Latest / Between the Flags / Small town, big strides - meet Nat Blundell

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Small town, big strides - meet Nat Blundell · Between the Flags

• Fiona Hughes: G'day legends and welcome to Between the Flags, your Aussie eventing chat show. We'll bring you honest conversations, expert insights and a bit of cheeky fun from the writers, the coaches and even those amazing folks. shaping our sport in Australia and beyond. Whether you're a young rider chasing your first star class start, a parent, a horse owner who lives and breathes eventing, Between the Flags is your go-to chat show. Ride along with Prue Barrett and Fiona Hughes. Stirrups up, let's go eventing. Hi listeners, welcome to Between the Flags. Hi Prue. Hi Fee, how you doing? I really well. Well... Let's get out of the start box. Today we're chatting with Nat Blundell, a true Aussie eventer based in New South Wales. Nat was a prestigious winner of the first Adelaide five star in 1999 on a horse she produced as a young rider, Billy Bathgate. At the time, Nat was based in at the New South Wales Equestrian Centre in Loughenvar, New South Wales, where such riders as Kevin McNabb, Boyd Martin, Prue and Craig Barrett and Gordon Bishop were based, I have to say I've really shortened that list, because Lokenvar at the time was the epicentre for performance horses and riders. Currently Nat is a seriously busy horsewoman, breeding, training, teaching and competing. And after completing her level one coaching at the Equestrian Centre, Nat trekked back to her home territory of Hardin in New South Wales. taking on rides for owners in the local area, including Ben Smith and Julia Maclean on great horses such as Algebra and Girl with a Curl. has been a member of the National High Performance Squad and is currently a member of the New South Wales Star Squad. Hey, Pru, I'll let you take the reins from here. Thanks, Fee. Welcome, Nat. Thanks. Thanks for having me on. Really good to have this opportunity to chat to you. We're really looking forward to hearing your story. So how about you tell us to start with where your journey with horses began? As a, basically grew up on horses. My mother, who didn't have the opportunity that I had, she grew up in Canberra and loved horses, but never really got to ride until she was a teenager, where she worked at the Forest Park Riding School. And ⁓ so she, when we met my dad, who grew up, who lived in, up in Hardin, he was chasing cows around the paddocks and stuff. And when mum first got introduced to Dad in Hardin she thought it was amazing like she can just he just get on the horse no shoes bareback and fly around chase the cows so so basically mum then got me into horse as soon as I was born all I can remember is just sitting on a horse riding a horse wanting to ride horses ever since I've yeah it really does sound like you were born in the saddle that's for sure was there a particular time in your life when you thought this would be your path and you made a conscious decision to make it your path. When I didn't actually realise when I was at high school, I rode racehorses for a living like before school. I'd get on, do some track work in the morning, became an amateur jockey, rode in a few races. The stewards even then were asking me to try and become a professional. And I sort of wasn't really that interested because I really liked to event and jump, but I, until I met Joe Brady, who was my coach at the time. ⁓ I didn't really realise that you could even do horses for a living and that sort of thing. It was because of her, I went up to the New South Wales Equestrian Centre. She introduced me to Heath and then I got my start as a working student there. And what did you love so much about being based at the Equestrian Centre? I just love people, ⁓ atmosphere. I was really lucky I had such a good group of students ⁓ were... all based there, like including Void and Kevvy. Yeah, that was so much fun to work with, but we all work together as well. So when we'd go and have a lesson with Heath with a group of 20 sometimes, it felt like there was like 100 people there at lessons and we'd all have to watch each other. But that watching each other was a good thing. But then when Heath used to go away a fair bit at the time, because he was a national coach for the eventing for the Olympics and the World Games. So he would be away a little bit. So I got to ride lots of his really good horses, like a lot of really nice ones that went to Grand Prix and so we'd keep them in work. But then we'd also, between myself, Boyd, Kevin, Sal McKechnie, Gordon Bishop, we'd all help each other at time. So I'd be helping Gordon with some dressage and then he'd help me in turn with some cross country. yeah, I think that just the fact that we just bounced off each other. We worked ridiculous hours, six o'clock in the morning, sometimes 12 o'clock midnight. I know Guy Wallace was there at the time too and he was one of the hardest workers I know. And he was, he'd be like ⁓ o'clock in the morning still writing something ⁓ doing the breeding. There was just so much like there, like it ⁓ more than ⁓ say university. I can imagine if I went to university it would be sort of like that but just... You know, you're just all just pounded with everyone wanting to do the same thing, but wanting to be the best of what they're doing. That's because Heath told us we could be the best. So of course we wanted to be the best. Yeah, that's great. It's great to have someone believe in you and that village of people around you. That's for sure. So it's not always good times, is it? Sometimes you get some pretty down time. So it's great to be able to share the load with a few other people along the same journey. You had great success with a horse called Billy Bathgate winning Adelaide as Fiona mentioned in the intro, which is now obviously five star. It's called it Adelaide. Tell us how Billy came into your life and the people that supported you with him. Bathgate was brought for me from owners, Phyllar Mary Hockney. When I first, I didn't know Phyllar Mary. I basically was riding pony club at the time. I done quite well at pony club. won the state dressage championships. Got to compete at the nationals. That was just in dressage. I did a few eventing ones, I'd always have off the track horses competing against some of the top other horses. But then my good horse then had navicular disease, so he ended up being a dressage horse. But that helped me win all those competitions. then Phil and Mary, was just at a restaurant one day and I got introduced to those guys and they said, ⁓ what would it take you to make the Olympics? And I was like, suppose a good horse. You know, I think I was about 17 or so at the time. And then They go, oh, we might be able to help you with that. they did. For me, a good horse, meaning I think all I had was horses off the track. like spending five grand on a horse would have been huge for me. And then when we turned around and were looking at horses, you know, at 20, $30,000 mark, I was like, oh my God, you know, it was crazy. So then we looked at some young horses. They were really lovely, but they didn't, they probably weren't quite right. And thanks because of. Joe Brady, was kind of mentoring me at the time. She saw some potential in Billy Bathgate, a thoroughbred that at the time was being trained by Sam Lyle. And Sam had the horse jumping quite well. He'd been through a couple of different riders and like they'd all done well in different areas, but he just hadn't quite really cracked being a great horse. Like he was talented, but he's also really quiet and really lazy. So it was just not like a normal thoroughbred. So anyway, so I went and had a look at him. He was perfect for me really as a schoolmaster. He'd been doing open at the time. So yeah, so that's how he kind of ended up. The Hockneys got vetted and we bought I guess ⁓ I think you talk to eventers and one of the things they always relate to is that one horse that came into their life and really helped them believe in what they could do. ⁓ I'm sort getting the feeling from this is Billy was really that. horse for you and just tell us a bit about him and what it was like at Adelaide when you did win on him. Leading up to Adelaide, I hadn't had him, I mean I'd had him for a while, like I was very lucky. He basically was bought for me and then not too far after that I'd shipped off to Heath and Rosie at the Questrian Centre. so Billy ⁓ was quite a lazy horse in general and ⁓ whilst he was beautiful mover, I think even now he'd be very high up if winning the ⁓ The best thing about him, was really relaxed as well, but then that kind of made him not the most sharpest jumper in the world. And that's probably why some of the professional writers didn't really like overlooked him at the time. So over the years with Heath and Rozzi, he kept me back at sort of one star level at the time for a while. And then I moved up very gradually. And then he let me do two-star. But my first three-day event was, I guess equivalent to the three-star now at Barama. basically felt like I skipped a few levels and all of a sudden I went from pony club to you know doing whatever you call it your three-star eventing so and then at Baramahi place I think he placed like fourth at ⁓ event and then we went from there I broke my leg after that actually when I was at Heath and Rosie so I was away ⁓ for nearly five months my mum rode him at home for a little while back in Hardin and then Then I went back to Heath and Rosie and spent the next couple of years there. basically my first three day event was there. Then I went to Adelaide and was fifth in the old three star, which is now four star. And then to me at the time I was like, you know, I just come fourth. Yeah, I just, really wanted to win it. placed fourth just ahead of me and he was congratulating me at the time. And I was like, ⁓ I just want to win that. Like, I just felt like I could have and should have. And then little did I know at the time that that meant that I got on a trans Tasman team and was able to fly over to New Zealand. So by, think I was still 18 at the time. And by the next May, I was over in New Zealand competing for the Australian team. Well, I up being competing as an individual, but they took eight over. But that experience in itself, I think, was basically what really got me to that. next level of riding, competing and understanding because I guess I was a school kid being very naive and had no idea like, know, I knew it was good but I didn't know how good, you know, what we could do. by going into training camp, being with all the other top riders and then it probably wasn't. the best event for me. Billy probably wasn't quite fit enough. New Zealand was very hilly, the terrain. Billy for a thoroughbred, he was probably more like a warmblood. He wasn't very naturally a goey horse. So I basically felt like I nearly cooked him cross country and he was absolutely knackered. Like he wanted a trot once he landed in the water jump and then I got him home and then I think Wayne was very angry at me at the time for doing that. But I didn't really understand. All I knew was just doing my best and got him home. then we found then, you we got ice all night and he might've had a couple of hours showed. I mean, I think we ended up 13th and that was still fairly good, but I was still like, right, I've got to do so much better to win this next event. And so then the lead up to Adelaide, I had left Heath at that time because of things that went on and I came home back to Hardin and we have this huge hill ⁓ at a friend's property and. I'd just ride up and down that and that was my interval training going up this really steep hill and I had Billy like super fit. When I actually got to Adelaide like you know, it was the best he's ever felt. was, he was, you know, he didn't feel like your normal doughy thoroughbred that he normally was. He was, you know, he was on, was feeling, big springy steps. So he won the dressage by a fair bit. Like I think we were ahead by 15 penalties. He zoomed around cross country like, yeah, like, and we weren't perfect, I remember. There's that huge ditch that everyone was having trouble at. You could probably drive a tractor through and with the gallop downhill and I think I got told at the time, maybe not, like I think Heath at the time, we just riding ditches like, you know, million miles an hour and they're like, ⁓ no, maybe don't ride it that fast. And I was like, hell I'm not riding that fast. So I bolted down to it. Billy and I took off a stride early, like this monster ditch and he just lifted, he went up. up and then went anyway so he landed finished the course and and he was still feeling really good and and then a show dumping the next day is always nerve-wracking but we were I think we were like nearly 20 panels in in front like we were miles ahead but still like Billy potentially could have three or four rails um again because he he just woke up the next morning he was really fit and full of himself and and we had a clear round so um so we ended up winning and all the owners were there and my family and like yeah it was yeah I'll never forget that that time of winning such a big event and the first one that too. So it's very special. Good little Billy. Yeah, that's great. That's great. So if we fast forward a few years, you've had some cool horses along the way, but there's a little horse that everyone probably will know in our era called Algebra, owned by Julian McLean. And ⁓ you took him to the other side of the world to compete. Tell us your experience overseas with him and perhaps some things that you learned along the way. A little algebra, yeah, he was a cool horse. He had just such a huge heart, he, he, he was only like, he would barely make 15.3. He's very compact and short wheel based, but he had this real powerhouse jump. I was really lucky. We were very sick. you know, took a long time to get there, but once we got to the three, four star levels, he practically won, between winning and placing nearly in everything he was in. ⁓ four, four stars here, second, fourth, eighth and 12th with the four here, two Australian trans-transman teams. And then there was nothing really else here to do. ⁓ yeah, so decided. before the World Equestrian Games in 2014. That was a good idea to and train and base with Andrew Hoye who was ⁓ me a little bit at the time when he was coming to Australia. So, yeah, so Andrew was really keen for me to come and train with him. Andrew's an amazing operator. He's a great businessman. The way that they, him and Steffy, you know, ⁓ things, the yard and stuff like that, he's... very very particular like way over the top compared to what I am. I'm this country girl that goes over there and yeah no I'll just chuck him in the paddock he'll be right and they're like boots on the horses. So I mean Andrew you know he was quite funny. We always we got along really well I suppose because he I don't know he just I was another Aussie competitor and even though we were sort of different in a lot of ways but but you know we'd always have a laugh and Like I was pretty casual so... Yeah, so what I learned over there, I guess if I was to do it again, I'd probably... I guess Algebra at the time had four, quite a few four-star or five-star starts within a short succession and then by going over there, I guess we went straight to Berl Badminton. Unfortunately, Badminton was really wet, disgusting here and there was a bit of carnage and like Algebra felt amazing. Like I didn't feel like he was out of his depth. whatsoever. I guess what everyone says when you go over there is, you know, you got to keep yourself fit, you got to listen, you say that and you're like, yeah, yeah, yeah, I know. And then you then you realize, like, you know, was, you know, three quarters or quarter like the way around Bradminton and it's just so intense that course, like you just don't realize until you're there, like you just got to be so accurate and so fast. Andrew, I remember when he was walking the course, said, you've got to ride a lot harder and faster than you've ever ridden before. And he said the jumps are so big they'll just back the horse up anyway and then you just got to trust in your horse a bit. So I was in that kind of zone and unfortunately we drifted a little bit right after that Vicarage V and at that year they had a combination at the Vicarage V of all things. And so I was swinging off his head to turn to the second one after we had a bit of a drift and like just one little mistake. Our driver being honest decided he was going to jump even though he probably could have just stopped or if I had a thought quick enough. Maybe I could have just done the option, but you you just got to think so quickly at that level. Like it's not even, you can't even think, you just got to react. So, I think that was a big learning curve. And then we went from there to, did a couple of small events and then we went to Lamoulin, over, that amazing. went to actually, I got to compete at Wisp Bag and that was the best, ⁓ like a little mini arc. And I got into that event because of Andrew, thankfully, ⁓ I got to compete against him and Mickey Yong and. those guys and now to replace 8th against those guys so yeah I was pretty happy with that like just he was basically just he was a little bit hot in the dressage with all the crowd basically right two meters from the arena but you know at the end of the day it was still a really good little event to lead up to Lemulen and Lemulen we end up 13th there just you know again he was fantastic I had a I probably just didn't wasn't in the great frame of mind that next morning for the showdumping, the young fella that died the day before in the cross country and that was really did affect me because I'd met him at a couple of the events and I watched him and I just spoke to him just before he went out cross country and then and watched his round and ⁓ then him crash. was, ⁓ guess, know, if I think about that then like, yeah, I probably wasn't in the best frame of mind going to that. But at the end of the day, he still was, he had a couple of rounds, but ⁓ he still a good boy. ⁓ Yeah, then we, you what I probably should have done is just went when I didn't, ⁓ reserved for the world games, didn't quite make the team, which is a bit disappointing, but that's kind of how it goes. And ⁓ then, backed up and I think the owners and I would have sort of to go to Burley. Really, I think algebra probably had a little bit of enough by then. We probably should have just done a really nice four star. But anyway, good evening, you're there, you're just gonna, you know, I'm that kind of type of person, I suppose, growing up with people like Heath and that's all, like it's all or nothing. I gave it my all. You know, we had some really good times and, you know, had a couple of crashes and, yeah, if I had to do it again, yeah, I definitely would be, I'd just take a peg, back a peg. But, you know, now I've been over there, I sort of feel like there's so much stuff I would do differently. But you sort of got to do it to know. Otherwise, you know, I don't know how that a new side of city. Yeah. Yeah. No, that's great. That's great. And thanks for sharing with us. There's a couple of tough moments in there for sure. And so thanks for being so honest about that. You've had some great support from other owners such as Ben Smith and now Jacinda Kinsella. So tell us about some of their horses and what they are doing now. Well, Ben, I was really lucky. met Ben years ago and I you know, I started producing, uh, cause his daughter Rachel, uh, was going over to America to work. So they asked me, could I ride Molly for a little bit? Uh, which is girl with a curl. And so I, I started this little man. It was only, you know, get over 15 hands, little Welsh Cobb cross thoroughbred. And it was the fattest horse I've ever seen in my life. Um, and anyway, I took her on and it was, yeah, she was a spicy little thing. Had this huge stride for a little horse and this massive jump and Like, didn't like to jump big, but she just had a lot of power. But she just knew where her legs were. She was very tidy. I basically over the years produced her to three star. I don't think I had hardly any rows ever. One of my memories with her is going to a squad school and Shane Rose is riding Taurus and Stuart Tinney was riding Pluto Mio. I think we were with Gilbert Bachman at the time and he had this massive course set up and I don't know why I rode her because she was... like only two star at the time and those guys were already four star and I'd get, they'd jump this round and then I'd just get on this little horse and yeah, and she just the absolute pants of it. And he you know, she just didn't care like how big it was. And cause she had a big stride she, for a little horse, ⁓ she made up the distances so easily. and you know, a meter 25, 30 was nothing for her. She probably wasn't super duper brave cross country at times, but yeah, I think I won. just about every two star I was in. She placed in pretty much every three star. But then she had a, yeah, just got a little bit frightened at Adelaide at the drops and that's what she was a little bit funny and she didn't love water so much. And then I decided to talk to Ben and Bette Pudding and Foal and that's where I've got JJ flash now, because we spoke about it and I said, oh, staccatos, produce a lot of really good top horses and just put some a bit more. warm blood and a little bit more thoroughbred and hide into her. that's how we got JJ. He's running around three star at the moment. That's great. Great story. Yes. then Jacinta, if I talk about Jacinta has been an owner or helping me out for before I went overseas. Initially I was just writing ⁓ a thoroughbreds for her and producing her and then ⁓ but like none of them were quite good enough. They might've got to two, three star level, eventually we, got a little bit more into buying some nicer horses and some warbloods and stuff. And at the moment, ⁓ she's got a couple of World Cup show jumpers, I've got a nice chilly morning horse that Jacina helped and bought for me two years ago. So I've just been producing her slowly and yeah, she looks like she's gonna be a really nice horse. So I'm really hoping that she's. she's gonna get me back up to those levels again. Yeah, right. Yeah, that's great. And I believe you still, well, you sort of live in the region. Would that be correct in saying where you grew up and have you've obviously got a great network of people around you? What do you love about where you live and what opportunities do you think that's given you? I grew up in Hardin and Hardin still, it's always gonna be my home and I still help out there. help out with the cross country course. I'm now a course designer. I was the president of the Hardin horse trials for about five or six years after taking over from mum and dad. They'd been doing it for like 35 years. It was about time some of us stepped in. And Hardin's a really sporty town. So it doesn't matter if you like it's a real football league. You've got your rugby union, athletics, like, you know, it was, you know, very sporty town and pony club was quite strong and having a horse trials and things like that. I was just really lucky. I could ride to the cross country course, it me about half an hour and I could jump on a ride there. I suppose like I've only just moved 45 from there to Yass, which is a bit closer to Canberra. So Canberra now I've got like the Canberra network. a lot of really good people riders, coaches, a lot of good show jumpers, dressage riders. So, and I'm ⁓ minutes from the Hume Highway, which means I can just go Aubrey, Sydney. Yeah. So it's a really good location. really good in that, you know, the climate can be a bit cold, but it's also a really good climate. Like it's never too muggy and you know, it's quite hilly. So it's great, good to train your horses up and down hills. and yeah, we've just got these beautiful views of, of things. So yeah, and I really love our, where we are at the moment. And you talked a little bit there about Hardin horse trials. I believe you've thrown your hat in the ring and actually doing a little bit of course designing at Hardin. Is that something you've? you know, might like to do elsewhere as well, or you think you might just, ⁓ it's more of a, you know, helping out your, your own club. started off helping out my own club. I guess, like I was the only person that's like these days with the amount of rules and things and qualifications you have to have because I've written at a certain level, it was easier for me to get my course designing certificate plus then, you know, having to pay people these days just makes everything more and more expensive. So yeah, I started out. just by helping out, I quite enjoy it. It's really, really interesting. There's a lot of things to learn and do and what perception that the horses have and what jumps. And I'm still learning all the time from some of the other guys that are in the industry. I'm not quite ready to drop everything into a full time. I've done, did a course design for Aubrey and, know, Ben Smith and I, when he was course designing for Canberra, like I'd help. I like, go ride cross country and I go, ⁓ that distance is not working very well. Or what do you think about this? And so it was always great that with Ben that we could liaise with each other. I really miss that cause I feel like I should have, I could have learned a lot more from him, especially cause he could build jumps as well. I feel like course designing and building need to go hand in hand yet I'm not really a savvy builder like some of the other guys. So I think, I feel like I'm going to learn. I want to learn a bit more about that as well. But again, I'll keep learning, doing the stepping stones, keep my qualifications for as as it doesn't drive me crazy. And then maybe later when I actually want to back off riding a bit, that's always something that I can pick up ⁓ sort of take off with, I think. So watch your space. Yeah, that's great. That's great. I think you'll be very valued as a course designer. But talking about when you hang up your boots, clearly you're not doing that anytime soon. So what have you sort of got in the immediate future? How many horses or, you know, what are you planning towards now with a couple of the horses that you've got? You mentioned about the chilly morning young horse and you think there's a couple of horses in there that, you know, might get you on an overseas trip again? I'd love to think I could get there again. The chilly morning mare is an all round one of the nicest horses I've had for a long time. She moves nice, she's got a great jam and I competed her at the 95 at Canberra on the weekend and whilst it was only 95 I hadn't expected to go super fast cross country and you know I felt like I was going to be schooling because she could be a little bit spooky here and there but I got out and she absolutely you know ripped into it and yeah she was really keen she gulped around she you know she's had green moments but I really felt like she's got a great gallop on her so yeah that just I was a little bit like, ⁓ she's very talented, but she's very, very opinionated. and I always thought, ⁓ this horse's got to really want to do her job. And she, she did. She really showed me what she was made of. And so I'm pretty excited about her. JJ's, he's a different, he's really spooky. I really would love to think I could get him to four star. Just not sure if he, it's not that he's nothing but the heart, he just... to sometimes first go and I'm still, again, I've got to find the time to have a bit more help with him. because I can around the three star on the weekend and he does it quite easily. I feel like he or we add strides everywhere. And he's a like a pony, like his mother wouldn't do that. She had a big stride, whereas JJ, his first stride comes with a spook and then it's like, ⁓ am I going to actually make that? But then, you know, he's quite happy to just chip in and pop over it if I feel like I can get a little bit better at not doing that then hopefully he'll have the scope at least for the next level but I think he's a stepping stone or maybe in the future for him he'll be a really good young rider horse for someone else. Like Mullet Girl or the Curl was, she went on to a few other young riders and taught them a heap and maybe that's what JJ will do but at the moment I really enjoy just being at least at that higher level and being on the New South Wales squad. just helps me keep my foot in the door and learning and being there with the other writers. These young writers are so goddamn good these days. I'm just sort of look at them and go, I've to try ⁓ keep sort of competing against them. ⁓ know, I do feel with ⁓ no, you keep them honest Nat, you keep them honest. That's Yeah, ⁓ that's True that, all right. yeah, no, no, that's great. That's great to hear. Yeah, the trouble is these days, you know, you've got mortgages and thingos and these kids don't realise and what I probably didn't realise at the time, just, you know, how much it all costs and like, you know, it'd be nice just like used to with our, or Billy Bath, I should say, go and spend a few months with Heath and just train there and maybe just ride and, you know, thanks for the owners would pay for it. like when it's all on your own back, you know. going away for any amount of times expensive, particularly now in this day and age where the sport's getting more expensive. And, you know, it has to be because it costs so much to run the events, but you know, whether you can actually afford to go everywhere, that's, that makes it a bit hard. anyway, thankfully, you know, I've got just into at the moment and the Ramses were always really helpful to me as well. know, I've had very lucky and I need, you need the owners. Like I need the owners. because yeah, like so I just so can afford to go and train and compete how I want. ⁓ not a business person, I'm really bad at it. I just ride and teach and that because I love it and helps me do what I want to do but you know I'm not this big business person with a fancy truck I just, and ⁓ I'm not one to ⁓ sell a you know for a lot of money. I'd rather see to have a good home. Yeah I'm not very good like that. Anyway, that's me, that's my choice. No, I think that's to be commended, Nat. And, you know, that's what we all love about you. Thanks for sharing and we really appreciate your openness. And we've certainly covered a lot of ground, which I guess when someone has been in the sport as long as you have, I guess that's naturally going to happen. But we really, really appreciate chatting to you. I'll hand over to Fee now because Fee has got some cool down questions for you. Cool. Thanks. that was ⁓ great to hear all that. Just ⁓ story, Nat. It was really enjoyable. So the cool down questions, Nat. OK, now these are for fun and relax. Just, you know, maybe have a sip of your beer. Let's say ⁓ thing people would be surprised to know about you. Surprise sport, if you could call it a sport, is actually being a dart player. I've been playing darts. champion, come on Nat, don't understab it. It's a darts champion. Yeah well we've won a few championships just in the local area mind you. I'd like to think I could, you know, you could go overseas and go to all those big pubs and clubs and win hundreds of thousands of dollars but no. No, but you know for the last at least 15 or so years soon as I, we moved to Yass, right, and myself and And it was, yeah, we started, we lived across the road from a pub, be honest. When we were renting, we bought a property, we were renting behind a post office in Dalton. And then we started playing darts and then, and it was just a way to... Next minute. Yeah, was just a way to meet people. We play from, it's a tournament, so you play all the pubs and clubs in the local area. you know, that's women's champion. So we've got from Darts champion. Let's go to our final cool down question that if your younger self could see, see you today, what would they say about you? Would they, would they feel excited or would they be a little bit scared? My younger self, I don't feel my younger self has actually left me to be honest. My body might be getting older but I kind of feel, you know, I suppose younger self would be thinking, like I see people like Andrew Hoy and Heath and there's a lot of people that are still at their sport at the top level and yeah, so I suppose I'd be happy to know that I'm still giving it a crack being my younger self to now. I mean, I feel like... I'm not really, I haven't really grown up that much. yeah, so that's my younger self. Yeah. just, I'm in an older body. That's all. Pretty happy. Just swinging along, riding heaps of horses and doing the do. Yeah. Pretty much. Yeah. Yeah. Well, Nat, I've got to say Poo and I really have enjoyed chatting with you. tonight and so great to hear what a fabulous story and what a fabulous asset you are to Australian Eventing and for joining in with us. worries, thanks for inviting me. Thanks Prue, great interview ⁓ and good to ⁓ everyone.