d sell him and go halves. “He turned out to be a handy little horse, so I bought the other half from her and got properly back into riding. But I stuck to hunting and some low level show jumping. I’d never owned a dressage saddle and I definitely wasn’t a ‘showie’!” The start of Sophie’s showing journey came when a friend talked her into looking at Zeb. “It was pure luck – just taking a chance,” she explains. “I was hesitant as she said he was a bit naughty, but I went down there to see him, and there was this little shaggy, terrible-looking bush pony with an awful attitude.” Despite this less-than-favourable first impression, Sophie saw something special in Zeb and decided to take a punt on him, thinking he would be a good project to flick on. “But once I worked through his issues, there was something there. He’s a weird mix of curious and quite arrogant, but there’s a loving side to him. He was quite an angry little pony, he had no respect and would try to kick and bite the lady who owned him to get his way. “Luckily I have a husband who rides and I knew if Zeb

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was naughty, Dan could help me out. I thought it would be a nice challenge and he was something Dan could hunt. We thought he’d make a good riding club mount.”

The journey When Sophie first got Zeb home, she couldn’t even lead him from one paddock to another. “He would pull away, tow me. The first time I rode him down the drive it took me an hour to get him to move 500 metres! Everything we’ve learned, we’ve learned together. “I thought I’d get him going, do one hunt season, and sell him on. Then we put him in the Pleasure ring and he went quite well. My friend, Anna Williams, suggested that I take him to Horse of the Year and compete in Pleasure. She convinced me to give it a go, and came and turned him out for me. But we didn’t get placed, and I couldn’t understand where we were going wrong. “I was going to give up until Tina Sergeant asked me ‘what are you doing in there? You need to be in the Hunter ring’. I thought about it over winter and ended up deciding that it was worth a shot. What was the worst that could happen? Zeb went out and placed second in his first class, and we ended up qualifying for Rising Star Saddle Hunter that year (2016). It just snowballed from there.” Sophie credits a number of people with helping to mould her and Zeb into what they are today, particularly Anna Williams and her mother, Toni. “Anna is an absolute dressage queen. They convinced me to do intro level dressage and

broken person. He didn’t care if I cried, he was just happy to be out. I could go for a ride and escape everything. “I needed something to concentrate on. Nationals was in January and I told Dan I wanted to go. He asked if I was ready. I said I didn’t know, but I needed something to aim for to feel whole again.” She started having lessons with Cindy

“That was the moment. I thought, we’ve survived all of this and you’ve helped me so much, maybe we can do this. Ever since then we’ve just gone for it.” gave me a few lessons, teaching me how to get him going forward, some ringcraft and how to ride dressage tests.” She also had lessons with the late Chrissie Beatson. “She taught me so much. She really pushed us and made me realise we could go showing and we weren’t completely out of our depth.”

A turning point

The real turning point came in December 2016, when Sophie sadly lost the couple’s unborn daughter at 21 weeks. “Zeb was everything to me then, and the only reason I got up was to ride,” she admits. “He was the one thing I had, and he never judged me or looked at me like a

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Pender, someone Sophie credits with having a huge influence on her riding, and the combination not only made it to Nationals, they placed second in the National Saddle Hunter title. “That was the moment. I thought, we’ve survived all of this and you’ve helped me so much, maybe we can do this. Ever since then we’ve just gone for it.” Sophie has gained a new appreciation for showing and the work that goes into preparing a horse for the ring. She believes that what makes Zeb successful in the show ring has also made him a better hunter. “He’s so adjustable going into a fence now, he listens and concentrates – well, most of the time!” She never saw any reason to stop hunting.

“He loves it and I think it’s what keeps him so balanced. You can’t just continuously work him on a circle or keep him in an arena, he gets bored and angry. I don’t think of him as a show horse – to me, he’s just a little wombat pony who is a fun horse you can take on the farm.” She does admit, however, that there are times when Dan is out whipping on Zeb that she watches them jump a fence with her heart in her mouth. “There have been moments that I do think ‘please don’t scratch my pony!’ But I trust Dan, he knows how to ride.” Zeb is a 13-year-old gelding by a Friesian stallion out of a warmblood-Thoroughbred mare. At just 15.3hh, he is smaller than many of the horses he competes against, but Sophie doesn’t see his small stature as a handicap. “I like him the size he is, I wouldn’t change him. There are some beautiful, big hunters out there, but when Zeb enters the ring, he truly believes that everyone is there to watch him and he loves it!”

From strength to strength

This last season was when Sophie felt like everything really came together, culminating in their fourth place in the HOY title class. “The season before we struggled to qualify for HOY. This time we had the mileage and finally knew what we were doing.” Learning how to prepare Zeb and keep him happy all season also made a big difference. “He used to get so angry about

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being schooled all the time and would go sour quickly. I’ve learned how to keep him happy, fitter and wanting to work.” Under her new regime, Zeb has all of December off so that he comes in for Nationals feeling fresh. This year he won the Newcomer Saddle Hunter title and was Reserve Champion in the Open class. “He went into HOY feeling really good and I was hoping for top six, although I would have been stoked just to get a ribbon,” she says. “It was a really nice recognition of our hard work and how far we’ve come together to get placed fourth in the title class.”

A change of jockey

Happily, Sophie is now pregnant again, so Zeb has a new home lined up, where he will be showing a younger rider the ropes. “It’s just for the season,” she explains. “I know they’ll look after him and treat him like their own. So he’ll still be out there showing, just not with me!” She is open about sharing her struggles with pregnancy. “I think miscarriage and stillbirth is a taboo subject and people often don’t know what to say. I’m quite open about it. I have

a rare disorder that increases specific risks the further along we are in pregnancy, making mine the opposite of most!” This time, she is armed with knowledge and medical help from the outset. In the meantime, Zeb will be out hunting with Dan. “The first two seasons I had Zeb, Dan referred to him as ‘his’ hunter – mostly to wind me up! We try to share him now, but he’ll have him for this hunting season.” Sophie says the little horse with the bad attitude has given her so much and she would never trade him. “When we got that terrible news that we’d lost our daughter, it was like my soul shattered into a thousand pieces and they will never quite fit back together again. Zeb played a huge part in helping me through that. I felt whole again when I was riding him. Having that bond and relationship with him means so much.” Sophie is grateful to her sponsors Equiscentials, for keeping Zeb’s coat looking amazing; Nigel Laing Contracting, who supplies top quality hay and haylage; and particularly her instructor Cindy Pender, for moulding her into a show rider and pushing her to be her best. C

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INTERVIEW WORDS Diana Dobson AT HOME IMAGES Cornege Photography COMPETITION IMAGES Cheleken Photography

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Catherine

CAMERON

Dreamers like me

Catherine Cameron is not only a successful show jumping competitor and trainer, she also trains racehorses – even driving them in harness when needed. Horses have been her life since she was a toddler, and she is much admired on the competition scene for her willingness to help and encouragement of others. It’s funny how the swings and roundabouts of the horse world work – just ask Catherine Cameron. Eighteen months ago, she couldn’t even fill seven stables at her show jumping and racing yard. Now, she is having to turn horses away. “And I hate to do that,” she says. “You never know, one could be the next Winx! I want to keep doing a good job with what I’ve got. I’m not interested in getting any bigger, I just want to do my best.” Catherine’s partner, Todd Mitchell, is a harness trainer and driver. Like many horse people, theirs is a busy lifestyle. A ‘normal’ week could include weekday

trials and races, Alexandra Park for the trotters, more gallops on Saturday, then show jumping on Sunday. “It’s busy, but it’s good when things are going well,” she says. “Just the other week I had four runners for a win, two thirds and a fourth.” Catherine’s horses are split between two properties – her gallopers live on her mum Audrey’s 10-acre property, which is right next to the Cambridge training track, while her jumpers are at Todd’s training and agistment property in Tauwhare, where a dozen stables, an 800m track, a horse pool, and an arena are situated on 50 acres.

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Early Days

Catherine started her riding career at the age of four, growing up on a farm at Waerenga-o-Kuri, near Gisborne. She was the youngest of three children to parents Audrey and the late Gordon. From Gisborne, the family moved to Wellsford, where they bought a ballot farm. By her own admission, Catherine was probably the “spoilt youngest” child and the only one who continued to ride in later years. “I never really considered doing anything else! Well, apart from being a beauty queen or a princess or owning a big lolly store,” she says, with the usual twinkle in her eye. Catherine’s mother Audrey has paved her own way in the world of show jumping as one of New Zealand’s highest-ranked judges, and her father Gordon was a course designer for a while. He came to every show to support both women. As a youngster, Catherine did well on ponies, mostly inheriting her sister’s lower grade ponies and bringing them up through the ranks. Her first pony was Beauty, but she says the mare didn’t fit her name. “She was a horrid little thing who would get sick of working, put her head down to eat grass and I would go flying over her head,” remembers Catherine. Her best pony was Chalet, who she and her father had to drive all the way to Wellington to collect. They enjoyed plenty of success together, giving Catherine a real appreciation of what the sport could be. It was also the era of Japan’s high interest in New Zealand bloodstock, and she sold one of her successful A-grade ponies to the Asian nation. Catherine’s early training came from her Pony Club instructor Rowena McLean, along with Bruce Wakeling. “I was lucky,” she says. “I had a great grounding and we had so much fun with our horses.”

Winning Ways

Fast-forward a few years, and Catherine was riding Bell Tower to the win in what has become the Silver Fern Stakes at the Horse of the Year Show. She has had plenty of success at HOY over the years, also picking up wins in the Norwood Gold Cup, Speed Horse of the Year, and every age group championship, as well as placing second in most of the ‘big ones’, including the Olympic Cup and Lady Rider of the Year. “The two wins that have really eluded me are the Olympic Cup and Lady Rider,” she says ruefully. “I wish!” The highlights of her show jumping career so far have to be her win at the CSI2* invitational in Seoul, and any HOY title. She would love to win another big jumping class in the future. “I won two Monte Trot races, which I thought would be a big thrill, but while it was good, to be honest, I would be more excited to win a Grand Prix again,” she admits. “I get more pleasure now from a win than before, when I was out at shows every week and took it all for granted. Now that show jumping is not my main focus, it is even more rewarding to do well.” Catherine has a couple of nice jumpers in her current stable, including Kingslea Couture, owned by Kelly and Grant Stewart. “She is a super competitive mare who is just stepping up to the bigger stuff. With horses like her on the team, you will keep seeing me out there!” She is grateful for good owners, both for her jumpers and her gallopers. In a way, it seems almost ironic that racing has become such a major part of her life. “I started riding track work to help support my show jumping, then ended up taking out my own trainer’s license!” she laughs.

Hard Work Pays

Catherine finds the thrill of winning to be just as addictive with racing as it is with show jumping. “I like producing young horses, seeing them nicely educated and given a good chance to be as good as they can be,” she says. “Winning is not always about being the best on the day – as long as there is progress, you’re succeeding.” A big part of her business is with Willie Leong of Magnus Equine. “I have the majority of his Hong Kong-bound horses, educating them through jump-outs and trials, then taking some on to race. Others need to win to qualify for Hong Kong, but he has some really good quality horses.” Catherine rides nearly all of her track work herself, which means she can be on up to 10 horses in a day. “I think it helps me a lot to ride the majority of them myself, as then I know exactly how they are feeling and can keep tabs on their fitness,” she explains. “I can adjust their programmes to suit.”

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COMPETITION IMAGES Top opposite page: CABELLO during the Gold Tour at Takapoto 2018 Below left: KINGSLEA COUTURE, owned by Kelly & Grant Stewart, during the Waitemata World Cup 2019

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“I like producing young horses, seeing them nicely educated and given a good chance to be as good as they can be. Winning is not always about being the best on the day – as long as there is progress, you’re succeeding.” Her own best performer is Light Shadow, who has won three races for her as a trainer and five as an owner. He was the first horse to race under her name. “He is a bit of an old idiot sometimes,” she says fondly. “He can miss the kick and still fly home.” Light Shadow went to Hong Kong as a three-year-old, but didn’t cope so he was brought home without a race. He spent a few seasons racing with Catherine before he was given to her, and went on to run second in three $50,000 races at Ellerslie last season. Second place is great, but always slightly disappointing. “I’m not trying to sound greedy, but the $30,000 winner’s cheque is a lot more than the $10,000 for second!” she points out. But Light Shadow’s success does fund her show jumping passion, and she is very grateful for that. While Catherine is not inspired by any particular person, she says that it’s always good to see hard work pay off – especially when it is one of the smaller trainers popping up with wins. “It gives you hope! Any horse winning is a team effort – whether it has come from one of the big teams, or from the battlers and dreamers like me!” C

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INTERVIEW

BETTY

LENNARD BETTER than BEST WORDS Pip Hume IMAGES Cornege Photography

A stalwart on the showing scene and revered throughout the New Zealand equestrian community, Waikato horsewoman Betty Lennard has embraced the equestrian passion she inherited from her mother and has passed it on to her talented daughters, Dorothy and Gaylene.

orses have always been a huge part of Betty’s life, right from the very start of her story. She has spent much of her time involved in the showing scene, although she adds that she is just as keen on dressage. “Horses have been in the blood for many generations,” Betty explains. “My mother was a very keen horsewoman and a lovely rider. She was English, and I believe she was the first person in New Zealand to plait up a horse for the show ring! I was born in Tauranga, and when I was old enough I went to kindergarten, which I loved, because we travelled by horse and gig, and I was allowed to drive the horse!” Before long, the family moved to their farm in Katikati. Betty’s first competition was at the Katikati A&P Show at the age of four,

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competing in showing on a Shetland pony. “I’ve been connected with horses and competing ever since,” she says. “I had a sister who rode as well; we competed in the pony ring, and we all went to the shows as a family. We also did a lot of hunting with the Maramarua and Rotorua/Bay of Plenty hunts. I would love to have evented, but the sport wasn’t around in those days, and dressage was in its infancy. They were wonderful days, and we always had very good horses.” After she left school, Betty travelled to England to meet her English mother’s family. “It was the trip of a lifetime. I hunted with the Duke of Beaufort’s foxhounds, and also with the Taunton staghounds in Cornwall. It was a great experience, and I have a fox mask on my dining room wall which was presented to me as a hunting trophy.”

“I have no regrets. I have enjoyed life to the fullest, and the horses have always been with me. The horses have kept me young.”

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“The girls wouldn’t buy a horse without me. Whenever they go to buy a horse, I go along.”

In those days, Betty recalls, horses were expected to be much more versatile. “In my time, we only had one horse which did everything. Nowadays you need a different horse for each discipline. We would ride all day – we rode over the Kaimais to Matamata to the show there, and in my single days when I was living on a farm at Matamata, we used to put the horses on the train and go to the Te Aroha Show, and then ride them home again after competing. We also took them by train to the Royal Show at Hastings. We’d order a box for the horses, which was attached to the express passenger train, and the horses would step up into the box off the platform. Then after that, we had an open horse truck with no roof, which was a huge improvement! The horses stepped into the horse box off a loading bank. “They were really happy days,” she says. “Today there’s a lot of pressure on people. The sport is more professional, less about fun and more about work. For some people, it’s a business, and not just for enjoyment. It’s all about the money now.” Betty’s late husband Laurie was also a horseman, who bred and trained his own racehorses. “We met at the Te Aroha A&P Show in the dual jump,” she remembers. “I was riding a grey horse called Blue Moon, and Laurie was riding his racehorse, Reliance, who was also a grey. We hunted regularly together, and later married and lived on the family farm at Te Aroha – where I live to this day, with Gaylene living next door, just across the paddock. “Reliance was a good racehorse who won the Te Awamutu Cup, and I also rode him at the shows. He was a good show jumper.”

Family life When the couple’s two girls, Dorothy and Gaylene, came along, it was inevitable that they too would ride. Both have followed in Betty’s footsteps, competing with great success in the show ring, and in Gaylene’s case, more lately the dressage arena. “We’re very close as a family, probably because of the horses,” comments Betty. “I’m Dorothy and Gaylene’s everyday ‘eyes on the ground’ – everybody needs eyes on the ground!” She also does the morning and night-time feeds each day.

TOP LEFT: Betty likes to be on morning duty, and still feeds the horses first thing each day. ROW OF PHOTOS ABOVE (L-R): Betty after winning nearly everything on DICK WHITTINGTON at Tauranga A&P Show in 1960; A medal won by Betty’s mother, Mary Roan, for Champion Hunter at Whangarei A&P Show in 1947; Betty on KIPP, Champion Hack at the Auckland Easter Show; Piles of ribbons can be found everywhere in her home; A collection of medals Betty has won at A&P shows over the years. LEFT (L-R): Waikato A&P Show 1998: Dorothy won Champion Saddle Hunter on KENSINGTON; Gaylene won Champion Hack on EASTER PARADE, and Betty won Champion Park Hack on ROYAL OCCASION.

BELOW: Betty holding the famous GLENTULLOCK out for grass at the EA Australasian Show Horse & Rider Championships in 2012, where he won the Large Australian Hunter Horse of the Year with her daughter, Dorothy. RIGHT: Dorothy and GLENTULLOCK grace many photo frames in the house. BELOW: The names of Betty and her late husband, Laurie, have been on the house since it was first built.

IMAGE: Show Circuit

BELOW RIGHT: Many supreme champion garlands have been kept as mementos of successful showing days.

Following the retirement of her outstanding saddle hunter Glentullock, and after a period of looking, Dorothy has now bought another horse – with Betty’s input, of course. “The girls wouldn’t buy a horse without me,” she laughs. “Whenever they go to buy a horse, I go along. First and foremost, the horse has to have correct conformation. Then, the horse has to suit whichever discipline you want it for. If you’re looking for a show hack, you must have quality, elegance and ‘look at me’ presence. For dressage, you must have

very good elastic paces and good hock action, which is quite different from what is required of the show horse.” The purchase of Gaylene’s very successful young dressage horse Jax Johnson was instigated by Betty. “We loved the breeding and the movement. He has Distelfink in his dam line, and I always liked Distelfink, and I like Johnson very much too, so it’s a double up of what we like. We thought when we went to look at him that if he was any good, we would buy him.”

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A winning attitude Through her competitive career, Betty has had so many lovely horses that she can’t choose a favourite. “My favourite was always the one I was riding,” she laughs. She admits that she has always been an intensely competitive person. “I think I’ve ridden more champion hacks than anyone else in New Zealand, and I’ve attended every Horse of the Year Show except for the first two. I like to win, and I have that mindset right throughout the preparation. If you want to do the job right, you have to put the time in. Horses taught me to never give up, and to continue to strive to get to the next level.” Betty has also excelled in the show jumping arena. She made the shortlist for a New Zealand team to compete in Australia, and trained with legendary coach Colman de Bolgar on a horse called Duchess.

TOP RIGHT: Betty out for a walk on her farm in Te Aroha, accompanied by her faithful companion, Missy. ABOVE: Over the years, Betty has accumulated more medals and awards than she can count, but they all have huge significance to her life with the horses she has ridden and loved. BELOW: Betty’s passion for horses has never left her.

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There have been many highlights in Betty’s long career, but some of the stand-outs that she recalls include winning a diamond at the Whakatane Diamond Jubilee Show for gaining the most points in the hack ring, and also being asked to judge the hacks at the Melbourne Show, which included the prestige class, the Garryowen. “That was an honour. It was very demanding, but I enjoyed it.” That winning attitude also transferred through to Betty’s other sport, golf. “I did love golf, and always striving to get a bit better. I had a handicap in single figures,” she recalls proudly. Away from the horses, Laurie and Betty also enjoyed fishing and boating. “It’s all horses now though,” she says. “There’s no time for anything else.” She encourages other riders to enjoy the sport, but to be prepared to be on a high one day and on a low the next. “Horses are great levellers. They are beautiful animals. “I have no regrets. I have enjoyed life to the fullest, and the horses have always been with me. The horses have kept me young.” C

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Kelly

INTERVIEW

VAN

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DYK Racing Ahead

WORDS Diana Dobson IMAGES Christine Cornege Photography

Kelly Van Dyk is rapidly earning a reputation as one to watch in the Thoroughbred industry. Having previously represented New Zealand as a young dressage rider, she is now channelling her experience and talent into producing exciting young racehorses for future glory.

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orses have long been a part of Kelly's world. Her family has always been entrenched in horses, across racing, competition, and breeding. She blazed her pathway in dressage, but is now finding an equally challenging and rewarding pathway in buying and selling racehorses. “I guess my passion for racing came from my grandfather, Brain Malin, and my dad, Leighton. Grandad was an owner-trainer, and I used to love going out on the farm and feeding the racehorses when I was a kid. During the school holidays, I would go to the track with him every morning to watch and help out.” Kelly’s father Leighton also shares her passion for racing, and the races were generally on TV in the background each weekend. “I got hooked!” she admits. “It is pretty special for Dad and I to be able to share that passion, and turn it into a business, as we have done." The business she speaks of is Prima Park – a Thoroughbred agistment and sale preparation property at Mystery Creek, on the banks of the Waikato River. ‘Prima’ is a Dutch word meaning something that is good, fine or nice, which Kelly figures is a perfect fit. The business is very much a family affair, with Kelly and Leighton taking care of the day-to-day running of the property, and her mother Louise also heavily involved. Louise is also an accomplished horsewoman who, along with her father, produced many ex-racehorses into top eventers, including two home-bred and trained horses that did well at

(what was then known as) the Bell Tea Three-Day Event. Trudy Boyce steered the extremely talented D’Arc to victory in the Intermediate section before taking him to England as her reserve Olympic mount, while guest rider Erik Duvander won the Novice division on First Endeavour.

An Inherited Love of Horses

Kelly’s love of horses began early. She started riding at age four, working her way through the Pony Club system and into the show ring, then competing in eventing and Show Hunter before specialising in dressage as a teenager. In 2008, Kelly headed offshore, spending time in Germany soaking up the European scene. While she hadn’t planned to buy a horse while she was overseas, she headed home with Wolhkhan, a seven-year-old gelding by Werther. “It was the best decision I ever made,” says Kelly. “We enjoyed incredible success together, most notably winning back-to-back Young Rider titles at Horse of the Year in 2011 and 2012.” For three years, they finished in the top five at the Sydney CDI, and also qualified to compete at the Young Rider World Cup in Germany in 2012. But before they could get on the plane, tragedy struck. Wolhkhan went lame and, unfortunately, Kelly had to put him down. She was absolutely heartbroken. “He was incredibly talented, but very quirky and could be pretty difficult at times,” she recalls. “I think that is what made our success all the more bittersweet. We had an incredible bond and knew each other inside out.”

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She puts much of the success they had together down to her trainer and mentor, Christine Weal. “She just has that knack for dealing with difficult horses, and her training techniques would have to be some of the best I have learned,” Kelly says. At around the same time, Prima Park was starting to gain traction, but although Kelly was struggling to fit everything in, she was determined not to give up dressage completely. She headed back to Europe and bought Vincent, a 10-year-old gelding by Gribaldi. “He hadn’t done a lot, but it wasn’t long before we were competing at Prix St Georges level. He was a stunning horse who looked like a stallion and was much admired wherever he went,” she recalls. Kelly had a few Grand Prix starts on the horse before handing the reins to Olympian Kallista Field, who quickly established them as a combination to watch for the future. “I enjoyed seeing them compete so much. Kallista is an incredible rider, and she certainly got the best out of him.” But as much as she loved seeing her Dutch import going so well, Kelly knew that with business booming, she had to make a call – it was one or the other. So in 2016, she sold Vincent. “That was the last time I sat on a horse. He was a professional rider’s horse and had such immense talent.”

A Challenging Business

Kelly admits to missing having a horse to ride out on, but not missing the high-tensile competition world, preferring the racing industry that she is now part of. “They are equally rewarding on parallel tracks. Dressage was such a huge part of my life, and I have channelled a lot of that into what I do now,” she says. “The two are very different, but at the same time so much crosses over. General horse husbandry is all the same, and I am lucky enough to have learned from some of the best in the business.” She thrives on the challenge of finding that next superstar and ensuring it is perfectly prepared for sale. “I love selling the horses and seeing them succeed on the track,” she says. “It is a very important part of what we do and encourages buyers to come back to us, knowing that we have sold them good horses. I want to make sure every horse is well-prepared and that we’ve done everything properly right from the get-go.” Kelly spends a tremendous amount of time studying bloodlines and form. Prima Park buys weanlings to sell as yearlings, and yearlings to sell as two-year-olds. They are bought predominantly from sales on both sides of the Tasman, but sometimes from the paddock if the opportunity arises. They also do some breeding themselves. “Dad and I go to all the sales together. We know what we are looking for and what we want,” she says. “The weanlings are hard to buy because they change so much, but we are looking for that potential – they are not the finished product, so you need to look beyond what you see. With yearlings, we first and foremost are looking for an athlete – something you think will get up and win races.” While Kelly accepts that “there are plenty of good racehorses with bent legs”, correct conformation is hugely important in the horses they’re looking at selling on from Prima Park. The horses’ movement also needs to be spot-on, and she looks closely at their walk. "I am looking at the way they move, how fluid they are, how they use themselves, their body, presence, and markings.” There is so much to be considered. She and Leighton follow bloodlines, but young horses by proven sires can be expensive.

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"WE HAVE A GREAT VISION FOR THE FUTURE. IT IS ALWAYS A WORK IN PROGRESS.” “You want to be the one to predict what will be in demand in the future. There can be a lot of talk and hype around a first season sire,” she says. “We’re all trying to pick the next big thing. Sometimes you get it right, and sometimes not. That’s horses and the business!” Preparing horses for the ready-to-run sales is one of their biggest markets. For their clients, that means that Kelly oversees the breaking-in and agistment, getting them into work, watching them at the track and at the breeze-ups. Then they return to Prima Park where the youngster spends a month in preparation before the sales. “Those finishing touches are a crucial part in the big picture,” she says. “We have a great vision for the future. It is always a work in progress.”

Reaping the Rewards

Image Play Creative

Kelly adores what she does, and has her eye on one day selling a million-dollar yearling. “I just love it all,” she says. “It’s most rewarding when you have selected a horse, gone right through the system with it and sold it for a good price. That is the ultimate goal, but I do love seeing them grow and develop their personalities. I enjoy making them look the best they can.” As someone who excelled in showing as a child, she has come

from the perfect training ground. The Van Dyks have sold some top horses in recent years, including Singapore Horse of the Year and multiple Group One winner Debt Collector, as well as two-time Group One winner Beat the Clock, who is now considered one of the world’s best. “The industry can be very tough, but also hugely rewarding,” says Kelly. “It is easy to get caught up in all the hype, but two people I have looked up to right from the start would have to be Mark and Denny Baker from Hallmark Stud. They are hard-working, genuine people, and Denny reminds me of my late grandfather. “My parents have also been a huge inspiration to me – they have an incredible work ethic, and without them, I would not be doing what I am doing. They have allowed me to live my dream and for that, I will be eternally grateful." C

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INTERVIEW

Catherine SMITH WORDS Pip Hume IMAGES Dark Horse Photography

In this country, we don’t typically see huge numbers contesting the Young Dressage Horse classes, but those that do compete provide a showcase of the best of New Zealand breeding, and the titles are hard-fought and well-earned. Rakaia farmer Catherine Smith has produced two very successful young dressage horses, and is well on her way to breeding more.

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“The German classifier was a wealth of information. I got to look at other people’s horses and hear what they were all about, and I realised that having a really good mare is paramount.”

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At the Bates NZ Dressage Nationals this year, the atmosphere was electric for the judging in the final of the Elite Equine Young Dressage Horse, and the crowd showed its appreciation when Catherine Smith’s leggy, elegant and athletic four-year-old Quendrix was awarded the overall title. By Quaterhall out of the Sir Donnerhall mare Rosari Sakana (Saffron), Quendrix was purchased from Debra Bromley as a foal at foot, along with his dam. “I originally bought Saffron while she was in foal,” explains Catherine. “Debra was hoping to get a filly which she planned to retain, but when a colt foal arrived, she offered to sell him to me, so I got the pair.” Catherine’s interest in the mare came about through her ownership of another of Saffron’s progeny, Rosari Faberge (by Furst Romancier). Faberge was the first horse that Catherine competed as a young dressage horse, doing one season with her as a five-year-old. “I bought Faberge as a three-year-old when I saw her advertised for sale. I wasn’t actually looking for a horse, and there was no photo in the advertisement, but by that time I was into pedigrees, and I realised how well-bred she was. I kept wondering what I could achieve with my knowledge of horsemanship with a really classy horse like that. Eventually, after a couple of months, I got some photos and a video, and decided to buy her.” Getting Faberge down to the South Island proved difficult as she had never been travelled, but it was eventually accomplished. Catherine began to work with her, using the knowledge she has accumulated through years of working with Australian Natural Horsemanship clinician Ken Faulkner. “Faberge hasn’t a nasty bone in her body, but she has a very high degree of self-preservation – often termed as ‘hot’. Well-bred, quality horses are born with high energy and the desire to move their feet. The more you learn about higher level competition, the more you appreciate that desire to go forward, but you have to know how to channel it.” She explains that her journey in training Faberge was never about doing dressage competitions or Young Dressage Horse classes. “I had never competed in registered dressage, and it had been 25 years since my Pony Club competition days. As always with any horse, my focus first and foremost was just to make her rideable. We attended many horsemanship and cow working clinics, and

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Catherine was selected to ride ROSARI FABERGE for New Zealand in the World Dressage Challenge 2015 went to friends’ properties and indoor arenas. I had no arena then, so I floated her to the Rakaia Pony Club at least five days a week. We did lots of groundwork, teaching her to connect her feet to her brain, and really focused on achieving the progression of ground skills. This gave me a foundation to make every ride successful and build a great relationship.” Catherine went to watch a few dressage competitions, and decided to give the Young Dressage Horse classes a go. She didn’t enter any small shows, just the championships – and before she knew it, she had won the South Island Young Dressage Horse title, then decided to go on to the Bates NZ Dressage Championships. “Considering the few shows we had both done, it was amazing,” she says. “We were the Amateur Level 1 Champions, third overall in Level 1 Open, and third in the Five-Year-Old Young Dressage Horse. Then we went to HOY, where we were again third overall in Level 1. “It was an incredible experience. I loved watching the riders up there. It’s another world compared to down here, and because of the way I had trained Faberge, I could trust her to do the job. I don’t get nervous because I don’t

think about what could go wrong; I’m thinking about how she’s feeling and trying to get her to stay with me.” Quendrix went to South Island Equidays as a three-yearold, where he was used as a demonstration in starting a horse by clinician Dan Steers, whose work was continued by Steve Houston. Catherine has found the horse to be really lovely and trainable. “I do groundwork every time I ride him, as I believe that groundwork is the foundation of a successful partnership. Away from home, if he gets lost in his emotions as most young horses do in a competition environment, I have faith in my horsemanship to be able to redirect his thoughts, and as soon as I ask something familiar of him, he is back on track.” When time allows, Catherine takes the opportunity to train with visiting coaches. “Although I still feel like I’m nowhere in terms of being a rider, I’m rich in knowledge about the mental and emotional state of the horse. I feel many riders could benefit from this kind of approach and would have a much better competition horse if they factored horsemanship into their training. I think a lot of high-level riders think it’s about your horse having good manners and respect for you, but it’s way deeper than that. It’s building ‘try’ and feel and balance in your horse – mentally, emotionally and physically. “I love dressage for the challenge it presents in creating harmony, and I love learning the physical and gymnastic side of the journey with my horses. I can’t wait to learn more. I have never ridden at the higher levels, so I’m looking forward to continuing on with Quendrix. He has had a great education and is ready to go up through the levels.” As a full-time, hands-on farmer on the family’s largescale intensive cropping farm, Catherine admits that she sometimes struggles to find time to ride. However, she has the support of her partner Paul and son Baxter, although she says they are more interested in being on two wheels than four legs!

Breeding for quality

Catherine’s breeding philosophy owes a lot to her late father’s words to her when she was a child, struggling with an uncooperative pony, that “it costs as much to keep a bad one as a good one!” She was also inspired after taking the opportunity to travel through New Zealand with the Holsteiner classification tour some years ago. “The German classifier was a wealth of information,” she recalls. “I got to look at other people’s horses and hear

Catherine with ROSARI FABERGE what they were all about, and I realised that having a really good mare is paramount.” Catherine has invested heavily in elite international bloodlines. “I love how the internet gives you access to so much information from breeders all over the world. It’s wonderful to be able to see up-to-date video clips of stallions and their progeny and the comments from other breeders. When time and money allow, I’m looking forward to going to Europe to look around at some of the studs and shows. “You have to decide what it is that you want to breed. A nice-looking horse with movement and temperament – how hard can it be?” she laughs. “And one that’s the right size,” she adds ruefully. “As Quendrix was growing up and up, I kept thinking that he was going to be too tall for me. Size is actually a fairly major concern of mine. Saffron is quite small, yet all of her foals are super tall and long-legged. That shows you the influence of the bloodlines.” Breeding is far from risk-free, and Catherine has had many setbacks along the way.

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“Although I still feel like I’m nowhere in terms of being a rider, I’m rich in knowledge about the mental and emotional state of the horse.” “It’s tough to decide what stallions to use, and then it’s truly disappointing if no pregnancy is achieved. I love everything about Faberge, so I decided to try and breed another just like her, using embryo transfer to allow me to continue riding her. But three rounds of embryo transfer using frozen semen didn’t work, so I went to fresh semen. That was successful, but then due to illness, the surrogate mare had to be euthanised three months before she was due to foal. “It was around that time that Debra offered me Saffron, and I decided that she would be a better candidate for breeding than embryo transfer. But my usual bad luck with frozen semen prevailed, until finally, on the fifth try and after two semen changes, she got in foal to Zonik.” That pregnancy was successful, and Catherine’s Zonik filly is now in foal to Total Hope, by Totilas out of Isabel Werth’s Grand Prix superstar Weihegold. “The thing is, when you start something like embryo transfer, it feels like if you stop you’ve got nothing to show for it, so it’s all a waste,” Catherine says. “It’s a bit like gambling – you always think, ‘this time!’ But the cost can be horrendous.” The following year, Saffron went to Fugato, which resulted in a beautiful filly – the first one Catherine has sold. She also decided to try another embryo transfer with Faberge, and put her to Fugato as well. The foal that resulted is called Fiona. “She’s very laid-back with a lot of character. I think she might have a bit of ‘wow’ when I ride her. Although the recipient mare was big and roomy, she was born windswept but has now straightened out quite nicely. She has amazing movement – she just floats – and will hopefully be more my size!” Last season, Faberge produced a beautiful colt foal by Vitalis, and is now in foal to Don Deluxe, while Saffron produced another lovely filly, this time by Dutch stallion Ibiza. Catherine is very excited to see how this filly develops, and will potentially breed a foal from her before she starts her ridden career. Catherine has also purchased Showfields Sophie (by Furst Jupp out of the Krack C mare Rosalita) from Tracy Smith. “She’s a smaller mare and takes frozen semen well. She’s currently in foal to Fursten-Look, and I also did an embryo transfer to Vitalis, so I will hopefully have two foals from her this year. “I am very lucky to have these beautiful mares in my paddock. Full credit to Fiona McCrostie, who bred both Saffron and Faberge. This all began from just trying to produce another Faberge for myself – I think I might have got carried away!” C

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INTERVIEW

harli CSABINE

Daring to Dream WORDS Rebecca Harper IMAGES Jill Seamer Photography

The talented eight-year-old competed in her first overseas event earlier this year, becoming the first Kiwi to win a rider class in Australia when she took out the Grand National Rider 6-9 years Championship 2019 at the Hufglocken Grand National Saddle Horse and Rider Championships.

hen Charli Sabine travelled across the ditch to compete in a huge atmosphere against Australia’s top showing riders, she was just aiming to have a fun experience. Charli’s mum, Kirsten Seamer, said there were no expectations that Charli would even make the top 10, let alone win, so the result left them speechless. Despite her young age, Charli showed impressive composure and determination as she rode a borrowed pony and not only snared the top prize for her age group but also created a slice of New Zealand showing history.

Getting started Kirsten comes from an eventing background, so initially showing wasn’t even on her radar. “Charli got into riding because I was into it,” she explains. “For me, riding is one of those things you’d like your kids to be able to do.” To start with, Charli went to lessons, to see how keen she really was. “Then we got offered a pony and we had land, so we

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took him. He was good on the lead, but not off it, so we got her a little Welsh pony. When she got to the point with her riding that I felt I couldn’t get her going any more myself, I took her to Nicolette Butcher for lessons.” Nicolette has been a huge part of Charli’s showing journey and they refer to her as Charli’s ‘show mum’. “Nicolette got her going in showing. She was only six, and we kind of got talked into it. But we loved the ponies so we thought, ‘let’s go for it’. We were already living in our horse truck because we were building a house!” As well as lending them gear and advice, Nicolette also had Charli ride some of her ponies. She had great success in the lead-rein section on one pony in particular – Windermere Tiara, known as Babe, who was bred and owned by c. “Babe was always for sale, and when they qualified for Horse of the Year, I thought it would be a shame if she didn’t get to go, so we ended up buying the pony.” Charli has just the one pony of her own, but regularly competes different ponies for Nicolette. Kirsten says this has helped her to develop her riding skills and ability to get a tune out of different ponies, something that stood her in good stead in Australia, as she wasn’t daunted by the prospect of riding a new pony.

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“NOT FOR ONE SECOND DID I THINK SHE WOULD WIN. WE WOULD HAVE BEEN THRILLED IF SHE’D EVEN GOT INTO THE TOP 10. IT WAS PROBABLY UTTER SHOCK BECAUSE IT REALLY WASN’T Charli having her hair done before Night of the Stars. Below: An emotional moment between Charli and her mum Kirsten, after the significance of her big win became clear. Image: Lisa Gordon

“Charli is quite naturally talented, but riding different ponies for the last 18 months at Nicolette’s meant she could hop on the pony in Australia and only ride him twice before the competition, and it didn’t faze her.”

Making history in Australia The Australia trip was organised by the NZ Show Horse Council and Charli qualified by winning her rider class at its Taupo show in November last year. “At Taupo she could do the musical gala at night and also the open classes. Doing a solo workout in that atmosphere was a good experience that she got through the Show Horse Council before we went to Australia.” Kirsten says her daughter is a perfectionist when it comes to her riding, and loves having lessons and learning new techniques. The Show Horse Council brought two Australian instructors, Paul Austin and Les Friend, to New Zealand prior to the trip, giving riders the valuable opportunity to book lessons. Kirsten also booked Charli two lessons with Les while they were in Australia. In fact, Charli says the lessons with Les were her favourite part of her overseas experience because he taught her new things, particularly when it came to positioning her hands. She says she didn’t expect to win, but admits it felt good when her name was called out in first place. “Not for one second did I think she would win. We would have been thrilled if she’d even got into the top 10. It was probably utter shock because it really wasn’t expected,” Kirsten says. “Before we left, some people said ‘why are you even bothering to go?’ But others said it would be a really cool experience, and my brother lives in Sydney and has a new baby, so it was a good chance to see them. I thought it would be good for her to grow as a person with her riding and give her a confidence boost in a big atmosphere.” Charli rode a pony called Cimeron Prince Charming (known as Harry at home), who was kindly loaned by Jane Nelson, Dominique Schultz and her daughter Wynter. Kirsten says Paul Austin did a

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EXPECTED,” KIRSTEN SAYS.

great job sourcing the rider mounts and he paired Charli perfectly with Harry and his owners. She admits she was nervous about how her daughter would perform in the ring, but she needn’t have worried. “I felt anxious sending her out there into a big arena like that on a pony she didn’t know. I just hoped she would go around, not forget her workout, and be happy – that was all I wanted. “We were a little fish in a big pond, so when they said ‘the Champion goes across the ditch’, everyone in the large team from New Zealand just started screaming. Charli was sitting there with no idea what it meant – it wasn’t until they actually called her name out that she realised she’d won!” Winning the class meant Charli also rode in the Saturday night ‘Night of the Stars’ in the Champion of Champions class against the winners of all the rider age group classes, again acquitting herself admirably. “It was another amazing experience for her. For an eight-yearold she kept her composure. That’s what I was most proud of, the way she conducted herself over the whole event.” The Australians were very supportive of Charli’s win. “The reception from the Aussies was huge and they were all happy for her. The family who owned the pony were super nice and thrilled to bits for her. It was very generous of them to loan us the pony – without someone willing being to give up a ride, we couldn’t have done it. And we’ve made good friends out of it, too.”

Charli and CIMERON PRINCE CHARMING working out during the title class. The pony was kindly loaned by Jane Nelson, Dominique Schultz and her daughter Wynter. Image: Lisa Gordon

What next

Charli with her coach Nicolette Butcher, who encouraged her to get into showing. Image: Lorelle Mercer

Charli will continue to ride over winter, getting Nicolette’s young ponies out and about, as well as having some fun. “She goes to Pony Club and will go to Pony Club camp. She has to have some ‘rarring’ around, I think. We go to the beach and the forest, and swim the ponies.” Because she won the rider class this year, Charli is automatically qualified and gets a ‘golden ticket’ to compete in Australia again next year, which the family plans to do. “Showing is her passion for now. She’s really lucky to have Nicolette – without her, she wouldn’t be showing and wouldn’t be where she is today. Nicolette has certainly shown the way for her, and riding all her ponies means Charli is adjustable. She’s not fearful and she’ll ride out the naughty ones as well.” Actually, Charli says she most enjoys the challenge of riding the naughtier ponies and her favourite thing about riding is that she is always learning. She is also involved in all aspects of caring for her pony. “Every single day without fail she rides, mucks out, feeds ponies, changes covers – the lot,” says Kirsten. “It’s very important because now she’s got a real eye for detail too. “Showing does come down to the little details, and she can sit and learn by watching other people. Plus, because it’s all about what the pony looks like, if there’s something out of place she very quickly tells you! She’s got the OCD factor you need to have. “She’s got really good comprehension and a massive drive to succeed, be competitive and make things right. She has the will to want it. I always say to her to go out and do her best, and as long as she does that I’m proud, but she definitely does want to win.” As well as showing, Charli says she likes to jump and do dressage, and attends Tuakau Pony Club. Charli wanted to thank Les and Nicolette for their help in achieving her top result in Australia. In the future, she hopes to continue on with showing and one day become a horse chiropractor. C

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INTERVIEW

TE MARU FARM LOCATION: OAKURA, TARANAKI OWNERS: SUSIE & BRENT ANDERSON WORDS Alicia Cameron IMAGES Cheleken Photography

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They work together, ride together and holiday together, so it was only natural for the Anderson family to commence a new business venture together, especially one that’s right in their own backyard. Te Maru Farm is located five minutes south of the quaint surfing village of Oakura, and is already proving to be a popular place for weddings in Taranaki. The rustic barn venue is hidden down a long and winding driveway, and is bordered on three sides by the rugged Taranaki coastline. It is situated within 20 acres of stunning gardens, fruitful orchards and rolling farmland. The property itself has been a labour of love for the Anderson family for more than 30 years.

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Making the move to Taranaki Susie and Brent Anderson are both originally from the South Island, and purchased the bare block of land that would become Te Maru Farm while Brent was still at medical school in Otago. When he was offered a position running the Accident & Emergency department at Taranaki Base Hospital, the couple jumped at the opportunity to make the move from Christchurch to their beachside Oakura farm. “When we first moved here, there was nothing but paddocks. We relocated an old villa onto the bare block and worked together on restoring it,” explains Susie. “Shortly afterwards, my gardening frenzy started, and thirty-one years later we have more gardens than paddocks!” In fact, the gardens are so impressive and well-manicured that for a time, back when their two children were young, Susie would open up the gardens to the public during the iconic Taranaki Garden Festival. “It was a lot of work getting the gardens ready for the festival, but it was worth it to see so many people come and enjoy them,” she recalls. “Unfortunately, as we got more involved with horses, I just did not have the time to put into the gardens. Being away show jumping most weekends did not leave a lot of time for the kind of maintenance the gardens needed to be included in such an event.”

What a place for a wedding No matter how busy their lives became over the years, Susie and Brent continued working on their property. When their daughter Sophie began competing more seriously on her ponies, they added stables and an arena. As the improvements continued, the couple’s friends kept mentioning that they would love to get married at their farm. “I had so many people tell me that our place would make a great wedding venue – even our farrier thought so!” recalls Susie. “And I had all these gardens that I was looking after, so I thought, ‘why not utilise them’? After considering the idea for a while, we decided to take the plunge and go for it.” What started out as an idea for a small boutique barn quickly turned into a large barn-style building, a cross between the classic New Zealand woodshed and an American-style barn. The wedding barn is made primarily of rough sewn timber, locally sourced and milled in Opunake. In true Anderson style, the whole family became involved in the build. “Brent, our son Monty, Sophie’s husband Heinrich and I did a lot of the building work ourselves,” explains Susie. “We are very lucky that our son-in-law Heinrich is a builder and was able to help a lot. Brent travelled throughout the North Island, sourcing the windows from wrecking yards. Actually, he got THIS PAGE TOP LEFT: Susie with her grandson Bruno ABOVE RIGHT: The cottage for brides and grooms to stay during their wedding. LEFT: The deck in front of the cottage is idyllic at sunset OPPOSITE PAGE TOP: The Te Maru wedding barn BOTTOM RIGHT: Susie and Brent riding together out to the beach

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so into the build that he would often head along to the local sawmill on his lunch break to help out with milling the timber,” she laughs. “My brother built the beautiful large barn doors that the guests enter through. He also helped with a lot of the finishing, to ensure all the wood was aged and looked cohesive. The whole build took around six months, and it was a real family affair.”

An eye for detail Susie’s eye for design can be clearly seen as soon as you walk through the barn or their family home. This creative flair has also been passed along to Sophie, who, along with Heinrich, has been renovating and setting up their own restored villa, just five minutes away from her parents’ property. The venue’s furnishings are an eclectic mix of Balinese furniture that Susie purchased on a trip to Bali in 2017, locally sourced pieces and taxidermy. This unique blend has resulted in the venue being close to fully booked in its first summer. “We finished the venue just in time for Sophie and Heinrich’s wedding in February last year, which was closely followed by the wedding of a family friend. Both weddings were utterly beautiful, but also really allowed us to figure out how we wanted to run the venue – we discovered what worked well, and what didn’t. From there, we started taking bookings for the summer. In addition to the 15 weddings that we have already held, we have hosted a slew of parties, including the local Hunt Club function. “The whole experience has been quite amazing, and I really love seeing the brides and grooms enjoy the venue. Everyone always seems so relaxed here. It is a tranquil property, which means everyone always feels instantly at home when they arrive.” Te Maru Farm is a fully kitted-out venue, with a full kitchen, toilets and several options for the wedding ceremony.

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THIS PAGE ABOVE: The Hunt Club beach ride LEFT: Beautiful gardens surround the family home BOTTOM LEFT: Farrier Laine Cameron keeps the hunters in top form OPPOSITE PAGE TOP RIGHT: Brent with Susie’s hunter, BLUE MIDDLE: Sophie and Heinrich (centre) on their wedding day at Te Maru, with Heinrich’s brother Bertie Fourie (left) and Sophie’s best friend Sophie Norris (right) BOTTOM RIGHT: The gorgeous feature wall inside the Te Maru barn “We have held ceremonies in all sorts of locations around the farm, everywhere from the orchard to a paddock to our back garden! Each bride has a different idea of what their dream wedding will look like, and we work hard to ensure everyone is happy with their big day.” Bridal parties have loads of opportunities for photos, with the farm located just minutes from the beach, including the rusted-out skeleton of the famous SS Gairlock shipwreck. The Andersons also have a great stable of preferred local photographers and suppliers for clients to use if they wish. Bridal parties can choose to stay on-site in the rustic cottage that sits alongside the venue. “The cottage has been a part of our property for many years now. My parents built it originally and lived with us on the farm for close to 20 years. Now it is a great asset to the venue, allowing brides to get ready on-site, and for the bride and groom to stay on after the reception. During the off-season, we will often have friends and family come and stay in the cottage, or we rent it out as an Air BnB.” The Andersons are always willing to go out of their way to accommodate their clients. “So far, the only thing that has been a bit different has been a bride arriving by helicopter, which meant I had to handmow a paddock for their arrival,” explains Susie. “We work really hard to cater to all of our clients’ requests, and to-date everyone has walked away really happy with their experience here. The worst thing that has happened so far was when our

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pet pig got out during a ceremony and came pretty close to joining the wedding party!” The venue continues to be a family venture, with Susie maintaining the venue and gardens in addition to helping to set up on the day, while Sophie has taken over the administration side. “This has been a great opportunity for me to return to work after having my son, Bruno,” Sophie says. “The flexibility allows me work from Mum and Dad’s place, while still looking after Bruno. And with their support, I have also been able to get back into show jumping.”

A passion for all things equestrian Riding horses is also something the family has done together over the past 15 years. Sophie got properly into the show jumping scene when she was 12 years old, jumping up to Pony Grand Prix level on her liver chestnut pony Millbank Idaho. When she decided to give hunting a go a couple of years later, her father Brent decided it looked like a bit of fun, and bought himself his first hunter, Rocket. He has even dabbled in a bit

IMAGE ABOVE Nickle Photography

of eventing with the help of local Olympian, Heelan Tompkins, who conveniently lived just around the corner from the Andersons for many years. Brent, Susie and Sophie are still avid hunters, and Sophie’s former show jumpers Midnight Grace and iPod have now joined her parents’ hunting stable, in addition to their own hunters. “We often go hunting twice a week, so it’s great to be able to mix it up by taking the older, more experienced hunters out, as well as a couple of the younger ones we have coming along,” she says. The three of them often hunt together during the winter months, and are lucky to be able to attend both the Taranaki Hunt and the Egmont Wanganui Hunt meets. Susie even took out the Lady Hunter Trophy in 2018 on the pinto gelding, iPod. During summer, Sophie and Susie are also a popular duo on the national show jumping circuit, with Sophie making her return to Pro-Am and Mini-Prix level this season aboard Detailed MSH.

“It’s a lot harder to get back into riding after having a baby,” she confesses. “You lose all your core strength and balance. But I have a really good horse and a great support system, which has allowed me to get to where I am today. I am also really lucky to have a really laid-back baby, which has made it so much easier to bring him along to the shows with me! I feel so lucky to have a family that does so much together. It really has made us so close.” What does the future hold for the Anderson family? “Mum and I will continue to run the wedding venue together, and Dad has returned his focus to his clinic, Skin on 45, which has recently relocated to New Plymouth,” explains Sophie. “We all love going hunting together on the weekends, and I will continue to work with Detailed MSH over winter. We’ve both just had our first season back in the competition arena, so we mostly focused on getting to know each other. Next season I’m hoping to be more competitive and polished in the ProAmateur series, and if all goes well, we might step up to the next level – but only time will tell.” C

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INTERVIEW

4 2

WORDS Pip Hume IMAGES Dark Horse Photography

IN THE

HOURS LIFE OF

Sophie Scott

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SOPHIE bythe Numbers TEAM OF HORSES

17 5 YEARS OLD

PRODUCED 3 GRAND PRIX PONIES TOLERANCE FOR VEGETABLES 8AM

Based at Pauatahanui, north of Wellington, Sophie Scott has successfully made the leap to the horse ring after winning a slew of national titles on ponies in both the Show Hunter and show jumping arenas. MORNING 7 AM

I get up around 7-ish when I’m at home. I’m not really a morning person, but when we’re away at shows, I’m pretty good at getting started. My day starts with feeding the horses. Over the winter, the horses come into the stables at night and go out into their paddocks during the day (if it’s not a horrible day). We live on a steep hill, so we bring the horses in to protect them and also save the paddocks. The team go out into the paddocks in the morning for their breakfast, and I go in and have mine.

Breakfast at home is low-key, usually just some hash browns or toast. My mum Tania, dad Mark and older brothers Jack and Harry have generally gone to work before I get in from feeding. When we’re at a show though, we always have a good breakfast – bacon, egg, tomato and hash browns. Mum cooks while I organise the horses.

8.30AM After breakfast, I muck out the stables and then get ready to ride. I usually have around five horses in work, which includes the competition horses, our young ones and the occasional schooler. Although I don’t have time for many outside horses, I enjoy getting them going and making them more rideable. I love bringing on the young horses and ponies and schooling horses for others, as I find it so rewarding when I see them going well and performing at their best. But the most rewarding experience and my biggest achievement to-date has been producing my two former ponies

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MY DAY STAR TS WITH A SIMP L E B R EAKFAST L IKE HA SH B R OWNS OR TOAST!

TOP: Sophie’s three gold medals from the Saba Sam Shield pony teams competition at Horse of the Year. LEFT: REMI LION KING is a pleasure to ride. ABOVE: It’s important to stay connected!

I’m not massively into social media, but I use Facebook and Instagram mostly to keep track of my horsey friends. We post about our horses and what we are doing, and I try not to get sucked into anything controversial.

SOPHIE’S

must-haves 84

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•

Bridle blinkers – I find these really help the young ones to focus on the job rather than looking around. They’ve made a huge difference for Lion King.

Benrose Playtime and Benrose Eclipse right from three- and four-year-olds through to winning Pony Grand Prix. Occasionally we will do sales on behalf, but we will only sell something we can recommend and stand behind. Our reputation and our name, Benrose Sport Horses, are very important to us. With Mum away at work all week, getting the horses done every day is up to me, and it’s my job to make sure everything is done properly. My number one is my skewbald Lakota – we call him Spot – who came from Katie Meredith. We saw him as a five-yearold doing Show Hunter and loved his technique. He has the worst conformation, but he can jump, and he will try his little heart out for me whenever he steps into the ring. He absolutely loves a good jumpoff or a speed class. He’s quite quirky, and if he doesn’t like you, he will put you on the ground. I don’t wear spurs on him – I don’t need them, and he doesn’t like them! We bought him as a Junior Rider horse, then we found he likes the bigger jumps. He’s 11 years old now and has done some Grand Prix tracks, but he does struggle a little at that level, and we have to look after him. He can’t jump the big courses weekend after weekend. My seven-year-old is Darcy (Glenbrooke Centarose), who’s a very big horse! I’d love to get him out at Grand Prix next season when he’s eight, but big horses like him need time to mature, and we’re very happy

•

My family – my mum and dad and older brothers Jack and Harry. They are my biggest supporters, and my Mum is my ‘eyes on the ground’.

REMI LION KING loves his work, especially jumping. with how he is stepping up. Richie (Glenbrooke Rich as Roses) is very special. He’s a sixyear-old by Cassini D’Eclipse out of a Grand Prix mare and is seriously ‘wow’. He’s such a show-off and has the most fantastic attitude. He’s beautiful as well as talented; very lovable and cheeky – a real character! I think he’s my horse for the future. Unfortunately, he was sidelined for half of last season due to an injury which has kept him on box rest, although we are hopeful for a full recovery. The injury happened when we were down in Canterbury, so instead of coming back home with Mum I stayed at Amberley House with my aunt Angie Mason, and while I was there I got to know Angie and Andrew’s stallion, Remi Lion King. We seemed to form a connection very quickly. I show jumped him at Nationals, and when I came home, he came with me. He has the most amazing temperament; he is very gentle and easy

• • •

Ears – they have become the finishing touch to my turn-out. My Devoucoux saddles and accessories. Animal Health Direct Equine Natural Animal Bedding – this is a really cool product, beautiful

to have around, plus I love riding him. Although he was bred for dressage, he has an amazing jump. He’s really talented and bold, and he loves it! I will work with him through the winter and see how next season goes. We’ve also got a couple of young ones which I’ll work through winter so they’re ready for next season. I’ve never had ‘made’ horses or ponies – we don’t have the funds to just go out and buy a horse that someone else has produced. We’ve always had to buy young and untried, and 90% of them have been bought off a photo! We like to get the horses as three-, four- or five-yearolds before much has been done with them by someone else so we can train them the way we like them. Then they have never had a bad experience, and we have taken the time to prepare them, so they know their job, and they don’t question it. The learning and experience I’ve gained from producing my

• • •

cushioning and easy to muck out. My Cambridge collection bracelets My little leather whip My Equissage SHOWCIRCUIT MAGAZINE

IT IS A B IG

N O WAY TO GREEN V E GETAB LES! own ponies and horses with Mum’s help has been invaluable. I’m not as experienced as some of the top riders, but that’s what I’m aiming for. I can see everything I want and need to improve on!

LUNCH

By the time I have ridden everything and tidied up, it’s time for a break! Lunch is usually whatever I can find in the fridge or the cupboards. We hardly ever have junk food, but I do like the occasional meal from McDonald’s and the food stalls at shows. When I’m competing, I’ll drink energy drinks such as Powerade to keep my energy levels up, because we hardly ever have lunch at a show. Competing a team of horses keeps us pretty busy.

AFTERNOON

After lunch, I work on my assignments for the Rural Animal Health Technician course I’m doing by correspondence through Otago University. It’s about 20 hours a week and includes online sessions at 7:30 pm twice a week. I’m finding the course quite a challenge. I’m not very academic, and it’s Level 5 NCEA, so it’s a big step up from being at school. In the end, though, the qualification will work with a career in horses. I’m not sure yet whether horses will be my full-time career, or whether they will be my sport. One of my main goals is to be selected onto a team and represent New Zealand, but the money side of international competition is difficult. I was very lucky last year to be selected to ride at the Longines World Equestrian Academy in Germany, as part of German Olympian Ludger Beerbaum’s knowledge exchange programme. I applied for selection as one of ten riders from around the world, and the seven-day clinic was the best thing I have ever done! The main focus was on individual lessons, and along with my assigned horse I rode some top-level competition horses, but there were also sessions on other aspects such as

work in the gym on rider fitness, posture, balance, and strength, and also horsemastership. We each had to look after ‘our’ horse for the week, which a lot of the other riders found difficult as they were used to having grooms. It was such a cool experience, and I’m very excited to have been invited back to train there later this year. The facilities and the horses in Europe are just amazing, and there’s such a vast pool of top-class bloodlines to choose from. While we were over there, we went to a few major shows, and it’s just a completely different league. To be part of that at some stage would be amazing..

4 PM In the late afternoon, I feed and settle the horses for the night, and generally tidy up. I try to be tidy and have everything in its place. The bridles get a wipe over every day, I like my horses to have nicely pulled manes and tidy tails, and I do all my own turnout and plaiting. I’m not really a ‘girly’ girl though. I’m not into hair and make-up, but I do like my silver bracelets, which have all been birthday presents.

EVENING

Mum always cooks a good dinner. I love meat and potatoes (especially roasted), and avocados are a favourite, but I don’t like green veggies. No peas, broccoli, salad or anything like that! We quite often eat late, especially in summer when we’re doing horses into the evenings. On the nights that I am doing my online course work, we try and eat earlier.

9 PM Working and riding all day means that by 9 or 10 pm, I’m ready for bed. I don’t watch much on TV – I prefer to watch series on Netflix, such as Dynasty and Riverdale. C Sophie’s Cambridge Collection bracelets have been birthday gifts

Sophie competing LAKOTA in the Horse Mini Prix at Glistening Waters 2019

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TRAINING

LATERAL THINKING WITH JAIME AMIAN WORDS Ashleigh Kendall IMAGES Show Circuit Magazine

Welcome to your lateral work masterclass. No matter what level you are riding at, lateral work is key to improving and maintaining your horse’s balance, elasticity and suppleness. Jaime Amian is an international Grand Prix dressage rider and trainer. He began his dressage career in his home country of Spain before continuing his education in Germany. Throughout his career, Jaime has worked with some of the world’s most respected trainers, including Juan Manuel Munoz Diaz and Klaus Balkenhol. Jaime’s connection to New Zealand began in 2010, when he lived here and worked for Awakino Stud, training and competing their stallions before relocating and setting up his stables in Florida.

Cassandra Dally and Jazdan D’Movistar CD have been together for ten years with Cassandra having owned George - as he is known to friends - since birth. George was bred by Jazdan Stud in Australia, and he came to New Zealand as a yearling. By De Niro, George is bred to be a star and Cassandra has been the only person to ever ride George, so she feels a real responsibility to ensure his training is correct. She describes George as being "a pure gentleman in every way". He is part of her family, and is so kind that even her nineyear-old daughter can ride him.

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The desire to learn must be greater than anything else. It comes down to the question of how important it is to the rider.

“You can sit in a ‘perfect’ position but still be incorrect, because you have not established the connection with your horse.”

“A sweeping leg-yield for a few strides will free up the horse and allow him to go back to a more fluid stride.”

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LEG-YIELD The foundation to all your lateral work begins and ends with the leg-yield. First appearing in Dressage New Zealand tests at Level 2, leg-yield is introduced early on in the horse's training as it has many benefits. To introduce the movement, ask the horse to move away from your leg on a circle. First bring him onto a smaller circle, then push him out from your inside leg. Later on, when that is feeling a little easier, you can move onto the three-quarter line of the arena and ask the horse to move to the edge of the arena while maintaining straightness through his body as he travels across. Without the horse understanding that pressure from your leg means not only going forward, but also yielding sideways, your lateral movements will be challenging to execute. Until you teach the horse to yield to your leg, he will only understand leg pressure as meaning 'move forward'. Leg-yield is a fantastic exercise to train the horse to step forward and sideways off the leg, improving suppleness, balance, self-carriage and elasticity. It is also a great way to get the horse sitting behind and accepting the outside rein, creating better contact and submission. Establishing leg-yield properly from the start will ensure that you have set your horse and yourself up for success as you progress through the levels. “Always remember to reward the try," says Jaime. "It might not be perfect, but if your horse has taken a step in the right direction, then tell him how good he was. This will keep him interested and motivated in his work. Dressage is a marathon, not a sprint.”

Inside hand asks for bend and flexion

Inside leg slightly behind the girth asks for sideways movement

Outside hand provides support and controls speed

Outside leg at the girth controls sideways movement

HOW TO RIDE A LEG-YIELD Once you’ve warmed up in walk, trot and canter on both reins, you’re ready to try leg-yield by: •

Pick up a rhythmic, active trot.

•

From the short side of the arena, turn onto the quarterline. Once your horse is straight, establish a slight bend to the inside.

•

Take your inside leg slightly behind the girth to push your horse over.

•

Keep your outside leg at the girth to control the sideways movement.

•

Keep your weight central in your seat, with your own shoulders parallel to your horse’s shoulders

•

As you finish the movement, bring him straight again, then pat him.

TOP TIP:

Maintain shoulder control! Leg-yield requires the horse to be straight throughout the movement (unlike other lateral movements such as shoulder-in, travers and half-pass, where the horse needs to have some degree of bend through his body). The horse needs to move away from the leg, and you need to remember to control the shoulder so you can keep him straight and stay parallel to the long side of the arena.

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Always prioritise impulsion over the sideways movement when you are beginning to teach the leg-yield,” Jaime cautions. “It is no good to have a horse running sideways with no push from behind. TRY THIS - PLAYING WITH FLEXION Leg-yield is ridden straight through the horse's body with just minimal flexion. One common mistake in the leg-yield is to ride the exercise with too much flexion, leaving the hind legs trailing and the horse's shoulder falling out to the track. To develop straightness, adjustability and rider co-ordination, you can try changing the flexion throughout the movement. A good way to do this is to introduce some small half-pass steps – the aim is not to ride a competition-level half-pass, but simply to keep the horse from falling through the shoulder and running to the track. When ridden correctly, you will be able to ride the exercise without any change to your line or rhythm.

SHOULDER-IN To move into shoulder-in, ensure you have a well-established and clear understanding of the leg-yield. Then you can begin by asking for a little shoulder-fore, gradually increasing the angle as the horse and rider become more confident in the exercise. The difference between shoulder-fore and shoulder-in is merely that shoulder-fore has about half the amount of bend required for shoulder-in. Like the leg-yield, shoulder-in is an excellent exercise. One main benefit of shoulder-in is the transfer of the horse's weight onto his hind legs. You can balance and supple him through correct training of shoulder-in.

Shoulder control

As you have established good shoulder control in your legyielding, you can use this skill to teach your horse shoulder-in. Use your shoulder control aids to ask the horse's shoulders to come over and turn onto the inside track. Shoulder-in is ridden on three tracks at a 30-degree angle, with the inside foreleg crossing in front of the outside foreleg. If you are on four tracks, then you are just riding a leg-yield down the long side – so be sure to learn the difference. Having mirrors to look into is super helpful in this instance.

replace this

TOP TIP:

Remember to turn your shoulders in the direction you want your horse's shoulders to be placed. His shoulders should be parallel with your own.

HOW TO RIDE SHOULDER-IN Inside rein creates flexion while the outside rein controls the bend

Inside leg stays at the girth and the outside leg stops the horse swinging out

Quality over quantity! It is far better to have a few positive steps than a whole long side of very poorly executed steps. Don’t get greedy, and stay focused on clear and precise training.

Start all of your training in rising trot, especially on a young or weak horse who hasn’t yet mastered allowing the rider to sit softly on his back. Once your horse understands more and can work over his back more, then you can start introducing some sitting trot into the exercise. It is also essential to begin with a horse who has a clear trot rhythm, is in front of the leg and is relaxed and connected in his basic work. A good way to begin is to warm up with some leg-yielding across the diagonal, then as you ride out of the corner onto the long side, make a 10m circle in the corner. As you ride out of the circle, maintain the established bend, open your inside rein to lead the horse's shoulders and neck off the track, keep your inside leg on the girth to bend his rib cage around your leg, and keep the connection through the outside rein, using half-halts to balance the horse and maintain the outline and position of the shoulder-in. Use your outside leg to support and balance the horse through the movement. Remember, keep your weight equal through your seat bones to avoid influencing the horse's balance in an incorrect way. Your shoulders should always be parallel with your horse's shoulders. Achieve a few good, clear steps and then ride straight out of the movement. “Be patient and kind with your horse when teaching him something new," reminds Jaime. "He isn’t going to get it right every time at the start, so make sure you are very calm and precise with your aids, and reward him when he gets it right."

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TRAVERS AND RENVERS Travers is introduced at Level 3, and unlike shoulder-in, it is ridden on four tracks. In travers, the rider places the horse’s hindquarters to the inside of the direction of travel. (Renvers, sometimes referred to as haunches-out, is a training exercise and is essentially the same movement but with the horse’s hind legs coming off the track to the outside, instead of the inside. Renvers is considered to be slightly more challenging to ride than travers, as the horse will naturally be more eager to move his haunches to the inside rather than the outside.) Just like in the shoulder-in, start travers by riding a small circle and then as you ride off it onto the long side, keep your inside leg on the girth and your outside leg back, asking the horse to move his hindquarters in and around the inside leg. As with the previous two movements, a few good steps must be praised as a positive start. The purpose of both travers and renvers is to encourage collection, suppleness, and to build strength. They are also the foundation to move into training the half-pass, which is essentially travers on a diagonal line. In canter, travers is the building block for canter pirouettes.

TOP TIP

Some horses find travers a little complicated in walk and canter, but when you’re feeling confident, give it a go. If it feels difficult or you lose forwardness, go back to trot until you can re-establish it correctly.

MISTAKES TO AVOID Like shoulder-in, one common mistake in travers is lack of bend in the movement. When this happens, you are just riding a leg-yield along the long side, not travers! Another essential factor is impulsion. The horse shouldn’t change his rhythm at all when asked to do an exercise.

Inside rein creates flexion while the outside rein controls the bend

Inside leg stays at the girth and the outside leg moves behind the girth

HOW TO RIDE TRAVERS

The rhythm and impulsion is always a priority in this movement, and attention to this throughout is very important. 92

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Just as in the previous exercises, start by making sure you are riding a rhythmic, active trot and the horse is attentive and in front of your leg. Remember that any new work is going to challenge your horse's body and mind, and it is common for the horse to slow his stride while he figures out what you are asking. If he is behind the leg when you begin, it will only make the exercise more difficult for you both. Keep your inside leg firmly on the girth and your outside leg behind the girth, then ask the horse to move his quarters in and onto four tracks. The outside rein stays on the neck – close your fingers to maintain the connection, balance and direction. Your inside hand asks for bend throughout the movement.

HALF-PASS As explained earlier, the half-pass is simply travers on a diagonal line. It does, however, rely heavily on excellent control of the shoulders to achieve a correct half-pass with a connection through the entire body. Common rider errors are a lack of bend (essentially riding a legyield), or losing the hindquarters, which end up leading the movement. Unlike leg-yield, but just like travers, half-pass is bent in the direction of travel around the rider's inside leg. Half-pass is introduced at trot and canter from Level 4 in current New Zealand dressage tests, and progresses to more difficult and impressive movements in the Advanced and Grand Prix tests, requiring a high degree of training, flexibility, balance, suppleness and strength. Once your horse is well-established in travers, then you can move on to the half-pass. Once again taking advantage of the bend that a circle provides, ride a small circle in the corner of your arena, then ask your horse to lead with his shoulders onto the diagonal before asking his hind legs to shift over, using identical aids to travers. It might be a little wobbly or inconsistent to begin with, so once again mirrors are excellent to be able to see the correct angle and connection required through the body.

Inside hand asks for slight flexion to the inside

Outside hand provides steady contact to support his balance

Inside leg stays at the girth

Outside leg moves behind the girth to ask for sideways movement

The pace he is travelling in should not change, in terms of energy, elasticity and suspension, nor should the rhythm vary.

HOW TO RIDE A HALF-PASS Once your horse is warmed up, pick up an active, rhythmic trot. As you enter the long side, ask for half-pass by: • Taking your outside leg behind the girth to bend your horse and bring his quarters in. • Keeping your inside leg at the girth to keep his forehand on the track. • Maintaining the contact with your outside hand by closing your fingers. • Using your inside hand to ask for bend by squeezing and releasing your fingers. • Looking down the line of the track, with your horse’s ears pointing down the track too.

The horse moves forward and sideways across the diagonal

MISTAKES TO AVOID It can be tempting to sit crooked in an attempt to influence the horse to move over, but it is crucial that you sit evenly on both seat bones.

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PIROUETTES Pirouettes in both walk and canter are easily the most difficult of the exercises, because they require the use of every aid available to the rider. To begin, it is imperative that you have the necessary balance, suspension, suppleness, listening and collection. The pace in the canter should be the same as walking speed, but with enough energy that the canter stays true with three beats, and doesn’t become disconnected and laboured. To have a good canter pirouette, your horse must have a good canter. He must be able to go from gallop to medium to collected, then to a very collected canter and back up again without losing power, balance or willingness.

WHERE TO BEGIN When beginning to train towards the pirouette, start on the rein that your horse finds easiest. Don’t forget that the goal through all the work is to build gymnastic strength, suppleness and adjustability, so small steps every day are enough. Keep the work fair to him by not being greedy and asking for too much all at once. Stay soft through training the pirouette. It is always important to look to develop self-carriage and not force your horse into a frame. You want to build him up and work with him, not shut him down.

WHAT ARE THE AIDS? Ride with your inside leg at the girth and your outside leg behind the girth – its purpose to encourage the horse’s hind leg to step over and the quarters to stay in place (similar to the aids you would use in travers and half-pass). Keep your weight slightly to the inside of the bend to help your horse's balance, and encourage him to step under himself. Keep your contact equal in both reins. Your inside hand works to maintain flexion through the movement, while your outside rein half-halts and supports the horse as he moves around.

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Remember to always be thinking about how your lateral work or any other training exercise is going to help your horse become a better athlete. It is counterproductive to be riding movements just for the sake of it, especially if they are not ridden correctly and in a way that will ultimately improve the horse’s way of going. COMMON RIDER ERRORS A common error is riding into the pirouette crooked – remember, straightness is key for any movement. If the horse comes into the pirouette crooked, he will struggle to carry his weight behind and his quarters will swing out, making it impossible for him to complete the movement correctly. Alternatively, if he is falling in and not standing up on his inside shoulder, then you have shut him down in front, and he will struggle to take the next step around. Too much bend creates a similar issue. If you have too much bend in the pirouette, you completely lose the horse's body. This will not only make the execution difficult, but also the exit from the pirouette.

FOUR EXERCISES TO PERFECT YOUR PIROUETTES 1. Hone your lateral work

The primary purpose of a pirouette is to improve the collection and engagement of your horse, but first, he must understand essential lateral aids. To prepare him for the demands of pirouettes, build his lateral stamina by leg-yielding across the whole arena, making sure he’s moving across from your inside leg. Focus on keeping the steps small but energetic and keep his hind legs crossing. Make sure he’s not falling through his outside shoulder.

TOP TIP

Repeat this exercise a few times, but change where in the arena you do it, so that he doesn't start anticipating the movement.

2. Practise your quarter turns

To begin introducing the idea of a pirouette, imagine a square is marked out in one half of your arena, for example around K, F, B and E. Ride the sides of the square in collection, and make each corner a basic quarter pirouette – each time you come to a letter, concentrate on making a right-angled turn. Push your horse over from your outside leg and keep your inside leg closed – you want him to be really responsive to your outside leg so he can turn around his inside hind. Control the bend with the inside rein as you ask him to turn, but keep it light or you risk pulling him around, which will cause his quarters to swing out instead. Maintain balance with your outside rein.

TOP TIP

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It doesn’t matter if your turns are quite big at first. Once you get the hang of it, you can scale them down.

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3. Start from shoulder-fore

Using the long side of the arena, collect your walk using half-halts, then go into shoulder-fore position. When you’re ready, ask for a half-pirouette, guiding your horse around with your inside rein and outside leg. Ride the exercise as a big working pirouette at the start, and make sure you’re keeping to a four-beat walk with the correct sequence of steps – if your horse rushes, he’ll get muddled and will end up trying to pivot around his inside hind. If this happens, using half-pass will encourage your horse to think forward as well as laterally. Ride half-pass to the centreline, then collect him back and halfhalt before going into a quarter turn. Once you’ve mastered this, progress to a half-pirouette – this will help stop your horse learning to swing his quarters out and will encourage him to keep thinking about his walk steps.

TOP TIP

Shoulder-fore is the introductory version of shoulder-in. As with shoulder-in, you need to position your horse’s shoulders slightly to the inside, but with an angle of around 15⁰ instead of 30⁰, and mirror the position of your horse’s shoulders with your own.

4. Reduce the size

Once your horse is responding to the aids, has mastered turning his forehand around his hind legs, and can keep a marching step behind, you can start scaling your larger working pirouette down, with the eventual aim of getting his inside hind marching in place. Jamie again recommends starting from half-pass or shoulder-fore. Turn across the width of the school, position yourself very slightly in shoulderfore, then begin the pirouette. As your horse becomes more accustomed to the movement, concentrate on bringing the size down until his inside hind is stepping in place as his other legs circle around it.

TOP TIP

Although you’ll only be asked for a walk halfpirouette in dressage tests, there’s nothing to say you can’t practise full walk pirouettes at home as a prelude to trying it in canter.

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Try it in canter

Once you have a good understanding of the pirouette in walk, you can try the movement in canter. You will need to ensure your horse has good balance and collection before trying this. Don’t forget that you can always go back to riding through some leg-yield and half-pass movements to warm up before riding the pirouette. Jaime recommends working on your collected canter in travers (quarters-in) to avoid letting your horse becoming slow and laboured, and only moving into a pirouette when he can maintain the collection and move away from your outside leg responsively. Start small and build up to a full pirouette using your quarter turns (like on the square) and half turns, and try to keep your canter three-beat with the correct foot sequence and moment of suspension. To ride a competition pirouette, a halfpirouette in canter takes three to four steps and full pirouette between six and eight.

Unlike in the walk pirouette where his outside hind leg crossed over in front of his inside hind leg, in the canter pirouette, the hind legs do not cross since the inside hind foot stays in the same footprint. Another excellent exercise to prepare your horse for pirouettes is to begin by riding travers in canter down the long side. You could even try playing with the angle a little to test the horse’s response to your aids, before bringing it onto a 20-metre circle. Maintain the circle size and bring the haunches in, then ask for the circle to close up and come smaller, before straightening and riding out again after a few good steps. The success of a well-executed pirouette results from the refinement of the rider’s feel, timing and training ability. It can only be as good as the preparation that went into it and is an accurate reflection of the skills of the rider asking for it. Done poorly, the pirouette is one of the most potentially physically damaging movements we can ask of our horses. Done well, it is one of the highlights of the dressage riding experience – a genuine work of art. C

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TRAINING WORDS Ashleigh Kendall IMAGES Show Circuit Magazine

“WELCOME TO MY WORLD. A WORLD WHICH HAS AT ITS CENTRE A LOVE OF HORSES; A PASSION FOR RIDING EXCELLENCE AND ACHIEVEMENT; AND A COMPETITIVE SPIRIT AND DESIRE TO PERFORM REGARDLESS OF YOUR LEVEL OR EXPERIENCE.” In this lesson, John coaches young rider Eden Johnstone through some flatwork basics and simple jumping exercises. It is by refining these all-important basics that a rider will go from being a competitor into a champion. Eden has had some success in the Junior Rider classes, and although she is new to John’s training system, he is impressed by her dedication and improvement so far.

JOHN COTTLE REFINING THE

BASICS Eighteen-year-old Eden Johnstone rides her horse Bellagio GNZ (by Cassiano out of a Sir Tristram mare). She has had ‘Barney’ for almost two years, and after four years of riding in the Junior Rider circuit with some success, she is looking to move up to Young Rider level with him next season. At the time of this lesson, Eden had just started training with John. 98

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“It’s not nerves, it’s adrenaline, and it is a good thing. Welcome the challenge, feel your heart race, and remember your job!”

“Consistency is one of the most important elements of training horses, as well as trust and relationship building. Improving your consistency in riding and training is the best thing you can do.”

“Be open-minded to different perspectives and methods. If your current approach isn’t working and you have reached a training plateau, try something different.”

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STEP ONE: WORKING THROUGH A CHECKLIST John emphasises that it is important both to have priorities in your training, and to stick to them. Riders should pick the most prominent issue that they’re having and work on improving and perfecting it as much as possible, before moving on to the next one. It is essential for riders to have their checklist of priorities and work through these systemically.

“Riders will have to go back to their checklist every day,” John says. “I even do it myself. It’s an important part of the ride and a good way to stay focused.” He urges all riders to think about what’s on their checklist before they ride, reminding themselves of what their priorities are and what their main focus will be for that session.

IT ALL BEGINS ON THE FLAT “ALL SHOW JUMPERS SHOULD BE ABLE TO WORK WELL IN THE BASIC LATERAL MOVEMENTS – LEG YIELD, SHOULDER-IN, TRAVERS AND HALF-PASS.”

“Our biggest problem in New Zealand is the lack of good flatwork skills in our jumpers. We’ve got a lot of talented riders, but they don’t train and produce their horses well. They miss the important basics,” John says. “A lot of riders have their hands low, and they almost try to pull the horse’s head down, but it is important that they elevate their hands and let the horse look up at the fence and take its weight behind, so it can use that power to make a good, clean jump.” He explains how the rider’s hands affect the way the bit is sitting in the horse’s mouth. “The bit needs to be putting pressure on the soft part of the mouth, so that the horse gives. When your hands are low, the bit will sit on the harder part of the mouth.” Barney likes to tuck his neck in and drop behind the contact, so it is important that Eden rides him forward and encourages him to look up. “We want him up and round. When he tucks behind the bit, he ends up going nowhere, which isn’t going to be helpful when we want to jump,” John says. “You see that with a lot of the riders here – they have their horses overbent, and they think they are collected, but their poll isn’t the highest point. We want our horses to be up and round, so they don’t get a shock when the fence appears without them having had time to look at it. I hate it when I see riders jamming their horses’ heads down with really low hands.” He encourages riders to think about riding their horse’s whole body, not just the head and neck because that’s what you can see in front of you. A big focus in John’s training so far with Eden has been establishing a positive contact. “You need to check that your hands are still, and that your heels are down,” he reminds her. “Don’t jiggle your hands – Barney wants to suck in behind your contact, so push him forward onto the bit and ride him more forward to start with. If he pulls down on your

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hands, then raise his neck by lifting your hands a bit higher, so that he looks up and ahead.” John firmly believes that lateral work is a vital component in training show jumpers. “All show jumpers should be able to work well in the basic lateral movements – leg yield, shoulder-in, travers and half-pass,” he explains. “I usually start by training a little leg yield with haunches in, so they learn to move away from the leg, then working up to the shoulder-in, which is an essential exercise for any horse. “The lateral work is important because it teaches the riders to use their legs, and it’s useful for the horse because it helps them with their balance. You aren’t going to be able to keep a horse straight to a fence if you can’t keep it straight with your legs! Obviously, for show jumpers, most of the work is in canter, so it’s important to be able to ride the lateral work in the canter too. “When I’m training my horses, I’ll do a little leg yield at canter, a little haunches-in down the fence, and a lot of counter-canter,” he says. “That’s what Eden will end up being able to include in her work as we progress.”

When Eden has warmed up in trot, John asks her to go forward into canter, reminding her to stay in a light seat, keeping her weight anchored in the stirrups with her leg by the girth. “She has been working hard on keeping her heels deep,” he comments. “Her leg isn’t perfect yet – it’s a bit in front of her at the moment – but it’s a lot better than it was. I want her to be able to force more weight into her heels.”

SHOULDER-IN “Sink into the saddle and position him along the fenceline. Let the fence help you to guide him. Don’t do too much with your hands, just hold the right rein open and push his hindquarters across with your outside leg. And sit up tall! It’s not perfect yet, but it is a good beginning.”

The value of riding the shoulder-in is that it is a very good suppling and collecting exercise. It improves the horse’s obedience to the aids.

STRETCH AND REWARD When your horse has tried hard, the best way to reward him for his efforts is to give him a nice stretch and a pat. This is especially important with young horses, as they will begin to figure out what is expected of them in their work. Keep your horse motivated and happy to keep on trying for you! Eden asks Barney to walk and relax while keeping an even contact

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PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT “Practising lots of lines over little jumps is super important for horses and riders, especially on a good surface that the horse feels confident on. That’s how you get better and better at jumping,” John states. “These exercises are what allow the horse to get fit as a jumper. A lot of people will say ‘I don’t jump my horse between shows’, but they aren’t able to develop as a jumper if they aren’t jumping and practising the turns and distances, especially over smaller fences. You can only perfect the finer details of jumping

by practicing them. “Eden is learning to find her distance, and she will only develop her eye by doing heaps of these types of exercises. Barney is a good enough jumper that these jumps aren’t a big effort for him to do often. I would do some flatwork every day, then add some jumps into the workout. The horses might have a hack the day after a show, but every time that they are working in the arena, they will jump a few of these smaller fences.”

THE WARM-UP FENCE

John prepares the warm-up fence, ensuring the pole is set at the correct distance.

“WE WANT TO SEE THE HORSE LANDING ON THE CORRECT LEADS, BALANCING AROUND THE TURNS, AND SEEING THE DISTANCES.”

To begin, Eden and Barney jump a simple crossbar to get their eye in. They jump it once before John raises it, and Eden jumps it a few more times, always thinking about her checklist – her position, looking up with her heels down and staying still in the air. The warm-up fence is a good time to check out how the horse is feeling that day and work him accordingly.

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CORRECT LEG POSITION

✓ Correct leg position improves your elasticity, balance and security. This is an area that Eden has been working really hard to improve and is one of the priorities on her checklist.

TOP TIP If you feel yourself gripping with your legs, come back to walk and let your legs hang loose and relaxed, before taking back your stirrups. You want to feel that same relaxed feeling when you have your stirrups.

✓ Your foot should be turned out a little, similar to the natural way that you walk, allowing your knee to come off the saddle and sit loosely, not flapping but never gripping. This enables you to put your entire inside calf in contact with your horse’s side, maximising communication and security. Keeping your heels down lower than your toe is important, as it lengthens your leg, allowing for maximum contact area with your horse’s sides.

✗ In this photo, John demonstrates turning the foot in too far, which forces Eden’s leg away from her horse, resulting in a lack of contact and compromising her security.

TOP TIP Refining your two-point and leg position doesn’t just have to be done over fences. Spend time in the correct jumping position on the flat – it will help you to develop the right muscle memory and make you stronger and more balanced.

LANDING ON CORRECT LEADS “Do you remember a horse I had called Telegraph?” John asks. “We bred and sold him, and he had been jumping in World Cup classes before I bought him back. But when he arrived, he couldn’t even jump a small fence and land on the right lead. He would always land on the left lead,and do a flying change. So I had to do a lot of this work with him. It took a million circles, and I went to shows for six months without jumping a clear round before he finally got it. The following season he went out and won 13 out of his 15 Grand Prix starts. The basics are important.”

KEEP THE REVS UP One common mistake in the circle exercise is letting the horse lose too much power. “On the circle you need to think forward and be turning the whole time,” he reminds her. “Stay still and look around your circle.” He notes that this is where the training on the flat pays off – if the horse is looking up and is balanced behind, he can collect and keep all his energy in the hind end, and can use that power to stay balanced around the turns and make it cleanly over the jumps.

LOSING THE SHOULDER John reminds Eden to always use the outside rein when she’s turning. “If you just pull with the inside rein, he will bulge out through the turn and you’ll lose control of the shoulder,” he says. “If you can’t do a circle well, it means the horse isn’t moving properly from the leg, so it is important to fix that before you go back to something more difficult. “This is quite new for Eden, and it has been a big step up for her,” he notes. “There’s a lot of this work to be done, but she is progressing really well.”

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CIRCLES AND SERPENTINES John sets out two useful exercises for Eden to develop her eye for a distance through a turn. The first is deceptively straightforward – a small fence on a circle, working on controlling the horse’s shoulder around the turn. “We want to see the horse landing on the correct leads, balancing around the turns, and seeing the distances. Jumping a small fence on a circle is useful to begin with, and you can even use poles to keep the horse on his line. Make sure you are focusing on just lightening your seat and staying tall in your body. Keep still in the air and keep your eyes parallel to the ground. Practise your light seat on the way around in-between the fences, looking up and staying still.” John comments on the improvement Eden has made to her lower leg position. “It has improved immensely in the short time she has been training with me. She has been working really hard on it, and it shows.”

THE CIRCLE EXERCISE • •

Arrange the fences on a circle (place them on the quarter lines of the circle) Start with two fences, then add more as your horse gets used to the exercise.

Use this exercise to: • • • • •

Control the shoulder around turns Encourage landing on the correct lead Keep your horse supple and balanced Engage the hind end Work on striding and pace.

TRAINING TO WIN: THE JUMP-OFF John is known in show jumping circles as a true master of the jump-off, and he lets us in on one of his key secrets for a winning jump-off ride. “I teach all my horses self-carriage before they ever compete. They must be able to go long and low at all paces and hold their own balance when jumping, and not be relying on balance from reins/ hand. When I got Telegraph back, he had trouble with his leads because he had been pulled off the ground to the fence. I went back and taught him to hold his own balance with a soft following hand so I could always ride forward and attack the fence.” He sets up a double, then tells Eden to gallop in on a loose rein and let the horse judge his own distance through the combination. This is to teach the horse to hold his own balance, sort out the distance and for her to concentrate on her position and technique. “Stay forward with him and leave him alone,” he says. “Don’t sit back. In this exercise, I would rather he leave from a long stride than chip in, because we are teaching him to look for the jump and go. Being able to gallop at a fence and have the horse just do it is how you win jump-offs. “You want to be able to do this exercise with a loop in the reins. The horse needs to have total freedom to do his job. I don’t want to protect him. He has to be able to gallop at fences, he has to think for himself. Really commit and ride him forward into the fence.”

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WHEN THINGS DON’T GO TO PLAN When Barney takes a rail in the gallop exercise, John instructs Eden to halt and let the horse think about what had happened. “If he takes a rail and you keep going, then he won’t feel the sting of the rail,” he explains. “But if you stop, then he will notice, and next time he will be more careful over the fence. So just stop and stand, and take that moment for him to process it.”

ABOUT

JOHN “I wasn’t born naturally talented. I wasn’t Mark Todd. I just wanted to win.” John Cottle is a familiar figure in New Zealand’s show jumping scene, and his years of hard work, determination and sacrifice have taken him to the top level of the sport. He was selected to represent New Zealand at no fewer than four Olympic Games, and wore the silver fern with pride at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics and the 1988 Seoul Olympics. He is also the most prolific winner of the prestigious Horse of the Year title, with a record six Olympic Cup wins to his name. Even more impressively, each of those wins came on a different horse – undeniable evidence of his skill as a horseman. To top it all off, he has won the Grand Prix Rider of the Year a staggering 13 times. John has always been determined to gain as much knowledge and experience as possible and has never been afraid of putting in the hard yards. “At the start of my career, I was selected onto my first New Zealand team to Australia with a horse called Hard Case, and I spent time with the riders there. They had developed their own jumping style, flinging their legs back behind them over the fences, and I adopted that from them.” After a while, John realised how important flatwork was and riding with a more secure lower leg position and decided to put more effort into that to improve his jumping. Enter Colonel Peter Doornbos, an extremely talented Dutch international dressage rider. “Colonel Doornbos was an early mentor for me. I had three lessons a week with him for six months, and in that time I didn’t jump anything! In the beginning, he would ride my horses, and they would do all the lateral movements for him, then I would get on and not even be able to do a good half-pass. It was a huge learning curve for me.” Peter Robeson was my idol, and when I took three Grand Prix horses to base in the UK, I was lucky enough to live near him, so I trained with him and copied him. John was also responsible for bringing the legend that is George Morris to New Zealand. Never one to rest on his laurels, John has been a pioneer in developing show jumping as a sport in New Zealand, identifying talent and fostering riders through the levels for many years. He has been involved with Equestrian Sport New Zealand’s Jumping Board and helped set up Talent ID squads, giving riders access to recognised coaches in their area. “I’m passionate about the sport,” he says. “We’ve got some great young riders in this country, and if we can help in some way to give them a leg up, then that’s great.” C

SOME OF JOHN’S CHAMPION HORSES RIFLEMAN

Olympic Cup winner at Horse of the Year in 1973. Pictured during their winning round in the Grand Prix at Rotterdam

FOOTMAN

Olympic Cup winner at Horse of the Year in 1981

SWANDRI MONOPOLY

Olympic Cup winner at Horse of the Year in 1989

JEEP WATCH ME

Olympic Cup winner at Horse of the Year in 1997 and went through to the World Cup Final in Geneva

JEEP SUPER MOTH

Olympic Cup winner in 1998, also won the Norwood Gold Cup in 1997 and Silver Fern Stakes in 1997, 1998 & 1999 at Horse of the Year

ARTURO

Los Angeles Olympics 1984 Vienna World Cup Final 1983

UPS & DOWNS

Seoul Olympics 1988

TELEGRAPH

Olympic Cup winner at Horse of the Year in 2005

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ADVICE WORDS Kate Lattey

Winter

Top Tips Whether your horse is in work over winter or turned out for a break, here are our top 40 tips to help you save your pennies as you plan ahead for the coldest months of the year.

If your horse is being turned out over the winter, you can alter your feeding regime to cut back on highenergy feeds and introduce warming and conditioning feeds. Most feed companies have representatives that are happy to design a feed programme that works within your budget.

If your horse needs a fattening feed, adding boiled barley is a good winter option. Pop it in the slow cooker in the morning and it will be ready to feed by evening. (Some horses can heat up on barley, so introduce it slowly and keep an eye on behaviour.) It is also nice for your horse to have a warm feed in the depths of winter.

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Adding a good quality oil to your horse’s feed will help them to keep condition or gain some weight, and is great for their coat. If you decide to start giving a horse oil of any kind, it is important to incorporate the oil into their feed routine slowly, allowing a week to ten days before they are at the full dosage.

Give your horse an ample supply of roughage in the form of digestible fibre like hay and chaff - they will convert this into energy that will help them to stay warm. Don’t cut back your horses’ minerals supplements - remember, winter is a time when the grass is least resourceful.

A good quality and well-fitting rug can help your horse maintain condition; a cold, wet horse loses a lot of body fat keeping warm. Keep in mind though that if your horse is overweight, a rug will actually help them maintain fat so consider a lighter weight rug, so your horse will burn more calories in an effort to keep warm.

If you choose to rug your horse, it is essential to fit the rug well and check it regularly to make sure that the straps have not broken and they are not rubbing or letting in water. Leaky rugs can create the perfect moist environment for skin infections such as rain scald.

Plan your pasture rotation ahead of time, and stick to it as much as possible. Good pasture management will reduce the amount of hay and/or balage you will end up feeding out.

A soil test will let you know what your pasture deficiencies are, so that you can fertilise accordingly and plan for spring maintenance. Lime is an inexpensive way of treating soil that is acidic from over-grazing. Seek advice from your nearest fertiliser company. Only put the horses back in the paddocks once the lime is washed in.

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Using hay feeders will minimise the amount of hay that is wasted by being trampled into the mud. Cattle hay feeders can be made horse-safe by buying pool noodles, cutting a slit down longwise and slotting them on the top of the feeder, then using duct tape to hold them on. Plastic barrels sawn in half also work well in paddocks to keep hay out of the mud, as long as you add drainage holes in the bottom.

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If your paddocks have any particularly boggy areas, tape these off when the horses are in those paddocks, so they can’t pug the entire paddock. There are great solar panel electric fence systems available from your local agricultural stores.

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Pull your winter rugs out before the bad weather hits, and check for any issues that need repairing. We’re often so glad to see spring arrive that we shove our winter rugs into a corner and ignore them until winter rolls around again – but you don’t want to pull your heavy winter rug out hours before a storm is due to arrive and discover that it has a big rip in it or the neckrug straps are broken!

Laying base course in gateways and around water troughs and hay feeders is a good way to avoid ending up with excessive muddy patches.

Outdoor rugs do lose their waterproofing after a while, but it’s easy enough to re-waterproof them yourself. Most saddleries will sell variations of rug sealant that you can spray or paint onto your covers. Make sure the cover is clean and dry before applying the waterproofing agent, and follow the instructions carefully.

If you have a rug that’s beyond repair, before you throw it away, remove any undamaged straps, clips and buckles, and cut out squares of undamaged outer areas to use as patches on other rugs. You can take these in with your rugs next time you’re having repairs done.

Repair rips or tears as soon as possible. Small tears turn into big tears if they’re left alone! A large needle and waxed thread will hold most rug tears together until you can get a proper repair job done - or if you have a heavy-duty sewing machine, you can sew a patch on yourself.

Layer him up – you don’t need to have a rug in every single available weight! You could add a thin waterproof rug over top of a doona to create a warm, waterproof cover. Remember to consider the combined weight of the rugs and make sure you don’t over-do it, and make sure that your straps and surcingles are adjusted to allow for the extra bulk. (If in doubt, feeding extra hay is a more effective way to keep a horse warm than adding another cover to their load.)

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A three-pronged garden cultivator is the ideal tool for mixing horse feeds while keeping your hands clean and dry. These are available cheap from garden centres and hardware stores.

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If you’re riding during the winter, remember to look after your tack and keep it well-oiled, especially if you’ve been riding in the rain or mud, or on the beach. Your leather tack will last longer and be less likely to crack or break if it’s properly maintained.

Organise a tack swap meet with horsey friends in the winter months as a social get-together – have everyone clean out their tack room and bring along things they don’t need anymore to swap or sell.

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If you are doing a lot of riding out in wet weather, consider buying a plastic racing bridle – you can clean it with a quick dunk in a bucket of water, which saves you time and saves your good bridle from water damage. There are also synthetic saddle options, if you can afford to have one for winter, allowing you to preserve the condition of your expensive competition saddle.

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We are all used to worming with the change of season, so make sure you’re up-to-date with your worming regime. Many vet clinics also offer fecal egg counts (FEC) from a supplied fresh manure sample, and can let you know whether you need to worm your horse, and if so, which parasites to target.

Be sure to check your horse - or have someone else check them - at least once each day. Minor cuts and scrapes can turn into big problems if they get overlooked.

Unused tack that gets damp can grow mould, so if you’re not riding over winter, keep an eye on your gear. To get rid of mould, make a solution of half water, half white vinegar, then dry the tack out in the sun (you may have to wait for suitable weather). Wipe it down with the white vinegar solution and leave it to dry before cleaning it as normal with saddle soap and leather conditioner. If you won’t be using the tack for a while, store it somewhere warm and dry (e.g. in your house) to minimise the risk of the mould returning. (Don’t bring the tack inside while it’s still mouldy as you’ll be releasing mould spores into your living area.)

If your horse is usually shod, but you’re not planning to ride much during winter, it may pay to remove their shoes for a rotation or two. Horses in light work may cope well with only wearing front shoes for a time, while others will happily go barefoot. As well as saving you money on shoes, letting your horse’s nail holes grow out will improve their hoof wall integrity. Keep in mind, however, that horses with flat feet or thin soles may struggle to cope without shoes. Hoof abscesses are a nightmare to deal with in muddy conditions, so it’s a good idea to talk to your farrier about your individual horse’s needs.

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Stay on top of mud fever. If you have a horse with white legs or one that is particularly prone to mud fever, keep a close eye on the problem areas. Keep their legs as clean as possible, and treat any signs of mud fever as soon as they appear - it’s easier to deal with if you are onto it early. Correct mineral supplementation is a great preventative ensure that you are using a good quality brand. Get your horse’s teeth checked, as any dental issues may prevent them from eating properly, and you don’t want to wait until they’ve dropped condition to realise what’s going on! It’s far more difficult – and more expensive – to put weight back on a horse than it is to maintain it, especially in cold weather.

Make sure that your first aid kit is well-stocked so you can treat any issues as soon as they arise, and prevent any minor scrapes or niggles from turning into bigger issues.

You don’t have to ride every day. If the weather is utterly miserable for you, it’s not going to be any more pleasant for your horse. Keep in mind that to maintain an average (not performance) level of fitness, a horse needs to be exercised three times per week for 20-30 minutes each time.

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If you’re out competing over winter, find someone to video you (and your friends). After the event, get together to watch the footage maybe over a get together. You’ll be able to see how it looked versus how it felt, and hopefully pick up some tips to improve upon for next time.

If your horse needs his teeth done, or other routine care, see if you can get a group of horses together to be seen at the same time, so you can split the call-out fee between you.

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Are you going hunting over winter? Maybe you’ve entered a few dressage shows, or you’ve got some winter show jumping lined up? Find out if you have a friend nearby who is going to the same event, and save petrol money by going together. You could take them to one event, then they could take you to the next. It can also help to have some moral support and encouragement, especially on those wet winter mornings when you’re wondering why you thought this was a good idea in the first place...

Invest in lessons over winter, so that you’re ready to go when the season starts again. Don’t wait until you’re at a show to discover any gaps in your training – that’s a waste of entry fees!

Make sure your horse is properly hydrated - this is, as you know, vitally important for overall health. However, you may not realise that in winter, horses need extra hydration. This is mainly due to the fact that winter feed such as hay contains less than 15% moisture - a lot less than pasture.

Cut tails shorter than normal to keep the hind legs and tails mud-free. For added cleanliness, plait the bottom of tails in a thick plait.

You can encourage your horse to drink more water by increasing their salt intake. If they aren’t getting it in a daily feed, make sure they have access to a salt lick in their paddock.

Adjustments to warm-ups and cool-downs may need to occur during winter months. An adequate warmup is necessary in colder weather to loosen up muscles and prevent injury. Cool-downs are also extremely important to avoid a horse getting a chill. If your horse sweats, make sure to walk them out and then dry them off before they go back in the paddock.

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Horses should be given access to shelter, whether it’s a shed, stable or tree line so they can get respite from wind, rain and chilly breezes. A healthy horse can cope with low temperatures without any problems, but will usually seek out shelter if they are wet and it is windy.

Check the ballcocks on your troughs and replace any washers as required. Leaky water troughs are inefficient and just create more mud.

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When your horse is sweaty after working, wash them down with warm water and cider vinegar - it’s good for their coat and skin and reduces the risk of scalds or infection.

Pick out hooves regularly. It might be tempting to miss this part of horse care as all that mud is pretty messy! However, it’s actually more vital during winter. Look for bacterial infections such as thrush or seedy toe when conditions are muddy and wet.

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ADVICE

UNSTABLED Protecting your happy place WORDS Ashleigh Kendall

Ask any rider what they would like to change about the equestrian scene and ‘less drama’ would probably appear high on their list. So what can we do about this common issue in our sport? Read on and step up to create positive change for yourself and the people you surround yourself with.

e can all be partial to a bit of juicy gossip, and it’s all too easy to get caught up in it, but anyone who has also been on the receiving end of a snide comment or unpleasant rumour will know just how damaging others’ words can be. Remember, this sport is hard enough as it is. We have to be tough, mentally and physically, and develop a thick skin – after all, we are paying people to judge us while wearing tight white pants! There are so many pressures that we already have to endure and overcome to enjoy equestrian sport that we shouldn’t be raising even more barriers for no good reason. But when it seems like the people you’re butting heads with have nothing at all in common with you, remember that we’re all involved in this sport because we all love horses and share a passion for all things equestrian. Here are some tips for what to do when you – or someone around you – get caught up in the whirlwind of drama and bullying.

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Another way to diffuse and remove yourself from the drama is to encourage the gossiper to take it up with the person they are discussing.

ABUSE

ANXIETY

e s d n n i k e ss ch a nge ...

r e v

h t y

g n i

People also spread gossip for other reasons, including the validation they receive from being the one who is ‘in the know’, and the attention and power they feel they gain from that. Why do we gossip? Psychologists believe that gossiping serves to build relationships with one another, creating a way that people can find something in common with one another. Sharing your values, likes and dislikes can indeed form strong bonds; however, when the talk is negative, no-one benefits. People also spread gossip for other reasons, including the validation they receive from being the one who is ‘in the know’, and the attention and power they feel they gain from that. These are likely to be deeply insecure people who, by drawing attention to the downfalls of others, can escape their inner reality and deflect attention from their insecurities. Often, the things people criticise in others are the same things that frustrate them most about themselves. A positive culture is everyone’s responsibility – and likewise, in order for the drama to function, everyone needs to participate, even the person receiving the gossip. It can feel like just listening to it is harmless, but the reality is that engaging in gossip in any way other than shutting it down is fostering a negative environment and makes you part of the problem. “Gossiping serves no real purpose. It creates a negative interactive environment and is simply an energy sapper. Gossip is usually based on subjective judgements, which are not necessarily right nor wrong, but are purely the perception of an individual who may or may not have their own agenda. Unfortunately, gossip can create irreparable damage, both for those gossiping and the recipients of the chatter, which means no-one wins.

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The key thing to remember is that it’s the person who is gossiping that has issues – not the person on the receiving end! It’s helpful to understand that the person gossiping may just be someone who is: •

jealous

•

in pain

•

lacking in self-esteem.

In which case, they’re not making a personal attack, but may in fact be crying out for attention. Gossiping reflects much more negatively on the person who starts or perpetuates the gossip than it does on the victim of the verbal attack.” Sara Chatwin - Psychologist, MIND WORKS

Resist the temptation to engage When someone comes to you with the intention of spreading a story that could be hurtful or harmful to someone else, let that person know in an assertive and non-emotional way that you are not interested in hearing it. You don’t need to involve yourself in any other way. Merely setting a boundary to let someone know that you aren’t willing to spread or create gossip will shut them down, and they will be far less likely to come back to you with more rumours another time. You will also feel better about yourself for not getting involved in the drama, and will avoid adding unnecessary clutter to your thoughts. Another way to diffuse and remove yourself from the drama is to encourage the gossiper to take it up with the person they are discussing. If it is third-party information that is between other people, then you can remind them that there will be two

it professional. Say hello by all means, but don’t feel like you have to engage in meaningless chit-chat or be overly sweet to them for the sake of it. For some people, spreading gossip is their way of trying to gain attention in the only way they know how. Again, that isn’t your business. Your focus is on continuing to live your life as best you can, an approach which is more productive, peaceful and – most importantly – is actually within your control. Above all, don’t fight fire with fire. Be sure not to respond to the bullying or gossip with more harassment towards the perpetrator in retaliation. When you avoid stooping to their level, you feel better about yourself. There is no need to sling any mud at anyone, because you will only cause yourself stress as you wait for their response. It can drag out into a never-ending battle, and you end up being dragged into the mud and getting dirty with them. Understand that rumours, especially those lacking substance or fact (as most do), die out pretty quickly, so the more you can avoid getting sucked into it, the quicker it will be forgotten.

When YOU are the topic of conversation

Do you have a gossip addiction?

Of course, it is confusing and hurtful when you find yourself to be the topic of conversation, but standing up for yourself and showing people you won’t be treated in a harmful way sends a powerful message to the bully and empowers your sense of self in the process. Repeat internally to yourself that “what they think of me is none of my business”. It isn’t your problem whether that person likes you or not, it’s theirs. Don’t waste any of your time and energy worrying about it. Choosing not to respond to or receive bullying is sending a message to others that you will not change the way you live, or what you do, to make them more comfortable with themselves. Don’t give them the satisfaction of having a negative influence on your life. If you do have to interact with them, be polite and keep

The sad reality is that while it is easy to stand on a pedestal and preach that it isn’t okay to gossip or become involved in drama, all of us have been guilty of this at some point in our equestrian lives. Sometimes it is out of our control – we get dragged into it, and instead of lying on the quicksand and keeping out of it, we engage and get sucked down into the mire. Understand that it is part of the human experience to make mistakes and do things we regret, but it is never too late to change. If you have been the bully in the past, you can choose to become more self-aware and manage yourself better. There are many ways in which you can check in on how you are feeling, and assess your likelihood of engaging in or starting such behaviour. We all have a responsibility to ourselves and others to try to interact with respect and integrity towards one another. Remember also that you don’t always know what someone else is experiencing in their life, and what you do or say to someone might be enough to harm them. Think twice before you start spreading drama around. Finally, it’s essential to know that you aren’t going to like and get along with everyone you meet. That’s just how life is, and the good thing is that no-one expects you to. So the next time that drama flares up, and you are thinking about jumping into the fray, pause and consider whether it is worthwhile, and ask yourself how fulfilling it really is to participate in the ugly side of life and sport. And if you’re ever in doubt, remember – if you wouldn’t say it to someone’s face, don’t say it behind their back.

IMAGE: Facebook

sides to the story, and neither of them is anyone else’s business. Besides, the gossip could be very personal, so you might like to draw attention to that fact, and suggest that the person being discussed might not be happy with someone else sharing such personal information. You could also merely emphasise that you like that person and you aren’t interested in being part of any negative gossip about them. You don’t have to put yourself at risk or into an unsafe situation to avoid participating in the drama. If nobody is willing to hear it, the gossip will stop. It is the responsibility of everyone to make sure we foster a safe place for all within equestrian sport. One way to think about gossip and harmful treatment is to remember that if someone offers you a gift and you choose not to accept it, then they remain the owner of that gift. It is the same with drama and hate. You can choose to say “no thanks” and not take it on in any way. Then they will remain the holder of the lousy energy – not you. They keep it, they live with it, and you will have chosen once again not to engage in their drama.

Where to get help: Lifeline (open 24/7) - 0800 543 354 Depression Helpline (open 24/7) - 0800 111 757 Healthline (open 24/7) - 0800 611 116 Suicide Crisis Helpline (open 24/7) - 0508 828 865. This is a service for people who may be thinking about suicide, or those who are concerned about family or friends. In Australia, Amy “Dolly” Everett was the victim of bullying and ended her young life at just 14 years of age. The ‘Dolly’s Dream’ movement was created to raise awareness of the devastating effects of bullying.

Youthline (open 24/7) - 0800 376 633. You can also text 234 for free between 8am and midnight, or email talk@youthline.co.nz Your local Rural Support Trust - 0800 787 254 (0800 RURAL HELP) C

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ADVICE

Riding After a Fall Dr Amanda Jefferys

Senior Clinical and Health Psychologist, B. Psych (Hons). Doctorate in Clinical and in Health Psych. MAPS. FCCLP, FCHP, Psych Board Acc. Clinical Supervisor. Registered Fitness Professional

One of the challenges inherent in any horse and rider combination is the likelihood that, at some stage, the rider will fall off. While it’s a very normal human response to practice avoidance and not want to put ourselves in harm’s way, it can be difficult to find the confidence to get back into the saddle. Applying skills which support positive management of our emotions, physiology, and thought processes are critical if we are to turn the negative impact of a fall into a positive outcome. Our minds are hardwired to protect us from injury, so learning to contain the flight response and subsequent anxiety is critical to our recovery. Fortunately, riders are a resilient bunch and possess the tenacious spirit to address these kinds of challenges.

forward. In particular, looking into a variety of learning theories can provide valuable insight into how the human mind works.

Behaviourism Behaviourism helps us to recognise the potential for an anxiety response when addressing a fall or injury. If your brain is associating riding with pain (from a fall or injury), you will naturally be compelled to avoid the potential of further injury by not riding! This theory works by implementing exposure techniques which

Evaluate your mount

will teach your nervous system to settle. A graded exposure (e.g.

When talking about the combination of horse and rider, you

a gradual build-up of exposure to riding), through a graded safe

need to evaluate whether or not your mount is a trusted and suitable partner for your future. Often, we become emotionally connected to our horses and may not maintain an objective view as to whether the horse is fit for purpose – and whether

hierarchy, will lead to desensitisation, enabling your riding skills to be re-built over time. A specific hierarchy is dependent on the initial circumstances of the fall, but initially focus on building time and skills within a safe

they are, therefore, an ongoing and worthwhile suitable mount

environment, reducing your anxiety and building confidence.

for us to spend our treasured time with.

Cognitivism

Sports Psychology warning signs

Cognitivism focuses on the drivers of thought processes that

In moving through recovery from injury, Sports Psychology provides insight as to the conflicts one might feel, such as: •

Feeling angry or confused versus anxious and agitated

•

Obsessing about details such as a time-frame to return to riding versus feeling the fall or injury is a psychological barrier that you can’t overcome

•

Denying or downplaying the injury versus fixating on the injury and being stifled from moving forward

•

Expressing guilt due to not competing versus internal conflict of pushing back commencing riding again

•

Mood swings and negative self-talk versus reassuring messages

•

Pushing to come back too quickly versus loss of selfidentity through not competing

•

Social isolation versus using busyness in other parts of life to delay commencing riding again.

Thankfully, there are many solutions to assist us in moving

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may delay a return to the saddle. This theory involves the reorganisation of experiences in your mind, and the development of new insights. This means being able to implement strategies to support growth, including: setting goals, building confidence skills, using positive self-talk to change your mindset, focusing on attitude and future expectations, using sports imagery and motivational techniques, and getting great social supports, such as a coach. Critically, the less time you spend out of the saddle the better, so I have developed a quick list to address your riding plan (once you have recovered from any injuries, of course!).

Optimal mindset for return to riding Remember, fear is normal, and learning to manage it is paramount. Take the time to learn some applied breathing and mindfulness techniques that will help you gain and maintain focus. Focus on what you are doing, rather than what you are afraid of. This will help you to maintain your confidence.

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AMANDA’S TOP 5 CONFIDENCE BUILDERS 1

Set achievable and manageable goals for your return to riding. Start with a steady de-sensitisation process. Once you are performing well, then you can set performance goals, which will help you to keep any anxiety at a minimum.

Maintain positivity! Life is full of hurdles to be overcome, so consider this challenge as just another great learning experience along your life’s path. You will learn more about yourself, develop resilience and build character.

Learn mindfulness skills that will help you to be fully present when riding, not

Build your own self-concept. Evaluate what’s really important to you and work

Gather a support team – a coach, a mentor, a sports psychologist, a partner, friends

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tangled up in your own thoughts. Learn to defuse from unhelpful thinking processes.

towards your personal achievements.

– who are ready and willing to support you.

My wish is for you to strive to be all you can be, to function within your optimal abilities, to be challenged and rise.

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EQUINE LAW with Megan Gundesen

Become a legal expert in the niceties of Vet Checks In the last issue, I explained the first two steps of a vet check. Briefly, it was to firstly ensure you had a well-drafted, signed Agreement for Sale and Purchase of a Horse that was conditional upon a vet check being performed. The second was whether to choose the horse’s usual vet or an independent vet to perform the vet check. The usual vet will know the horse’s history, but an independent vet may be more expert at tricky health or soundness issues and may have a much needed ‘fresh eye’.

In Step 4, the purchaser decides what level of vet check is required, and includes this in their Buyer’s Statement. The full exam is the same as the partial exam, except that in the full exam the horse is strenuously exercised and examined during, and after, exercise. This will give you a much better idea of any respiratory or heart problems that may exist. There are also decisions to be made about whether the horse should be scoped (endoscopy), blood tested, x-rayed (radiographed), heart tested (electrocardiographed) or examined for reproductive purposes. Purchasers should take informed advice on this – it depends a lot on price, intended use, and the purchaser’s risk profile.

My preference would be to choose the horse’s usual vet, because vet checks involve a helpful document called an ‘Owner’s Statement’, which gives the purchaser seriously valuable information about the horse’s history. With either choice, the seller completes an Owner’s Statement with their knowledge of the horse’s history regarding disease, lameness, accidents, vices, abnormalities, staggers and headshaking. These are clear, legally enforceable representations about the horse. The purchaser will receive a copy of the Owner’s Statement after the vet check is done, along with the written vet report. But here is the real gold. If the horse’s usual vet is chosen, the owner signs a ‘Waiver of Information’ form which allows that vet to disclose the horse’s medical treatment history to the purchaser. So, if you use the horse’s usual vet, what the owner says in the ‘Owner’s Statement’ should match up with those veterinary records. If the owner does not answer honestly and the vet realises this when they look over the form, a difficult predicament arises for the vet. They should contact the owner and discuss the matter. If it can’t be resolved with the owner, then the vet will decline to proceed any further with the exam. This is an excellent reason why a potential purchaser would choose the horse’s usual vet. We move on now to Step 3, in which the purchaser contacts the vet and completes a Buyer’s Statement. These are standard forms produced by the Veterinary Council and most vets will have them printed on their letterhead. If you read the fine print, you will get a clear understanding of what the vet is doing and who they are liable to.

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E L P M A X E Step 5 is for the purchaser to make any concerns they might have about the horse known to the vet. You can do this verbally when the exam is happening, or you can add it to the Buyer’s Statement under ‘Other ancillary examinations’. Step 6 is to find out whether a more in-depth vet check is required, as the vet check itself can be quite a dynamic process. Sometimes, a purchaser requests a partial exam but,

part way through, the vet recommends that a full exam be done because something doesn’t seem quite right. It’s best if either the purchaser or a knowledgeable agent is present to help with these decisions. The key thing to find out is whether any identified problems are going to affect your intended use of the horse and, if so, roughly how long will that take to show up and how serious will it be? These are often very difficult questions to answer, but try to find out what you can, and do your own research online as well. Google is your best friend at this stage. However, remember to be realistic. Every horse has some issue or another! Step 7 covers a possible second examination. It’s not unusual for the vet check to reveal something that needs treatment, so a second examination may be needed before the vet can do her or his report.

The final step is closing the deal. If the vet check isn’t satisfactory, the purchaser can pull out, and should make sure they do so promptly and in accordance with any written Agreement. Alternatively, there may be a rethink of the purchase price. If you do negotiate a reduced price, you need to open any written Agreement, amend the price, and sign it again. If everything was acceptable to you, that’s a huge tick on your purchase decision! You can be very pleased, and I wish you all the very best in forming a great connection with your new equine best friend. Here at FairPlay Equine, I am still working towards bringing you a fantastic suite of New Zealand-legal, thorough, and easy to understand horse agreements. When the website is completed, I will feel like I have finished a long endurance ride!

* Whilst this article is accurate to the best of the author’s knowledge, it is written to provide general information only. FairPlay Legal Ltd does not accept any responsibility or liability for actions taken or damage resulting from use of the information. Readers are advised to seek their own legal advice in respect of their own situation and circumstances.

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A waterproof and breathable country boot with a full grain leather upper and lace adjustment for the perfect fit. This boot is suitable for a larger calf and has an RCS footbed system with a heel, arch support and a double cushioning layer for comfort. Available in Ladies sizes 6-10. RRP $349.99 From all good retailers. www.dublinclothing.co.nz

Dublin Black Wendy Waterproof Jacket

A weatherproof, windproof and breathable long technical jacket with full inner quilting. This jacket has hand warmer pockets and front quilted storage pockets as well as a built-in quilted hood. Available in charcoal, in Ladies sizes XXS-XXL. RRP $249.99 From all good retailers. www.dublinclothing.co.nz

Whistle & Pop Range From South Canterbury Saddlery This fun and exciting range is now in stock. Flick over to our website to shop. www.scsaddlery.co.nz

New

Equiline Body Band From Stirrups Equestrian This body band helps to prevent those regrettable rubs that can happen when horses change their coats. One adjustable size and very easy to put on. $159.00 www.stirrupsnz.com

Someh Grooming Bag Compact Connect Bomber Bits

From AMS Saddlery Made from blue sweet iron that oxidises easily, encouraging the horse to salivate and assisting in acceptance of the bit. Bomber Bits are handmade and are available in a wide range of mouthpiece and cheek options. www.amssaddlery.co.nz

Exclusively from Classic Equestrian Made from fabric that repels dirt and water, this bag will keep all your brushes, sprays, bottles and horse care products tidy, clean and on-hand when needed. Also includes a handy built-in USB port – you’ll wonder how you’ve gone so long without one. Available in black. RRP $150.00 www.classicequestrian.co.nz

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Rapide Horse Candies From Saddlery Warehouse Full of healthy grains and eagerly eaten thanks to the delicious flavours: Magic Star, Corn Time and Tasty Carrot. 2L box $14.99 Exclusive to Saddlery Warehouse stores or shop online: www.saddlerywarehouse.co.nz

Forgemänn Hoof Nipper with Spring

Manufactured from high quality polished chrome vanadium. Size: 14". RRP $129.00 From all good retailers. www.arionefv.co.nz

Equiline Xaviar Bandage Wraps From Stirrups Equestrian These are working bandage wraps with a reinforced area at the bottom for better protection of the fetlocks. Made from breathable material for your horse's ultimate comfort. One size available in white or black. $99.00 www.stirrupsnz.com

Bling Riding Crops

From Zilco Featuring a sparkly stone-embellished handle. Available in black, silver and gold. 65cm length. RRP $39.95 From your local Zilco stockist. www.zilco.co.nz

Equiline Fleece Bandages

From Stirrups Equestrian Polar fleece bandages with heavy duty velcro fastening. Size: 12cm x 400cm. Set of 4. $99.00 www.stirrupsnz.com

Mountain Sovereign Field Boots

From AMS Saddlery Traditional and timeless, the Mountain Horse Sovereign Field Boot is strong and durable and offers a more comfortable heels-down position with the unique Mountain Horse® Prolaze-Flexnotch™ Technology. www.amssaddlery.co.nz

Kiwi 600 Winter Rug 100g

From Saddlery Warehouse This great 600-denier rug is waterproof and breathable with a ripstop nylon outer and a 100g winter fill. Matching neck cover sold separately. $89.99 Exclusive to Saddlery Warehouse stores or shop online: www.saddlerywarehouse.co.nz

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New

Flair Softshell Silicon Grip Glove

Flex-On Composite Safety Stirrups

Softshell backing with silicon print on the palm for better grip when riding. Comes in fluoro yellow that is more visible in the dark. Available in black, fluoro yellow or neon pink. Sizes: Small, Medium, Large. RRP $59.50 From all good retailers. www.arionefv.co.nz

From Maddox Equestrian 'Safe-On' are the newest stirrups from Flex-On. With all the advantages of the existing model, these new 'Safe-On' stirrups bring an added element of safety. $489.00 GST inclusive. www.maddoxequestrian.co.nz

New

Trainer's Jessica Deluxe

The saddle you have been waiting for has arrived in the Trainer's range. The monoflap dressage saddle with all the benefits of the Jessica is here! The Trainer's Jessica Deluxe is a closer contact saddle, allowing you to feel at one with your horse. Colour: Black. Sizes: 17" & 17½". RRP $4,695.00 From all good retailers. www.arionefv.co.nz

Enzo Grooming Bag

Antarès Precision Bridle

Exclusively from Maddox Equestrian The Antarès Precision Bridle collection is now available in New Zealand with a flash or Y-noseband. Reins included. Priced from $699.00 GST inclusive. www.maddoxequestrian.co.nz

From Saddlery Warehouse Keeps bottles upright with plenty of assorted pockets to store your grooming tools, plus an easy clean mesh base to prevent build-up of horse hair or product spills. $39.99 Exclusive to Saddlery Warehouse stores or shop online: www.saddlerywarehouse.co.nz

Equiline Corby Rainsheet

From Stirrups Equestrian Stay dry at shows, at home or on hacks with this stylish rain sheet. The Equiline Corby Full Neck Waterproof Sheet can be used under the saddle while riding or over the saddle when you need to keep your horse dry at an event. $179.00 www.stirrupsnz.com

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HEALTH

WINTER

hoof care

Be vigilant about hoof care and give your horse every chance to stay fit and sound all winter – so you can spend more time out and about enjoying each other’s company, and less time on the phone to your farrier or raiding the tack shop shelves for poultice boots. WHAT A HEALTHY HOOF LOOKS LIKE Bearing in mind that all horses are individuals, good feet should be as much of a pair as possible, as matching in angle as possible, and neither too long at the toe nor too short in the heel. The angle of the hoof wall should be as straight as possible, without flares, bulges, dips or hollows, as these can cause a build-up of pressure that may lead to splits or cracks, and of course this is

WE LOOK AT THE HOOF’S BASIC COMPONENTS:

where problems begin. The angle of the heel should be roughly parallel to the angle of the hoof wall. Low or collapsed heels mean the horn ‘tubules’ (which make up the hoof wall) are being distorted and weakening the foot. Hooves that are set up wrong can create increased pressure on the flexor tendons, coffin joint and navicular bone.

FROG

SOLE The sole of your horse’s foot should be slightly concave in shape, which allows room for it to flex and flatten as he bears weight on each foot. Flatter soles are more prone to problems with bruising. FROG A healthy frog is nice and fleshy, looking like a rubbery wedge in the back of the foot. It allows the sole to flatten and the foot to expand as the horse moves, giving grip and venting muck and water out of the foot via its clefts. HOOF WALL Ideally the hoof wall should look like

HOOF WALL SOLE

your fingernails – generally smooth and with a natural sheen. The horn tubules and growth rings should be parallel with each other, not crushed or uneven.

TOP TIP If your horse suffers from seedy toe (also known as white line disease) a really good disinfectant to help get rid of it is a mixture of one part iodine to four parts eucalyptus oil. The iodine kills the bacteria and the eucalyptus kills the fungus that together cause the problem.

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The ideal hoof-pastern axis is straight (shown left). Both alternatives (centre, right) lead to potential long-term soundness problems. NORMAL

BROKEN FORWARD

ASSESSING YOUR HORSE’S CONFORMATION

Your horse’s feet are as individual to him as yours are to you, so it’s important to bear in mind that what’s right for him won’t always fit a textbook description. However, generally speaking, when viewed from the side the angle of your horse’s hoof wall should closely match the angle of his pastern. So if you drew a line between the two it would be straight – this is called the hoof-pastern axis. If this line isn’t straight (see diagrams above) it can cause

BROKEN BACKWARDS

problems, such as excessive tendon strain and the risk of reduced circulation in the hoof capsule. Looked at in isolation, your horse’s hoof-pastern axis may look very upright, or overly sloping, but you need to look at the bigger picture as it’s actually the angle of your horse’s shoulder that sets the correct hoof-pastern axis for him. If his pastern and hoof wall are at the same angle, and that’s the same angle as his shoulder, then he’s about right!

KEEPING HIS HOOVES HEALTHY

With winter now here, it is important to note that hooves generally grow less during the winter months, but regular hoof care and monitoring is still essential. Checking all four hooves and legs daily is still vital, although this can be more difficult when they are wet and covered in mud, so hose them off and dry them out and have a close look as often as you can. Remember to continue to use a good quality hoof oil that will form a barrier to prevent bugs from creating a little haven underneath. The time between seeing the farrier may be able to be increased slightly in winter as hoof growth may slow slightly but again it is wise to speak to your farrier about extending time between shoeing. Even if your horse is unshod, regular trims are important to maintain good hoof health. Good shoeing helps your horse’s feet, but bad shoeing will compound problems. We put shoes on horses to provide grip, protection and support, and it’s important your horse is re-shod according to the rate his feet grow at, rather than every six weeks because everyone else does – some horses need their hooves redone every month! This is because your horse’s foot length should be kept as constant as possible – if his feet grow too long it causes distinct changes to the angles of his legs, altering his action, gait and the loading of each leg. The more balanced you keep his feet, the easier it is for your horse to perform well. Regular shoeing intervals will also help his hooves to stay strong – if shoes are left on too long there’s more play in the nails, and the nail holes can end up causing a split, which can lead to white line disease or seedy toe.

BUGS AND BACTERIA

Horses can be more prone to hoof bacterial infections in winter, and diseases of the white line such as thrush. This can be related to standing in dirty wet bedding or very muddy paddocks. Thrush can be diagnosed by a foul-smelling odour and a dark coloured

Thrush affects stabled horses more than ones who live outdoors discharge from around the frog. It can travel deep into the sensitive tissue within the frog causing pain and lameness. Warm, moist bedding in stables or the accumulation of mud and dirt from the paddock encourage the growth of bacteria. Picking the feet out and checking them daily will help to prevent infection or to recognise infection in the early stages. If an infection occurs, there are many topical treatments available containing antiseptic and anti-bacterial properties, most commonly being iodine and copper sulphate-based solutions. These applications can also be used weekly as a preventative measure in horses and ponies prone to such infections.

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ABSCESSES

In many areas of the country, winter means alternating spells of wet and dry weather. These conditions can cause the hoof wall to expand and contract, allowing bacteria to invade the capsule, where they can multiply and produce a painful abscess. An abscess causes acute lameness seemingly overnight. Your veterinarian will be able to pinpoint the site and, if possible, drain the abscess. Your farrier can help with follow-up care, which can go on for several months if the abscess breaks at the coronary band and causes a disruption in hoof growth. Horses with weak, soft feet are more likely to develop abscesses in the winter. Water affects horn tissue much like it does a cardboard box. Excessive moisture can cause debilitating horn weakness that frequently causes indirect abscesses, in which bacteria enter sensitive tissue through fissures in the sole/wall. If your horse is prone to abscesses, anything you can do to improve his hoof quality and mass before the winter weather sets in will be helpful. The average hoof requires a minimum of 15 to 20mm of sole depth. Large hooves require 25 to 30mm, heavy thick walls and a strong heel and frog. Using a four-point trim and/or shoeing method to accelerate capsule growth prior to long periods of wet or inclement weather is the best way to prevent routine problems that haunt weak hooves.

4 EASY STEPS

TO POULTICING A HOOF You will need: • A poultice (these come in a wadding strip that you cut to size or in a ready-made hoof-shape) from your vet or tack shop • Adhesive bandage (e.g. Vetwrap) • Scissors • A roll of cotton wool • Tape (such as duct tape) • Clean warm water and a plastic container.

1 2 3 4

Clean your horse’s hoof thoroughly, as the sole must come into contact with the poultice. Use scissors to cut the poultice to size.

Soak the poultice in warm water, squeeze out any excess, then press it onto the sole of the hoof. Be sure to keep the medicated side next to the foot.

Wrap some cotton wool around the poultice, hoof and pastern area so it’s well protected; then wrap with an adhesive bandage so the cotton wool is covered and the poultice is held securely in place.

Trim any excess cotton wool from around the bandage and secure it with duct tape for extra security and waterproofing.

Be guided by your vet, but as a general rule try to change the poultice at least daily and make sure the bandage is clean, secure and comfortable at all times.

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THRUSH

Winter brings both advantages and disadvantages for those whose horses are prone to this smelly multi-organism infection of the hoof. Sub-zero temperatures are not a friendly environment for bacteria and fungal hoof problems. In areas where the temperatures don’t dip below freezing, however, the moisture in winter ground can simply feed a chronic thrush problem or create a new one. Treating and preventing thrush requires a cooperative effort between the horse’s owner, farrier and veterinarian. The first step is removing as much affected tissue as possible, followed by killing the organism with any one of many products designed for the job and, finally, altering the horse’s footing where possible to keep his feet consistently drier. If your horse does suffer a bout of thrush, clean the foot thoroughly and apply an antiseptic product, such as iodine or a Condy’s crystals (potassium permanganate) wash.

TOP TIP For general hoof health, we recommend that you introduce a hoof supplement in your horse’s diet that contains a broad spectrum of ingredients like Methionine, Biotin, Vitamin A, essential amino acids and calcium to promote hoof growth.

Most proble ms ca be ma n naged if you prepa are red to work a goo on d sho e i n g plan with y our fa rrier.

ESSENTIAL WINTER VACCINATION

WEAKNESSES IN HOOVES

While a good shoeing routine will reduce the risk of splits or cracks appearing in the hoof wall, if your horse’s feet do start to split it’s important to understand why, and to work with your farrier to prevent the damage worsening. When treating hoof cracks it’s important to identify the cause. Cracks are most common in the toe. These are often caused by either over-long hooves causing strain in the hoof wall, a hoof imbalance, lack of support in the toe region from an overly set -back shoe, or an injury and subsequent scarring to the coronet band, causing a fault in the hoof wall. This may split, allowing bacteria and fungus in. Always be guided by your farrier as to the best course of action. If there is any infection under the crack, this needs to be debrided of necrotic tissue and cleaned with a hoof disinfectant that treats both bacteria and fungus. If the crack is of a structural nature your farrier can open it up and clean it before applying a wax filler such as a hoof putty. This is self-adhesive, flexible and provides a waterproof seal over separation cavities and abscess wounds from dirt, manure and other sources of infection. If it seems as though your horse is forever losing shoes in winter, this is likely due to the suction effect of wet, sticky mud

After the initial tetanus vaccination, your horse should receive an annual booster; however, if he sustains a wound or undergoes surgery six months or more after his last tetanus shot, he should be revaccinated immediately. Tetanus is horrific and often fatal, so vaccination is absolutely vital.

pulling the shoes off, not any loss of hoof quality. If your horse twists a shoe in the paddock or out on a ride and is in danger of treading on the nails, you need to take action fast to avoid a nasty puncture wound. Call your farrier as soon as possible to arrange an emergency visit, but it’s important to be prepared. Invest in some basic farriery tools that will enable you to remove a loose, twisted shoe. These are available for a reasonable price from most tack shops. Ask your farrier to show you how to safely remove a shoe. Remove the sprung shoe as quickly as possible and if you are concerned that your horse may have stood on a nail or clip, play it safe and poultice the hoof straight away until your farrier can get there. Above all, stick to the rule that prevention is better than cure! C

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HEALTH

EXERCISE

Riding may count as exercise, but does it make us fit enough to get the most from our horses? WORDS Nicola Smith “How can I get fitter for riding? I get puffed really easily!” This is a question I get asked all the time, so in this issue I thought I would shed some light on the best approach to improving your cardiovascular fitness. It’s often believed that the only way to improve cardio for riding is by running, but while running is fabulous, you do need to know how to train correctly, and to also understand that it’s not the only way to achieve your fitness goals. Where so many people go wrong with running is that they go too fast too soon and they run too much, causing shin splints, sore knees, sprained ankles, hips… the list goes on. They get so excited to start running that they forget to balance out their training with strength, core or mobility work. They don’t build a foundation of movement first, then allow the body to improve its natural biomechanics and let the joints and ligaments get stronger. Did you know that ligaments take SEVEN times longer to grow in strength and suppleness than muscles do? So you need to allow for this when building any training program.

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“Before you embark on ANY running program, you need to make sure that you have built up and sustained 10,000 or more steps per day consistently for three months.”

count – these are steps OFF the horse!) This is crucial in order to allow your body to build its strength, stamina and endurance at a sustainable pace. Taking this steady approach allows your body to develop proper biomechanics, improve your posture and get your joints, ligaments, fascia and muscles all used to the increased workload. This foundation is vital if you do any desk work or a sedentary job, and is an absolute must to help prevent injury down the track, yet it’s what is so often missed out. So many people go out there smashing pavements with a body that has been stuck in a chair for months on end, and then wonder why they get hurt!

et me paint you a picture to help me explain. Judy works at an office job, where she sits for the majority of the day. She rides her horse 3-4 times each week, as well as doing all of the normal tasks around her property involved in taking care of a horse. On average, that means she will be walking between 5,000-6,000 steps each day. Over the years, Judy has had a few injuries and picked up a few niggles here and there. She decides that she needs to get fitter, so she hits the road running – literally – five days a week for 20 minutes at a time. She starts out great, but three weeks later she pulls up with an injury and decides that ‘this running thing’ is not for her. This cycle is repeated year after year, until Judy eventually becomes so frustrated that she gives up entirely, figuring that she can’t run, so what’s the point in trying to get fit? But at the same time, she is struggling with her riding, due in large part to her lack of fitness… Here’s what Judy missed – her body was never given enough time to rebalance, to build its natural biomechanics and its strength up for running on those hard surfaces. She had spent the last few years sitting in a chair, and then expected her body to go straight out and perform. It happens time and time again that we, as riders, go too fast too soon, and do ourselves an injury. Yet if you look at any ligament rehabilitation programme for horses, it will be gradual and sustainable – and we know this, but for some reason, we don’t apply the same approach to our own bodies. Go figure!

FOUNDATION OF MOVEMENT Before you embark on ANY running program, you need to make sure that you have built up and sustained 10,000 or more steps per day consistently for three months. (Your horse’s steps don’t

When you ensure this first step (pun intended) is in place, you can then build up your fitness and stamina sustainably. Walking is often underrated as a form of exercise, but the truth is that it has incredible benefits, and can be done without much thought. Remember, those 10,000 steps don’t have to be taken all in one go! It’s an accumulation over the day. Getting some form of activity tracker like a Fitbit is a significant first step to help create some clarity on where you currently sit, and how many steps you actually take. You might be surprised by the results, and often just doing this much exercise daily will improve your cardio fitness for riding.

WHY YOU ONLY NEED 3 RUNS PER WEEK When it comes to running, less is more. Smart, effective, intelligent training is crucial in order to make real changes, not just running for the sake of running. Running every day does not make you a better runner, nor is it a great way to get fitter, as you aren’t allowing your body time to rebuild and remodel after the last session. Many top runners only run three times per week, and they combine this with strength and interval work. The key is to structure your running so that you are working a different energy system and getting maximum results. You are wanting to create the right response within your training to get fitter and stronger more quickly, without burning yourself out. You also need to find the right balance hormonally, so that you recover well, your body gets efficient at burning body fat, and you improve your stamina when you ride. Gradually increasing your strength and endurance will help you to be able to run for more extended periods, ensuring that running is enjoyable and that your body doesn’t get injured or burnt out in the process. This won’t happen by running the same distance for the same time, every day of the week. Ideally, your three runs will be spaced out with a day in between. For example, you could run on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday each week; on the days in-between, do some work on your strength and suppleness with yoga, mobility work and strength programs that will help to improve your overall alignment and strength.

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RUN 1: TIME TRIAL

RUN 3: LONG RUN

This run is only done once a week, and ideally I like to place this one on a Tuesday. This is where you will run for a set amount of time, and try to run as far as you can within this time frame. This run isn’t about increasing the length of time that you run for, but the distance that you cover within that time. Each week, you will try and push out the distance that you can run in those minutes.

The third and final running exercise for you to do each week is the long run. This is how you will build your endurance as you try to gradually increase the amount of time that you can run for. Start by running for 20 minutes – if this is easy for you, then run a bit further. The key is to increase the amount of time that you run for each week. You should ONLY do this once a week, and there is no need to go for much longer than 60 minutes if your goal is 10 km runs. Ideally, aim to build up your long run to 45 minutes duration.

Start gently, by running for just 10 minutes once a week for four weeks, then build up to running for 20 minutes over the following four weeks. Once you hit 20 minutes, this is where you will stay. (Alternatively, you can run a distance that takes you around 20 minutes, then try and do it faster.) This allows your body to rest and recover, and gives your joints and ligaments time to rebuild. Long, drawn-out runs will cause injury as you get tired, but these short, timed runs will get you fitter and stronger. It’s important to focus on running with great technique and posture as well, so make sure that you only run a distance in which you can maintain these. Remember to also do your 10,000+ step days, and you can do some yoga and workouts around this to help improve your strength, posture and alignment, all of which will help with your running long-term. Once you are maintaining your 20-minute time trial run consistently each week, you can add in some sprints.

RUN 2: SPRINTS This is your training on a Thursday – your sprint, your 100%! You don’t have to race anyone except yourself, but the key is to go at your absolute maximum. There is nothing like short, sharp, smart sprints to get stronger legs and ligaments, and this will increase your capacity to be able to run faster over a longer distance. Your legs and your core will be working super hard to maintain good posture, and the response from your body after sprinting is like nothing else! Remember to only do this once a week. Training anaerobically (short, high intensity bursts of activity) will improve your aerobic capacity; however, unfortunately, it doesn’t work the other way around. Training aerobically (slow and steady) won’t make you run faster and doesn’t always get you fitter. So those people who jog repeatedly throughout their week never really get stronger at running, and often find that their training will plateau. When you add sprints into your week, you will become a stronger runner, and you will get fitter faster.

YOUR SPRINT TRAINING REGIME Warm up thoroughly with a 5-minute slow jog and a couple of 80% short sprint efforts, then move into your sprint sessions. 1.

Phase One (Weeks 1-4): 8x 20-second sprints, with as much rest as you need in-between.

Phase Two (Weeks 5-8): 8x 20-second sprints with 10 seconds recovery in-between.

Phase Three (Weeks 9-12): 12x 20-second sprints, with as much rest as you need in-between.

If you are a beginner, sprint training only comes in after you’ve completed your initial eight weeks of the time trial run, as well as your 10,000+ step days. Then do the sprints and the time trials for four weeks before adding in the long run.

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YOUR WEEKLY TRAINING MONDAY - At home training, working on strength, alignment and posture.

TUESDAY - Time trial run (10-20 minutes), aiming to go as far as you can in that timeframe. WEDNESDAY - Yoga, working on suppleness and mobility. THURSDAY - Sprint training. FRIDAY - Core strength workout and stability work. SATURDAY - Long run (starting at 20 minutes duration and building up over time). SUNDAY - Rest.

DO I HAVE TO RUN? No! Running isn’t for everyone, so don’t feel you have to run if you don’t want to. (However, if you are going to, it makes sense to do so wisely.) This whole approach can also be applied to other cardio activities such as cycling, rowing, swimming, etc. If you feel like your cardio fitness is something you want to improve, especially if the short winter days mean that your riding time has been cut down, this is the way to go about it. Doing a little work on your fitness during this time will help with your stamina at the start of the competition season. The key to successful cardio training is first understanding the vital importance of your foundation of movement. This is crucial to creating stamina, which we all know is required for riding. So start with those 10,000 step days – invest in an activity tracker like a Fitbit and be honest about how much you move around on your feet every day. You will find that tracking and ensuring this movement occurs will help massively towards improving your riding fitness. Once you’ve laid your foundation, you can add in your time trial training on a bike, cross-trainer or rowing machine. The aim is to get a sweat on for 10-20 minutes, then add interval (sprint) training in the same way, followed by a long endurance session once a week to help push the boundaries and build your stamina a little more. All of this should be done alongside some other training that helps you to improve your balance and posture, evens out imbalances and helps with your alignment, such as our 12-week online Dressage Rider Training program, yoga or pilates. C

One Pan Lemon & Garlic Chicken

RECIPE

An easy one pan lemon chicken recipe for busy weeknights! INGREDIENTS 1 tablespoon olive oil 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs Salt and pepper to taste ½ medium red onion, diced 3 cloves garlic, diced 3–5 sprigs fresh thyme 1 large lemon 1½ cups chicken broth

INSTRUCTIONS Heat oven to 200oC. Heat olive oil in a large, oven-safe pan (I like cast iron pans). Season both sides of chicken with salt and pepper. Place chicken thighs in the hot pan and sear for 4-5 minutes on each side until golden brown. Remove chicken to a plate and set aside, then return pan to stove over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic to pan and sauté until onion is translucent and has started to caramelise (about 4 minutes). Add a little more olive oil if needed. Pull leaves off thyme sprigs and add leaves to the onions, then season with salt and pepper. Juice the lemon, removing any seeds, and add to the onion mixture. Stir to combine. Add the chicken broth to onions and stir to combine. Bring mixture to a simmer, then return seared chicken thighs to pan and spoon some of the broth over the top of them to help them stay moist. Place pan in oven, uncovered, and cook for 15 minutes until chicken is cooked through. Serve and enjoy!

HUNGRY FOR MORE? Nicola Smith has over 300 RECIPES on her website www.foreverfit.tv that will get your taste buds excited.

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WEATHER. BEATEN.

INTRODUCING COMFITEC. THE PERFECT BLEND OF SCIENCE AND LOVE. Our revolutionary new ComFiTec turnout rugs are designed to conquer the elements… and your worries. As you’d expect from us, every aspect of our most advanced range ever – from materials to fastenings – has been developed with comfort and fit in mind. So whatever the winter throws at your horse, you can be sure their rug will hug them as snugly and lovingly as you do. DURABLE MADE FROM DURABLE FABRICS WITH WEAVES DESIGNED FOR THE ULTIMATE TEAR RESISTANCE AND SUPREME TOUGHNESS.

INSULATING NUMBER OF WARMTH OPTIONS TO SUIT YOUR HORSE AND CLIMATE AND PROVIDE THE VERY BEST LEVEL OF INSULATION.

WATERPROOF 100% WATERPROOF OUTER SHELL FABRIC WITH TAPED SEAMS CREATES A FLEXIBLE YET IMPENETRABLE BARRIER.

SELF-CLEANSING TEFLON/REPEL COATED OUTER SHELL RESISTS DIRT PENETRATION AND ENCOURAGES MOISTURE TO BEAD AND RUN AWAY.

BREATHABLE ‘INTELLIGENT’ INNER MEMBRANE CHANNELS SWEAT AWAY FROM YOUR HORSE AND HELPS REGULATE TEMPERATURE.

CARING OUR UNIQUE AFFINITY WITH HORSES RESULTS IN A FIT AND PERFORMANCE THAT’S SECOND-TO-NONE. WE CALL IT HUGOLOGY.