Meet Alexandra Hindle, owner and trainer at Hindle Horsemanship Centre in Highfields, Queensland. Hindle Horsemanship specialises in horsemanship and riding lessons in several disciplines. When not at the centre Alexandra can be found training horses, and offering clinics all over the world, or as she puts it ‘globe-trotting’.
A 4:30am wake up and a cup of coffee, or five, is how Alexandra starts her day. After the mundane jobs of maintenance and bookwork it is then to Hindle Horsemanship to give riding lessons, organise clinics and kid’s camps and train horses. Alexandra currently fills much of her time training young horses for campdrafting and challenging starts, as well as few in liberty and trick training.
Growing up on a property outside of Charleville, Alexandra was introduced to campdrafting at a very young age. It was a favourite family outing for both her and her family and has made it easier to get back into the world of campdrafting after some time away.
After living in Mexico for seven years Alexandra made her return to Australia last year. The past 12 months have involved getting back into the swing of things and competing whenever she can.
“I am giving a lot of lessons to children who want to try campdrafting, and it is very rewarding to help the next generation of campdrafters become skilled, confident, and able to compete safely. I love that campdrafting is still a family sport – It is good to see kids squirting around on their old nags and the enjoyment they get out of it.”
When asked what it takes to train and compete in campdrafting Alexandra, who spends her days training horses and riders expressed some wonderful insights.
“I believe (just like in any discipline) that dedication and preparation are key. I like to stick to my program with my horses and trust the process of the training. While I love a blue ribbon as much as anyone else, I like to think that I try and put the horse before the competition and do the right thing by them. On the day of my run/s, I try to get everyone filmed, go over each run and analyse what I did well and what I could’ve done better. The ability to calm the nerves, as well as being able to self analyse is a wonderful way to improve performance”
Keen to meet all of the great people involved in the campdrafting community Alexandra is looking forward to many events ahead and is always open for a chat and a beer!
If you would like to find out more about Hindle Horsemanship Centre, please contact the team on 0431 985 438