Pilote

He’s got the look

Sarah McMaster and Pilote share a special bond.

Pilote D’Essai was foaled in Great Britain in the April of 2012. His pedigree boasts some outstanding British and European bloodlines and it shows in his stunning good looks and ability on the track. Pilote came to Australia and began racing with Lindsay Park in 2016 and went on to achieve 6 wins, 5 seconds and 1 third including a Listed win across his career. He won prizemoney of over 550k and was retired in 2018 into the care of the McMaster family who regularly retrained and rehomed horses for Lindsay Park

Pilote was a horse whose personality stood out as much as his looks, being full of interesting quirks. In late 2019 Pilote started his retraining. He showed three beautiful paces and an affinity for learning made him the perfect candidate for successful retraining. His breeding and his well-set shoulder gave him the elegance often sought in a classic thoroughbred for the Show ring.

But as with every retraining journey there were some challenges, with Pilote having a tendency to display what we could call some very athletic leaping. Starting off with body work to check Pilote was happy in his muscles, they then got started on strengthening and stretching. Pilote liked to race with his head held high, so teaching him to relax and earning his trust were key to unlocking his potential. 

Sarah McMaster was drawn to the horse and fostered a partnership with Pilote. “Horses like him that have raced well often make good learners, and no one could doubt his athleticism”, says Sarah. The pair enjoyed a number of successful competitions together however some of Sarah’s favourite times were at home where Pilote was very affectionate, especially if there was a carrot on offer! According to Sarah, “He always loved his job and had a wonderful, kind heart. I only had to hold the bridle out in front of him and he would put his head straight into it himself!”

Pilote showed his winning talent competing in some dressage events and a number of shows. Exposure to crowds during his racing career meant he was no stranger to atmosphere, so big show days were easy for him to take in his stride. Dressage seemed like a good place to start although Pilote was determined to show his athletic flair regardless of the prescribed dressage movements. “He loved to learn, and wanted to get it right every time so Pilote needed some reassurance that it’s okay to not get it perfectly right first time. Once we established that I felt like he really trusted me,” explained Sarah.

Over time, Sarah and Pilote were able to build on that partnership of trust which resulted in heading to some bigger shows where Pilote brought home a second place in the Racehorse to Showhorse category.  

In the end though, Pilote’s quirks were more on show than his talent so he was retired to the McMaster’s beautiful farm near Euroa. Having achieved so much in both racing and in his new career, Pilote now happily rests on his past achievements and gets to enjoy his favourite pastime of eating!