Eden Lochhead. Image by Hoofprintz Photography.

Barastoc Junior Squad: Meet Eden Lochhead

In August 2016, Barastoc launched the Barastoc Junior Squad program to riding enthusiasts aged 13 – 18 who are passionate about riding.

The Barastoc Junior Squad aims to teach, inspire and guide young equine enthusiasts. The squad program assists young riders in gaining the experience needed to support a commercial sponsorship in adulthood, if it is desired or needed, as well as provide a solid understanding of feeding their horses. Each year Barastoc welcomes 20-30 new young riders to be part of the team.

Here, we catch up with young NSW show rider Eden Lochhead…

“My name is Eden Lochhead and I’m a show rider from NSW. I own a lovely Thoroughbred gelding who is affectionately known as Nugget or ‘Mainstream Eloquence’ in the show world. For the last six months, I have been lucky enough to have the ride on ‘Wenona Simply Elegant’ (aka Annie) owned by Kate and Arabella Blanchard. She has carried me to some exciting rider class wins and helped me gain a ticket to the 2024 Grand Nationals in my rider class (17 and under 21).

“I feel very privileged to have been chosen as a part of the Barastoc Junior Squad for 2022-2023. It has been such an amazing experience where I have gained extensive amounts of valuable information and knowledge about the equine industry. Barastoc’s support has allowed my horses to not only look and feel the best they can, however also enabled them to perform at their best. Through our monthly zoom meetings as a part of the Junior Squad, we have spoken with an array of different equine specialists and athletes who have each brought new ideas, information and real life experiences to the table.

“I believe everyone can teach us something and it is through watching, and learning from a range of different riders that we are able to gain the ultimate knowledge in order to succeed. I love watching others ride and compete, taking it all in as a lesson to learn how I can ultimately better myself as an athlete. In saying this, my two standout riders and horsewomen in the show world would have to be Courtney Larard, and Jess Stones.

“I would love to continue showing Annie this year, alongside bringing Nugget back into work. I have lots of long-term goals with the horses, however am also focusing on finishing Year 12, and my HSC this year. In the future, I would love to get into a little more dressage and am excited to see where that path may lead.

“I owe a huge thanks to Barastoc for their ongoing support, and feel very honoured to be a part of their squad.”