Dana Krause and Taitti are enjoying their time training at Willinga Park.

By Dana Krause

For any equestrian it is a thrill to compete at Willinga Park, whether it be in campdrafting, show jumping, dressage or very soon eventing. Terry and Ginette Snow have created a truly world class equestrian property to rival any in the world. Every detail has been created with the horses in mind and with more developments on the way, Willinga Park is set to make its mark on the international equestrian stage.

Dana and Taitti explore the grounds of Willinga Park.

You can imagine how excited I was when the opportunity presented itself to train at Willinga Park with my coach Jenny Gehrke. Jenny was planning to spend February at Willinga Park to train Jayden Brown and his team, bringing with her three horses of her own, which is where I came in. I had been having lessons with Jenny online via Move N’See for the last five months, after watching and listening to her and Gary’s commentary on the Equestrian Life live stream of the 2020 Brisbane CDI.

Jenny’s comments resonated with where I was wanting my training to head and after the first lesson I was hooked! When I heard Jenny was heading to Willinga I suggested that she may need an extra set of hands (that of course came with a horse) so when she offered to have me for the same period, if I would be happy to look after her horses, it felt like I had been given the dream gig!

Willinga Park's beautiful gardens.

The reality is of course, as with anything equestrian related, hard work and long hours. The trip to Willinga was the longest we had travelled with Taitti due to the torrential rain; credit to the Hi Form products for keeping him calm and healthy prior to, during and after such a long trip in very trying conditions. He did not miss a beat, enabling us to hit the ground running!

The dream continues, with a Jenny lesson most days and the ability to watch some amazing training happening throughout the day, I am not only learning and improving every day with Taitti, but am also learning through watching world class riders train and of course the professional barn in action. There is a lot to take away from every lesson had or watched. It is truly the experience of a lifetime and I know it will be a sad day to leave, for Taitti also, who has quickly grown accustomed to the fabulous facilities!

Stay tuned for Dana's next installment as she reports on her time training at Wilinga Park.

Read part two here: A masterclass at Willinga Park

Taitti enjoying Willinga Park's stunning architecture.

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