Track Up Equine

27/10/2026

Keep showing up, even when it's boring, even when it isn't going perfectly. Consistency is the foundation to a successful partnership and confidence.

Behind every nice horse is a whole lot of patience, consistency, and hard work.

Everyone loves a nice horse. The one that looks easy, knows its job, and makes you think, “I wish I had one like that.”

But what people often forget is that horses don’t just become that way.

Someone put in the time. Someone worked through the difficult days, stayed consistent when things weren’t going well, and had the patience to let that horse learn without rushing the process.

There were good rides, bad rides, and plenty of rides where nothing spectacular happened. Just someone showing up, doing the work, and building on what they accomplished the day before.

Good horses aren’t made by doing something extraordinary once. They’re made by doing the ordinary things correctly, over and over again.

It takes discipline to stay consistent. It takes knowledge to know when to push and when to back off. And it takes patience to understand that every horse has its own timeline.

We live in a world that wants everything faster. Faster results, faster progress, faster success.

But horses don’t care about your timeline.

So before you admire someone else’s nice horse, remember the years of work you didn’t see.

And if you’re in the middle of developing your own, keep showing up. Keep doing the little things. Keep putting in the work.

Because the horse everyone admires tomorrow is the one someone had the patience to develop today.

05/10/2026

So Manny had his ode debut a few weeks ago, and unfortunately between it being his first ODE, first dressage test, dressage ON the XC while machines set up and everything else....Manny lost his brain cell. He was a gentleman the whole time, but really insisted we should be in starting gates, galloping, or going home.

So sometimes taking it a step back, breathing, realizing horses need confidence in themselves and the job being asked, means taking it back to basics.

A few days after the event I went out with the purpose of just lunging him on XC - maybe at trot/canter, maybe over some fences - but the common denominator is that I was going to listen to him when he told me what he needed.

So we walked...a lot...trotted some, popped a couple baby fences, played over the ditch and splashed in the water. And that was it.

We ended.

We built some trust in taking time.

I know as a retrainer I take a long time....but I take as long as they need. Because when they leave I want them confident and secure in themselves and how their body moves - to both trust themselves AND their rider.
You'll get a horse that knows themself, not a horse straight from the track and just put through the same paces they saw everyday.

You'll get patience, strength, and willingness. You'll have a partner, not an animal to do your bidding. And your partner will help you as much as you help them.

Get in touch today about Manny, Freddie, or Bella.

30/09/2026

Quick little highlights of the ginger ninja being the bestest boy 😎

30/09/2026

And not to forget my favourite chestnut, who completed his second 2 event* at Fig Tree Pocket Equestrian Club CCN the other weekend! Our final ode of the year, and we finished the season so much better than I ever could have imagined. ❤️

I was thrilled to start 1* late last year, but after Fella’s injury sidelined us for the rest of the season, I never imagined we’d step up to 2* this soon.

Warwick made us think maybe we could. Toowoomba knocked our confidence around. And FTP ended up being our saving grace — I’m SO glad I took the risk and stayed in the 2*.

Dressage: Good… maybe a little ordinary by my perfectionist standards 😂 But Fella is feeling so strong and confident in the white boards, and that makes me incredibly happy. ❣️

Show jumping: Under the lights, which we’d luckily practiced at the FTP members training night! Unfortunately, Fella’s confidence over the coloured sticks was shakier than I realised. A hairy warm-up, a pulled shoe right before our round, and an uneven canter made for a few rails 🫣 But he grew in confidence throughout and finished strong. 💪🏻

Cross country: AMAZING. My goal was a confident round and to try to make time. A Ros Canter video popped up the night before where she said, “speed gives them options” — so I took the handbrake off and Fella ate up the course!

We had one little hesitation at the bank and were given a technical refusal. Disappointing, absolutely, but I’ll know how to ride it better next time. That’s all we can do — learn and improve. Even with the hesitation we finished 4th fastest and only a few seconds over 🐎💨

His confidence in himself and in me leaves me in awe. I am so lucky to have this horse as my partner. ❤️

Now for the off-season: lots of dressage, SJ comps, trail rides… and maybe even a sneaky beach ride. 🏖️🐴

26/09/2026

*reposted with the correct video 🤦🏻‍♀️*

First ODE in the books for little Manny (aka ManDo aka Bak Da Man)

We ventured out to Fig Tree Pocket Equestrian Club September ODE to try our hand at the 65cm Olympics.

We started off a little unsure of the dressage warm-up.... dressage on a XC course fried his brain a bit. Despite the braincells frying, Manny tried his very best and came away with a decent 60%

His show jumping was fantastic, only one rail due to being much more interested in the open floats next to the arena and not the fence in front of him.

And XC he had so much fun (maybe too much 🤣 as breaks felt a little optional at times) No issues with the water or ditch, in fact he got a little offended when I made him trot into the ditch - he was ready to go!! Only a couple seconds over time because I made him slow down and pay attention, he thought the whole thing was too easy.

All in all a very successful first outing for the flamboyant little chestnut. It was a good first experience, lots of things learned and lots of confidence gained. I think 65cm may be too small for him 😅

Not bad for a little guy who I thought would be best suited for just looking pretty. He's got beauty and talent and a whole lot of flair 🕺🏻



📷Di
📷Photography by Marzena

26/09/2026

First ODE in the books for little Manny (aka ManDo aka Bak Da Man)

We ventured out to Fig Tree Pocket Equestrian Club September ODE to try our hand at the 65cm Olympics.

We started off a little unsure of the dressage warm-up.... dressage on a XC course fried his brain a bit. Despite the braincells frying, Manny tried his very best and came away with a decent 60%

His show jumping was fantastic, only one rail due to being much more interested in the open floats next to the arena and not the fence in front of him.

And XC he had so much fun (maybe too much 🤣 as breaks felt a little optional at times) No issues with the water or ditch, in fact he got a little offended when I made him trot into the ditch - he was ready to go!! Only a couple seconds over time because I made him slow down and pay attention, he thought the whole thing was too easy.

All in all a very successful first outing for the flamboyant little chestnut. It was a good first experience, lots of things learned and lots of confidence gained. I think 65cm may be too small for him 😅

Not bad for a little guy who I thought would be best suited for just looking pretty. He's got beauty and talent and a whole lot of flair 🕺🏻



📷

11/09/2026

Have decided to pull the pin and put little Manny on the market for his forever home!

Bak Da Man
9 y.o. NZ bred OTTB
Chestnut
15.2hh (unmeasured)
By 'Reliable Man' out of 'Bak Da Princess'
Winner of over $300k on the track
QOTT and Equimillions eligible

Little Manny retired sound late in 2025 and came to me for a let down and then retraining, where he has continued to impress me with his trainability, talent, and work ethic. Manny would suit a smaller adult rider that wants to be competitive.

Manny is ridiculously good looking, it's just not fair 🤣 and he moves like a tiny flamboyant warmblood, he has this air for flair and causes a lot of head turns and second looks with how flashy he is and how well he moves.
And if his movement on the flat wasn't good enough, he is also proving to be a talented little jumper. His enthusiasm is currently a little greater than his technique, but he will get there.

Manny has done a few shows - his first hack show he came away with Champion Ridden Thoroughbred! He has also done a low level SJ night, going around keen and clear. Manny will have his first eventing start at FTP in September as well.

Training wise Manny has had the foundations established - training Prelim dressage while schooling lateral movements, jumping 60/70cm SJ, and training 65cm eventing. He is keen to work and very quick to learn, so would suit someone that is able to ride regularly. He would be competitive in any number of disciplines and I believe has the talent to be an upper level horse.

Personality wise he is the first to catch you in the paddock, he is very inquisitive and always wants to know what you're doing. He is bottom of the pecking order in the herd, but can pull some grumpy faces around feed time. He adores being fussed over and loves a good butt scratch.

He's had a variety of riders on him since coming off the track and has been nothing but a gentleman to everyone that has ridden him. That doesn't mean he is for beginners though, he is a forward thinking horse with a soft mouth. He isn't overly sensitive and has a lot of natural confidence with a can do/give it a try attitude. Would really benefit from an ambitious and/or competitive rider.

Manny will continue in training and competitions with me until he is sold - there is no rush, a 5* home is most important.

Offers around $9### will be considered

Videos and other photos available on request ☺️

06/09/2026

In case you’ve ever wondered about the dichotomy of horses, welcome to my weekend at Toowoomba: one of the best dressage tests I’ve ever ridden + one of my worst riding injuries… somehow without falling off. 🙃

This is fun. We are having fun.

First and foremost, everyone walked away mostly okay… at least the horse did. 😂

Fella was the solo OTT competitor flying the flag for the barn — although I think he mistook himself for the flag. 🤦🏻‍♀️

Coming into our second 2*, he felt fit, confident and powerful. He went into dressage like he was born for the sandbox, and despite one costly blip, I finally felt like I had a real horse underneath me. 💪🏻

Then came SJ, in the heat 🫠. Our second ever 2* round started beautifully, until the triple. Fella has always been cautious into combinations but we had worked through them, and unfortunately this time he took “through them” a little too literally. Refusal, fence down, and me hanging on to whatever I could find while contemplating my life choices. 😂

So they rebuilt, we came around again, and he jumped all three elements... like a deer — with me aboard like an airborne monkey (minus one stirrup). 🐒

We cleared the rest, but his confidence was broken... So was the ligament holding my clavicle to my shoulder blade. Okay, not broken… just decently torn 😬 did you know shoulders could separate? FML

With a horse lacking confidence and a rider who couldn’t lift her arm above her head, we called it and withdrew before XC. Better to have a sound happy horse, than a ribbon to our name

Huge thanks to the wonderful Sol Best and Jared for safely getting Fella home and whisking me off for X-rays and pain meds. ❤️

A little time in the sling, a lot of confidence rebuilding for the big boy, and we’ll be back.

You can keep a good ginger down. 😉🧡

03/09/2026

Mr Manny had his first XC lesson with our favorite coach Rebel Morrow to get ready for our first 65cm eventing start at FTP in a couple weeks.

His enthusiasm for everything is still greater than his technique, but you can't fault him for trying! He's got such a lovely jump and has this innate confidence to just try things. He is just fun to ride 🤩

He just has this presence and flair to everything he does, it's a bit cute - one horse shouldn't be this pretty ✨

Gotta love a good thoroughbred