Ellie Braddock hopes her passion for horses will take her to Australia next year. The Rangiora rider and Amberley's Bonnie Farrant have been selected in the New Zealand young riders under-21 squad to prepare for the transtasman three-day event against Australia in June next year.
''I was pretty stoked. I have been fighting for it for a while,'' Ellie (18), who has been riding for 10 years, said. ''I pour every spare hour I have got into it and I have great support from my parents and a great coach.''
Ten riders and their horses have been named in the young riders squad, which will be reduced to four to travel to Australia for the event. Selection will be based on form over the coming season.
The last New Zealand young riders team, which included Oxford rider Katie Rankin, won the two-yearly event at the National Equestrian Centre at McLeans Island, near Christchurch, last year.
Ellie has been named in the squad with 14-year-old Miss Matilda, a two-star level horse. The combination's bid to make the final young rider team selection begins at a national one-day event at McLeans Island in November.
There will also be national events at Puhinui near Auckland in December, at Kihikihi, Waikato, in April, Taupo, and the Horse of the Year in Hastings in March in front of the national selectors.
Ellie also has a second horse, 6-year-old Braxton Boy, whom she hoped would take her further, as she dreams of one day competing at famous England events, such as Badminton, and ultimately the Olympic Games.
''I think we will get another couple of years out of Miss Matilda, but because of her age we won't take her any higher than two-star.
''Boy is showing plenty of promise. We are hoping he will go all the way to three-star. He will probably be the horse we will eventually sell to help buy an Olympic horse.''
For now, Boy is competing in the training class. However, Ellie was hopeful he could move up to pre-novice by next season.
''Then she should move up pretty quickly after that. He's just got to keep calm when all the other horses are jumping around him.''
Ellie said she divided her time between the 4ha block owned by her parents, Marie and Carl Braddock, at Fernside, near Rangiora, and Lincoln University, where she is a first-year commerce student studying on a sports scholarship.
She has no family background in horses and became interested after watching two school friends, including promising North Canterbury showjumper Olivia Robertson, who was selected for the South Island young riders showjumping team earlier this year.
''I am an only child and my parents never did it, but my best friends both rode and I didn't want to be left out.''
Ellie said she started out competing in dressage on ponies. However, cross-country was now her favourite discipline.
''Matilda is not so keen on dressage, but she tries really hard. She is more of a cross-country horse. ''I have taken Boy to a couple of competitions and he is coming along very well.''
His temperament was better suited to dressage but his jumping was also showing promise.
The first event of the new season is a one-day event at McLeans Island on September 15. Ellie said she planned to enter Miss Matilda in the one-star or novice class to ease her in, before launching her bid in the two-star class.
- by David Hill