Kevin Boniface
Ray White Palmerston North NZ
When did you start riding , and how did you get into it ?
I initially fell into it a little by accident to be honest , as I had never ridden a horse in my life before taking it up at the age of 47 . My wife , ( Raewynne ) through her job met a couple who ran a local riding school . They told us to come out to Kyrewood and have a look . Of course we did and , as they say , the rest is history .
Do you have any horses of your own ?
We currently have four horses , two are rideable and two are retired . Two are thoroughbreds and both ex racehorses ( Rocky and Jonty ). The other two are Joshua who is well into his late 20s and is also retired his breeding is what is known as a dutch warmblood . Then there is Tama , my wife Raewynne ’ s horse , a beautiful dark brown cross-bred horse of whom his sire was an actually Australian stock horse .
What style of riding do you do ?
I ’ ve now been riding for around 20 years and to be honest I just like to have a bit of fun . I just try to fit things in around work . There ’ s nothing like going to the local beach and having a bit of a blast , the horses love it !
What do you love most about it ?
That ' s a tough one as it certainly entails a whole lot of work ( and not to mention money ), but it keeps you moving , motivated , and it ’ s exciting that these magnificent animals are happy to and want to work with you ( most of the time ).
Any tips for people who might want to give it a go ?
Just do it ! It also helps if you have a partner who is keen to get involved with you . Take some lessons and take on board what experienced people tell you as this is a sport where you always seem to be learning little tips or something new .
Max Nell
Ray White Rural and Livestock AU
When did you start riding , and how did you get into it ?
I started riding at a very young age due to my family being so heavily involved in Polocrosse and growing up on a cattle farm , both my mother and uncle had represented at a high level in the sport so understandably I wanted to ride to be a part of it .
What style of riding do you do ?
When I departed school I chased the dream of playing polo for a living which took me all over the world riding the best horses and breeds in the sport . I was fortunate enough to secure a job working for the Packer family on a station known as " Ellerston ". I worked there for four years as a young horse rider and player . I had the opportunity to compete at the highest level in Australian polo , ride the best horses in the world and even put on a New South Wales jersey . Nowadays , I try to jump on a few every chance I can , recently this year I had the opportunity to travel over to Spain to play and ride over there for four weeks .
What ' s your favourite place to ride ?
The best game I ever played was making it to the final at Ellerston , playing for the Ellerston white team on the number one field . Unfortunately we lost that final but I had 12 unbelievable horses for that game and the atmosphere is something I won ' t forget .
What do you love most about it ?
Not to be cheesy with this response , but I genuinely like that you must be one with a horse . All outside world noise stops when you sit on a horse and all you focus on is the horse beneath your legs because if you don ' t it can be a hard fall . You ' d be surprised how switched on , intelligent , caring and charismatic horses really are if you get to know them . They are a lot like people in many ways .