Home sweet horse truck

Mad about all things equine, a Hunterville family travels the country in a custom-built vehicle with all mod cons – and horses – on board. Words: Ann Warnock; Photos: Nicola Edmonds

THE RUGGED HINTERLAND of Hunterville could hardly be deemed “white-leather-sofa country”. But 15 kilometres up the snaking Turakina Valley Road, beyond three one-way bridges, local resident Jacques Duncan is seated on a pod of snow-white squabs, espousing their virtues. “I adore the white leather. You’ll think this sounds mad but it’s incredibly practical, even in here. I’d seen a prototype truck at the Horse of the Year show. People said to me ‘But you’d never get those white leather sofas in it, would you?’ Actually, that’s why I wanted it!”

Late last year Australian-born Jacques and her husband Ken, a sheep and beef farmer, flew to Christchurch with their heavy-traffic licences in their pockets. They drove back home to Hunterville in a horse truck in which they’ve since slept for more nights than they have in their own beds. “We had a beach house at Paraparaumu which we hardly used as our children (Harry, 12, Jimmy-James, 11, and Georgina, eight) became busy on the showjumping circuit around the North Island. The whole family hunts each Sunday; there are very few days in the year when our riding boots are lined up in the hall. So we thought: ‘Let’s sell the bach and buy a horse truck’.”

Jacques says she’s “done the rough stuff” – sleeping under bridges and in barns across Europe when she was younger. Comfort and a good kitchen were paramount. “I love to serve good food, even in a paddock – grilled mussels with chilli sauce and parmesan with a drink, double-decker banana cakes for the children. But I do cut corners – Betty Crocker and I are like sisters when we’re on the road. And I cheat; I precook at home. I have to be pretty organized as the days involve hard physical work.”

The Duncans’ 13-tonne horse truck has four large deep-cell batteries and two solar panels on its roof to provide power for its mod cons and was custom-built by Ashburton firm Lysaght Limited.

“When we arrived at Christchurch Airport to take delivery, the horse truck was parked outside. Greg and Sandra Lysaght and coach-builder Rodney put us in the back with a few celebratory bevvies and whizzed us back to Ashburton where they shouted a full-on barbecue for the workshop team who’d built it. It was so cool to meet them all,” says Ken.

The big diesel truck is 12 metres long with space for seven ponies and seat belts for seven passengers. It sleeps six and includes a modish kitchen, gas oven, fridge, flat-screen television, hydraulically operated pop-out dining-area extension, leather sofa suite, fully equipped bathroom, fold-out barbecue, drinks fridge and two awnings and it has diesel heating. A white Vespa motor scooter is fitted in its underbody storage lockers next to the hay for the horses. “We also throw our push-bikes on a carrier on the front and our wheelbarrow – for mucking out – at the rear. The factory guys were horrified; they thought we’d look like a bus-load of gypsies. But when we visit a new corner of the country I take off on the Vespa to check out the local foodie shops or farmers’ market to find interesting nibbles or a good cheese.”

Jacques says showjumping may appear to be a glamorous occupation but it comes with its fair share of hard work and the competitive arena is a level playing field. “The kids can go from hero to zero very quickly out there. I think the sport is a great leveller. You may sleep in a smart horse truck but you’re up at 5.00am cleaning out the pony pooh.”

Jacques admits that when dealing with horses she gets “so dirty”. Freshening up before dinner is part of the routine. “I’ve got a great pair of wedges that don’t sink into the ground and we’re lucky to have the shower; you can still maintain some modesty despite close living as the shower box doubles as a dressing-room.”

According to Jacques the horse truck is “a child magnet” and it’s often referred to as “Café Duncan” because of the array of cakes and slices sitting on the kitchen bench. “I love having everything fully stocked and wherever we go I take a few frills like my glass cake stands. Nutrition is important. I’m not keen on junk food. Instead we have things like steak sandwiches, a glazed ham, potatoes, greens… We need to eat well because we’re on the go with the horses from dawn till dusk.”

While Ken was an A-grade showjumper as a child and has played polo for New Zealand on three occasions, Jacques says her love of horses and haute cuisine blossomed when she travelled beyond Australia in her 20s. “Where I’m from in New South Wales, near Tamworth (‘cowboy country,’ says Ken), you’d be ecstatic to find Chinese takeaways. I don’t think I saw an avocado until I got to Europe. I nannied in Edinburgh for a woman who had a catering company and we did shooting lunches; the children had ponies. Later, living in the north of England, I got hooked on hunting.”

Ken and Jacques met through polo and while their home in the Turakina Valley may be off the beaten track, their country life does not lack conviviality. “It’s dinner-party paradise up here and we always enjoy having our children with us. All the kids converge to watch DVDs in the truck and we spend the night in our bach on wheels.” While Jacques says “the religion around here is really horses”, once a month the local minister heads up-country “fully robed” to conduct a church service at one of the homes in the valley. “Two of our children have been christened in our bird-bath,” says Ken.

Last summer the Duncans swapped the ponies in the back of the truck for an inflatable dinghy before heading to Lake Taupo for a holiday parked on a friend’s back lawn. They stayed en route at the Turangi Motor Camp. “Half the motor camp came for a look through and then the manager and some others stayed on for dinner. We really loved it. It’s a wonderful way for the kids to grow up.”

www.lysaghtltd.co.nz