Welcome to the 100th edition of Equestrian Life magazine! It’s an achievement we are delighted to celebrate with you as we continue to bring you the very best of all things equestrian from around Australia and the world.
It’s a milestone that couldn’t have been achieved without your faith in us and supporting quality equine journalism. We take our hats off to the foresight of the dressage enthusiast and eminent publisher Robert McKay AM, who, in 2011 reinvigorated a dormant title and created the multi-media EQ Life we have today. The dynamic Australian-owned Propel Group Pty Ltd took over the reins last year, and is proud to continue to grow our readership in our wonderful equestrian community and to lead the way in quality publishing, live streaming and reporting across all formats.
Cover image: David Middleton and WEC In The Money. Image by Julia Murch Photography.
This being an Olympic year, all eyes are on who makes the cut for the national equestrian team for Paris. With just weeks to go, Heath Ryan’s leaderboard update this issue is exciting reading for who’s in the running in eventing and dressage. While he says the field appears settled, he warns that the sleepers are about to make their moves.
David Middleton’s big win on WEC In The Money at Adelaide International CCI5*L was so outstanding that Heath makes an exception to his Top 10 Eventing Leaderboard and slots them in at No. 11! You never know what the selectors are thinking! David speaks at length to Adele Severs about his delight in not only winning on his own homebred gelding – but revisiting the Adelaide victory dais 24 years after his five-star victory there.
In Dressage, Jayden Brown is keeping his cool in his bid for Paris contention. In a one-on-one interview with Roger Fitzhardinge, he sings the praises not only of training under Carl Hester, but of the foresight of Terry Snow and the Willinga Park team in basing him and the horses in the UK for their campaign.
Back home, Bridget Murphy brings us up to speed on the equally competitive field for Paris 2024 Paralympic selection after the second last Australian-based CPEDI qualifier, the Leader Equine Dressage Spectacular at Boneo Park.
We also take you behind the scenes at one of the most popular country shows, Dressage in the Bush as staged by the Young Dressage Association; and we check in on the post racing career of 11-year-old OTT, In The Fast Lane. ‘Rocket’, as he is now known, never looks back!
In Training, we have two treats: Kerry Mack continues to pose the big questions on what gives us the right to own horses in her stimulating series on equine welfare; and Dan Steers explains his concept of building a willing partnership between horse and human as we revisit his views on horsemanship.
In Health, our inhouse vet Dr Maxine Brain takes us through the pros and cons of X-rays as part of a pre-purchase examination. Innovative Australian supplement maker AXLR8 Equine Therapeutics reveals what we really should look for in the ingredients list in dietary supplements. And equestrian architect leaders Equitecture challenge how we house our horses as they approach it from a horse’s perspective. Yet another Australian innovation is Scoot Boot, and in this issue we discover why the ‘barefoot’ hoof boot is taking over in the jumping world.
Finally in Lifestyle, we introduce Money Place, horse-friendly financiers… someone who understands us! And yes, as always, movie buff Suzy Jarratt takes us along for the ride with Jackie Chan in Ride On, his latest action-comedy where the horse is equally the hero!
Happy riding!
Your EQ Life Team
Contributors
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HEATH RYANNational equestrian personality, international dressage and eventing rider, Olympian, judge, coach and breeder, Heath is never backward in offering his unique insights into the sport and industry.
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ROGER FITZHARDINGEAs a judge, coach, competitor and commentator, Roger’s passion to tell the real stories behind the horses and horse people shines through in his unique brand of equestrian photojournalism.
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DR KERRY MACKGrand Prix dressage rider, coach and Mayfield Farm stud principal, Kerry draws on her learning as a qualified psychiatrist to approach training from the cerebral perspective as well as the physical.
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DAN STEERSOne half of the Double Dan Horsemanship equation, Dan built on his skills as a farrier from the ground up to become a world-renowned entertainer and practitioner of true horsemanship.
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DR MAXINE BRAINDr Maxine Brain is an equine vet dedicated to achieving optimal equine health and performance with her team at Kilmore Equine Clinic, which she founded.
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SUZY JARRATTSuzy has a rich background in newspaper journalism and radio broadcasting in NSW and nationally, and last year won an international award for equestrian journalism.
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BRIDGET MURPHYBecoming involved in Para Dressage in 2018, Bridget and her equine partners have achieved much success in a short space of time. A keen competitor, her long-term goal is to represent Australia on the international stage.
Published by:
EQ Life Pty Ltd
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ISSN: 1839-034X
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570 Swan Street
Burnley 3121 VIC Australia
Manager Content Creation
Adele Severs
Associate Editor
David Trounce
Partnerships & Events Manager
Eliza Harvey
Enquiries
Phone: +61 492 887 961
Email: info@eqlife.com.au
Web: www.equestrianlife.com.au
Disclaimer:
The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of EQ Life. To the extent permitted by law, EQ Life disclaims any liability whatsoever in relation to any advice, representation, statement, opinion or other matter expressed in this magazine. EQ Life does not accept responsibility for errors in advertisements, articles, unsolicited manuscripts, photographs or illustrations. Riding, training or otherwise working with horses and other animals can be dangerous and may result in harm or injury. Readers of this magazine should not engage in such activities unless they do so safely.
© 2024 EQ Life Pty Ltd. Copyright subsists in this magazine. Except as permitted by law, this magazine may not, in whole or in part, be reproduced, published, adapted, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any way or in any form, without the prior written consent of EQ Life. All rights reserved.
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