By PAUL MILLAR
THERE’S something easygoing and old-fashioned about a horse and carriage.
But when Batesford’s Nicole Linic takes the reins it’s more likely to be a fast and furious ride.
The 26-year-old added two more titles to her trophy cabinet when she won crowns at a recent Victorian Indoor Carriage Driving Championship.
The schoolteacher took out the Victorian Small Pony title at Kalkallo’s Broadhanger Equestrian Centre for the third year in a row on home-bred ride Folly.
She also tested ponies Chocolate and Buzz in their first competition, coming away victorious in the multiple horse and pony category.
“It was special, winning with two ponies in their first competition,” Ms Linic said.
The sport is similar to one-day eventing, with cones and obstacles replacing jumps as contestants race against the clock.
Ms Linic said the sport was in her family’s DNA, with her mother helping train the horses as they ran up to eight kilometres daily.
“The horses just love the speed side of it, they get so excited,” she said.
Ms Linic added the indoor title to an outdoor trophy she won at Inverleigh in March.
She was passionate about her sport but admitted it could come at a price, with buggies imported from Europe at a cost of around $10,000 plus the expense of the harness and feed.
