He's too long in the tooth to take on the highest fences but Te Puke showjumper Megan Stacey is thrilled with the performance of 17-year-old gelding Shimmer Man after the combination took out three classes at the New Zealand Horse of the Year show in Hastings.
Stacey and Shimmer Manwon the cut-throat New Zealand speed horse of the year event in Hastings, the Pro-Am class and she was first and second in the lead-in 1.25m showjumping class for her biggest haul yet at the event.
The 30-year-old, who works as an accounts clerk at a Papamoa medical centre, said the speed title - her second in three years at the Horse of the Year - was the big one.
She had the fastest round over the 1.35m rails to hold off Hunterville's Megan Webb (Abernaki Chief) and Olympian Katie McVean (Mystery Creek) on board Dunstan Zasjany D.
"It was a good field and the arena was set up quite testing, with some tight turns and corners.
"It really is a fine line between pushing too quick and dropping the fences, which adds seconds to your time, or being a bit more conservative. We won it two years ago so it really is developing into a bit of a specialty round for him."
The Pro-Am class over 1.30m-high fences is a new series that started last year for semi-professional riders, a step up from the amateur classes but without the testing heights of the grand prix jumps. Stacey and Shimmer Man won the Pro-Am in Hastings a year ago but won't be making the step together to the next level.
"We used to compete grand prix level but I stepped him down because he's a bit older now. Really what I need now is a horse that can compete at that level. There's a few young stock coming through so I'm hoping one of them will replace him."
Shimmer Man also proved his credentials in the 1.25m arena by winning, with Stacey also nabbing second on up-and-comer Midnight Cole, a 9-year-old with plenty of promise who she is eyeing to promote into one-star grand prix events next season.
