Di Bowbyes is a bit of a conundrum. Sportswoman, horsewoman and business woman; retailer, traveller, racehorse owner and breeder not to mention mother of three and grandmother of three - but meet her for the first time and it’s unlikely anyone would guess her to possess most of these qualities let alone them all. In a two part series Rural Living looks at a life which could fill a book.

We finally settle on an early morning appointment allowing me an hour with her. I am already doubtful it will prove enough. I am right.

Sixty minutes into our conversation we have covered little more than a decade of her life – from 6 to 18 years old! Time is running out so Di quickly delivers a timeline that takes me on another dozen or so years.

We then agree another meeting is called for…after Christmas… between her travels to Australia and Vanuatu… when she can spare, say, three hours or more.

Finally, we meet again and I pause to take stock of this remarkable woman. Past retirement age…grey hair…clear skin…looks younger than her years...has the energy and drive of a 30-year-old. Talks…ninety to the dozen. So do I, we are a formidable pair.

However, having known her professionally for many years, I realise I don’t know her at all except that she works incredibly hard, is comfortably off and runs an amazing shop filled with faux flowers and stunning decorative items. It showcases her considerable artistic skills.

Somewhere along the line I have learned that she owned race horses but I don’t know more than that. I do know she is married to John Bowbyes, a respected but now retired eye surgeon. Well, not exactly retired.

On officially retiring John was immediately persuaded to become a locum in Townsville, Australia. That was three years ago and he’s still up to his, shall we say, eyeballs, in work.

Consequently, the Bowbyes spend a lot of time travelling between New Zealand, Australia and their holiday home in Vanuatu. That takes some organising because Di is always mindful of her retail and animal responsibilities which she is not yet prepared to give up.

So, on first visit, the Whitford property is a revelation. Entering the gates and descending the tree-shrouded driveway is rural magic. A rabbit bounds in front of my car and I hear the bark of dogs. Two gorgeous, big dogs – Buster and Bacon, whose barks are, indeed, worse than their non-existent bites.

In addition to the dogs and 28 horses (yes, 28!), I discover cats and birds too (real and decorative). I also discover Di’s love of art – it is hung throughout her sprawling country home and it surprises me although I don’t know why. I already know of her considerable floristry skills which can be seen in her shop and in some major city buildings too.

Perhaps it is because Di is such a practical woman who, on leaving school, actually trained as a neuro-surgical theatre nurse.

But all that pales beside her passion for horses which was firmly established by the time she started school and involved a lot of cunning. She may have had a small girl’s love of horses but it was by no means typical.

At six years old she persuaded a local farmer to give her a horse which she then managed to totally conceal from her father. It was the first of several horses her father remained blissfully unaware of.

In cohorts with the local priest she cared for ‘Minty’ and taught herself to ride. By the time she was eight she was helping the same farmer break in horses for easy handling by children wanting pony club mounts.

“He promised to give me one horse for every four I helped break in. But after one, Father Kelly suggested I was out of room to hide horses from my father who, although a real outdoor man, sports fiend and hunter wouldn’t allow me to own a horse.”

Di admits his attitude was somewhat understandable. “We were five children and it was, perhaps, selfish of me to expect a horse and all that went with it.”

However, Di’s life was anything but deprived. She grew up in Temuka, hunting, fishing and skiing and was “a pretty good competitive swimmer.”

But none of these interests could compete with her love of horses. And by the time Di was a teenager her father had finally acknowledged she was unlikely to give up on them.

During her teenage years she continued to ride and to compete in the show jumping arena but once she had embarked on her nursing training, there was less time for horses.

“Then I was asked to ride a difficult horse for someone who couldn’t manage him. A friend consequently bought that horse and I rode him competitively for several years.”

In the meantime Di had also met the young John Bowbyes and they married when she was 21.

Even when pregnant with her first child there was no question of her giving up on riding. In fact, heavily pregnant, she recalls a show jumping event in Timaru where the commentator suggested over the loudspeaker that here was a rider who might need an incubator in tow!