The rumour mills were bustling throughout the 2nd half of 2020 with the talks of a new venue, great enough for the highest levels, being set up in Brits. With Stokkiesdraai Restaurant and Equestrian Centre already well established in Brits and well supported by the top riders in the country, the talks centered around whether this rumored new venue would live up to expectations and whether the distance to travel would be worthwhile. But as the rumors became truths and photos of the venue and it’s facilities started to spread across social media, the visual impression was that this new show ground could be a truly top-level venue for SA showjumping. With that in mind, we reached out to Nicolette de Wet, co-founder of Heartland Equestrian Park to find out more about this incredible new venture.
The JumpOff: Who is the team behind Heartland Equestrian?
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Nicolette de Wet: The Heartland Team consists of a group of passionate and soulful people. Heartland was established in 2019 by my husband, Kobus, and myself with the intention of building a future for our 5 daughters, who all ride and own horses.
Heartland has been built up from the ground by a large group of people who spent endless hours working day in and day out. We are eternally grateful for every effort made to get the beautiful venue to where it is today.
The stable manager, instructors, work riders and grooms all have a great love for horses and it can be seen how passionate they are about their work. The heart of Heartland is our clients and their horses. We strive to accommodate everyone and cater to all levels of riders and horses.
TJO: What was the inspiration behind building a venue fit for the top levels of the sport and where did the name come from?
Nicolette: The owner of Heartland Equestrian Park is quite the adventurous one. He himself had his own horses growing up, and he has always had a love and passion for horses. He has 5 daughters, and when one of his daughters asked him if she could go for horse riding lessons, he immediately said yes, then the second, third and fourth and fifth daughter followed. With that being said, the “horse family” expanded.
From the beginning, it was never our intention to build these top-class arenas and facilities. We have a great love for horses and having so many children, we wanted to help build a future for them.
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The name Heartland represents the feeling and energy that we strive for.
TJO: Is Heartland Equestrian a competition venue only or do you have a full operational stable yard as well?
Nicolette: Heartland Equestrian Park will be a show venue as well as a livery yard.
We cater for lessons as we are fortunate and blessed with an awesome team of instructors, who are willing to walk this journey with us. We plan to host clinics on a regular basis in order to broaden the horizons of all our riders (and outside riders).
The heart and success of our stable/livery yard stay with our clients, grooms, work riders, instructors and stable manager. Each day is a blessing to our hearts. To walk in here with this group of people and you know that they love what they do, and they love our clients’ horses as much as the client loves them.
TJO: What facilities does Heartland offer show-goers and livery clients?
Nicolette: With time passing and with gaining more knowledge, we started to understand the importance of good surfaces for horses, we decided to do Clopf Fibre arenas. Heartland consists of 2 main arenas and 2 warmup arenas. Our all-weather arena is 100m x 60m and then we have an Ebb & Flow arena, the first at a South African show venue, that is 50m x 80m. We also have 2 all-weather Clopf Fibre warm-up arenas that are 60m x 30m.
The stable block consists of a total of 114 stables, 38 of these stables we use for clients. We have a lot to offer to our clients and to their horses – along with our airy stables and beautiful arenas, we have 2 solariums, an equine walker, longeing ring and a lot of space for outrides. The horses have beautiful, spacious paddocks that are fully irrigated summer and winter.
TJO: What makes your venue a ‘must-support’ destination for South African riders?
Nicolette: We are fortunate to have top-class facilities and strive to share this with the riders of South Africa. It is a goal of ours to provide riders with a pleasant experience when coming to our shows and allow them to compete in these exceptional facilities. Heartland is blessed to be the first show venue with an Ebb & Flow arena and the biggest all-weather arena in the southern hemisphere to date.
Our clients will also have access to these facilities, along with additional ones such as our solarium and equine walker. Our stables are airy, light and spacious; and our paddocks are luscious, big, and irrigated. We have also built a big warehouse where we will run a feed depot from, to cater to the surrounding yards and make the whole process easier. We saw the shortage of this in the community and hope to help out.
We think Heartland is unique, not only in style but in approach as well. We take on a horse-orientated approach and the happiness of the horse will always come first. This ranges from our surfaces to our paddocks and our stables.
TJO: Do you have competitions lined up for 2021 and if so, what are they and when?
Nicolette: We planned on having our opening show in April, but in these uncertain times no one can be sure of what lies ahead. We are planning on hosting a few shows throughout the year – all depending on the lockdown regulations.
We are holding thumbs to be able to show our beautiful venue to the equine community soon!
TJO: What are your goals as a competition venue in South Africa?
Nicolette: We hope for everyone to leave here feeling like they are taking a piece of Heartland with them. We have so much to learn still but time is the best teacher and we aim to contribute to the equine community and provide opportunities for riders of all ages and levels.
Heartland’s opening show is scheduled to take place from the 16th to the 18th of April, incorporating the inaugural Heartland 1.50m Challenge. The established team from Highway Shows will be responsible for the organisation of the event, which bodes well with a number of FEI World Cup Qualifiers and National-status shows under their belt. The venue will be catering to all grades and age categories, with heights starting at 70cm and the advertised age categories including Adults, Juniors, Children’s, and Pony Rider classes.
The standard of showjumping in South Africa has risen tremendously in the last few years, with no fewer than 70 top-level athletes, but it’s important to remember that without venues willing to commit to hosting events of the highest calibre, the sport can’t grow. We look forward to seeing what this new venue can achieve in future and wish Kobus and Nicolette all the best.
One thing is certain: there are big things coming for showjumping in SA, and with venues like Heartland around, the future of the sport looks bright.
-The JumpOff-
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