Most little girls want a pony. Aged 3, Catherine Pattison was lucky enough to be given one by her grandfather. The pony was small, white, named Porridge and she loved him. Leaving home 14 years later she farewelled her four-legged friends and hasn't been back in the saddle much since.
Professional Wanaka athlete Jess Simson has a distinctive approach to racing - one that could put fellow competitors off their stride as she zooms by with a smile and cheery greeting.
Palmerston's Courtney Duncan was the top Otago finisher after the fourth and final round of the 2015 New Zealand Motocross Championships near Pukekohe on Sunday.
Knowing each other as well as only family can helped the Murrays earn a top 10 placing in the 557km Godzone adventure race.
Hayden Paddon is about to have his driving adaptability put to the ultimate test when he faces contrasting circumstances - changing his style from combatting Sweden's cold to suiting Mexico's searing heat.
Double defending Challenge Wanaka champion Dylan McNeice has a patriotic outlook on how he would like Sunday's triathlon to pan out.
A lot has changed for Wanaka athlete Dougal Allan since he claimed third place in last year's Challenge Wanaka in his debut attempt at the long-distance triathlon. He told Catherine Pattison how his circumstances in the past 12 months have allowed him the ideal preparation for Sunday's 226km race.
No-one could ever accuse Wanaka athlete Simone Maier of being soft.
A successful blend of speed, consistency and commitment enabled Dunedin's Steve Ross to claim his third NZ F5000 Tasman Cup Revival title at the New Zealand Grand Prix meeting at Feilding's Manfeild circuit at the weekend.
Steve Ross (McRae GM1) has become the runaway leader in this season's NZ F5000 Tasman Cup Revival Series after a clean sweep of the three races at the fifth and penultimate round.
Wanaka athlete Braden Currie will embark on a testing triple challenge this month.
Jolene Van Vugt will be the only female performing with the Nitro Circus when it blasts into Dunedin today. She is a national motocross champion, the first female to backflip a full-sized dirt bike, a holder of multiple Guinness world records and co-star of many motocross and stunt videos. Catherine Pattison caught up with the 34-year-old Canadian action sports star.
A strong contingent of Otago riders is spread across three classes in this year's four-round New Zealand motocross championships, set to start in Taranaki this weekend.
While the Nitro Circus tour promises to go off with a bang, two Kiwi freestyle motocross stars scheduled to visit Dunedin as part of the Waitangi Day high-octane action sports show have been courting a bit of quiet time.
Fuelled by an unscientific combination of Raro and gingernut biscuits, former Christchurch athlete Keith Murray set a Coast to Coast record in 1994 that still stands today. Now a Wanaka resident, he tells Catherine Pattison his race nutrition habits haven't changed and how he expects them to get him through a five-day adventure race this year, aged 53.
Living in the Southern Lakes region it seems there is something in the water, air and mountains conducive to getting kids into the Great Outdoors. Catherine Pattison talks to three Hawea fathers who have made the transition from participating in extreme sports to parenting pint-sized kayakers, kite-surfers and adventurers.
Eight years ago, Otago Daily Times motorsport writer Catherine Pattison started reporting on the rallying exploits of a young driver from Geraldine. Now, Hayden Paddon is on the world stage. Pattison helps the rally ace reflect on an exciting year.
Wrestling a brawny, 41-year-old F5000 race car that has ''steering issues'' around a circuit is a sure-fire way to wear a man out, Steve Ross reckons.
Every class podium at the New Zealand supercross championships had at least one Otago rider standing on its steps on Thursday night.
Despite supercross racing not featuring on his schedule and his focus being firmly on next year's national motocross championships, Scott Columb will ride in today's supercross event in Winton.
