It was purely by chance that Clarke Johnstone fell head over heels for horses and eventing.
He was 12 years old, living on his family’s farm in Otago, when he was encouraged to go for a ride down to the river with his sister. He was on board a little black pony called Tom.
“I had a go and I just loved it straight away. I was hooked,” he says.
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Gallop forward 16 years and Johnstone’s world revolves around riding. The 2010 World Equestrian Games team bronze medallist and 2011 World Cup Eventing Series champion now has sights firmly set on the Rio Olympic Games.
“I have had people say that I have inspired them, which is a real nice thing to hear,” he says. “It’s not why I do what I do. I’m just really trying to focus on doing the best that I can and trying to get to Rio.
“Hopefully we can put in a medal performance there, but if I can inspire some people along the way, that would be really amazing.”
In aiming for Rio, Johnstone has been concentrating on endurance – both physical and mental - for both himself and his horses, and building a close bond with the animals that propel him across fields, around arenas and over fences.
“Endurance plays a really big part in eventing. In our sport, the part that’s most significant is the cross country which is the real endurance test for the horse and for the rider,” the Hamilton-based equestrian says.
“After 12 minutes of galloping they are obviously quite tired. So you need to get their temperature down as quickly as possible.”
Johnstone uses ice water and misting fans to cool his horses after the often-gruelling cross country. It’s a therapy he says will be crucial to get right in Rio, where they’re expecting the temperatures to be hot at the Olympic Equestrian Centre at Deodoro. Even though it will be winter in Rio, temperatures can hit 28 degrees Celcius in August.
Mental endurance is key in eventing, Johnstone says, because “there are just so many things to learn.” Experience helps.
So does the bond between horse and human. “Spending a lot of time with your horse is just essential. You have to form a partnership with them, and form a really close bond with them,” he says.
“Then you can sense how each other is feeling straight away and that’s something you have to just really spend a lot of time developing.”