Dreamcatcher: From Racehorse to 3-Star Eventer

Dreamcatcher has it all, type, temperament and talent, but he was not always the dream horse that carried twenty-year-old Olivia Shore to claim the Bates Saddles Young Rider Championship and second place in the Horseland CCI3-Star at the Adelaide Equestrian Festival in April.

Foaled in 2012, Dreamcatcher is by the multi-million dollar winning stallion, Sebring (Aus) who after winning five of his six starts for trainer, Gai Waterhouse, stood at Widden Stud. He is out of the Marscay (Aus) mare, Dreaming On and was given the ASB name, Florida Boy. Although the name may have significance for his early connections, it is not considered by anyone we have spoken to, to be a good name. We understand that; a rose by any other name would smell as sweet (William Shakespeare. Romeo and Juliet), but names are important. 

There is quite a bit of interest in his breeding that would suggest a sport horse, as some names keep coming up in successful Thoroughbred sport horses. Dreaming On’s sire Marscay is also the sire of Australian Sydney 2000 Olympic Showjumping team member, LL Zazu, who was ridden by Jamie Coman. Dreaming On is out of a mare by Sir Tristram, the sire of Michelle Lang-McMahon’s 1994 World Championship horse Odds On, as well as being connected with a number of successful jumpers. Sebring is by the much-lauded and much-travelled (19 shuttle seasons) More Than Ready (USA) and is out of Purespeed (Aus) that goes back to Sir Ivor, the sire of Sir Tristram. 

Florida Boy was sent off to Shane and Niki Rose at Bimbadeen Park to be broken in and pre-trained. “I walked into our cross ties one day and thought, gosh that’s a beautiful horse,” remembers Niki. “Then a week later I was riding around the track and saw a horse in one of the spelling paddocks; gosh that’s a beautiful horse, and realised it was the horse I had seen in the ties. Then again, a bit later, I was driving down the driveway and thought, gosh etc. it’s that horse again.

“He was broken in and pre-trained here and then sent back to the trainer, Mark Conners with the caveat; can I have this one when he is finished, please? He went into Mark and did a few jumpouts and did a little bit. He didn’t officially trial or race, Mark just turned up one day and said, here you can have him! Well thankyou. Why do you want him, he can’t breathe? Oh, but he’s so beautiful. He had a bit of a wind problem that contributed to them not wanting to continue with him. He made a bit of noise, but he was Two Star before I had a Tie Back (an operation to increase the air intake) done on him, and he never felt he was struggling. His racing connections obviously didn’t think that he had enough potential to warrant doing the operation. When he was first here, I did not know his stud book name, he was just the Sebring/Dreaming On breaker. Then that was shortened to Dream. I didn’t know he was called Florida Boy. When it came to renaming him, we thought Dreamcatcher was a nice name and it was available with EA, so that was that. 

“He has always been a beautiful horse with a lovely nature. He was a lunatic the first time I took him out, but after that, he settled and just became so easy to do anything with; I just loved riding him. He goes around in a rubber snaffle in all phases and doesn’t get strong, he’s uphill and just a lovely horse. I had a couple of Three Star starts on him. I had a very annoying 20 penalties at Wallaby Hill, when he just stepped back at the top of a slide, but apart from that, he had a really good round and showjumped clear. Then he went to Sydney in May ’21 and won the CCI3Star-L. 

“I had to have back surgery and Shane started riding him. We were coming into a WEG year and I suggested that Shane qualify him, so he could be a back-up. He went to Werribee in June ’22 and had a penalty early on the cross-country, so he just jumped a couple more fences, then retired, as it was not going to be a qualifier. Shane definitely really liked him and rated him as a horse, but I was always going to get the ride back. 

“I didn’t really want to sell him. He was on a spell when Shenae (Lowings) rang me, I’ve got some people over from Perth looking for a horse, would you sell Dreamer? Olivia came over and rode him really well. Oh well, you can’t keep them all, I thought. It was good money and you have to pay the mortgage.” 

“I bought Dreamer in August ‘22,” begins Olivia. “He was not the first horse I tried, but it was love at first ride. He was so elegant and beautiful to ride. I then took him back to WA. I came back over with him to do Wallaby Hill in November ’22 which ended up being run as short format instead of long. I had planned to work for Shenae and Sam (Woods), as I knew Shenae from WA. They did not have their business up and running at the time, so Shane and Niki gave me a job at Bimbadeen. In January ’23 Sam and Shenae got their Woodlow Equine breaking and pre-training business going on the property Booleroo, that they rent from Shane and Niki. 

“I did quite a few Two Star starts and was fourth in the CCI2Star-L at Melbourne in June ’23. I did the Sydney CCI3Star-L at the end of ’23. We had a couple of jumping rails and we finished out of the money. I was on the Young Rider Team that went to Hastings NZ earlier this year. We went clear in the showjumping, but incurred a 20 on the cross country. Going to New Zealand was such an amazing experience and I think Dreamer loved every second of it; he loved all the attention and getting pampered, it was a holiday for him. Quite a few horses got anxious on the plane, but Dreamer travelled beautifully. I think he actually put on weight over the trip.

“Winning the Young Rider Championship at Adelaide was amazing, and to finish on our dressage score to come second in the CCI3-Star was wonderful and very encouraging. Dreamer just went so well around the Adelaide cross country course. He is having a little holiday now and we are planning on going out Four Star and doing that for the rest of the season, aiming at the CCI4Star-L at Sydney in November. 

“For his racing connections, Florida Boy was a bit of a nightmare, but as an eventer, Dreamcatcher is indeed a dream. A wonderful beginning is a huge plus and Dreamer got that with Niki and now he is ridden and managed beautifully by Olivia Shore. A slow racehorse could not have better luck and we are sure to see much more of him in the prizes in the years to come.”

Article: Anna Sharpley.

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