“WE bring something else to Oberon.”
Leigh and Alex Cragg are nothing short of an inspiration when it comes to using the hard yards to make their dreams come true.
The land-loving couple owns Burilda Park Equine and has a knack for everything to do with horses and now also for weddings.
“We have been running riding schools that cater to nervous riders, and have been for six years,” said Ms. Cragg.
“We used to travel within four or five hours from here to do our clinics [Oberon] and then we decided to build our house and have customers come to us, “said Cragg.
Mr and Mrs Cragg bought a rundown 140 acre property in The Meadows in 2018.
“It was an old pea and potato farm with every fence down and a horse,” said Cragg.
They saw it as an opportunity to build their home, run their clinics, and start their lives. The couple married on February 1, 2020 on their property, and that was when the lightbulb moment struck.
“Half a dozen people came up to us and said they had the best time out here and would like to get married out here,” said Cragg.
“I planned everything, we had an outdoor cinema, a photo booth and a bucking cop,” said Ms. Cragg.
Mr Cragg said this is the starting point to get something into work.
“Even my dad said to me when we hired it [their wedding] All right, we should try to rent it out, so ding, ding, ding Alex said we had to get something in writing or in the process, “he said.
COUNTRY LIFE: Mr and Mrs Cragg with their dog ‘Cowboy’ in the place where they got married. PICTURED: ALANNA TOMAZIN
He said they hired a planning consultant to understand the specifics of legalizing their functional center.
“We thought we had to legalize what we wanted to do because not only can you train your horses and have people marry you, but you have to make it a commercial company,” he said.
The couple will be able to host weddings and horse clinics at different times of the year.
“We’re going to be working on a seasonal schedule, so we have the wedding season and then in the winter months we have the indoor arena where we can do horsemanship classes because we can’t do both at the same time,” said Ms. Cragg.
Transform into a wedding location
Originally, Mr. Cragg had a shed for all of his tools, but has now been converted into a place for celebrations for weddings.
“I always wanted my own shed for my tools and equipment, but now I’ve lost it,” he laughed.
NOT JUST PROTECTION: Mr Cragg’s shed has been converted to house the wedding venue. PICTURED: ALANNA TOMAZIN
“We put in big double folding windows and it’s all hardwood wood lines and the roof has siding boards, it looks pretty cool,” he said.
Ms. Cragg said there were three different areas of the property that could be used for weddings with horses as a backdrop.
“We’re going to have different areas that you can hold your ceremony in to make it a little bit of your own,” she said.
“We’ll have the garden that is on the lawn we got married on, then we’ll dig the dam and Leigh will build a footbridge into the massive dam.
“The third area will be near a large rubber tree with lots of white pebbles,” she said.
Ms. Cragg also completed a wedding accreditation course to help couples plan their big day.
“I want to be able to help brides and make their day stress-free. I’m dying to get things started,” she said.
“I really want brides to book for the next wedding season from the beginning of next year, so from September, that would be ideal.”
Mr Cragg said an acoustic report had also been made on the property to make sure the noise wasn’t too much of a problem.
“We have made a large tree path leading to the place to block light and noise, and there are plans to improve the road,” said Cragg.
To minimize traffic for their neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. Cragg will encourage people to use the bus service that is included in their wedding packages.
“Hopefully the bus will take most of the people from Bathurst and Oberon and get you where your ceremony is, and that means less traffic for our neighbors,” said Ms. Cragg.
Well worth the hard work
Mr and Mrs Cragg said they put a lot of hard work into their business but it was worth it at the end of the day.
“We’ve spent a lot of money. Sometimes you have a few sleepless nights figuring out how to pay it back, but it’s worth it,” said Cragg.
“She’s nibbling on the dentition. We’re really looking forward to it.”
Mrs. Cragg said she was excited to bring something else to the area.
LIVING YOUR BEST LIFE: Alex and Leigh Cragg love their horses and their dog “Cowboy”. PICTURED: ALANNA TOMAZIN
“You can come here and get married or come to one of our clinics. It’s nice to have horses as a backdrop while you have a beer too. It’s pretty peaceful,” she said.
Only for their clinics, Mr Cragg said, customers can camp on the property.
“Basically, you rock your cart, unload your horse, have clinics during the day, and we might do some demos on our own personal horses of what we want to achieve and then everyone stay here and relax and enjoy the property,” he said said.
“Most of our clientele are nervous riders, and they all come to our clinics to learn and connect with people who feel the same,” said Ms. Cragg.