Equifest - Taupo
Our debut at Equifest was October 2025.
We hosted: Exmoor Pony, Dartmoor Pony, Fjord, Friesian, Cleveland Bay, Clydesdale, Gypsy Cob, Miniature Gypsy Cob, Kaimanawa, Barock Pinto, Georgian Grande, Morgan Horse, Highland Pony, Paso Fino and Haflinger.
This display consisted of 3 elements: Yard display - Arena demonstrations - Commentation of Arena demos.
President Liselle Silver found her feet as a presenter for this event, discussing the breeds and their challenges. Many green horses surprised their owners with what they were capable of. Stallions were well behaved and paved the way for us to host more in the future.
This 3 day event featured 5 arena demo times where the horses did a parade around the outside, sometimes taking turns, and went turnabout showing off in the centre of the ring. The horses were displayed lunged, ridden, tricks like spanish walking, gaiting, jumping and carrying flags and stock whips.
All the horses did us proud and were wonderful ambassadors in a high energy environment.
LEFT TO RIGHT: KAIMANAWA - FRIESIAN - GEORGIAN GRANDE - PASO FINO - DARTMOOR (BUM) - NORWEGIAN FJORD - MINIATURE COB - HIGHLAND PONY - MORGAN HORSE - CLEVELAND BAY - GYPSY COB - CLYDESDALES X2 (OFF SITE IN YARDS: BAROCK PINTO & EXMOOR PONY
Showtime is...
Working together online, coming together from across the country to make something beautiful - Well earned social dinners - Working late into the night getting signs sorted - Making new friends - Riding out after showtime for a good zoom - Camping and cooked breakfast - Stepping back to admire the hard work of building up the yards - Catching up with old friends - Dressing up in costumes to celebrate culture and history - Seeing it all come together on the day - Eye-catching signs telling important stories - Those moments the public truly connect with a new breed.
Showtime is magical! Come join us next year!
Barock Pinto - Iberico
An Homage Breed - Presented by Willowdale Ranch
2025 Horse Line Up
Haflinger - Rosie
Presented by Fiona Gray and family
Friesian - Orlando
Presented by Simone du Bernard-Ripa of Friesian Grande - Classic Friesian Stud
Morgan (3/4 Pure) - Smokey
Presented by Arthur Yeo
Norwegian Fjord Horse - Rua
Presented by Willowdale Ranch
Clydesdales & Gypsy Cob
Presented by Muriwai Beach Horse Treks
Georgian Grande
Presented by Simone du Bernard-Ripa of Friesian Grande - Classic Friesian Stud
Kaimanawa
Presented by Noa Smythe
Mini Cob
Presented by Noa Smythe
Dartmoor Pony
Presented by Willowdale Ranch
Exmoor Pony - Anchor Monster Munch
Presented by Willowdale Ranch
Cleveland Bay - Oliver & Rocky
Presented by Alex Campbell - Hangaroa Land Cruisers and Sport Horses
Paso Fino
Presented by Kirsten Benson
Highland Pony
Presented by Lochnagar Highland Pony Stud - Susie McLeod
This website is a work in progress. Please reach out to correct and update information. We would like to feature great educational videos, photos of real horses proving their versatility and strengths, accurate preservation status numbers, news on the breeds from NZ and overseas, up to date contacts, links to websites, registries and associated entities for the breeds and more. In some instances placeholder or international images have been used where some nice local horses could be, we use what we can find at the time (hopefully without getting in trouble). We appreciate images supplied if you have any New Zealand based images.