Maybe if his nose hadn’t bled three times during gallops down a racetrack, this little black thoroughbred from Taranaki would have led a very different life. But, thanks to those nosebleeds, he was declared unsuitable for the job he’d been born to do, and Kath Robins, the wife of his racing trainer, decided to teach him dressage instead.
Soon, Glengarrick had danced his way to Medium level for Kath and was ready for new challenges. He was leased to pony clubber Karla Jamieson, who, as well as taking him along to regular club rallies, enjoyed competing him in Western riding. Karla and ‘Nugget’, as he was known at home, did well at this discipline, and even made it to the national Western champs, where they won a number of ribbons and trophies.
The versatile pair then concentrated on eventing and, at the end of their first season were members of the Taranaki team at Pony Club Champs. They went ‘in at the deep end’ in the A1 competition, where a brilliant performance saw them finish second. The rider who beat them was someone who would soon play a really massive role in Nugget’s future life. Her name? Heelan Tompkins.
Nugget and Karla then flew through the eventing grades to Advanced, taking the national title at each level, but stopping for a year off when Nugget injured a tendon. Meanwhile, Heelan had not forgotten the little horse who came so close to beating her in the A1 cup – in fact, she had decided she wanted to own him!
“Before I brought him, I remember pointing him out to a selector as Karla cantered him around an Open Novice course at Kihikihi,” says Heelan. “The selector said, ‘You know when they end up in this class they never come back…” but luckily, I’ve never been one to follow directions!”
Nugget was purchased for Heelan while he was still resting with his injury, and as soon as he’d recovered the pair began one of the most amazing partnerships in New Zealand eventing history.
They won every major eventing title in the country, including the Wills Trophy for the Advanced National Three-day title at Taupo, then set off to take on the big names in Holland, England, Scotland and the USA.
In 2004, Heelan and Nugget were selected to represent New Zealand at the Athens Olympics –the youngest rider (26 years) and the oldest horse (18 years) at the Games! After a fantastic performance, they finished seventh, just one show jumping rail away from a medal. Was Heelan heartbroken by that rail? “No, he tried his heart out and did his absolute best, like he always does,” she said with a big, happy smile.
Nugget came home to New Zealand, won the Advanced title at Puhinui as his swansong, and was set to retire at the age of 18. But the quiet life didn’t suit him, and he was soon back competing.
In 2006 the World Equestrian Games (WEG) were held in Aachen, Germany. Nugget was 20 by then, but Heelan knew he was much younger in body and soul. She scraped together the money, took him to England, was selected for the NZ team and finished seventh – the highest placed New Zealander. Nugget was the oldest horse ever to compete in World Equestrian Games eventing and his clear cross-country round was exactly on the optimum time, which earned him the title ‘Best cross-country horse in the world’.
After his grand efforts at WEG, the little thoroughbred found himself living in England for a few months, as Heelan could not afford to bring him home. Then, amazingly, a secret well-wisher stepped in, and on Christmas Eve 2006 he arrived back in Taranaki – Heelan’s best-ever Christmas present!
At the start of 2007, at the age of 21, Nugget went to live with Heelan’s cousin Kirsty Parsons in Hawke’s Bay. Heelan says: “Kirsty has cystic fibrosis and needed something gentle to ride, so Glengarrick ended up trotting around pony club with her for the next five years. I was so proud of him for that, it was right up there with the Olympics, how he adapted from being a cross-country machine to a lovely placid horse, looking after Kirsty. It’s not the ferociousness, but the kindness, that makes extra-special horses.”
Glengarrick lived until he was 28, at which point he had a few episodes of mild colic and Heelan made the difficult decision to euthanise him. “I wanted him to go out as stoically as he had lived, rather than finding him suffering on the ground.”
Glengarrick stats
Pet name: Nugget
Famous for: Eventing. Oldest horse (aged 18) ever to compete in eventing at the Olympic Games (Athens, 2004, finished 7th); won Puhinui three-star at the age of 19; oldest horse ever to compete in eventing at the World Equestrian Games (aged 20, 2006, finished 7th).
Vital statistics: 15.3hh black thoroughbred gelding, born 1985
Rider: Heelan Tompkins
Heelan says: “You couldn’t wish for a better horse.”
