SHANON McKIMMIE

ABOUT ME

I started riding at 3 years old. I had a grey Shetland pony that was pure evil ( like most Shetlands are!) At 3 I told mum and dad that I wanted to go to Pony club and my dad said to me “ only if you ride off the lead”, needless to say I learnt how to ride pretty quickly as falling off hurt!

I started off my riding career as a show rider doing  a little of everything at pony club though, I did royals, Ag shows everything and was very successful but at 10yo I got very bored with showing and decided to start dressage as jumping just wasn’t my thing. At 11yo I started having lessons with Mary Hanna which at that age was extremely exciting! I started with my small hack that was my show horse and wasn’t very good for dressage, that’s when I came across the horse that really would make me successful in dressage but there was a lot of hard work to do first! Don Shiraz. He was a 15hh warmblood cross and he was very tricky but went on to be a superstar for me and got me hooked on dressage.

I think my major claim to fame as such was winning the 2008 Aachen challenge at the Dressage Festival on my horse Don Shiraz I was one of the youngest to win it as I was only 17yo. I then came runner up in the CDI-Y classes in 2009 which I just missed out on representing Australia at the world young rider championships. At the end of 2009 I went on to compete in my first Grand Prix test on Don Shiraz, whom I trained entirely myself from breaking to Grand Prix in 6 years, that was a truly wonderful experience.

In the new year Ambassi and I plan to have our first Prix St George start with hopes to compete in the CDI-Y classes to try qualify for the world young rider championship in December next year so fingers crossed!. And then of cause training him to be a top grand prix horse is in the not so distant future as well.

ACHIEVEMENTS

PICTURES