Leaping to success, a match made in heaven

It has been said that ‘if you have gained the trust of a horse, you have gained a friend for life’.

Just ask 15-year-old Benoni High School learner Amy Walbank who can certainly vouch for the above statement.

Walbank, who rides under the tutelage of experienced instructor Phillip Roberts of Ostler’s Inn Equestrian Centre in the Benoni Agricultural Holdings, has become a standout young show jumper over the last year on the back of a school pony called Kimico.

Representing her school in the South African National Equestrian Schools Association (Sanesa) events last season, Walbank emerged as one of the shining lights from the region when she finished as the highest qualifier from her school, earning provincial colours and her place at Sanesa nationals against riders from around the country.

“Amy doesn’t own her own horse so it just goes to show the amount of work and dedication she has put into her riding because it’s not even as if she’s had a wonderful horse bought for her,” said Roberts.

“This particular horse, Kimico, we got from Klerksdorp,” he added.

“A woman phoned me up and asked for stabling.

“She asked if I would be able go out there and fetch her.

“It turns out that the woman had swapped her cell phone for the horse because it was in such a disgusting condition.

“The horse was also pregnant and the stallion had kicked her and killed the foetus inside her.

“Kimico had to try to eject the dead foal alone whichever way she could and, obviously with the foal being dead, it couldn’t present itself like a normal baby would for easy birth.

“This left her terribly torn from her uterus up, leaving her with a nasty, gaping hole.

“The horse was very diseased and in a terrible condition.

“She had never been handled before so we had to catch this wild horse that was in such a bad state.”

Eventually, after a massive vet bill at Onderstepoort, the horse found a place to recover and a home at the Benoni stable-yard.

There, Kimico found a friend for life in Walbank.

“For Kimico to have gone from an animal in disgusting condition to the top qualifier for Benoni High School is quite an achievement,” said the trainer.

“She is not an easy ride and you can’t just put anyone on her, but somehow they’ve bonded to such an extent that Amy can do anything on her.”

Their bond has been clearly evident at the various Sanesa events where the duo has impressed.

“The control Amy has over Kimico and the understanding they have is a success story,” said Roberts.

“Amy didn’t really achieve much before riding this horse and had never competed before.

“In one year she managed to accomplish so much on this ‘misfit’ horse.

“I am extremely proud of her.”

The soft-spoken and modest Walbank said: “It’s been really nice.

“I’ve gone from on and off riding and now, after coming to Phillip, my riding has completely changed.

“Phillip explains everything so well and is one of the reasons I’ve come this far.

“Kimico too, she’s my girl.”

In another twist to the tale, Kimico surprisingly and healthily (despite her previous incident) gave birth to a son, Kirata, three years ago and Walbank has already backed and ridden the horse which she dreams of someday taking to the Olympics.

“Amy will carry over Kimico’s legacy to her son and I believe he is going to be something special,” said Roberts.

“It’s all interwoven and is an awesome story.”

Roberts has high hopes for his young learner and believes she has the determination to become not only a top show jumper, but also a star performer in other equestrian disciplines.

If you would like to get involved with the young rider as a sponsor contact Roberts on 079 324 7204.

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