Members Profile:
Ashley Cole had an 18 year hiatus from Endurance as she set about obtaining farm ownership with her husband. The discovery of a newly broken arabian gelding for sale on trade me started the journey down the road of “mid life crisis” for Ashley. She jokes that it was either buy a horse or have another kid – the horse won! Ashleys first year up saw a win at the NZ Nationals 100km race on Makawihi Shicane. The following year saw a win at the North Island Championship in the 80Km race on Kahuna Moon. Kahuna Moon went on to win the distance horse for the 2014 year for the Central Districts Endurance Club.
Ashley and her family – husband Ash, son Clay and daughter in law Shany – now have a team of 6 horses in work plus young ones coming up to fill gaps as they appear. Two foals are due to hit the ground for the newly formed team – Murumuru Endurance – this year, and for this team endurance has become a real family affair. Especially with Clay and Shanys pot lickers ready to hit the saddle in the future years.
Ashley and her family – husband Ash, son Clay and daughter in law Shany – now have a team of 6 horses in work plus young ones coming up to fill gaps as they appear. Two foals are due to hit the ground for the newly formed team – Murumuru Endurance – this year, and for this team endurance has become a real family affair. Especially with Clay and Shanys pot lickers ready to hit the saddle in the future years.
Clay is a new member of Central Districts club. His mother has been horse mad as long as he can remember and now at the ripe age of 26 he has finally saddled up. Clay says it was the only way he figured he could get time off work from the farm! Clay enjoys the fact that you can do endurance as a family and still have the goal of being competitive – to take it as far as you wish. Driving excavators and trucks is Clays day jobs for the machinery division of Murumuru Farms. He says he never really learnt to ride as he was growing up, and when a rider that was supposed to ride one of the teams horses couldnt make it to a beach ride at Ruahine, his Mum told him on a Thursday to go and change his boots cause he had to ride a horse that afternoon in prep for a race on the Saturday – well, needless to say – he was in a bit of pain before the saturday race even started! Clay is currently a novice rider and his goal for this season is to be an open rider by the time the Nationals role around in April 2015.
Mark Tylee I started competing in endurance as a 9 year old Junior in 1993 with my father Ray Tylee doing my first ride with him. I never thought then that it would be possible to compete in the countries I have, South Africa Namibia, France,Australia and the United Arab Emirates. As a Junior I won the North Island Title twice. I have represented NZ on 6 occasions. I have won the North Island and New Zealand 160km *** Championship events 3 times each and placed 2nd in the NZ 160km*** Championship 3 times also. My international highlight was placing 8th in the 2008 Tom Quilty Gold Cup Australian 160km Championship. Endurance is a great sport that caters for a wide range of ages and can be enjoyed by the whole family.
Ash Cole is a typical hill country farmer with big hands that does what his wife tells him. So the wife has told him he must ride the ponies. So here he is, one of the newest riding members of the Central Districts Club on a path through the novice system. Despite Ash using this old excuse of keeping the wife happy, there is still a glint in his eye when he talks about the time when he will have made it through novice and be riding his pony that is currently too young to compete – Argie. In the meantime he has the help of Zurim, an 8 yr old arab gelding, to compete on.
Shantalle Geurtjens A little over a year ago Shantalle had never heard of endurance! This despite being a keen eventing rider and an ex pupil of NgaTawa. She is now deeply involved in the Murumuru Endurance family with heady dreams of good finishers and no vet outs! Shantalles favourite ride is Delights Tareef, a gelding who Shantelle has brought up through the novice system and will be competing in longer 100 – 120km rides this coming season. Shantalles day job is mother of two pre schoolers and is a trainee farm worker at Murumuru Farms Limited.