Unfortunately for the Bemboka Show Society the lovely rain we are having has resulted in the cancellation of their June Dressage Day. It is a real shame as a lot of hard work goes into organising and setting up for the days events. I have spoken with Pip today and she will discuss with the society if they can reschedule the event for another day, possibly in July. We will keep you posted.
Time has flown since our May competition day. It was a lovely day of dressage with some excellent tests ridden.It was also exciting to see so many young riders astride. We had six junior riders in Preparatory alone with some great tests completed. The future of the club is looking very rosey with these combinations and our other young riders onboard.
Alice Dein debuted the very beautiful Friesian Annichje doing some lovely work and taking out the Judges Encouragement Award from Hetty Munda. This combination will be very competitive once they become more established in their partnership.
Rebecca Breust will be pleased to know that Leslie Gillis has sent us some leadline tests which will be a little less stressful for the person on the ground than running a complete Prep test in a 20x60m arena. I can only admire Bec’s stamina riding two tests herself then running a couple with Claire.
Elsa Dawson debuted another beauty with Benzabeel, an off the track thoroughbred with lots of chrome, who went very well for a first outing taking out both Preparatory tests. This is certainly a combination to watch.
Tori Smith and Smith ‘n’ G’Kar rode two lovely tests for consistant placings. They had a lovely rhythm and partnership which I am sure will see them taking some blue ribbons very soon.
A few combinations made the move up to Preliminary level and certainly showed they were ready for the transition. Duncan McLaughlin and Kholonial Sebastian (Seb) won the 1.2 and were fourth in the 1.3.Leigh Richardson rode the very talented Hollands Bend Fidelia to win the 1.3 and third place in the 1.2.It was good to see Jo Freebody and Vivian back with us taking second place in both tests. Jo took the 1.3 on a count back from Jess Coleman who has taken the ride on Tamaru Sunshine. Jess and Sunny were fourth in the 1.2 so the preliminary placings were fairly consistant.Marissa Whant debuted the very striking Gotico Park Estrallo, a beautiful moving Andalusion who might have been just out of the placings but received the Judge’s Encouragement Award from Leslie Gillis.
Our Novice level was down on numbers but there were some great tests ridden. Lucie Phelan and Cicada Lodge Rhythm N Blues were very consistant winning both tests with Gayl Dobbin on Rare Trade and Paul Phelan on Aratahnes Monarch taking turns for second and third placings. A few more riders have moved into the Elementary ranks this year keeping Pip Collins and Tabla, last years FSCDA Elementary Champions honest.
It was a tough contest on the day with only a fraction of a percentage separating second and third placings in both tests. Jade Moxey and Miss Dalliance keep improving each year taking out the 3.1 with an excellent score of 73.89% and were second in the 3.3.Sue Schepisi and the always stunning Friso van Gelder won the 3.3 and were third in the 3.1. It is hard to imagine Friso is a stallion because he has such a wonderful temperament and is always so well behaved at our events.Leigh Richardson brought Quarryview Hercules back from a break and was extremely pleased with his 71.25% in the 3.1.Pip and Tabla were fractions of a percentage behind in both tests for a third and fourth placing. We literally pulled Pip off Lola in the Prep ring and threw her on Tabla for an Elementary test with basically no warm up so it was a great effort from them both.
The day ended with an unfortunate fall for Jenny Stock. You will all be pleased to know that Jen is on the road to recovery after some surgery for a spiral fracture to her leg. It will be a quite a while before we see her back in the saddle but I would like to thank everyone who helped Jen and Paul on the day. Jen’s horse Welka presented with colic symptoms which may have explained her uncharacteristic behaviour on the day. We believe Paul is showing great nursing skills as he tends to both his girls. Jen’s accident has lead the club to reassess our incident response process.
As a result it was decided at the monthly meeting to formalise the role of both a First Aid Officer (human) and a Horse Welfare Officer for all future events. These roles were filled by Paul Phelan, who has a current St John’s Ambulance accreditation, supported by Lucie who is in charge of Theatre and Medical wards at Bega District Hospital. Trish Hayes (a recently retired Theatre nurse) will update her St John’s Ambulance accreditation as a back-up should Paul not be at an event.
All hold committee positions and will be well versed in risk management and minimisation for the future.It will be the First Aid Officers role to take charge of any situation and direct the actions required. We ask that all members follow their directions should we have a situation in the future.
Tori Smith and Christine Connelly will be the Horse Welfare Officers again with Trish as a back-up should the ladies not be in attendance. All have extensive training in checking and monitoring the vital signs of a horse and can make an informed decision regarding veterinary attention. These roles will be on the Duty Roster for future competitions.
Following on from this we need to reinforce our ettiquette for the warm up area. There should be no lunging in the warm up area. There is a designated lunging area which is the cattle parade ground. This area is to be left clear of floats and other vehicles. The warm up area is for horse and riders only. Strappers and instructors should be on the track or at the cones only. The warm up area is not for spectators or socialising under any circumstances.
No horse should enter the area around the rings (10m area) unless the previous test has finished and they are next into the ring. Callers will be mindful as they approach and leave the area outside E or B.People videoing and taking photos should be a minimum of 10m from the arena. There were a few more housekeeping matters raised at the meeting for discussion. We have summarised these below as a reminder to members:
Results and Test Sheets – results will be produced as quickly as possible on the day. The scoring area has been moved away from the lunch room to allow those scoring to concentrate on the job at hand. Every time someone walks in and asks a question they lose their train of thought, potentially make mistakes and have to start over. This ultimately delays the whole process. So no one other than the designated scorers are to enter the scoring room. There will be a table set up outside the room where the results will be posted. In line with the EA rules test sheets can not be released until they have been checked by the judge which means at the end of the day when they have finished judging. If you cannot wait to collect your tests leave a stamped self addressed envelope on the table or arrange for someone to collect them on your behalf.
Clean-up – at the end of the day all manure/spilled feed and rubbish should be collected and disposed of appropriately. The area behind the judges boxes was left in quite a mess after the last competition. This type of oversight could jeopardise our hiring of the showground in the future.
Children under supervision – all children at the FSCDA events need to be under adult supervision. Horses can be unpredicable animals and we need to be very conscious of safety. We had a number of children at the grounds associated with the poultry show that was held on the same day. There is little we can do when it is a shared facility but some of these children were running/scootering wildly through the horse area and playing on the metal stands. If you see something like this happening we ask that as a member you take immediate action to ensure safety. There is not always a committee member available when these things occur so please assist us in such matters.
Caller Ettiquette – the club is quite happy for callers to be utitised at our events. If you think you will need a caller on the day please arrange this with someone beforehand. Many of our members are happy to help out but it is just courtesy to prearrange this so everyone can be prepared. Once the draw and duty roster comes out is a good time so you can see who may be available and not committed to duties, riding or warming up when you may need help. This is a good task to share around so we don’t end up with a couple of people doing it all day.
The June “Dressage Challenge Plus” event is looking like great fun. I hope you will all support the efforts of the working group in putting this all together. The information is now all on the website www.fscda.com.au under Events – Entries –
FSCDA Dressage Trail & Jumping Equitation Challenge – Read More and the on-line entry form is ready to go. Don’t forget to check out all the great photos from the day in the Photo Gallery on the website!
We’re putting your dressage training to the test with a few extra elements!
Dressage Trail: Preparatory, Preliminary, Novice & Elementary.
Offering Preparatory, Preliminary, Novice and Elementary tests. Competitors may enter a maximum of two tests example: Preparatory & Preliminary or Preliminary & Novice, Novice & Elementary. Open to FSCDA members.
And now for something completely different!
Jumping Equitation: Preparatory max 20cm, Preliminary max 30cm, Novice max 45cm, Elementary max 60cm.
Jumping Equitation is judged on the ability and style of a horse & rider to negotiate a course of jumps. A score sheet is produced by the judge who awards marks out of 10 for the rider’s leg position, eye contact, seat, hands, upper body & control. Presentation and gear is also given a mark out of 10. Similarly the horse’s rhythm & tempo, approach & line and take off over jumps is scored out of 10. Open to FSCDA members.
Entries Close: 18th June 2014. Cost per test FSCDA members $15. Ground Fee $5.00 per horse. $10 Riders Levy.
Camping is available on powered & unpowered sites at Bega Show Ground. Yards & Stables. Fees are required to be paid on arrival.
For more information, TESTS and ENTRY FORM go to the website, click on the link below or copy and paste the address below into your website browser.
https://www.fscda.com.au/fscda-dressage-trail-jumping-equitation-challenge-29th-june-2014/
Cheers, Tanya