“That event was my selection event for the worlds, so there was a lot on the line,” Spencer said.
But she's used to fronting up at the big events, having won both the 3* and 4* classes at Puhinui.
She and Acrobat were on the short list for the Tokyo Olympic Games when he suffered a career-ending injury. Artist was only just coming through the ranks and not ready for the world stage, so that went by the wayside.
She now has the 2024 Paris Olympic Games firmly in her sights. She is planning to do the 5* in Adelaide with 11-year-old Artist. It's one of only seven events ranked at the top level in the world.
Leaving little Gus behind is always hard.
“I just tried not to think about it too much,” she said.
“When I was away for worlds, I would initially Facetime him twice a day but I had to put a stop to that and asked Spence (her husband Andrew) to only send me pics of him laughing or sleeping.”
Spence was on Gus duty for the first two weeks before he joined Monica and the baby went to her mother, who also had him for the Oceania champs earlier in the year.
“You just have to focus on the job at hand.”
Monica and Artist excelled at worlds, going close to a personal best mark in their first 5* test, clear in the cross-country with just 4.4 time penalties, and three rails down in the showjumping, which was described as the biggest, toughest track ever.
“He's a thoroughbred so is a good galloper.”
They were the trailblazers for the Kiwis and early in the field.
“I felt some pressure and was very deliberate with my approaches (to jumps) to ensure there were no silly runouts. The showjumping was proper scary stuff!”
But she's proud of their efforts.
“He had travelled halfway round the world to get there and it does put it all into perspective when some of the greats have four down (in the showjumping phase).”
It was an incredible experience for her to be part of the team to break New Zealand's 10-year medal drought at worlds, and now she's better prepared for the next Olympic Games: “I know what I need to do.”
While she is an eventer, she enjoys pure showjumping and likes to add it to the mix.
“We do it for a couple of shows in the lead-up to each season or if there is a big gap between events. It is good for the horse to get out and do the rounds.”
Spencer, 35, has some exciting horses coming through the ranks, including Chasing Great, who is just coming up to 4* level, but the biggest challenge is always money. It helps Spencer keep her top horses and get offshore to campaign for the big events.
“I have lots of good horses but I'm keeping only those who are world-class quality,” she said.
“Artist has so much more to give. He is a big, rangy thoroughbred and they take a while to fill out and strengthen up. He was bred to race but didn't. He has plenty of talent and we will see him come into his own soon.”
This was Spencer's first trip to a Gisborne show. She and Aviator won the open horse 1.15m, were second in the open horse 1.2m, and third in the open horse 1m. With Carousel she placed third in the open horse classic 1.25m, while the horse she loaned for the Trans-Tasman Young Rider Test did her proud as one of the best in the eight-strong pool.
“I have never been so nervous, handing Pilot over,” she said.
“I just wanted him to be good.”
But she needn't have worried . . . he did just fine.
