Niki Rose: a motherhood shaped by horses

Hard work, resilience & star ambitions

As any high-level rider knows, being competitive while juggling a job or running a business isn’t easy but is often necessary. But throw four kids into the mix, and there’s an extra dimension to the challenge.

Ahead of Mother’s Day we spent five minutes with Niki Rose; wife of three-time Olympian Shane Rose, eventer, mum, business owner and a woman we think is worthy of her own medal.

We sat down with Niki at the Adelaide Equestrian Festival where her horse, Dreamrush, sustained an injury the week before his 3* run. Remaining competitive in the saddle post-kids takes extra dedication and resilience, which means injuries hit that bit harder.

For riding mums, horses are often the anchor in the chaos that is raising small humans. Niki, like many mums, says that riding makes her a better parent. Sometimes finding the time to and energy to ride comes from the bottom of the barrel. But the reward is there for those who we dig deep, saddle up, and ride on.

Raising little Roses

As mum to 14-year-old Olivia, 12-year old Harry and 10 year old twins Lachie and Zara, running the Rose household takes extreme organisation. While the kids are now older and less dependent, Niki explains that the pressures have shifted.

“They're all into soccer which is a nightmare because it's Saturday sport. We're actually in four soccer teams, which can be in different places at the same time, or spread out over the whole day, so it takes a whole day of driving to and from soccer fields,” says Niki.  

“Two kids train twice a week for soccer, two kids train once a week. Then Lachie also plays tennis and basketball. He’s very keen, he just wants to do everything.”

“And then we try to get the kids to ride a couple of days a week too.”

Niki explains that unlike what most people think, the Rose household doesn’t include four mini-me Shane Rose’s with their sights set on the top end of the sport.

“They're not desperate to get in the saddle,” says Niki.

“I always said it's compulsory to ride up to senior school, and then you've got to decide if you want to ride or not. Because they can't get to 20 years old and not be able to ride.”

“Olivia seems to be getting a bit keener. But I always say, “all right, I'm gonna sell the ponies, no one's ridden them for a week. And then they plead “oh, no, don't sell the ponies!”  

“They've got amazing ponies. We're so lucky that we've had some absolute ripper ponies given to us, that we've got on loan, and they've just had great experience on them.”

Seemingly unaffected by having one of Australia’s best riders as a father we asked Niki if she thinks they feel any pressure when at Pony Club or out competing. “No, I don't actually think they do,” she says. “They should. Sometimes I'm like, ‘can you please not flap around like such a slob on the horse? Can you please look like you know a little bit?’” she jokes. “But I don't think they do at all. They just go out and ride and... 
If they do well, that's good. If they don't, they’re not that fussed,” says Niki”.

“I sort of hope my kids will get a good education and get a real job. It's a hard way to make a living, riding horse. Shane works so hard.”

Hard work runs deep

Successful people often share a couple of common traits; getting up early each morning, and consistent habits. Family life for the Roses is underpinned by both of these things. From running Bimbadeen (their racehorse breaking and pre-training business) to developing performance horses that compete on the world stage, success is certainly built on hard work.

“Shane rides 30- 40 horses a day. He’s very structured. He’s out the door at 6am, starts riding at 7am, has breakfast at 9.30am and lunch at 1pm. So if he comes in at 10.30am I’m concerned”, says Niki.

While riding 30-40 horses a day sounds superhuman, Niki explains that “with racehorses you're not on for that long. You only ride them for 10, 15 minutes. Literally, his feet hit the ground and he's on the next one. So he rides 4-5 horses in an hour. Being racehorses there are some pretty wild ones, and I do worry about that.” 


“After the racehorses, it’s his event horses. He'll spend 30-45 minutes, on each event horse with a team of around 6-7 event horses.”

“Then there’s client hoses. He's got a reputation of being able to fix difficult horses which means he’s putting himself at risk all the time. They're large, unpredictable animals, and they can be very dangerous. I wouldn't want to get on some of the horses he rides every day.”

“Shane rides from sunrise to sunset,” says Niki. “He has break for lunch and breakfast, and that's about it. If there's any daylight left in the day, he is on a tractor or a lawnmower. Every stable block, every shed, has been built with his own hands. He likes doing that, it’s his hobby.”

“It sets a good example for the kids. They know Shane works really hard, so he’s a good role model and motivation for the kids,” says Niki

Niki, like many riding mums, feels that having time to focus on her passion away from the kids makes her a better parent. But how did she carve out time to ride, especially in the days of very small and dependent mini Roses?

“Olivia, my first, was actually pretty much like clockwork when it came to sleep which helped. I would work out her nap time, then put her in the pram, and wheel her around until she fell asleep. Then I’d park her in the tack room,” remembers Niki.

“And because we have so many grooms and people coming and going, if she woke up someone just came out to let me know. As she got bigger we built a little pen next to the arena.”

“Harry, my second, was harder though. He did not sleep that well. So, I’d put him in the car and drive around to get him asleep. And then park the car by the arena, because that was his best place to sleep,” says Niki.

As the kids brood grew, Au Pairs were hired to help support the family which Niki says was a mixed experience. “I had some really good ones,” says Niki. “The good ones were a big help. But the not so good ones… they were like having an extra child, so not actually helpful at all.”

“Somehow, we got through it. And now we are at a stage that we don’t have to watch the kids every moment and it’s become a bit easier.”

So what does a day in the Rose house look like for Niki? It’s a tight schedule, with Niki getting the kids up and out the door by 7.30am, then back home for a morning of office work followed by working her own horses until school pick up. “Most of time I'm rushing in from finishing riding, haven't even had lunch and am off to pick the kids up from school,” says Niki. Then it’s kids sport, homework and the family evening routine.

Ambition for the future

While Niki had planned to have two rides at Adelaide, she was on the sidelines.

“I cried for whole week,” says Niki of the injury that has put her top mount Dreamrush on the bench for the foreseeable future. “Why didn’t we play tennis? If your tennis racket breaks, you just go to your bag and get another one,” she joked.

Along with Dreamrush, Niki was due to ride Cooley All Over, but handed the reins to Shane deciding his talent would be better under a faster, bolder rider.

“Shane's obviously better rider, more competitive, faster. So I thought “no, I don't want to be a hinderance in his progression. So I said to Shane, you should ride him. And I knew once I gave him a ride, I would never get him back, because he is lovely. So he's now in Shane's team.”

“And I have the most lovely horse in (injured) Dream Rush, who is just a mother's delight. What every mother should have, because he is so quiet and easy, and I say he's the perfect housewife horse. He just does exactly what you are asking, and he's fuss free. A good jumper, very good on the flat. I thought he was going be really competitive here (at Adelaide),” she says.

“He's had two starts this year for a win and a second. He's been at three -star level for 12 months, and I was ready to start going a bit faster. At this age, I'm not naturally a fast rider, I like to feel really confident at the level before I start going, putting the pedal down, and I've got to that point now where I felt like, yeah, we can be fast. And unfortunately, he picked up an injury, and he's out.”

Horses are heartbreaking, and often it seems to be right when they are hitting their stride that this heartbreak hits. So what’s next for Niki and her riding career?

“I'm back to low levels. I do like producing the young horses, so that's nice, but it is also nice to have something at the higher level that you can compete at big events,” says Niki.

Niki has her fingers crossed that Dreamrush will be back in the arena. “If not, he would be good for the kids,” Niki says. “But he’s too nice for the kids, to be honest. I want him to be for me. He's only seven. He's a baby.”

Ride on

From baby horses to baby humans, horses often provide an anchor through the highs and lows of raising our little people. And living with horses can be the biggest teacher for children swept into this world where only the most disciplined and resilient succeed.

After speaking with Niki, we are left with no doubt that horses trump tennis rackets, and life is richer for all Roses thanks to the horses.