Working & Winning - Crystal Anderson, Show Rider and Senior Project Engineer

This article is from the January 2019 Horse Deals magazine

Crystal, what does a normal working week look like for you in your role as an Engineer?
I’m currently working for an Offshore Oil and Gas Operator as a Senior Project Engineer in Perth CBD. No two weeks are ever the same, my role includes mostly office based work with some site fabrication and offshore construction. It’s a dynamic job that is constantly changing and has taken me to all different parts of the world including South East Asia, Western and Eastern Europe.

What commitments do you have at the stables before and after work?
I’m up at 5.15am each morning to put the horses out and feed up before I head off to work during the week. I’m home most of the time around 5.30pm, which gives me time to ride or have a lesson with my instructor Chris Lambert. It can be difficult to find the motivation to go riding in the cold and dark during winter time, but I always feel better for it.

How many horses do you have in work and what is their workload and pre show prep?
I currently have two horses in my stables, my small show hunter hack Regan Park Jimdandy and my young Warmblood BML Falcon. I find that is a good number for me to handle with a full time job. I love being around the horses after a day at work, it’s like a total escape from the office in the CBD to our small property just outside the city. I ride each horse about three times during the week. I like to keep a night or two free to spend time with my partner Luke and two sausage dogs.

What are some of your most proudest moments in showing and also your work?
Definitely Runner Up Senior Rider at the Nationals this year! I could not believe it when my name was announced, it was a very special moment to win such a prestigious award with my family and friends there to cheer me on.
My work is constantly changing, I complete a number of smaller projects each year. Each time a project is completed there is a huge sense of achievement when something you visualise in the concept phase actually comes to life and is put to use.

How supportive is your employer to your sport?
I’m lucky to work with a really great team of people at my current employer. They’re supportive of my riding and actually had sent an email around the office about my results at Nationals before I had even returned to work!

Do you have a strapper or anyone that assists at home and at the shows?
One down side to my job is that I’m based on the other side of the country to my family. My mum, Sandy has always played a very active role with my horse riding, and still does when she comes to stay for the big competitions. However, without her nearby I do get people to help me out with day to day stable upkeep and also show prep and plaiting (mum was the chief plaiter!)

In the day before a competition what is your timeline for preparing horses?
My normal working hours are Monday – Friday, which generally leaves the weekends free. If I have work to do over the weekend I can take my laptop home instead of coming into the office, which gives me more time for riding or show prep. I do love a Saturday show, however it can make the Friday night preparation run late into the evening by the time I get home from work.

After an event, what do you do to prepare for the next one?
Preparing for an event takes a lot of time. I like to give the horses a day or two rest after a competition, generally we’re both pretty exhausted! Then I get right back into it and I’m often packing the float in the dark or getting the horses ready very early in the morning.
How much of your annual leave is dedicated to your sport? All of it lately, I think it’s time for a non-horse related holiday!

How many shows would you compete in a year?
I really enjoy going to shows, it’s something that I look forward to through the working week. I try to go to as many as I can to support the show scene here in WA, however horse riding is something I do for fun, so I try not to push it too hard if the horse or I are not up to it.

Representing WA at the Nationals is a big undertaking, how much time off work was required and how long was the trip?
I think the whole of Team WA are amazing for going to such lengths for the sport and taking the time to travel East for competitions. The trip takes about four to five days driving. I was lucky enough to ride the beautiful Carona Park Victory in the Nationals this year, owned by the Graetz family, who drove him over along with the rest of their show team. This allowed me to take a week off work for the Nationals, however there were a few emails and phone calls I had to follow up on in this time. It was a really big undertaking! But very satisfying!

How do you balance work, life and horses?
I try not to let one influence the other. If I’m at work, I’ll 100% immerse myself in that for that set time. Then, when I come home I 100% immerse myself in to my horses and riding, I try not to let work concerns creep in and the same for my social life.

What sacrifices do you make to compete at the highest level?
I think that anyone who owns horses knows how much time and effort they take up, especially during the competition season. So my social life definitely takes a hit during this time. Lucky for us in WA, summer is the time to turn the horses out, so it gives me time to catch up with friends and do some of the other things I enjoy.

What words of advise can you give to other riders who want success in all aspects of their life?
Everything in life is easier when you don’t concern yourself with what everyone else is doing.
I try to apply this to both my career and riding. It was one of the most daunting things at Nationals for me to watch so many beautiful riders in the warm up arena, I was thinking ‘I’m out of my league here.’ So I actually faced away and talked to my sister, so I had to stop watching until it was my turn to go in! I think that allowed me to concentrate on what I was there to do.

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