Reigning reining champ lives dream
Carol Greyling is back in the Lowveld after winning the open reining championship at Penbritte Equestrian Club in Johannesburg and she is more excited than ever to get Western riding on the map in the region.
The Reining and Western Performance National Championship took place on July 8 and participants fought it out in the novice, intermediate and open classes. Reining is a Western riding competition for horses where the riders guide the horses through a precise pattern of circles, spins, and stops.
Also read: Local riders saddle up for qualifiers
Greyling is pleased with the result as she says it was “rewarding after a lot of sweat and hard work”.
She was born in Harare, Zimbabwe, but moved to South Africa with her family when she was 10 years old. She finished her school years at Lowveld High School. Although she used to ride occasionally as a young person, it was 15 years ago that her formal riding career began.
She recently founded the Lowveld Western Riding Club with fellow enthusiast Christo Steyl, in order to promote Western riding, a discipline derived from cattle work on ranches in the United States. It is now one of the biggest disciplines in the world.
Greyling, who is a breeder of the American Quarter Horse at JCC Ranch on the Schoemanskloof Road to Machadodorp, has competed all over the country but has found there are not enough events or support for the sport in the Lowveld.
“Since the Lowveld club started, we have hosted two western-riding qualifier events. Our riders also participated in the Nationals and did very well. They achieved something they did not think was possible and that is very exciting for the region,” adds Greyling, who is also Mpumalanga president for Western riding.
Also read: Lowveld riders do it with precision
She emphasises that all breeds of horse are suitable for reining and western performance as long as they are agile, quick and respond to their rider’s commands.
Her immediate goal is to promote and take a team of riders to the world games in 2018. What would she like to say to the all the young hopefuls?
“For a lot of us, this sport is a passion. If you believe in your dreams and never give up, amazing things can happen,” she said.
“Western riding is a life choice for the whole family. It’s about team building, healthy development and being in the country. And the Lowveld is a good place for that.”
