Please give us a short introduction of yourself and your riding history:

I started riding pretty much as soon as I could walk, when my mom used to go for her Sunday morning breakfast rides. However, I only started formal riding lessons at age 14 when my parents agreed to let me start competing. I always dreamed of riding at the top level, and in 2002, I started training with Barry Taylor at Farnham Stables. He took me on as a scared 1.20m rider, and helped me achieve my dream of riding 1.50m. 

I start each morning at 7am and train before work. I am fortunate that I run my own business, a manufacturing plant making colourants for plastics, so I am able to juggle my sport around my career. I also have 2 young children, so life gets pretty busy, but I consider myself so fortunate to do what I love.

Please can you list your achievements/ wins/ titles.

As an amateur rider, competing against the pro’s is quite challenging! I won the 1.40m SA Champs in 2016, placed 3^rd in Mini Derby, and won a 1.50m qualifier at the President’s Cup in 2018. I have built up a string of quality horses, and I feel like I’m just getting started – so hopefully my list of titles will grow in the years to come!

Who will you be competing on for Derby this year? 

 PlastiColors Masterbatch Chogori will be my ride again this year. He partnered me around my first big Derby in 2019, and I trust him implicitly. He is everything you could wish for in a Derby horse – scopey, brave, careful and gallant. He is a unicorn – and I never take a moment on his back for granted.

What kind of preparation/ training have you been doing to face the formidable Derby this year, and get your horses ready?

We have already started increasing our horse’s fitness work. We take them to a gallop track twice a week to ‘blow’ their lungs and do interval training. The biggest challenge of the Derby is its length, and a tired horse won’t be able to fight for you towards the end of the course. 

After the Shongweni World Cup, we will start training the Derby obstacles. In my first Derby year, Barry trained each obstacle until Chogori and I were sure that we both knew exactly what to do at each ‘funny’.  Horses are really smart, and generally remember the obstacles in subsequent years, so this year we will focus on our weak points and keep Chogori fit. 

Rider fitness is equally important, and not just for the Derby. Chogori is a big horse, he is over 18 hands and lazy! So as a small lady, I always need to be fit and strong to keep him connected and forward. I run 3-4 times per week, and I also have a biokineticist twice a week who helps me with my own body strength and improving my balance.

What mental tools do you use to cope with the pressure of riding at this top level?

It’s not just about the competition – horse sport is an emotional roller coaster, and you need to be mentally tough to cope with the highs and the lows. 

It is really difficult to focus on riding at a big event when you have a business and children to juggle. 

Several weeks before the show, I start thinking about the objectives for that event, and each morning before training, I envisage the outcome. The day before the show, I start quieting my brain, so that I arrive at the event with a clear mind. Once the show starts, I switch off all my emails and solely focus on my job at hand.

Derby is unique in that you know what the course will be beforehand. I start visualising the course weeks before, so on the big day, I can just ride in the moment and the technical demands are already ingrained in my psyche.

You’ve seen a number of Derby horses over the years, if you could choose one horse to jump the track on, who would it be and why? 

I wouldn’t swop my Chog for the world! I believe he is the ultimate Derby horse, with every quality to win. However, no one could forget Don Cumarco and his record breaking 4 wins. He just loved showing off for the crowd and grew into a world beater when he entered the arena. I think that’s the most important quality of a Derby horse – a real fighter with big match temperament.

Describe your Derby routine on the day of the event (for yourself and your horse). 

I wake up early and meditate before getting out of bed. I will go and work Chogori for a few minutes in the morning, just making sure all the buttons are in place and to loosen up his body. 

I eat a good breakfast and arrive early at the show. I then find a quiet spot to park and listen to meditation music, breathing in calm and blanking out all the outside noise. I visualise the course a few last times, and then a feeling of excitement creeps in and I’m ready to go!

Do you think attitude is a factor in winning?

Any sports person will tell you that your body is just the means to an end – winning is 100% in your mind. My biggest challenge is to believe in my ability and not to doubt myself. My favourite quote is from Nick Skelton – on the rare occasion that he misjudges a fence, he jokes “I didn’t miss, the jump moved!”. He is so sure of his own ability – a quality all great sports people possess.   

What do you think makes Derby such a magical event? 

The tradition of Derby day, with the pipe band, the feeling of spring, and the crowds all add to the sense of occasion. The crowds will be really missed this year, their encouragement shifts every rider into a new gear. It is every rider’s dream to win, and the pinnacle of decades of training. 

The most important part of the Derby is procuring a headline sponsor, without which the event would not be possible. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Jonathan Wolpe and United Aviation for giving our sport a massive shot in the arm. The whole industry truly appreciates your generosity, especially in such uncertain times.

If this is the answer, what’s the question?: 

So for example I say 5am in the morning, and you say My least favourite time of day! 

Flatwork: Success at all levels!

The Oxer: The plain white oxers are difficult to judge.

Something I would never try/ do! Eventing!

The Water: Chogori thinks he only needs to jump the box! ☹

That is my dream!  Jumping WEG one day.