Eltham's Tracy Bublitz has continued her winning streak with her equine protege Bublitz Estate RoseZ, bringing home two ribbons from the recent Federation Equestre Internationale (FEI) New Zealand World Jumping Challenge.
The event, which was held over three days in October in Wairarapa, is one of the top events to compete in when it comes to horse jumping events, says Tracy.
Tracy trains and rides her horses from her base in Eltham. She says while she didn't breed RoseZ herself, "it was meant to be. She is the half sister to RomariZ who I bred and have competed with as well".
Tracy bought RoseZ sight unseen, "although I did have her vet checked and saw plenty of photos and videos of her," after she was approached by RoseZ's previous owner at a Horse of the Year show a couple of years ago. The gamble certainly paid off, with RoseZ and Tracy placing first in the "Best Presented Showjumper Category C" at the FEI challenge as well as earning fourth place in the World Jumping Challenge for their category (C).
"I was really pleased. To be named Best Presented is fantastic." She says the Best Presented is judged during the trot up on the first day. "You are checked by a vet at that point to ensure the horse is fit to compete. They watch you closely and the judging for that one is done on the first day, although the result isn't announced until the last day."
Tracy also enjoyed working with her coach Duncan McFarlane and his wife Helen McNaught, both world-class showjumpers.
"Duncan walked each round of the jumping challenge with us before the actual event, and his knowledge was priceless. The course is quite different to others I have competed on, it is smaller and has different types of fences."
RoseZ is a full Holsteiner and at seven years old she is still quite young in the brain, says Tracy. "She can be difficult so I put in a lot of work with her in the lead up to the competition. You need that bond and trust with each other to be able to step up to the challenge on the day."
Tracy estimates she spends easily four to five hours a day with a horse as they are preparing for a competition.
Her success is thanks to the support of many people in the community.
"I am fortunate with having some fantastic local supporters who have always gone out of their way to help me in all sorts of ways. Of course, my husband Craig is my number one supporter and there is no way I could ever achieve as much as I do without him."
Tracy's supporters include Hartley Engineering, Uhlenberg Haulage and Stratford ITM.
"Stratford ITM have been great in helping me out with sourcing the materials I needed to set up practice jumps in the paddock. I was able to transform the paddock into a version of the arena RoseZ and I were going to compete in which helped a lot with working on our timing."
John Briggs says the team at Stratford ITM were happy to help "a loyal customer of ours, and it is great seeing her excel at such a high level of competition."
Tracy says she is looking forward to entering the next competition with the horse she describes as "just wonderful".