The Pony Club, the British Horse Society and British Showjumping announce new initiative!

The Pony Club is delighted to announce that a number of their Tests will now be recognised as suitable for direct entry to British Horse Society (BHS) and British Showjumping (BS) examinations, and those holding specified BHS and BS qualifications will be able to take Pony Club Tests at the level relevant to their experience.

The collaboration between the organisations means that eligible riders can use their existing qualifications to advance within another organisation’s training structure without having to start at the first level of the BHS Stage One, BS Five Star Performance Awards or The Pony Club D Test  and repeating subject matter already covered, saving both time and money.

Jenny Cowen, Training Officer for The Pony Club, said: “We are thrilled to be working in partnership with the BHS and BS to recognise Members’ previous knowledge and experience to enable better transferability between our training and exam systems.” Jenny continued “With ever increasing demands being placed on young peoples’ time, any support we can offer to make maximising their development easier is a really positive step.”

Gemma Portman, Development Programme Leader for the BHS, said the BHS recognises the value of Pony Club Tests.  Gemma commented: “The new direct entry scheme provides the opportunity for those who have achieved Pony Club Tests to access BHS/EQL qualifications.  We hope that those who start as Members of The Pony Club take the opportunity for career progression through the BHS examination system.”

Justine Naylor, National Director of Sport for British Showjumping, is thrilled that the awards members have gained within The Pony Club and British Showjumping are now recognised within each of the organisations. Justine said: “It will now be easier for riders to progress through each of the award structures and develop their learning and understanding whilst avoiding duplication.” Justine went on to thank The Pony Club for their help in getting to this point.

If you would like more information, or if you would like to apply for direct entry to an exam, please visit The Pony Club’s website www.pcuk.org/tests_and_achievements/efficiency_tests to check eligibility.

Over 100 players applied to take part, in a selection process involving a written application and observation of players by managers and coaches across the country. Standards were high, with selected junior sections for England, Scotland and Wales teams containing five of players recently named in the UK Polocrosse Association’s own Under 16 team; Ruaridh Gillanders (Scotland), Annabel Mahoney (Scotland), Annabel Twinberrow (Scotland), Jack Brown (Wales) and George Parrish (England) have also all been named as part of the UK team that will play against Zambia in a test match series in early August.

England Manager and Pony Club ambassador Chris Milburn comments, “The standard of play and the level of competition for spaces was incredibly high across all the Nations. All the managers and coaches have said how hard they found it to make their final team selection.  I would like to congratulate all the successful players and I look forwards to a very close contest in July.”

The selected teams are:

The unique format for the competition sees each Nation’s team consisting of one section of *Minis, one section of **Juniors and one ***Open section, meaning that players of all ages will take to the field during the weekend. Each section within the teams’ consists of three players, but with an option for Nations to select four players in each age group and swap the players in each section around between chukkas.

Each Nation will play each other once, with six matches over the weekend each consisting of nine chukkas, at six minutes each. After each chukka the sections of the teams will change over, meaning that each of the three sections will play three chukkas in each match and get twelve minutes of rest for each six minutes of play; this structure, with built in rest periods, means that each player will only have to use one horse during the weekend.

Jan Whitehead, the Chairman of Pony Club Polocrosse, comments “It is wonderful that 23 years after it was first introduced as a Pony Club discipline, Polocrosse has now grown and developed to a point where we can select strong and competitive teams from all four Nations within the United Kingdom. We hope this will be the first of many competitions of this nature, and with the sport continuing to grow both within Branches and Centres, we would love this event to act as an inspiration for up and coming players all around the country.”

All the teams involved are also benefitting from support towards their clothing and equipment from Redrow Homes, Ollard Westcombe and Polocrosse Extreme.

Further information about the Pony Club Polocrosse Home Nations can be found on www.pcuk.org

The Ebony Horse Club Young Equestrians group launched the programme with a riding lesson and ice breaker where they discussed ideas for the future; including activities such as tree climbing, bike riding, horse riding on the beach, hacking out and cookery to name but a few!

Natasha, aged 14, a member of the Ebony Horse Club Young Equestrian group said “It was a fun and factual afternoon and I enjoyed being able to spend some time getting to know the rest of the group. I am looking forward to trying out Polo and Polocrosse.”

The eighteen teenagers at Red Piece Equestrian Stables kicked off their Young Equestrians group with fun Mounted Games and Show Jumping competitions.

The riders plan to give Polocrosse a try at their next fortnightly session, and have already made plans for the future which include a gymkhana, archery and a mud-filled obstacle course.

Lydia, who took part in the event, commented: “Young Equestrians is a great new experience. It’s amazing to have the opportunity to try new activities; especially when you don’t own a horse so would never be able to try these things by yourself.”

Young Equestrians Participants can log their sessions at www.youngequestrians.club, where they can record their activities and achievements as well as access training materials offered by The Pony Club.

Originally developed by Hoof, the British Equestrian Federation’s (BEF) participation programme, the Young Equestrians scheme is being delivered through The Pony Club and will target riding schools across England. Thanks to Sport England funding, riding schools who deliver the Young Equestrians programme will be given access to virtual tools to help them establish their club that include example session plans, marketing materials and a host of different ideas on how to retain teenagers in equestrian sport.

If you are a riding school or young person and want more information on how to get involved in the programme please visit www.youngequestrians.club.

The Pony Club’s advanced e-learning website, www.PonyPrep Plus.org, has been updated to include an exciting new feature! The site now offers the opportunity to upload video content for set ‘Challenges’, furthering the opportunity for young riders to practise and improve their horse care whilst being a part of the wider Pony Club community.

Launched at Olympia, the London International Horse Show, in December 2014 PonyPrepPlus is the next level up of The Pony Club’s e-learning site www.PonyPrep.org, which has been enjoyed by over 200,000 users and won a prestigious e-learning award.

PonyPrep Plus has been created around the same concept as PonyPrep but has content with the look, feel and interactivity designed for The Pony Club’s C+ Efficiency Test and associated age bracket upwards.

In addition to the existing ‘Skills’ area that offers bite size learning and the ‘Profile’ feature, users can now take part in virtual competitions in the newly launched ‘Challenges’ section, which enables users to upload video content of them completing a specified task. Entries can be marked by other users against set criteria, providing valuable feedback for both those taking part in the Challenges and those assessing them. A different Challenge will be available for users each month, with the inaugural Challenge being to correctly and safely apply a stable bandage, and the highest ranking entries going into a draw to win a set of grooming products kindly supplied by NAF.

As part of the ‘Profile’ function PonyPrep Plus includes a ‘Timeline’ feature, where users can ‘Check In’ and record their mounted, dismounted and volunteering activities; the Timeline also records activity in the Skills and Challenges sections, building up a complete picture of progress for users.

There is also a social aspect as users can follow Branches or Centres, enabling them to see what others users following those Branches or Centres have achieved across the country.

Issy, aged 14, is a Member of Pony Club linked Centres Park Lane Stables, in Teddington, Middlesex has been using PonyPrep Plus since its launch to help her train towards Pony Club Tests and comments “I have been using PonyPrep Plus to answer lots of questions that arise, and I find it great to be able to find answers in a quick and easy way.”

www.PonyPrepPlus.org is available for anyone to use, not just Pony Club Members, free of charge.

Johnathan Mulligan ,Van Campbell (Iveagh DC) Declan Cullen (Pegus Horse Feed) Kids of Iveagh Pony Club

Area 17 of the Pony Club are pleased to announce that Pegus Horse Feed are sponsors of theArea 17 Championships. The Championships  are held each year by different Pony Clubs throughout Area 17 covering disciplines  Dressage, Eventing ,Showjumping, Tetrathlon mounted games, Polo cross and Endurance for all ages from 4 to 25 years of age

. Liz Lowry when asked “this is so exciting to have a major company like Pegus Horse Feed to support our Area Championships. All the pony clubs work so hard to put this on each year for the kids and we are so pleased of this support.” Pegus Horse Feeds have been the corner stone of the Equine Feed industry in N.Ireland for over 30 years manufactured by John Thompsons in Belfast.Declan Cullen of Pegus Horse Feed said “ this involvement really started last year when  Cariad Mcalpine asked Pegus Horse Feed  to support the Showjumping with Seskinore Branch in Omagh and I was so impressed that day , I decided we needed to support the grass roots of our Pony Club, it’s just a fantastic organisation and now my own daughter has joined it’s even more relative” Pegus Horse Feed as part of their service offer a free phone help line number for anyone looking advice on feeding their ponies or horses. For more information on the championships contact your local pony club on www.pcuk.org and for further information on Pegus Horse Feed  Free Phone Helpline       R.O.I.= 1800-378463  UK =  0800 011 4182

The Pegus Pony Club area 17 Championships

Games North Down 30 MAY

Dressage North Derry 13 July

Tetrathlon East Down 9&10 July

Showjumping Tullylagan 19th Huly

Eventing Seskinore (Monaghan) 26th July

Endurance Downpatrick 27th June

Polocrosse 8,9 April

Home Championships Mid Antrim 29 August

Over 100 Pony Club Members gather at Moreton Morrell College, Warwickshire, on April 4^th 2015 for The Pony Club National Quiz Finals, kindly supported by NFU Mutual.

The NFU Mutual National Quiz attracts teams from Pony Club Branches and Centres throughout the UK, who qualify for the final by winning their Area competition. A total of nineteen teams qualified for the event, and all were keen to demonstrate their knowledge across a range of equestrian and non-equestrian subjects, to be in the running to take the Branch or Centre title in this popular annual competition.

The teams were tested on a diverse range of topics across the eight rounds:

Round 1 – The Pony Club
Round 2 – Recognising Horse Ailments
Round 3 – Around the Countryside
Round 4 – Breeds, Colours & Markings
Round 5 – Practical Round (Individual)
Round 6 – Travelling & Road Safety (Pairs)
Round 7 – Know Your Spelling
Round 8 – Picture Round

The Branch competition was hotly contested, with teams including the Chipping Branch who were victorious in 2014 and the Hampshire Hunt who took top honours in 2012 and 2013. The marks were close at the interval, but the team from Hampshire Hunt – Ella Greenway (11), Catherine Van Randwyck (12), Archie Moffat (14) and Abigail Gant (15) – took the lead in the afternoon session, gaining an impressive 86 points out a possible 90 to win the competition; 30 marks ahead of second placed Chipping Branch who finished on 246.5 points who narrowly pipped Bramham Moor Hunt Pony Club came in 3rd place, with a total of 246 points.

Emma Moffat, Hampshire Hunt’s Quiz Team Manager was thrilled with the win. She commented “At the beginning of December, twenty of our Members starting training for the Area Quiz.  We arranged a series of Achievement Badges throughout the winter to tie in with the quiz subjects this year.” Emma continued “Our winning formula is to supplement quiz training with pizza and chocolate biscuits!” Emma went on to thank NFU Mutual for the generous prizes which the winners received.

In the Centre competition, first timers Tumpy Green Equestrian Centre were in the lead after Round Six with 161 points, ahead of Lavant House Stables who were close behind with 159.5 points. The Lavant House Stables team, consisting of Jim Butler (11), Ellie Dickens (12), Phoebe Goodale (14) and Laura Pattison (21), gained full marks in Round Seven to beat Tumpy Green in Round Eight, meaning they romped home for a third successive victory.

Denise Pattison, Lavant House Stables Team Manager, commented “Lavant House Stables were delighted to win the Centres section of the Pony Club NFU Mutual National Quiz for the third successive year.” Denise went on to say that Lavant’s high score in the first round helped to secure their victory.

The team from Tumpy Green took second place with 197 points, just half a point ahead of Field House Equestrian Centre and Throstle Nest Riding School who tied for third place on 196.5 points. The judges decided that Field House Equestrian Centre should be awarded third place as they had a higher score in Round One, so Throstle Nest Riding School went into a respectable fourth position.

Pennant Park Riding Centre, who were also attending for the first time, won the Home Made Collage or Display competition with their papier mache horse’s head, which wowed the judges. Wyndham Branch were runners up with their artistic mini display called ‘All About the Horse’.

Hannah Clack, NFU Mutual National Quiz Secretary, congratulated everyone who took part in the final and added “Teams came from all corners of the UK and worked extremely hard to prepare for the final – and we thank NFU Mutual for their ongoing support of this popular competition.”

Laoise O’Farrell winner of The Dengie Speed Competition praising her pony Monlough Meteor

Twenty four members from Area 17 qualified for the Dengie  Showjumping and Dressage Championships and the NFU Quiz Championships at Moreton Morrell college in Warwickshire.

In the Dengie Speed Competition Laoise O’Farrell (Iveagh) on Monlough Meteor did a fantastic round to come first, while Kiara Malcolmson (Iveagh) on Tyrone Molly came 6^th,a wonderful result for Kiara’s first Dengie trip. Sarah Moore (Iveagh) on Seapatrick Make A Move, one of the two youngest in the competition, did one of the fastest rounds but sadly had a pole down. Kyra Gilmour on Warren Bank representing RD Equestrian did a very good round to come 7^th. It was super to see a Centre Member get to the Championships and do so well. Aoife Carr (Route) on Kaleidoscope and Victoria Surgeoner (Mid Antrim) on Rocket Lady both did good clear rounds while Katie Good (Killultagh) on Ballymourne Lilly had an unfortunate pole down. They all went well over the warm-up course, before facing Steve Martin’s challenging Championship course.

Caitie Slater on Colour Code Chinnook looking very professional during their dressage test

In the Open speed competition, Carl Webb (Iveagh) on Crazy Dreamer did well to come 6^th, while Kerrie Kerr (Iveagh) on Knockannagveigh Limited Edition did one of the fastest rounds,  but with an unlucky pole down.  Charlotte Harding (East Antrim) on Crossmaglen Bandit did a steady clear round and Aisling Monaghan (Seskinore) on Emby had an unlucky pole down.

Laoise O’Farrell winner of The Dengie Speed Competition with Carl Webb who was 6th in The Dengie Open Speed Competition and Kiara Malcolmson who was 6th in The Dengie Speed Competition

In the Dengie Championship Eva Kerton (Iveagh) on Colour Confusion was the only Area 17 member to get into the jump off and was doing a very fast clear round which got us all very excited until the last fence! Eva had been one of the fastest rounds in the Speed competition, but alas with a pole down.

In the Open Grand Prix Aisling and Carl both had one pole down while Kerrie and Charlotte (on a big horse for a twelve year old) both got into the second round. Steve Martin’s course meant that only four made the jump off. The four faulters were placed by their time in the second round. So Charlotte was fifth and Kerrie was ninth… a brilliant result for the two youngest competitors.

Laoise O’Farrell winner of The Dengie Speed Competition with Aoife Carr and Kiara Malcolmson who were both placed.

All the Area 17 supporters were very proud of the way that their members went over a very challenging course. The Iveagh Branch were very grateful for all the help that Micky McCann gave the competitors’ and Liz Lowry the Area Representative was very pleased with how they all rode.

In the Dressage Champioships the next day there were eight members qualified from Area 17. In the Novice A competition Caitie Slater (Iveagh)on Colour Code Chinook, Scott McIvor (Seskinore) on Canadian Clipper and Charlotte Harding  on her pony, Winterfold Ivy, not a large horse as in the previous day’s jumping!

All did respectable tests while in Arena B Vicky Campbell (Iveagh) on Denis The Menace did a lovely test and came 4^th to the delight of all the supporters. Katie Magill (Killultagh) on Flapjack Flyer and Kirsten Thom (Mid Antrim) on Cloonlee Red River both did good tests finishing in 9th place.

In the Open Dressage Championships Christine McNally (Route) on Boltown Hemera went brilliantly to come 6^th in her arena while in the other Arena, Erin Burns (Iveagh) on Harry Hoot was the youngest competing by a long way and did a very competent test and was congratulated by a Pony Club Official. It was so good to see the members from Area 17 riding so well at the Dengie Dressage Championships.

The Iveagh Quiz Team of Sarah Sinton, Rachel Taylor, Jack Scott and Lucy Morton all enjoyed the Quiz experience, except that one member found out that you cannot identify things by smell if you have a heavy cold! All the Events were enjoyable for all the competitors and their support team. It was great to see the our members who were the youngest in both Show Jumping levels and the Open Dressage coping so well. A wonderful experience for all the Area 17 members who rode so well and tried their hardest

Quiz Champions Iveagh Penguins, Casey Webb, Kathryn Morton, Fin Walsh, Lucy Morton who were the winning Team with their trainer Sharon Lyle Hall

Iveagh Branch of the Pony Club recently hosted the Area 17 NFU Mutual National Quiz at the Village Centre in Hillsborough. This was the first Area 17 competition of 2015 and was attended by approximately 30 teams from Branches and Centres throughout Area 17. Competition was fierce with the winners qualifying to go to the National Final at Warwickshire College, Moreton Morrell  on Saturday 5^th April 2015.

Results:

1^st Magpies – Casey Webb, Kathryn Morton, Fin Walsh, Lucy Morton

2^nd Pandas – Katie King, Abby Morton, Jack Scott, Lorne Walsh

3^rd Zebras – Claire Sinton, Rachel Taylor, Helen Sinton, Katie McComb

4^th East Antrim – Emma Brown, Robyn McConnell, Charlotte Harding

5^th Penguins – Carla Troughton, Beth Parker, Anabelle Heffron, Rory McIlduff

6^th Blue Mid Antrim – Amy McNeice, Sarah McNabney, Tori Surgenor,  Alex Henry McCool

Laurel View Pony Club Centre Team Cora McNulty; Erin McCrea; Lucy McMahon-Beattie; Aimee Davis and Team reserve and Mascot chaperone Sophie McGuckin.

Team Going to the National Quiz Championships is Iveagh Sarah Sinton, Rachel Taylor, Jack Scott and Lucy Morton

Many thanks to all who helped – Vickie White for her fantastic questions, Horace De Courcy Wheeler who was Quiz Master, Margaret Murphy for the delicious catering, Sharon Lyle Hall for the thorough training of the Iveagh teams and everyone who hosted the training and helped on the day.

The Pony Club Winter Triathlon Final, kindly sponsored by NFU Mutual, was held on March 15th 2015 at Stantonbury Leisure Centre, Milton Keynes.

A fantastic 265 competitors came forward to the final after qualifying at Area competitions held during the winter months. The competition caters for Pony Club Members at all ages, with sections run for Minimus (aged 8-11), Junior (aged up to 14) and Open (up to the age of 25) incorporating those at Pony Club Intermediate and Open level; with Open seeing all competitors swimming for three minutes, shooting turning targets from 10 metres, and running 1500m (girls) or 2000m (boys).

The winners in each section were:

Open Boy’s: Robert Fraser (Moray and Nairn Branch)
Open Girl’s: Isobel Mogg (Triley Fields Pony Club Centre)
Junior Boy’s: Connor Dougall (Braes of Derwent South Branch)
Junior Girl’s: Emma Whitaker (Lancaster & District Branch)
Minimus Boy’s: Joshua Mitchell   (West Warwickshire Branch)
Minimus Girl’s: Gina Speakman (Ryburn Valley Branch)

There was also a competition for teams made up of four Pony Club Members, with the top three scores from each team counting. The team from Area six of The Pony Club, comprising Olivia Hooper (South Notts Hunt), Laura Bates (South Notts Hunt), Henry Traylen (Fitzwilliam Hunt) and Lewis Harby (Quorn Hunt) took the top slot on a score of 9622.

“The final was a great success” commented Judy Hardcastle, a member of The Pony Club Tetrathlon Committee. “We must say a huge thank you to all the volunteers that joined us, and helped make each phase of the competition run so smoothly”.

Full results from the Winter Triathlon Final and details about how to take part in the series can be found HERE.

The Pony Club’s Annual Conference was held on March 4^th at its bi-annual venue of Cheltenham Racecourse. The event boasted a 

jam-packed and varied line up that reflected the feedback from volunteers on what would most help them to run their Pony Club activities, as well as acting as the final official engagement for Chief Executive, Judy Edwards.

A former member of the Albrighton Woodland Branch of The Pony Club in her youth and a member of the 1960 Olympic British Show Jumping team, Dawn has held a multitude of roles in The Pony Club, proving herself an incredibly valuable attribute for half a century; during which time she has come to epitomize the purpose for which The Pony Club was created.

Dawn, from Studley in Warwickshire, became Chairman of The Pony Club between 1991 and 1997, and it was under her Chairmanship that The Pony Club became independent of The British Horse Society and a charity in its own right. In 1997 she also coordinated the re-writing of The Pony Club Manual of Horsemanship, widely considered the ultimate text book for the riding and care of equines.

At grassroots level Dawn has also worked tirelessly, and still runs a Mini Camp at her home every summer for the under 9’s, and it is from these camps that the next generation get their first taste of ‘kicking on and having fun’.

Dawn is still a member of The Pony Club Training Committee, and until 2014 was the coordinator for the prestigious Pony Club ‘A’ Test, making sure that nervous candidates were always welcomed and reassured on one of the biggest days of their Pony Club careers.

“Dawn has a vast knowledge of riding and caring for horses and ponies, which she is always willing to share.” comments Cherry Michell, former Chairman of The Pony Club. “She is one of those very rare people who can inspire people of all ages and The Pony Club is privileged to call her one of their own!”

The Torch Trophy Trust awards are unique in celebrating the often thankless and sometimes overlooked work of volunteers, with the prestigious ceremony designed to encourage, reward and recognise the three million people in the UK who give up their free time to volunteer in sport, in their local communities, every year – without whom sport simply wouldn’t be able to function.

Speaking at the event, Chairman of the Torch Trophy Trust, Sir Bobby Charlton said: “We have honoured these volunteers at the Torch Trophy Trust Awards because of their incredible contribution to our great sporting nation. These volunteers are experts in their own field and we are pleased to bring attention to their tireless work. Volunteering is more often than not a thankless task but we must remember that without volunteers’ grassroots sport simply wouldn’t be able to function. Giving their time means more than turning up on a Sunday morning – as praiseworthy and important as that too is.”

Dawn was nominated for the award by the British Equestrian Federation and her award was collected by her daughter, Valerie Wofford, on her behalf at the event which was held at the Army and Navy Club, London.