At the Crookwell Show, which took place across the weekend of February 9 and 10, the Crookwell Pony Club boasted a strong presence and held one of its rally days on the Sunday, which was highly successful according to club president Catherine Culley.
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With the strong crowds and a plethora of equestrian events over the weekend, it was a new atmosphere for many of the Pony Club kids, who had never before performed in front of spectators and to such a strict schedule.
This, Culley said, was an important learning curve ahead of the busy couple of months ahead.
“[It was] an experience overall for sure,” she said.
“Getting to be organised, at your ring at the right time, going in the right events, doing as you’re instructed by your judge, and things like that.
“[It was a] big learning curve for a few of the kids, but that’s all good. It’s all part of the experience.”
Although the weather on Saturday was far from perfect, it did not deter the club’s competitors and improved for Sunday’s rally day.
“Saturday was a bit cool and windy and a bit wet, but not too bad,” Culley said.
“There seemed to be similar numbers [of Pony Club competitors] to last year.”
As many of the kids were new to the environment, Culley praised the gentle and inclusive hand of Violet Taylor, the judge for Ring Two on Sunday, who was stewarded by her son, Harry.
“Everyone had a good day, there was plenty of ribbons,” Culley said.
“[Taylor] was fantastic. The kids loved her and she was really good in terms of accommodating them all.”
While the club’s rally day took place on the Sunday, the kids competed in equestrian events across both days, and competitors from the ages of two to 18 competed.
The strength of the Pony Club’s numbers was a welcome sight for Culley, considering the club has grown exponentially over the last 12 months and looks set to continue its development.
The next two or three months will prove instrumental in this process as the club visits a number of the impending shows, including Goulburn and Tarago on March 2 and 3, and the Taralga Show on March 9 and 10, and it will also hold another rally day for the riders who cannot attend the shows.
“It’s sort of a busy time of year for these first few months with the shows,” Culley said.
“The kids try to go to the shows, but we will probably still run our usual rally day on March 10 because there’ll be 10 or 15 kids that don’t go to the shows that want to have a rally day.”
For more information about the Crookwell Pony Club’s upcoming events, visit its Facebook page.