By Les Hornery (Cameraman at the Saddleworld Australian Dressage Championships)

 

With my job at VPA Productions, I get to film all different kinds of sporting events. So when I got the email saying I was to film the Grand Prix, I originally thought I was off to the Gold Coast to film the car racing. No… I continued to read and found I was off to the Grand Prix Freestyles at the 2014 Saddleworld Australian Dressage Championships in Sydney.

 

I was keen to watch the dancing horses but I was not prepared for what was to come. 

 

I was greeted by Toni, the event organiser on the day, and she showed me to the section set aside for the camera crew and the commentators. I set up my camera and all of the sound equipment, including the microphones for the commentators. That’s when I meet Heath. We made our introductions and I spoke about my upbringing on the farm in central NSW and Heath listened. Not once did Heath tell me about his life and his achievements, he was more interested in mine. I did not know I was in the presences of a great man and a leader of his sport. 

 

As the morning progressed, I released through his commentary that he would be competing later on that night. I still had no idea he was a hero, to me he was just man with a warm heart and kind words to say about everyone.

 

By the time of the Grand Prix, everyone was talking about Heath and how he was not only riding one horse in the finals, he was riding two.

 

I watched and filmed as he completed the test with his first horse and it was hard not to be impressed, but when he came out for the same routine on his second horse, I was in awe. Concentrating through the eyepiece made me stare on every move and the commentators continued to talk about Heath as if he was a God in this sport of freestyle.

 

At the presentation, Heath spoke to the crowd, thanking everyone and proceeded to tell the crowd that this would be his last Nationals and he spoke about his journey with his great friend Regardez Moi, the horse that was more like a family member than a horse.

 

Everyone was thinking about him, his horse and all his achievements and I was just thinking about Heath, the man I just met eight hours earlier.

 

I was so moved by the man I put together this keepsake… Go Heath!