Natalie was a dedicated horse lover before she finished primary school and by mid high school she finally attained her very own Pony Club horse.
She pursued the three main disciplines of dressage, eventing and showjumping to state championship level and even managed to squeeze in the odd gymkhana now and then.
After finishing High School she purchased her first Warmblood dressage horse, RR True North and only a year or so later, made the bold decision to move indefinitely to train in Germany.
An initial short term experience in Germany, Winter 2004 provided Natalie with the chance to train with Sabine Rueben, daughter of Herr Hans Rueben and the very well known and respected, Leonie Bramall.
Upon Natalie’s return to Germany in 2005 – with horse in tow – she was fortunate to find a job riding at Schwartze Hof under the professional grand prix rider, Hannes Baumgart. The following three years taught Natalie invaluable lessons from all facets of the equine industry in Germany, from stallion covering to foaling/foal shows to breaking in to stallion licensing and auction preparation to young horse classes all the way up to the grand prix arena – and all on the one farm!
On deciding she wanted to be more specific about the riding system, Natalie has had the opportunity to work at a handful of training stables, as prestigious as the likes of Ulla Saltzberger and for the last 2 years, Catherine Haddad.
Faced with the opportunity of selling RR True North to a lovely home in Florida, Natalie took the chance on exchanging him for one of the dealer’s horses, Waika, a 5yo chestnut mare by Wolkentanz I.
That was the beginning of a unique partnership and in 2010 the pair made their Prix St George debut on the National German competition scene.
Currently Natalie is training at Academy Bartels in the Netherlands under the watchful eyes of Imke Schellekens-Bartels and Tineke Bartels. Natalie has welcomed the change of countries and training systems in a bid to continuously push the boundaries of knowledge and experience.
