Jane was born into a horsey family and began riding at the age of two. She managed to avoid the majority of her schoolwork by the age of 11, and at 13, she went to work in a point-to-point yard.
“I don’t regret leaving school. If I had stayed, I wouldn’t be doing what I am now.”
Although she had a JA pony, Fare And Square, Jane does not rate herself highly as a junior rider.
“Nothing seemed to click. It was only when I got Pip that it started to come together and I slowly learned how to win.”
Pipakie’s success came from humble beginnings. Guy Williams had told the family of a cheap cob for sale and Jane and her mother, Sandra, went to see it.
“The people were only asking £1,400, so we thought she might be a useful one to bring on and sell.”
The reason for Pipakie’s low price tag soon emerged.”She was prickly when you got on her and as soon as she felt you put your leg on, she would put her head down and buck. It took six months to get this out of her.”
But the perseverance has stood Jane in good stead. “She took a long time to produce and it taught me a lot; she is very careful and, although she hasn¨t a lot of scope, she tries her heart out.
“She’s not the bravest and we had to go through the grades slowly. Some horses are like that and I would rather have one who tries.”
Although Pipakie has since won more than £36,000, with international trial wins and Queen’s Cup placings among a long list of credits, she is still not easy. “She’s a nutcase,” says Jane unequivocally. “But she’s taught me so much that I now quite like sharp horses.”
Hickstead has proved a lucky venue for Jane, who has won there on a variety of mounts. “The ground and fences are always good and my young horses seem to go well there. I believe seeing ditches and such like does them so much good.”
Jane and her fianc‚, Nick Moon, supplement their show jumping earnings by breaking, producing and selling young horses. “It’s hard work. We’ve never had a groom and there are 18 horses in at the moment, but we love it. The nearest I’ve come to a holiday was jumping on the Spanish Sunshine Tour two years ago!
“I don’t have a preference for breed, although I like Irish horses as a rule. Foreign ones tend to be a bit “arrogant” and I like a horse who wants to get on and do the job.”
South African rider David McPherson helped Jane early in her career and her current mentors are Nick and her mother, Sandra.”I don’t regret not having had more training. I don’t think I would have achieved any more, any quicker.”
And her ambition? “It has to be to keep improving and have better horses. I never thought I would come this far, so everything else is a bonus.”
