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Despite all the hard graſt, the couple would not have it any other way and enjoy nothing more than participating in the Islands ploughing match season that runs from October through to March. On a ploughing day, the couple will rise with the cockerel and accompanied by their two working dogs, Maci and Fern, will head down to the field where their herd of Cheviot crosses graze alongside the horses. “Duke is cheeky and will chase the sheep, so we have had to section the field off to enable the sheep to take refuge if needed”, sighs Nicola. “Duke is a nineteen-year-old Clydesdale cross who really should know better but he is a real character and is currently partnering Elle, the elder of our two Comtoises.”


They say that ‘teamwork makes the dream work’ and never has this saying been more true than when applied to match ploughing with horses. The self-taught duo, have had to uti- lise their skill sets and David, being very good with his hands, modified the couples RHC plough and added extended handles so Nicola could work the plough more easily. “I steer the plough and David takes the reins”, says Nicola. “I have so much respect for people that can work both themselves; I have tried and tried but I just can’t do it, so David and I help each other out whilst trying to keep the bickering to a minimum!”


Match days are looked forward to and fully embraced. With the trailer loaded and the Land Rover packed and ready, Nichola, David, Elle and Duke head out to enjoy their day. There are only a handful of other horse ploughing competitors on the Island, so the team oſten join their mechanical successors where they are warmly welcomed and encouraged. “Most ploughing matches take about four hours and we always stop for a lovely lunch that is provided by whoever is hosting”, explains Nicola. “We have made good friends on the ploughing circuit and match days are always enjoyable and social events, even if the working horse section is sadly dwindling on numbers.”


“One year I did travel over to the mainland to participate in a British National Ploughing Match near York where I got terrible stage fright! I couldn’t believe the amount of people and participants, we finished 8th the first day and got 3rd for Best Harness on Field”, continues Nicola. “It is something that we would love to do again but it is just trying to find the time to fit everything in, especially aſter the year we have had.”


Covid-19, being made redundant and then the tragic sad loss of Nichola’s father, 2020 is a year that Nichola and David will not miss. “It has been such a stressful and tough year. On May 30th, I lost my beloved father suddenly, aſter a long battle with lung cancer and then shortly aſter I lost my job”, says Nicola tearfully. “The animals have definitely helped me through because it doesn’t matter how sad and low I feel, I have still got to get up, go and walk the dogs, feed the horses and sheep and keep to a routine.”


Nichola has so far raised near on £2000 for Macmillan Cancer Research. She even ‘braved the shave’ back in September 2019 and plans to abseil down the Clatterbridge Hospital in Liverpool for Clatterbridge Cancer Care next year. “I felt I had to give something back, not only for my dad, but for my husband’s side of the family that had been blighted by cancer as well”, says Nicola. “I also started doing a couple of charity demonstrations on match days and would decorate the horse’s harness with green and white ribbons as well as proudly wear my Macmillan t-shirt.”


The only way can only be up now for Nicola and David as they set their sites on the many new challenges ahead. Tempete, the younger Comtois, had been pulling and behaving quite fiery and on edge earlier in the year. Aſter having a thorough MOT, it transpired that some hooks in the Mare’s teeth were most likely to blame. “We are looking forward to working her alongside Elle and having a matching pair again, as well as getting her going back under saddle”, says Nicola. “We have also got Finale, our first yearling, who we are due to back and break which is very exciting but also extremely daunting. Finale is very cheeky and is forever testing the boundaries but she is also very loving and kind,”


Already halter broken and readily conditioned to the clanking sounds of chains, Nicola is keen to get going with the youngster that is already showing all the positive makings of a great work horse. Finale may be the last heavy horse to be bred on the Island, but the tradition of working these magnificent horses is being kept alive by Nicola and David. “I do not want to rush her so we will take our time and just do bit by bit to bring her on”, concludes Nicola. “It’s very important that we get things right and train her properly from the start; Finale is not the end for us, she is only the beginning of our next chapter.”


Please mention Central Horse News What’s On when responding to advertisements THE AUTUMN SPECIAL 2020 25


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