Meet the Team

It’s good to be able to put a name to a face and a face to a name.  Here are many of the faces you’ll see when you visit our stables. 

The team here are focused, goal orientated and driven to be successful.  We all share the value that hard work, accepting challenges, being focused and sheer determination will, in the end, prevail and reap rewards.  

The team, both on and off the horse, are here to help our clients.

 

THE FAMILY

Those of you visiting Salisbury will run into two very important people!  Out and about helping with feeding, property maintenance or making a brilliant coffee for visitors is David's father Tony.  He is dividing his time between Salisbury and Fenton Forest, our family farm in Tasmania (weighted heavily in the favour of Salisbury!). 

Tony's background is in farming… so when there’s an issue with machinery, fertiliser to spread or trees to plant…. He’s the chief in charge! 

Because he is an incredibly proud Dad, Annabel has already featured heavily in my social media posts.  She’s a keen rider, swimmer, tennis player, netball player and budding socialite.  Between school and juggling every one of these interests, it's quite possible you’ll come to visit Salisbury and won’t even catch a glimpse!  Keeping up with her schedule is a job in itself. 

 

THE ADMIN TEAM

Deborah Hodgson

Deb met David when she was working at Boneo Park and David was travelling regularly from Sydney to conduct clinics.  At that time, Deb was having some issues with a young horse and had lost her confidence in her own ability. Deb (or possibly her supportive and concerned husband) approached David at a social event to ask for his help. Deb and David’s first session together was at Stoneleigh Equestrian and after a rocky start, Deb started to see the results she was looking for and realised she’d found the coach she needed. Deb and David became good friends and Deb’s work with her horse has progressed to the point where they are now ready for their first FEI start. As Deb often says, “David gave me my riding back”.

In 2016, Deb accepted the challenge of organising David’s clinics which was a process she likened to “trying to herd fish”. As a result, she introduced the online booking system which makes it so much easier to book and manage lessons today.

Deb has a strong background in finance. She has acted as CFO in organisations in both the private and public sectors and as the Managing Partner of a consulting firm specialising in supporting the Victorian Government. This business acumen has been of huge benefit to David in his business as Deb organises accounts, contracts and advises on general commercial matters. She has also taken on the task of updating the website and co-ordinating a social media presence. Deb’s experience and expertise mean that she is up for the challenge of whipping David’s business into shape although, as Deb says, “he gets his own back when I’m on the horse; as we all know, he’s prone to taking over the whip in a lesson”.

 

 

 

Louise Curran

Louise met David in 2013 when she had her first dressage lesson with him. She realised that she had found a coach who would push her out of her comfort zone and, at the same time, provide the ongoing support and encouragement that would make it possible for her to achieve her goal of riding at the top levels of dressage.  As Louise says, “David has far more faith in my ability than I do.  He pushes me to be the best rider I can be and keeps me accountable – always!  He’s the reason Gandalf and I are now competitive at Grand Prix – his direction and support (and occasional tough love!) has helped us achieve far more than I ever thought possible.”

Louise fits training and competing her two horses around her business commitments.  Her company specialises in developing and implementing proactive customer management strategies for organisations across a broad range of industries; in particular, the prestige automotive market.  In this role she works with senior management to determine strategy and provides training, coaching and mentoring at all levels of an organisation to assist team members to proactively engineer positive customer experiences.

Louise and David realised that there is a synergy between Louise’s business experience and the direction in which David is developing his business and they have harnessed this synergy through Louise’s involvement as a business consultant and mentor to the David Shoobridge Pty Ltd team.

 

 

 

Bryony Giusti

Bryony and David had briefly crossed paths over the years and met again recently when David advertised a grooming position at precisely the time Bryony was looking to get back into working in the equestrian industry.  Whilst the groom’s position was filled, David and Bryony quickly worked out that with Bryony’s experience in both the Events and the Equine industry she would be able to help David in a bigger way, and so Bryony joined the administration team to assist in the areas of social media, communications and brand awareness. 

Bryony’s background is predominantly in Event Management, having worked full time for the past 6 years with a company that specialises in non-for-profit mass participation and fundraising events. Prior to this she was the Event Director for Dressage & Jumping with the Stars, Dressage Festival and Young Rider Dressage Festival as well as being heavily involved with the Australian DanceSport Championships from 2006 – 2018.

Bryony is excited to be part of the amazing David Shoobridge Pty Ltd team, and is very much looking forward to what the future has in store. She also knows that once ‘lockdown’ is lifted and she has a chance to ride with David, it is highly likely she will also be whipped into shape on the horse as described by Deb and Louise.

 

 

 

 

 

THE STABLE TEAM

Emma Beaton

Emma is originally from WA and moved to Lancefield in April 2019, with her husband Kieran. Shortly after, she began working for David as a groom and has thoroughly enjoyed being part of the team. 

From 3 years old, Emma has been riding horses and has a vast range of experience working with them. She travelled to the UK and was based at the eventing yard of Clayton and Lucinda Fredericks. Back home, she also gained an insight into Thoroughbred racing, working for Perth trainer, Gino Poletti. A wonderful opportunity in Holland was next, working for dressage rider Adelinde Cornelissen, which was an amazing experience. 

Now on maternity leave, Emma is expecting her first child at the end of June. This time is also allowing Emma to study to become an EA accredited coach.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tori Meyer

Tori is a 22 year old dressage rider who lives locally in Romsey with her parents, 2 Bernese Mountain dogs, 2 Ragdoll cats and her horses. She started riding when she was 7 years old and has had a passion for horses, in particular dressage, ever since. She has competed up to Advanced dressage and her major goal is to ride a Grand Prix test.

Whilst Tori has been getting lessons from David for a few years, she has recently stepped in to fill Emma’s role while she is on maternity leave and is grateful for the opportunity to be a part of his team and to learn from the master.

Aside from horses, Tori’s favourite holiday destination is Hamilton Island where she loves drinking cocktails whilst watching the sunset.