https://www.raisingthestandards.com.au/

Raising the Standards, Broadford (2026)

26/05/2026

E for eliminated 😂

Saturday was one of those days I knew would be a STEEP learning curve from the moment the snorting T-Rex emerged from the float, for the second day of the SPPHAV State Championship Dressage Series 🦖

Despite the theatrics, I was still grateful for the opportunity to check out the Werribee National Equestrian Centre on a quiet morning.

The big guy was overwhelmed, to say the very least. Our first test was a jumble of legs and trying our best to hold it together down near those 3 horse-eating judges’ huts. We didn’t thrive, but we did survive 🙌

I was happy with how Dan settled between tests, so much so I took my safety vest off… only to regret my life choices a few minutes later 😂

Dan’s not usually the kind of fella who cares about other horses. But as the other champs with stamps from our group steadily completed their tests and left the area, one by one, he decided he didn’t want to be left behind… at all 😤

Cow kicking, grabbing the bit and running out the shoulder… I thought I had it reasonably in hand, until the big dude decided to duck out and do some reconstruction work on the entry gate🤭

Full of laughs and “cheeky bugger” muttering, I was off my game after this and proceeded to miss the next movement 🫣 The judge tooted to let me know I’d made another blunder, but also explained we’d technically already been eliminated by that point.

With the pressure completely off, I was very proud of how Dan finished the test. We got a decent long walk and no further fight when faced with the looming gate gap and view of prospective friends over yonder.

Speaking of which, I must mention the best part of our day: catching up with Callan. Long-time RTS followers may remember this gorgeous little schmoo-face, who arrived from the same harness stable with Dan. The boys paddocked together for several months, whilst we explored some RDA training, before deciding Callan was the kind of horse who deserved his very own human.

And, boy, did he hit the jackpot. Mandy travelled thousands of kms to make whole-day trips across the state, camping overnight, to attend two separate events in the Series.

A very astute and kind horsewoman, Mandy adjusted her expectations and rode the tests Callan needed in order to have positive experiences. To be able to ride so humbly, with her horse’s 💯 best interests as the priority, was just beautiful to watch ❤️ Huge credit to her.

As always, a massive shout-out to the Mitavite team for their ongoing support with Dan’s nutrition. He is just so strong, fit and looking super 💪🤩

A big thank you also goes to Renee, who generously gave her time to call both of my tests. And to my mum for another early rise and big trip to help wrangle the dinosaur.

As for our big doofusaurus, I couldnt be prouder of his efforts across the past 2 months 🥹

Smart, trainable and willing at home, I knew big-atmosphere events, being surrounded by other horses and vast venues could very well be his undoing. And so, that became the focus: get out to a few comps, see a bunch of stuff, figure out this ‘riding in an arena’ business and then come home and consolidate.

And that’s very much the plan for winter, where we’ll aim to refine what we’ve learnt so far and really look to get canter established properly.

Our online course students can expect to (finally) see some new content flowing through, as I document key exercises and tips throughout the process, from a rider who’s stripped back to ‘rebuilding-mode’ (something other women may be able to relate to), on a big, tricky ex-pacer.

Taking this opportunity to thank many of my friends and family members for supporting me over this past couple of months. It really does take a village and I feel very blessed 🫶🏻

I’ve been on such a deep personal journey of rediscovering the horsewoman I once was and finding my rhythm again. It’s been humbling to say the least, but also a very special time 🩷

06/05/2026

Me: “oh wow, this new rug has an epic tent flap, I’ll snap a photo to show some friends”

Dan: “IS THAT A CAMERA?!
Are we posing?” 😛

(I’ve created a monster 📸 😂)

Thanks to the EQ Saddlery - Kilmore team for looking after me in my last-minute tizz, with the weather set to drop to a balmy top of 7 degrees here tomorrow and no suitable dinosaur winter jarmies in the stash 🦕🥶

(Then back up to high-teens with freezing nights next week 🙃 Getting whiplash from these weather fluctuations: thank goodness for detach-a-necks 🙌)

It’s a bit unreal how a 12–year-old horse has grown so much between seasons 🤯 Must be those Mitavite Munga muscles 💪 (and his new riding-horse b***y 🍑🤭)

Think red is his colour ❤️😍❤️

03/05/2026

Another adventure for Dan the Man💜

Yesterday, the big fella and I ventured to Whittlesea Dressage Jackpot. Still smiling from a very positive experience a week prior, the aim was just to keep Dan consistently ticking along, seeing new sights and figuring out what this riding horse gig is all about.

After a roadblock and U-turn stole half an hour of prep time, Dan started his warm-up well before getting the wi***es about something near the arenas 🫣
He became so amped-up I decided to dismount and just walk some laps with him. Impressed by how quickly he de-escalated, I chanced a remount and a few minutes later it was our turn.

I decided that attempting canter wouldn’t be conducive with a calm test and was very appreciative that the judge was so understanding. Despite getting 0s for 2 x sections of canter we did not attempt, Dan scored a respectable 64.76% for his first test. Can’t ask for more than that 👏

By the second test, Dan had settled into the environment, found his groove and his energy had come down enough to feel comfortable to peel my safety vest off (and regain circulation 🤭) Lots of ✨glimmers of potential✨ moments and helpful, encouraging feedback from the judge.

I’d like to send a huge thank you to fellow competitor Jess, who I’d never met before, who dismounted straight after each of her tests to call mine right afterwards. Talk about incredible sportsmanship and riders looking out for each other 🥰

Lots of love to my mum too, who nursed a serious back injury for the second week in a row to be my road-trip companion, capture some keepsakes 📸 and keep my dinosaur company at the float during toilet breaks. To see Dan standing so calmly, munching away at his hay, is such remarkable progress from the T-Rex that was snorting and stomping around a mere month ago.

With his deep, dappled winter coat starting to emerge, Dan is just looking incredible. Huge credit to Mitavite, as always, because not a single outing goes by without someone commenting on Dan’s exceptional condition (and how darn handsome he is 🤩)

It really does take a village and I appreciate every single person who’s played a part in Dan’s journey to date 💜

📸 Ridden photo by JHM Photography (please excuse the heels … ‘Tis a GIAGANTINORMOUS trot and this banged-up ole broodmare is doing her best not to be flung clean into space 🥹)

Although we’ve gone from 0-3 events in a very short period, it’s been a long time coming. And this is exactly what Dan needs right now: consistent, steady, enjoyable experiences surrounded by other horses, becoming more relaxed as he goes (and letting those racing memories fade away, replaced by wonderful new experiences as a partnership 🫶🏻)

We’ve got a few more opportunities to notch more outing under our belts during my favourite season of the year 🍂 before this fair-weather princess hibernates, like a sook, for the winter 🤭

Until then, we’re seizing moments and making some pretty darn special memories along the way ✨

27/04/2026

🥰 𝗣𝗥𝗢𝗨𝗗 𝗣𝗢𝗡𝗬 𝗠𝗨𝗠 🥰

Still riding the high of an incredible experience on Saturday with Dan the Man 💜

We travelled down to the first in a 2-event series for the Standardbred Pleasure & Performance Horse Association of Victoria Inc's annual Standardbred State Dressage Championships.

The goal was simple: aim for incremental improvement on Dan’s relaxation in a competition environment… and holy moly did he just blow me away 🤯

The horse that steadily backed his way off the float and stood calmly munching his hay was a completely different animal to the snorting T-Rex who stomped his way around the grounds at his first dressage event, a mere fortnight ago 🦖

A few laps around the warm-up and I had ditched my safety vest and declared a win for the day 🙌 Working in the same arena with our fellow champs with stamps, Dan was cool, calm and just a pleasure to bop-along with.

He went into the indoor, with plenty of new sights to take in, and did me oh-so proud 🥹

Aside from a couple of unsure moments in the first test, where he paused his big-man trot mid-test at the open end of the arena, Dan did not put a hoof wrong.

There were some beautiful moments of softness and glimmers of Dan's immense potential, along with his first-ever score of 9 for a lovely square halt 🌟

Thank you to the volunteers and sponsors who get behind our standardbreds and make these events possible. And to Renee and Fletch for some gorgeous happy snaps and taking the time to come over and say hello in person (I can’t tell you how special it is to meet long-time RTS followers in person 🥰)

Dan is fuelled by Mitavite Munga and supported through travel and new environments by Hygain's incredible Digest & Protect gastric supplement (a godsend for high-stress creatures, like our Dinosaur Dan 🙏)

Also, a big shout-out to the marshals and judges for the encouragement, very kind words and positive test comments, which make all the difference to anyone brave enough to get out there on a green retired harness racehorse and chase your dreams ✨

20/04/2026

After 2 weeks of school holidays, the tshirt felt as necessary as some quiet time in the paddock with my boy 🤭

10/04/2026

🦖 𝗗𝗥𝗘𝗦𝗦𝗔𝗚𝗘 𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗢𝗦𝗔𝗨𝗥🦖

This day last week our big brontosaurus 🦕 (at times a T-Rex/dragon hybrid 🐉) completed his first HRCAV dressage event… And I couldn’t be prouder 🥹

An hour post-arrival and I still had my doubts as to whether, as a bystander so eloquently put it, I’d “actually ride that thing” (gesturing to the snorting, stomping creature dragging me up and down laps of the carpark😤)

But, we (finally) got (some) softening 🙌

A quiet munch (with half a tree branch hanging out of his mouth 🤭) in the yards.

A swinging jaunt around the round yard, with a stretchy-stretch and nose-ground scoot.

Holding it together when the warm-up filled with other horses that we, 'allegedly' don’t need to race 🙃

Helmet and body vest cutting my circulation, both of us wound-up coils of nerves, we entered the ring under the encouraging smile of the judge.

And…. We did the thing 🥳

Two tests, with an improvement in relaxation and accuracy.

The first test we were in the middle of two rings, with the Level 1s counter-cantering head-on at times and ('definitely not') racing us up the long side 😬

The second test we were challenged by being in the quieter corner of the grounds, where a couple of riders had taken very vocal, overwhelmed young horses. There was rearing, screaming…. and Dan-the-man, completely in the zone alongside the drama, doing his darnedest to ignore the kerfuffle and take care of his human 🥰

The say it takes a village.
And I had mine there, rallying for me 💜

Lending me uniform. Reversing my float. Helping me tack-up on the fly. Calling my tests. Capturing memories. Pumping me up with the confidence I needed to back myself when I felt like this was, in fact, a very insane, very stupid idea after all 🫣

Emma, Febes, Ann, Lindsay, lovely volunteers from Lancefield Equestrian Group: thank you 🫶🏻

From the bottom of my heart, I appreciate every little bit of support on the day.

You gave a moment that, for nearly a decade to the day, I had lost belief would actually happen. An experience that I thought belonged to the person I used to be. The person I doubted I would ever be again 🥹

As always, a huge thank you to Mitavite for supporting Dan’s nutrition across an intense physical transition throughout his retraining journey to date. Once again, I couldn’t count the compliments on how superb he’s looking 🤩

Thanks to Grain & Mane for coming over to share some encouraging words and a foamy cuddle with Dan between snapping these gorgeous photos 📸

I sobbed the whole drive home.
Overcome by the pride I felt in my boy.
All day, I felt his internal battle: wanting to get the hell out of there anchored by his deep loyalty to our partnership.

Despite the theatrics and sheer magnitude of the size and strength of this magnificent horse, I never once felt unsafe. Not even as a weak, wobbly 'hasbeen' rider riddled with self-doubt.

Because we have trust.
Because we’ve build a bond.

Groundwork matters, folks.

Investing time in all the things that come before, and around, what you do in the saddle…it’s just everything 💜

23/03/2026

Nic spent some time in the happiest of places this morning 🥰

Velvety noses rustling in pockets to sneak carrots and Hygain Smoochies🐴

So much could be said about the experience of visiting RDA Oaklands Victoria 🫶🏻

Awestruck by the team of superstar volunteers, with special mention to the incredible Fiona whose dedication is beyond measure, and filled with gratitude for how well former RTS standies Stuart Littlehorse, Samson and JJ have been cherished and cared for over many years 🥹

Such an overwhelming sense of pride felt standing on the sidelines as Stu and Sam took their riders around activities with immense benefits.

Balance. Strength. Coordination. Confidence. One young rider even verbalising how ‘happy’ and ‘proud’ he felt of himself, after just 3 sessions.

The indescribable feeling of freedom and ‘flying’ on horseback 🦄

Self-regulation and quiet moments just being in the calm, relaxing presence of friends (both horse and human) ✨

Seeing the breakthroughs and real-life impact across RDA centres firsthand is what inspired Nic to recently join the Riding for the Disabled Association of Australia (RDAA) Board, deepening her contribution to an organisation she has long believed in and is proud to now serve 💜

03/03/2026

We think about “desensitising” like it’s a theatrical production.

Tarps, flags, noodles, a full Bunnings aisle dragged into the arena ⛱️ 🪇🚩

But really, it’s far simpler than that.

It’s a quiet walk in a strange new space.

Going to sniff the letterbox your standardbred side-eyes every ride.

Bringing in the bins.

Standing near the flappy tree instead of avoiding it.

Letting them look, breathe, process.

It’s knowing what genuinely worries your horse and calmly seeking it out.

Offering steady leadership.

Growth happens in ordinary moments.
In curiosity that’s supported, not forced.

A real partnership is when your horse feels safe enough to ask questions and brave enough to try 🥰🐴

01/03/2026

Today Dan and I did a thing. Something that pushed us both well outside of our comfort zones.

We went to our first horse show.

I knew the Standies for Breast Cancer Trials was going to be challenging for Dan, being held at a racetrack where he’s raced before and bustling with horses, which he finds overwhelming.

But, I couldn’t pass up an outing so close to home.

I was very proud of my boy yesterday, standing patiently as I grunted, stabbed and uttered many curse words whilst creating jumbles of twine and plaits that somewhat resembled rosettes if you squinted hard enough 😂 Turnout really is an art and I take my hat off to the people who do it so well ✨

This morning, the remnants of yesterday’s relaxation had well and truly worn off. Dan came off the float like a wrecking ball. He wouldn’t stand still long enough to fix, clean or do any touch-ups. He was adrenalised, pulled like a freight train and hyper-aware of everything 🤯

We did so many laps of the car park and surrounding areas for the first hour that I nearly killed my Apple Watch. It kept checking in on me, asking me if I wanted to record my ‘outdoor run’ (aka trying to keep up with Dan’s dinosaur walk), throwing heart rate alerts and offers to call an ambulance (well, nearly 😂)

But, somehow, we made it into the ring. Dan struggled to stand still and nearly chewed right through his bit, but he was never rude or nasty and he did everything I asked. He didn’t shy at anything on the property, including the marquees, and he handled being around other horses much better than I expected. Plenty of positives there 🫶🏻

We did three in-hand classes and Dan improved each time. In the last class, there were moments of relaxation and he got to show off his big-man power trot. I was so darn proud of him 🥹 Happy to finish on a good note and get home early to beat the rain.

Much gratitude to the organisers for a well run event, awesome goodie bags and for the encouragement from judges and stewards. Being completely out of my depths in a show ring with a very amped up horse was humbling. The kind words were appreciated. And I love that it was all for a fantastic cause 🎀

Huge credit to Mitavite, as Dan still looked superb despite not being able to get fancy coat sprays or glossy make-up onto him. Glowing from the inside, looking fit and fabulous from Munga 🤩

Thank you to my friend Tara for turning up with extra hands to hold the string attached to a giant kite of a horse 🪁 and for the happy snaps.

Also grateful to the friends who told me to stop overthinking and making excuses.

It felt amazing to put my horse on the float and just go and do something.

Going into autumn, which is my favourite time of year, I’m so happy to have more opportunities to keep exposing Dan to new sights, settings and activities.

Really looking forward to the adventures ahead of us as a partnership and stepping back into my happy space 🐴 🥰

Feels good to be back x

11/01/2026

Doing a quick check in, because I know when you look at a map our farm appears a lot closer to the fire risk area than it feels on the ground.

I haven’t shared much lately because, honestly, it’s been exhausting. Living with the memory of serious fires that impacted our area and our farm many years ago doesn’t fade. When a Catastrophic rating hits your municipality, the body remembers before the brain does. It’s the worst kind of muscle memory.

This time, we prepared early. Bags packed the day before. Trailers with hoses and pumps set up. In the morning, I put the kids in the car and drove them to the safety of the suburbs. I was teary, even knowing there was little fuel on the ground and our property is well prepared.

Leaving my husband and my beautiful horses behind is never easy. But having lived through Black Saturday, I know that horses are smart when given space to use their instincts and the safest place for our children in these scenarios is away from the stress of potentially experiencing fire.

My heart is hurting as I see the sheer scale of land impacted by this bushfire. The devastation to wildlife, to stock, to farmers and to families who have had to flee and may have nothing to return to is overwhelming.

If you’re feeling helpless but want to do something practical, consider this: make some sandwiches, grab snacks and a slab of Gatorade and drop them to a fire station. For crews coming off strike at 2am, a fresh bite, handful of lollies or some cold electrolytes straight from the fridge can make a real difference after back-to-back shifts.

This is just the start of the season. There will be more Catastrophic days. Fuel loads are high and when heat and wind combine, it’s a dangerous mix.

Please follow the advice you’re given. It can feel frustrating to leave early, or even the day before, only for nothing to happen. But that outcome is far better than leaving too late, becoming stuck, worrying everyone who loves you and having to sit through trauma that stays with you for years.

Here’s a little snap of the boys before I left. Naked, surrounded by sandy fire breaks and large bodies of water in the greneest and barest of our paddocks, giving each other a good ole scratch and some comfort amidst the unsettling smell of smoke.

Sending all my love to all those affected. Don’t be too proud to lean on your village and ask for the help so many are willing and ready to offer.

X Nic

Raising the Standards

26/05/2026

06/05/2026

03/05/2026

27/04/2026

20/04/2026

10/04/2026

23/03/2026

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11/01/2026

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