Megan’s riding Buddy

As thunder roars outside and rain patters on the roof above, Buddy stands in the far corner of his stable, tail to the door and head to the wall, tense and hopeful for it to end.

With such a fear of rain, it is hard to believe this is a competition-winning horse. But as his rider, Megan van der Walt (13) enters the stable and talks softly to him, gently stroking his smooth coat, his muscles relax and he turns to face her.

Just 10 minutes later and the rain has stopped. Megan and Buddy are already jumping 1m jumps at one of Chartwell Stables’ arenas, as if nothing in the world can stop them.

The showjumping pair came first in February’s Inter School competition, and came second in ideal time. Considering Van der Walt has only been riding for two years, this is quite an accomplishment.

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“When Megan started, she needed a lot of work, but she has progressed so quickly it is amazing,” said her instructor, Nadia Labuschagne, adding that Van der Walt has a future in showjumping. “Once she gets a bigger horse she can go really far.”

But it will be hard to separate Van der Walt and Buddy, after what they have accomplished in two short years and due to the bond they have developed.

“When I started riding, Buddy would stop suddenly midway through every course. Now he barely ever gets frightened,” Van der Walt smiled. As the Dainfern resident adorned Buddy with rosettes for a photo, she explained that horses understand people and can sense how they are feeling.

“They can tell if you are scared or nervous, and [they know] it really feels good when you clear a jump. It is thrilling, to jump something bigger than you are.” She explained that her highest recorded jump in a competition is 60cm, but in practice, the pair jumps much higher.

Details: Chartwell Stables 073 952 8572.