Huntingfield Pony and Riding Club Inc. PO Box 163 KINGSTON TAS 7051 Club Grounds: 152 Howden Rd. Howden Website : www.huntingfield.pcat.org.au/ Email: [email protected] Club A/C: BSB 067 026 Account No: 2800 9875 CBA Kingston

SENIOR COMMITTEE District Commissioner Steve Percival 0429 146 048/6267 4091 [email protected] Assistant DC Mike Smith 6239 6615 President Adam Grover 0418 127 001 / 6229 2837 [email protected] Vice-President Phillip Davis 6234 1114 Secretary Samantha Todd 6229 9937 Treasurer Fiona Fox 0408 228 790 / 6267 2297

[email protected] Chief Instructor Rally Organizer Uniform New Members Test Co-ordinator Newsletter Canteen Coordinators: Committee

Liesbeth Elliott Ulli Porter Joanna Grover Alison Fyfe Rosemarie Edge Robyn McQueeney

6239 6129 6239 6544 6229 2837 6267 4510 6297 1786 6234 1114

Jacqui and Andrew Rostron 6239 6298 Stephanie McIntosh, Lex McIndoe, Ann White, Nicole Elliott, Tory Percival, Annalise Travalia

JUNIOR COMMITTEE Presidents Secretary Treasurers Committee:

Ellen McIntosh & Meg Williams Isabella Grover Loren Dobie Bec McIndoe, Casey Price, George Grover, Isabel Scanlon, Jess Price, Jonathon Ayton, Meg Kluver Jones , Nicole Elliott, Tamika Shea, Tory Percival, Winona Davis.

Calendar September 18 24 25

Huntingfield Rally Huntingfield Adult Riders’ Rally Brighton ODE

October 1-2 Scouts Camp – Huntingfield 6-8 Launceston Royal Show 9 SJ Tas South Kingborough Branch Huntingfield 15 Longford Show 16 Huntingfield Rally 20 Royal Hobart Show (Pony Club Day) 21-22 Royal Hobart Show 22 Huntingfield Adult Riders Rally 23 After the Show SJ Rounds 30 H&D ODE 30 RDA Gymkana - Huntingfield

For last minute information on event cancellations, phone 9539 4772 for a recorded message.

- Jump Club Day –

November 5 Huntingfield Junior Committee Event – Doggie Olympics 5 Westbury Show 6 Brighton Show 12 Huon Show 19 Deloraine Show 26 SJ Tas South Kingborough Branch – Jump Club Day Huntingfield

December 4 Huntingfield ODE Reminder that the Huntingfield ODE scheduled for Oct 2nd 2011 has been postponed to SUNDAY 29th Jan 2012. Southern Zone has agreed that Huntingfield will run the Southern Schools Event on Sunday April 22nd 2012.

Websites For up to date information on events and pony club in Tasmania go to… www.pcat.org.au and for Huntingfield www.huntingfield.pcat.org.au/ Check the National Championship site www.ponyclubnationals.org.au/ Cover Photo Marlene and friends warm up their horses.

Photos by Robyn & Rob. Please load your photos on Robyn’s laptop during events so we can share your wonderful pictures.

DC Report With 70 members and around 200 people involved in our Pony Club, it’s reasonable to assume that there will be a range of reasons for joining Pony Club and expectations of what it will provide. This is clearer than ever to me after only a month in the position of DC. Expectations vary from having a fun day once a month to building a path to competing in international events. While meeting all these expectations might seem like a significant challenge at times, I think it is also this diversity that underpins the opportunities and rewards that Pony Club provides. I believe that listening to and respecting each other’s perspective and motivations is the key to a successful Club. I have only ridden a horse once in my life and have no burning desire to do so in future! I love fishing, so why did I decide to be a DC and spend much of my spare time hanging around ponies and pony poop? What I get from Pony Club is immense pleasure from watching young riders struggling with their ponies ultimately to succeed in achieving whatever goal they have set themselves. I enjoy seeing kids and adults interacting together to support each other and have fun. I also admire the tremendous courage, determination and dedication required to be able to ride at State, National and International events. I enjoy the friendship and camaraderie of people with diverse backgrounds and interests brought together by the common thread of spending time with and bonding with their kids. I like building things. Please remind yourself that not everyone has the same expectations as you and/or is able to, or wants to contribute to the Club in the same way. Our aim is to try to meet everyone’s expectations and allow people to contribute in a way that best suits them. If we do this I think we will have a very successful Club. Junior Committee I want to commend the Juniors for their enthusiasm and caring. Virtually every idea I’ve heard has been about helping and recognising others within the Club. This is what Club spirit is all about; whether it be organising a working bee at Liz’s, producing an award for the Hazell family, fundraising for a Club XC training area or showing tremendous compassion and empathy for a fellow member, Marlene, when she is facing a challenge. It is really great to see! In all cases I know the recipients are genuinely blown away by the support. I for one am inspired to get in and support them wherever I can.

HPRC roles There are many jobs around the Club that need coordinating. The following people have been nominated for and accepted roles for 2011/12. We are extremely grateful for their contribution. Please assist them wherever you can and ask any of us any questions. Also, feel free at any time to contact me, Adam Grover or Liz Elliott about any issues within the Club. Rally coordinators (Ulli Porter & Joanna Grover) Test coordinator (Rosie Edge) ODE and schools event coordination (Mike Smith) Royal Hobart Show coordination (Ulli Porter) HPRC website (Adrian Porter)

Gear check coordinator (Annalise Travalia) New members (Alison Fyfe) Uniforms (Joanna Grover) Canteen (Rostron Family) Member protection information officer MPIO (Clare Raffety) Newsletter (Robyn McQueeney) Raffle coordinator (Robyn McQueeney)

Member protection information officer (Clare Raffety) Steph approached Clare about taking on the role of Member Protection Information Officer (otherwise known as Grievance Officer) for the club. It is a position she is happy to take on as she feels it is really important to have someone whose role is to provide confidential, impartial information and support when a member of our club may have concerns. Having been part of the club for a couple of years now and seeing how supportive and caring our riders, parents and instructors are, she anticipates her role will be rarely, if ever, called upon, but it is nevertheless important. Clare has attended a two day training workshop run by Sport and Recreation Tasmania for MPIOs which was aimed at providing information about how to assist club members with concerns about discrimination, harassment and child abuse. PCAT has a clear Code of Conduct, Member Protection Policy, and procedures for handling concerns in the Club - these can be found on the PCAT website. Clare’s role is to listen and to provide information about the resolution options available to address them. Please feel free to contact Clare by phone 6239 6211, 0400 588 353 or email [email protected] Monmouth ODE (Sun Sep 4th) This was a great day and well done to Narelle Rowlanson on her first ODE as Monmouth DC. Huntingfield only had 5 riders entered, but everyone enjoyed themselves. Congratulations on the following results: Meg Bishop (1st Grade 1), Esther Dales (3rd Grade 1), Jess Price (2nd Grade 2), Ellen McIntosh (1st Grade 3-14yr and over), Stephanie Todd (4th Grade 4- 14yr and under).

Thank you to Mike Smith for assisting our riders and helping Monmouth with the day’s activities. I would encourage any riders, particularly newer riders, wishing to participate in events to talk with Mike and Liz. They are a wealth of knowledge, friendly and very keen to mentor riders and parents within the Club. Thanks also to Sam Smith for coming along to help Mike coach Stephanie through the event and Meg Williams and Casey Price who came just to cheer on our competitors. Pony Club Nationals Congratulations and best wishes to our Huntingfield members Josh, Esther, Jacinda, Lydia and Caleb Dales, Meg Bishop and Victoria White who have headed off to compete in the Pony Club Nationals. These riders will also be competing in several other mainland competitions leading up to the Nationals and have already achieved success. We are in regular contact with them and will be providing a regular update through the Huntingfield email site. Victorian Spring Show Jumping festival (Werribee) Jacinda placed 5th in her Class (1.05M). She went straight from the Spirit of Tas to compete. Josh would have placed but dropped the last pole in the jump off. Mounted Games Association Victoria State Individual Championships (Melbourne) Lydia placed 4th overall in Under 17s. Caleb placed 5th overall in Under 15s. Their horses were borrowed for this competition so these results are a fantastic effort against many established horse/rider combinations. Pony Club efficiency test program The Pony Club aims to provide a solid foundation in practical horsemanship and horse care. To underpin this, Pony Club conducts a series of “Efficiency Tests” which are a comprehensive measure of a member’s progress in skills at riding and horse care covering all facets of horse handling. It has nine levels: D, D*, C, K, C*, B – Horse Care and B – Riding (which may be done together), H & A. Efficiency Certificates are awarded at each level to encourage members to improve their knowledge and proficiency and to recognise the progress a member makes as they go through Pony Club. All members are encouraged to do their C Test at least and most should go on to do the K Test which is for the active rider and covers a wide range of activities.

Pony Club provides a syllabus of instruction on which all clubs base their teaching programme. It covers all levels of the efficiency tests. It lists the general conditions, prerequisites, worksheets, riding and horse-care requirements for all the different tests and the sections each test is divided into (all of which must be passed before a certificate can be awarded). Efficiency tests are an excellent way to improve your horse riding knowledge and skills so don’t hesitate to talk to Rosie Edge (our test coordinator), Liz Elliott (our chief instructor) or Mike Smith (our Assistant DC) who will be happy to explain how it all works. Qualifying for State competitions It’s important for riders and parents to understand the qualifying requirements for competing in State Championships. Riders must have completed 3 full rallies (3 full lessons @ each rally) and horses must have completed 1 full rally. In addition to this the rider and horse must have completed 2 ODEs at the grade in which the rider wants to compete without being eliminated. It should be remembered that once the rider and horse qualify for a particular grade, they cannot then compete at a lower grade unless it is with a different horse or they gain special dispensation. Riders should try to complete qualifying requirements as soon as possible in the season, just in case they run out of opportunities through unforeseen circumstances such as cancelled rallies or horse lameness. State Eventing, Dressage, Showjumping and Mounted Games Competitions typically occur in the period March-May each year. For more information on qualifying for State Championships please take the opportunity to contact Liz Elliott or Mike Smith who will be happy to discuss the requirements with you. Southern Zone meeting Adam Grover and I attended our first Southern Zone Meeting on Wed Sep 7th as “newbies”. It was reassuring to know that we weren’t the only ones. However, it’s obvious that there is a lot of experience in this committee and I’m confident it will be a good source of advice and expertise. The meeting acknowledged the excellent contribution that Steph McIntosh and Lex McIndoe had made to Southern Zone as Huntingfield DC and President. Southern Zone is hopeful that Steph and Lex will continue to contribute into the future.

Congratulations to Liz Elliott who was elected again as one of three Chief Coaches for Southern Zone! Please note H&D ODE scheduled for Sun 22nd Jan 2012 has been moved to SAT 11th FEB 2012. AON is now providing insurance for Level 1 (NCAS) Pony Club coaches 24/7. Cost ($50-150) is based on number of riders taught. Details can be found on the PCAT website. Tasmania has adopted PCAV gear rules with some minor alterations. Details will be on the PCAT website soon. Royal Hobart Show Ulli Porter has been managing our involvement in the Royal Hobart Show. All entries have now been submitted. As we know Ulli is going to be a little preoccupied with Marlene over coming weeks, but she wants to continue managing this event. However, if you have any queries and unable to contact Ulli, please contact me, Liz or Mike and we will be happy to help. Thursday Oct 20th 2011 is Royal Hobart Show Pony Club Day. In addition to participating and assisting with the day in general, HPRC will be specifically responsible for looking after the “Large Horse” Section of the day. Please let Ulli or me know if you will be able to assist on the day – Thanks! Thanks for your help! Thank you to the following people who have done jobs around the Club recently. As usual I apologise for anyone I’ve missed but don’t want to stop thanking people for fear of missing someone. If I do miss someone please let me know and I will be more than happy to rectify the situation at the earliest opportunity. • Libby Shea for fixing all the plaques on the arena fence • Lex McIndoe for fencing off the area around the trees where parking can cause damage to the roots and potentially the death of the trees. Also for cutting another gap in the fence where us older citizens can enter the arena without groaning too much. • Chris Hazell, Ashley Dales, Adam Grover, Carl Price and Chris McIntosh for assisting with the building project. • John Elliott who has offered to harrow the arena on the Monday after each month’s rally. Steve

President’s report Imagine, if you will, being locked in a small room full of chocolate. I’m not talking about the cheap stuff - this is the best Lindt chocolate. All year you have been waiting for this and the more you eat the more appears available for you to choose from. What makes this even better is that no one seems to be asking anything of you. In fact, it’s just there for the taking. As you eat more and more, you feel better from the warm inner glow of a full stomach without consequence. Sure, your circumference is getting a little larger, but what a small price to pay for such indulgence. Then, all of a sudden someone you thought you cared about drags you out of your chocolate-induced stupor and asks you to work. Work! Not at your own pace but at theirs. At first you play dumb; you are lethargic and do as little as possible. But all of a sudden, all that latent energy explodes and you rush off like a person possessed, trying to be good but that that sugar buzz means you find it hard to apply yourself with care or attention. It all ends in tears - you feel terrible and those who depend on you are, in equal parts, scared and disappointed in you. Think now about your horse or pony. After months of interminable winter, the sun is now bathing them in its glow and the sodden pasture is now growing with vigour and shines with vitality and goodness. Clearly your horse will take every possible opportunity to gorge on this sugar-infused grass and will gain condition by the day – a little like you and the chocolate. Just as the winter limited pasture growth, it probably limited the frequency of your turnouts. But now the days are longer and the opportunities arise for you to shake of the equestrian cobwebs. What a combination! Is it any surprise that many of us, at this time of year, are confronted with horses which are both crazy and unpredictable. Spring is a terrific time but we must all prepare ourselves and our horse for the inevitable fizziness that comes with the first spring grass. Don’t blame your horse if it plays up a little, make sure it is regularly worked before rally and, if in doubt, lunge first before mounting. Take it out of the paddock and yard it if it’s going to help. All that we do with and around our horses must start and finish with safety. Have a great month of riding and I’ll see you at rally. Adam