Jody Hartstone is the head rider and trainer at Karioi Sport Horses.  At just 30 years of age she has amassed a wealth of experience with horses that has seen her travel the globe to gain knowledge, purchase horses and train and watch the world’s best in action.  She has worked as a freelance three-day event groom at World and European Championships and also assisted one of Ireland’s leading equine vets for a time as a vet nurse and yard aide.  She has twice earned titles as the New Zealand national dressage champion.

Jody started out riding like most New Zealand kids, riding bareback on the hills, eventing, hunting and having fun.  The Pony Club system was influential in her formative years, where she passed her D, C, B, A and H certificates.  She also got her first taste of representing her country when she was selected as captain of the New Zealand team at the Inter-Pacific Pony Club competition in Japan in 1995.

It was about this time that Jody began working part time for Mick and Sandy Fryatt of Belmont Farms in Wellington.  These two people became a major influence in her chosen career path as a full time rider.  Not only did their work ethic and horse sense inspire her from the start of their relationship, but they also provided her with two fantastic horses to kick-start her career.  The horses were the very experienced CCI 3* eventer Belmont Warendorf and the charming stallion Belmont Golden Boy.  Warendorf took Jody to NZPCA eventing champs as the captain of the Waikato team, and he was also her “A” certificate mount.  After several years of training Golden Boy turned out to be one of the best Prix St George horses in the history of dressage in New Zealand.  He also taught Jody and her family the basics of horse breeding and standing stallions at stud.

In August of 2003 Jody’s career began to gain momentum with the importation of the Holsteiner Grand Prix stallion Landioso.  He has provided her with that much needed boost of horse power to begin to realise her greatest goals…  Landioso has also led Jody down a new path of discovery which in turn has introduced her to two new mentors, Andrew and Manuela McLean.  Through their work at the Australian Equine Behaviour Centre, Jody has begun training her horses and students with a new ethos – that of equine applied learning theory.

Jody’s career highlights have included:

• 3rd place Prix St George class at Brisbane CDI-W 2002 riding Belmont Golden Boy
• 2003 NZ advanced dressage champion riding Belmont Golden Boy
• 2004 Horse of the Year advanced champion on Belmont Golden Boy
• Shortlisted for Athens Olympics with Landioso
• 2006 Burkner Medal winner and Grand Prix champion of NZ on Landioso
• 4th place Grand Prix class at the Melbourne CDI-W 2006 on Landioso
• FEI Certificate of Capability for the World Equestrian Games in 2006