Meet Brea Walker
Meet Brea Walker
Meet Brea Walker- One of New Zealand’s up and coming top young event riders
What a strange month it has been. Firstly the level 3 lockdown in Auckland which honestly came as quite a shock to me. Then on the first day of lockdown after one of my horses spooked at a trot pole (which we had already been over multiple times) I went flying off a fractured my sacrum. So with all that I’m currently stuck with my own two feet, can’t have any fun on my 4-legged friends for a few weeks until my next x-ray.
I think this is even more disappointing as I have the most incredible team this season! Last season was a very short one for me as I only had my first event in November after returning from England where I worked for Sir Mark Todd and William Fox-Pitt and then mid-March we went into Level 4 lockdown! I also had a mix or horses last season but I managed to make it a very productive one setting up my business and rebuilding after my time learning abroad.
The king of my yard is Ballahowe Osprey, also known as James Baxter (named after the Adventure Time cartoon character), Jimmy B, Jamesy or Jim Jam. He is a stunning grey gelding standing at 17hh who just celebrated his 10th birthday. James is a TB by Dash for Cash owned by the Kedzlie Family. He is hard to miss at shows with his long legs and presence…you will very rarely see him without his ears pricked! We are looking to step to 2* early in the season and have some exciting goals for the first half of the season.
Delta Leap Frog also known as Frog is certainly the cheekiest of my team. He is an attention seeker and loves everything to be about him! He has so much character and the biggest heart, it’s hard not to smile from ear to ear around him. Frog had a later start to his eventing career as he has just turned 9 but standing at a big 16.2hh he has needed this time to mature. He is a striking dark dapple grey and certainly has his own little fan club building. His lovely owner Alice Ellen and I always joke about Froggie’s wiggly way of going! Travelling in a straight line is certainly not his forte so you can imagine how challenging cross country can be. Regardless, we know he is super talented and I feel so honoured to have the ride on him and be able to give him more exposure this season and see what he can really do!
Our newest member to the team is Stiloso Whataretheodds known as Krispie to her friends. She is the only mare on the property so loves soaking up the attention from the boys. She has the biggest heart and the sweetest nature. She puts so much effort into her work. She is an 11-year-old TB by My Halo and is owned by Lisa Harwood. I’m so excited to campaign her this season! Can’t wait to see what it has in store.
Although the start to the season for me is going to be somewhat delayed I’m trying to stay optimistic and getting on top of as much admin work as possible to make sure that when I can get back on I can focus all my energy on my team of stars. I’m lucky to still be able to coach so I’ve been keeping busy but in saying that am forever grateful to my awesome parents who have really helped with the horses as I’m not even allowed to bend down to pick up buckets! Those who know me know I hate sitting around so I’m making sure I do this recovery properly so when I’m cleared I can hit the ground running!
- PHOTO CREDIT – AMY C PHOTOGRAPHY
