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FEBRUARY 2010
CHAMPIONS
After 14 years in the
wilderness, the WP
team squeased
AT LAST
every mark possible
out of their team
dressage tests to pip
Gauteng to the
podium in the 2009
SA Junior Team
Dressage Champs.
Team manager Michelle Moreira
reports: Wow what a team! WP won
the team throphy for the first time in
14 years and we had quite a few new
faces to the team! If there was an
award for spirit, we’d have won that
as well. Our riders had consistancy
in their marks throughout the event.
Gauteng finished in second spot and
natal came third. Ingrid Malan and
Octavius setting a high standard at
66.46%, putting WP into an early
lead. The other team members duly
followed suit:
Nichola Mohr – Equifeeds Vaderland-
sche Sport Shu 66.85
Ernst Holtz (Judge), Michelle Moreira (Chef d’Equipe), Ella de Nicola (Reserve), Jessica Manig, Lucas khohlakala – Voightskirch
Lucas Khohlakala, Ingrid Malan, Nicola Mohr and Sylvia Bruckner (Judge and WP Dressage Chair). Babette 65.38
Jessica Manig and Orphius
62.54
Reserve – Ella de Nicola and
Midnight Sun
The marks were very close but our
riders rode for each and every mark
and it paid off at the end of the day.
It was an hounour being part of this
talented team of riders who competed
like true stars and were great am-
bassadors for the sport. They were
professional in every way.
PHOTOS BY EQUERRY
Michelle Moreira plus canine mascot,
Ella de Nicola (sadly obscured by
the flag), Ingrid Malan with Octavius,
Jessica Manig with Orpheus, Nicola
Mohr with Equi-Feeds Vaderlandsche
Sportschu and Lucas Khohlakala with
Voigtskirsch Babette.
FROM THE CHAIR
winning the Dressage, almost winning the Show Jumping and the
Equitation and coming third in the Showing. Well done to our rid-
ers who proved themselves on their home turf!
Congratulations also go to our Individual riders, Sarah Wallace
(Equitation) and Michaela Mohr (Showing) who won SANEF gold
Big bang theory medals. We are very proud of you.
Cherry Coleman dwells on our THANK YOU
The real stars of the show are the organisers, judges, officials and
2009 triumphs and the WP’s helpers.
The show would not have happened without the hard work,
huge success histing the SA dedication, frustration, exhaustion and enthusiasm of the following
special people:
Junior Champs. ‘The real stars of the show and the Dressage
*Janeese Silen
Committee
Western Province Horse Society
are the organisers, judges, * Sharron Trueb
and the Show
certainly ended 2009 with a bang!
The dust had barely settled after the
officials and helpers’ Jumping commit-
tee,
last float left Glenellen Farm after the * Tina Farr and
most successful World Cup Show the Showing Committee,
and the next National Show began. * The Equitation Committee ( Natalie Vercuiel not only helped
Debbie Slater (Para Dressage WP) run the show, but also organised the social calendar)
and her team organised and hosted * Di Arnold for helping in the office and Stewarding
the South African Para Equestrian * Wayne Thurgood for Stewarding, running the stables and plot-
Championship at Constantia Valley ting out the Dressage arenas
Riding Club from 26-29 November. * Shirley Coxon, who we all know as “the Medic on Duty” for
Congratulations to Debbie, her Team stewarding on a full time basis for the duration of the show.
and her sponsors for putting on a fantastic, memorable event for * Herman and Kiki, from Cape Hunt and Polo Club, who went
these riders who are an inspiration to us all. out of their way to help WPHS and our visiting riders and officials
from out of Province.
SA JUNIOR CHAMPS 2009
No sooner was that done and dusted when it was SA Junior
Championships 2009. EXTRA SPECIAL THANK YOU
Due to the hard work of the Championship’s organising Danielle Pienaar formed the backbone of the show provid-
Committee and the generosity of Sponsors, WPHS can hold it’s ing a multitude of services that she performed before, dur-
head high for presenting a well-organised show. ing and after the show.
So as not to put WPHS at any financial risk, it was decided In If someone was not there to do a job, Danielle stepped in.
the planning stages for this big event, that each discipline would During the course of the event, she did Stewarding, Public
organise and run their own classes, raise their own sponsorship Relations, travel and accommodation arrangements, earth-
and thus fund themselves. works organisation, Show Jumping Judging as well as the
A central fund was raised through sponsorship by Equimark who work of a stable hand on top of her responsibilities of Show
made their stables available for the event at no cost to WPHS. In- Convenor. If that was not enough, she was also appointed
come derived from the hiring out of the stables covered costs such SANEF Rep due to Jimmy Dewar’s unfortunate hospitalisa-
as paramedics, security, the public address system etc. Equifeeds tion. Thank you, Danielle!
saved WPHS a small fortune by sponsoring the exquisite rosettes
and Spur came on board feeding the starving Judges and Officials.
We are extremely grateful to these companies for their generosity.
The SA champs could not have been held in the Western Province
ED: The promise of a summary of the financials from
without them.
the SA Champs for the next issue of WP News is music
Due to the office only opening again on the 18 January, the final to the ears. Given some giant flops hosting national
reconciliation is presently being done and the financial breakdown championships in the past, it’s a subject after many
will only be available for publication in the next News Letter. people’s hearts. We wait with keen interest...
The Western Province Junior Teams did themselves proud by
THE LUCKY
WINNER
Congratulations to Mione Heese who
correctly identified Hayley Preen in the
photo hiding under the peak cap. She wins a Capriole
Streamline helmet worth R550 from The Tack Shack.
Page 2
JUNIOR CHAMPS
Notable results:
Healthtech Open (1.30m) Grand Prix
3rd Chanel van de Zeshoek and Jeanne Engela WHS
WP Dressage Chair Sylvia 4th Beachhaven Aleyna and Jeanne Engela WPHS
Healthtech Open Championship
Bruckner contemplates the 4th Eagles Cornflake and Monique Bekker WPHS
5th Wanda and Liam Stevens WPHS
province’s laurrels and other
Most Stylish Rider Liam Stevens WPHS
disciplines report back. The Horsebox’s 1.20 Championships
Rowan Visser (WPHS) and Cheetah came 3rd
Dressage
Alpha Macro 1.1m Championship
Sylvia Bruckner: Competitors are not always aware of the enor- 1st Chelsea Duffield & Cruise Split the Bill (WPHS)
mous amount of work that goes into making a show happen. This combination also won the Victor Ludorum at this height
For this Junior championships it was imperative that we WPHS won the Team competition at this height
have sand arenas in order to maintain the standard of footing
required for a show of this standard. We’d created sand arenas Hang Ten 1.00 Championship
on grass once before at Wyneberg Military base when we Ist Tori Bosomworth & Badger’s Song (WPHS)
hosted the 1997 Adult Championships. This model used very Victor Ludorum- Chelsea Duffield & Mr Graduate (WPHS)
successfully at the adult champs in Kimberley this year too and WPHS also won the Novice Team competition at this height
this gave the dressage committee courage to go down this path Alpha Macro 90cm Championship
again. Thanks to Henk Scholtz for his unwavering determination 1st Storm Barry & Blazing Star (WPHS)
to get this mammoth job done and also to thank the sponsors Victor Ludorum- Apache Moon & Tayla Gordon (WPHS)
of the sand (Dirk Schlechter of JPS Transport). The arenas WPHS won the Novice Team Event @ 90cm
rode like a dream and this was evident in the way the horses
responded. Neuland Stud’s 80cm Championships
Janeese Silen, the dressage director, ensured that each day 1st Jus de Champagne & Lisa Bosman (WPHS)
ran like clockwork – thank you to Janeese for her sterling effort Victor Ludorum- Sir Oliver Twist & Megan Torrington (WPHS)
to make everything just perfect. There are so many other thank WPHS won the Novice Team Event @ 80cm
yous necessary, including the organisers of the venue and the
foundations of the show, but also to our dressage sponsors,
Laura Kotze and Mayla Malan. Equitation
There were many brilliant horses and some accomplished rid-
ing to watch leaving no doubt that the standard of juniors is ris- Shayna Cowley reports on behalf of the Open Team: Consider-
ing all the time. Michelle Glover(EC), Anthea Michaleotos (GHS) ing that Equitation is an ‘exclusive’ discipline, it has certainly
with her stunning mare, the two Jacobs brother from FS/NC and produced many exceptional riders who go on through the years
Michelle Wing(KZN) are all talented riders for the future! And it’s to become top ranking riders in our country. Most of the riders,
pleasing to see talent spread among the provinces. by just learning to ride correctly in Equitation classes, do well in
all other disciplines.
Show Jumping Top Riders, who also instruct at top levels and who believe in
the merits of this Discipline include Jonathan Clarke, who won
the gold medal in 1980/83, Anmarie Eslinger, Rogan Asken,
Helen Trueb reports: Our Show Jumping team was so narrowly Dominey Alexander, Gonda Betrix and Sarah de lay Hay to men-
beaten into second. Gauteng were fractionally faster, although tion a few...
both teams carried forward three double clear rounds. Congrat- To date the Western Province riders who have won the SA
ulations to our team: Jeanne Engela and Chanel, Liam Stevens Championship are Vicky Sheppard (1995), Megan Coleman
and Wanda, Sarah Wallace and Swifty Lazar, Jessica Augustyn (2008) and now, in 2009, Sarah Wallace has brought the trophy
and Leapy Cruise and Elizabeth Bryant and Pohlands Wizard of home again.
Oz. Our team also included Megan Coleman, Elizabeth Bryant and
Huge thanks to all our sponsors, large and small, who were Nicola Landau. The girls rode beautifully but also effectively on
unfailingly generous and accommodating, and to all the officials their own and on the swopped horses and produced fantastic
who gave up their time to make the event a success. scores. After the end of Part 3 WP had to challenge Kwa-Zulu
Natal to a sudden death ride off to break the tie.
ED: No showing report was submitted. Our nails were down to the quick... and our top scorer, Sarah
Wallace was elected to ride for WP. The spectators were para- jumps needed for part I of the competitions were set up early
lysed with anticipation whilst the scores were calculated... and and competitors and their instructors were given ample time to
checked... and Western Province was JUST beaten by Kwa- Zulu walk and plan. All judges were required to be at the venue in
Natal. Well done to Kwa- Zulu Natal for winning...and well done good time to walk the courses and discuss judging parameters
WP! The Equitation Committee and Show Organising Commit- before the courses were opened to competitors. The judges were
tee, hosted an impeccably well organised and well run show. then treated to a choice breakfast before the competitions began
each day, which was much appreciated. Penny Lazarus’s lively
Intermediate and Novice Individual and Team Champs commentary was a welcome bonus and scribes were efficient.
Natalie Vercuiel reports: After a great deal of preparation and Beautiful rosettes sponsored by Equifeeds, sashes and blankets
attending numerous clinics, supplied by sponsors (The
the big day arrived! Unfor- Riding Centre, CDSVintec
tunately we were unable to and Benchmark) and memen-
have a Novice Team Event, toes were given to Teams
as there were no teams and winners.
from the other provinces. We
agreed to allow the girls to Novice Individual Equita-
ride with the new team num- tion Championship:
nahs and browbands which This was a relatively small
were generously sponsored class with predominantly local
by Stellenbosch Horse Shop. riders, which is to be expect-
The winner of the Novice ed when SA Champs is held
class was Madeleine Davis at a venue involving a long
of the Western Province on trip. This resulted in no team
Sweet Roxanne. Western competition being able to be
Province riders also filled the held. However, the riders had
fourth and fifth places. the opportunity to experience
The intermediate riders riding under pressure at a big
and horses were beautifully show.
turned out. Being a relatively The competition was
inexperienced group of girls, marred by an instructor’s
their nerves were on edge. interference. There is no
They all rode superbly, but accounting for the human
made unfortunate errors factor and no amount of good
which I am sure will not be organization can do away
repeated. The girls kept with subjectivity. However,
smiling, kept their spirits up nobody should be allowed
and came in a close third to interrupt a judge during a
place with 178 points behind competition! The competitor
Gauteng (181 points) and had failed to change direction
Eastern Cape (180,5 points). for the last circle of the figure
Three WP riders were placed 8. This instructor continued to
as Individuals: Karien du Toit be aggressive long after the
(4th ), Zandri Uys (5th) and completion of the class and
Georgia Biet (8th). was informed of the correct
I am sure that the girls Sarah Wallace, 2010 South African Equitation Champion (looking on is procedure to follow when
have gained huge experience Swifty Lazar, her mount for the competition) . lodging a complaint – put it in
from riding in a Team and as writing and bring the written
Individuals at this high level of competition and I wish them well complaint together with the required fee to the organizer.
for 2010. Intermediate team and individual equitation Champion-
Well done girls. It was an honour to be your Team Manager. ships: Brendan Silen again designed an appropriate track for this
I also thank the parents and instructors who supported their competition, which was held in the B arena. Nineteen competitors
children by attending all the clinics with them and for coming took part in the individual championship and four teams contest-
forward with sponsorship and help wherever it was needed. ed the team event. There was a good general standard and both
the individual and team competitions were closely contested.
Excerpts of the Equitation Report to SANEF Open Individual SA Equitation Championship: For the
By Pat Pohl (President of the equitation ground jury at SA first time the track for the individual open championship was set
Junior Champs) reports: The Equitation show organizers set at 1.20m. Kevin Spratley designed an appropriate track of 11
out to leave no stone unturned to facilitate the smooth running fences, which required forward, thinking riding and included two
of all the equitation competitions. The show jumping tracks and combinations and several related distances. This competition
was held in the main arena. In keeping with the increased
standard of show jumping now required, all judges agreed
that the level of flatwork should be judged according to
strict principles too.
Open Equitation Team event: This was again held in
the main arena with Kevin Spratley designing an appropri-
ate 1.10m track. Three teams took part and competition
was close resulting in a ride-off between WP and KZN to
determine the winning team. KZN can justifiably be proud
of their choice of rider for this part 4 as she left nothing to
chance in her assessment and handling of the mystery
horse, although the WP’s choice by no means disgraced
herself.
Thank you to the Western Province Equitation commit-
tee for a well-organized event, unfortunately marred by the
“human” element, which cannot be controlled!
WP Open Equitation Team: Elizabeth Bryant, Sarah Wallace,
Nicola Landau and Team Manager Shayna Cowley.
Page 4
VAULTING
Compiled by Hilde Ocenasek, Vaulting Chairman
WPHS can also be proud of Bongani Mvumvu who is living
his dream. He now vaults at B grade and assists with the coach-
ing of the Sowetho Team. He works at Virgin Active and still
calls Cape Town home.
Doing the province proud On behalf of WP Vaulting I would like to thank Lesley Bend-
ing (Paint Horse SA) who kindly sponsored R3500 towards our
Trish Lane reports: Kyalami is slowly becoming synonymous expenses. It was a unanimous decision that her sponsorship be
with and the heart of vaulting in South Africa. The 2009 National given to Barbie for the use of her lovely horse, her coaching and
Championships were again held in the KEP Hall from the 4-7 lungeing prior and throughout the competition.
December and recorded bigger entries and higher scores on Thank you also to Paula Taylor and her organizing committee
average than previous events. For the first time in many years for a very well run show. Finally to the team we left behind – WP
the event was held separately and not in conjunction with Junior vaulters, coaches, lungers, grooms, physios and our horses
Champs. This positive decision favours vaulters who compete in thank you for your support throughout the year.
other equestrian disciplines.
Unfortunately the provinces have different school calendars WP Individual D Grade Open Results and Scores (canter com-
and most of our schools in the Cape only closed on the 11 Dec. pulsory walk freestyles)
This ruled out any WP vaulters in grade nine from competing Anacy Tainton – 2nd - 2 points
except for Imogen who wrote all her exams in one week. Natasha Miszewski - 5th – 2points
In the end we had three girls that could go and thanks to Imogen Moon – 6th -2 - point
Barbie Gertenbach they had a horse waiting for them at Riba
Stables. WP Individual C Grade Open Results and Scores (canter com-
The girls had three training sessions on Enchanted Fantasy. pulsory and canter
They took him for walks, fed him many carrots and by the start freestyles)
of competition were quietly confident. All three girls competed in Natasha Miszewski – 2nd – 2 points
both individual D and C grade events. Anacy Tainton - 4th – 2- points
In addition WP was able to enter the Individual Team Inter- Imogen Moon – 6th -1 - point.
provincial as a rule was amended allowing Anacy (under 14
vaulter) to vault in the open category. Open C Grade Individual Interprovincial
This year our team again gave more than 100% and achieved 1st GHs
excellent results. 2nd WP
EVENTING
his guidance and will travel to compete in various European
events, from Saumur to Aachen.
In September they will leave for Kentucky to compete in what
Compiled by Merri Spratley promises to be a show-stopping event. This is the first year that
the games will be held in the United States and the Kentucky
Horse Park is able to host all eight disciplines in its 1200-acre
SA TBs go global for WEG spread, including the newest FEI discipline, Para Dressage.
Visitors to the park also have the opportunity to meet A living
Published on www.racingweb.co.za: The international suc- legend of the turf, Cigar, winner of the first Dubai World Cup,
cesses of our very own home-grown horses cannot be disputed. and Kentucky Derby winners Alysheba and Funny Cide. The
From Hawaii to London News, Horse Chestnut, Victory Moon, Keeneland Yearling sales which start on 13 September will end
Desert Links, Paris Perfect and Jay-Peg, to mention but a few the day after the opening of the WEG, so September in Ken-
that have succeeded on international tracks, writes CATHERINE tucky looks like the place to be.
HARTLEY. They have all made us feel “Proudly South African” For the team to qualify for this level of competition overseas
and have helped to put South African breeding and racing firmly is a great achievement. It just goes to show that our SA Thor-
on the map. oughbreds can compete internationally even beyond their racing
Now, for the first time, two SA Thoroughbreds have qualified careers!
to represent South Africa in Eventing, to compete at the World On the realistic side, although the SA National Equestrian
Equestrian Games (WEG) to be held at the Kentucky Eques- Federation is assisting where they can, most of the approxi-
trian Park in Lexington from 25 September 2010. mately R850 000 for each competitor and horse will need to be
The five members of the South African team are Paul Hart, self -funded.
Douglas Welsh, Graham Winn, Heidi Wood and Alex Peternell. This is a huge undertaking by the team members and they
Paul and Douglas are both competing on South African Thor- will need all the support that they can get to fulfil this incredible
oughbreds. opportunity and make SA history.
Paul’s horse, Heartbreak Hill, is a 13 year old bay gelding by
Rocky Marriage out of the Jungle Cove mare, Boomy Hill and
Douglas rides the 11 year old Bel Byou gelding, Kings Courier. The going gets sicky at Nelson’s
The horses go into quarantine next week and then on to
France to compete in Europe, for six months, in preparation for Who would have thought that the Western Cape would have record
the Equestrian Games. rainfall in November! The week prior to the original show date it
The team will be based in Fontainebleau with Jean-Philippe rained, rained and rained. The officials went out to inspect the go-
Camboulives, their coach and advisor. There they will be under ing and had no choice but to call the show off for November. Now it
Page 5
was up to the organisers to find another date. The W’rite Shoppe For Printing The Cross Country Numbers
We all know how full the calendar is at the end of the year, and Noordhoek Village Assocation for the loan of equipment
after much discussion a date was finally decided on. The organis- Vedi Security for the loan of the radios for the officials
ers also had to take into consideration that Nelson Wine Estate is
a private farm that caters to many other sporting events, functions As it can be in Wellington, after all the rain, it was hot, but it was an
and weddings, so we had to fit in. Luckily for Eventing the 5th & 6th Eventing Show and Eventers are nothing if not tough! The tracks
December was available. were lovely and well designed by Andy Balula – a well known face
The change of date was never going to work for all and the event at our Eventing shows now – thank you Andy.
did lose numbers, but not enough to prevent the show from going Dressage day went off with out a hitch, thanks to our Dressage
ahead. Thank you to the sponsors and individuals who helped guru Debbie Slater and then it was Cross Country day – which is
make this event a success: what all eventers prefer. The novice class went off first and the
track rode really well, although riders had to make sure their lines
Sponsorship: where straight for the skinnies! The intermediate track was tricky
Courier-It (Pty) Ltd and caught out quite a few riders – a skinny after the drop was not
Canterbury House fun. Our CNC riders all had fantastic rounds and it was great for
Trinity Asset Management the younger riders to watch and see how it is done – something
Lane Stables they can all aspire to. Cross Country ended with the Welcome and
Man Truck & Bus the Pre-Novice classes, the more inexperienced horses found the
Banners And Prize Donations big wide open space quite something to take in and all the fences
Patrick Thomas Equine Physiotherapy before them, quite a lot to look at…For the first time in a while, ev-
Caviar Group eryone got to show jump after the Country, good practise for those
Noordhoek Village Tack who had not had this chance in the year. Congratulations to all the
Equi-Feeds prize winners.
Creature Comforts A full list of results is on the WP Eventing website: wpeventing.
Cape Animal Physiotherapy co.za. Congratulations to the organisers who put their heads down
Boats 4 Africa and made this show happen, and thank you to Alan Nelson of
La Estancia Farm Nelson Wine Estate for hosting the event. We hope that the 2010
Thank you to: competition will have perfect weather conditions.
Susan Turner For Providing The Show Jumping Equipment
DRESSAGE fer perfect conditions, to get the four-legged cracks ready for the
outdoor season, to train young horses and check their improve-
ments or to attend a complete training program with students
and clients. Top stars as Rodrigo Pessoa (Brazil), Peter Wylde
Laura Kotze makes the A-list (USA), John Whitaker (Great Britain) or the dressage riders
Nicole Uphoff (Duisburg/Germany) and Alexandra Simons-de-
Rider (Aachen/Germany) already came to Spain. The Sunshine
WP senior judge, Laura Kotze has just been promoted to Tour is the start into the outdoor season!
National A Panel dressage judge. Well done Laura! This is a
brilliant achievement and is a testament to her dedication, com- The schedule offers the following tours:
mitment and unwavering enthusiasm. a) YOUNG HORSES – These classes are every week on Tues-
day, Wednesday and Thursday. You can start 5, 6, or 7-years
Mariette Withages coming soon old horses, which do not compete in other international class-
es in the same week. You could enter 3 horses per age.
b) SMALL TOUR – This
Mariette Withages (Olympic judge, clinician, chairwoman of tour is also called „Owner
the International Dressage Judges’ Club etc.) will be coming to Classes” and is divided into 4 Kevin Spratley
Cape Town on 16th/17th April to give a Judge’s Seminar. More classes (1,10 m, 1,20 m, 1,30
details to follow or check out the WP Dressage website. m and 1,40m). In the Small
tour you can start 4 horses
Dual Adult SA Champs for PE per weekend, 1 horse per
class. In the Grand Prix of
the Small Tour (21.3.10) each
The Adult Dressage and Showing champs are scheduled to be rider is allowed to start with 1
held in Port Elizabeth this year, and in the same 10 day period, horse.
which means you can get two disciplines for hte price of one c) BIG TOUR – This tour of-
this year! fers 4 classes (1,35 m – 1,50
m) every Friday, Satur day
SHOW JUMPING and Sunday. In these classes
each rider is allowed to start
with 1 horses, that means 4
horses per weekend.
The sun shines on Kevin Spratley
This is big news for South African Show Jumping: Anne-Marie
Esslinger (GHS) and Kevin Spratley (WPHS) have been invited
to be Course Designers at the Spanish Sunshine Show Jump- You can still buy Team
ing Tour which runs from 16th February to 21st March 2010 in SA shirts and peak caps
the South of Spain, near Jerez de la Frontera. to support our 2010 rid-
Every year in February and March Dehesa Montenmedio ers. WPHS Show Jumping
becomes the most frequented showground of Europe. Nowhere committee has given riders
else meet as many horses and riders on one square kilometer. permission to ride in Team
SA shirts for graded com-
The Sunshine Tour – has been carried out for the first time more
petitions. Phone Merri to
than ten years ago on different Spanish showgrounds – attracts order your gear:
riders from all over the world to the Spanish Atlantic coast. 082-777-6243.
Eleven weather proofing arenas, paddocks and fixed stables of-
Page 6
Graham Haddow
DRIVING
ponies completed a 4.5 km marathon route through the forest.
After a short 10min cool down period, the ponies were off again
to complete the 8 designated hazards and another 6km route.
Times and positions were still very close and clearly all would
WP Driving Champs success be decided by the cones course.
After a short lunch and rest for the ponies/ horses and driv-
Lou Docke, Driving Chairman reports: On Sunday the 29th of ers, the cones course was opened. The course contained 16
November 2009, the Western Province Driving Champs were elements and proved to be more technical for many drivers than
held at the Stellenbosch District Riding Club. The championship initially thought when they walked it. After a nail biting re-count
show consists of a driven dressage test, a marathon and hazard of the scores to ensure they were correct, as they were so
section and a cones course. This year saw one of the largest close, Roland Croxford driving Toby, took the Western Province
turn out of ponies and horses than previous years, allowing for a Driving Championship Title for Open ponies, with Lou Docke
pre-novice, novice and open class. driving Sally in second place.
The standard of dressage in the province has greatly im- Yvonne Hertzog driving Kaleidoscope Iris took the novice
proved, and scores were close in all of the classes by the end championship title and Merle Hertzog driving Kaleidoscope Gold
of this stage. In the marathon and hazard section, the pre- Dust came first in the pre-novice championship class.
novice and novice ponies/ horses only had to complete selected Well done to all of the drivers, grooms and ponies on a very
hazards so as not to let them cover too far a distance. The open successful championship show, and good luck for 2010.
Lou Docke Yvonne Hertzog
Page 7
PARA EQUESTRIAN
Compiled by Debbie SLater, Chairman
WEG Qualifier a first for SA
Constantia Valley Riding Club, by kind permission of
SARDA Cape Town, was the spectacular setting for the
inaugural World Equestrian Games Qualifier, which was
awarded to Cape Town in November 2009. Not only was
this the South African Para Equestrian Championship, but
it also meant that the riders who qualified at this event are
now eligible to compete at the 2010 WEG in Kentucky.
The riders who qualified are Marion Milne (Grade Ib),
who was a member of the South African Paralympic Team,
Hong Kong 2008, Wendy Moller (Grade II), Cathy Lloyd
(Grade IV) – all from Gauteng – and Anthony Dawson
(Grade II) from KZN. Although Western Province riders
narrowly missed qualifying, three of the horses ridden by
qualifying riders were from WP – Dicatan (kindly loaned
by Melina Frey), Flaming Gun and Shadow Dancer (kindly
loaned by Alison Notley).
It was an absolute honour to host Jane Goldsmith and
Chris Porterfield, both from Great Britain and Liz Day from
KZN. Consumate professionals in all aspects of dressage
and para equestrian sport, these ladies were delighted to
share their knowledge and experience and were a pleasure
from start to finish.
Two FEI Classifiers, Lyn Lawford and Elsa Matthee were
also present, ensuring that all twelve riders were correctly
classified and Lyn was quick to volunteer her scribing
services, when one of our regulars was unable to get to the
show.
Our stewards, Danielle Pienaar and Di Arnold did a
‘back-to-back’ stint, straight after the World Cup in Hout
Bay.
This event was an overwhelming and humbling experi-
ence for the team who put it together – Sharon Boyce,
Teri Smith, Lisa Hudson-Peacock, and Debbie Slater. The
support from South Africa Sport for Physically Disabled was
wonderful, as was the backing from the SANEF power-
house.
What cannot be underestimated is the incredible
response and commitment from so many in our Western
Province equestrian community to our plea for donations
and sponsorship. It seems disloyal to single anyone out,
but a full list will be published on the Western Province
website in February, as we prepare to take our riders ‘out of
Province’ and up to Gauteng for the second 3* WEG Quali-
fier from 18 – 23 March 2010.
This momentous show was rounded off with The Riders
Dinner. Guest of Honour, Philppa Johnson, Paralympic
double gold medallist brought her humility and flair to the
table! Lisa Hudson-Peacock made this mammoth task look
simple and threw in a fun auction, for good measure, to
raise funds for WPPE. You had to be there!
Incorporated into SANEF in January 2009, the Para
Equestrian Discipline is in its infancy. We have very few
riders compared to other disciplines (this, we see as a posi-
tive, for obvious reasons!) yet Western Province hosted the
first International event of its kind in South Africa and the
compliments are still rolling in!!!
It is our fervent hope that Para Equestrian dressage will
be incorporated into mainstream able-bodied dressage
shows in Western Province in 2010, and hopefully, nation-
ally, with classes for Para riders in the 2010 SANEF Com-
petition and South African Dressage Championships in Port
Elizabeth, as was promulgated by SANEF Para Equestrian
and approved by SANEF Dressage Technical Committee
early in 2009.
TOP: Lizette Smith and Solitaire.
It has been an honour to be part of this small but vibrant
discipline and its committee. It’s been an even greater MIDDLE: International Judges Jane Goldsmith (GBR), Liz Day (RSA) and
privilege to realise how supportive many members of our Chris Porterfield.
Society are to our ‘parallel’ riders – you know who you are,
and that we couldn’t have done it without you. BOTTOM: Inter-provincial team parade.
Page 8
WPHS OFFICE HAVE YOUR SAY
Thanks for the sterling job you did with the News Review in
Western Province Horse Society 2009 - very much appreciated! More of the same in 2010!
WJM House. Cnr Logan Way & Sheldon Way, Pine- Results need to be accessible on the website rather than in
lands. the News Review. I am under the (possibly misguided) impres-
Office hours 07:30am to 15:30pm including lunch- sion that this was the reason for investing in the Equisport pro-
gramme - so all interested parties could access results, points,
time. Monday to Friday only.
grading etc, simply by going onto the website, as is the case
with the GHS website, which I believe is also on the Equisport
Phone 021 531 7971 Fax 021 532 0367 (all hours) programme. I’d be delighted to see more ‘news’, less ‘reviews’
E-mail info@wphs.co.za Website www.wphs.co.za (aka results...).
Although Junior Champs was a huge and successful un-
Deadlines for WPHS Newsletter: STRICTLY 20th of dertaking, the last two months of 2009 saw some equally
every month for all ads, stories and photos. wonderful shows and milestones. The organising committee of
Junior Champs deserve massive kudos for all their hard work
Editorial is published at the discretion of the editor. in making the event happen. So too, does the OC for the show
jumping World Cup, which was, by all accounts, a fantastic
spectacle. And Nelsons Wine Estate WP Eventing Champion-
ADVERTISING RATES ships – the event that almost wasn’t! Again, discipline chairs
Full page (20cm wide x 28 cm high) R630 and OC’s working together, created a wonderful environment at
Half page (20cm wide x 14 cm high) R450 both the Lower Dressage Championship and the super event-
Quarter page strip (20cm wide x 7cm high) ing championships on a scorching weekend. My own personal
R170 milestone was a World Equestrian Games Qualifier and South
African Championship for Para Equestrian Dressage, with
International judges and three riders qualifying for WEG 2010!
Classifieds (Max 60 words) Looking forward to an exciting 2010! Debbie Slater.
Members R55
Non-members R95
ED: You’re spot on – uploading results onto the websites
Discounts: will certainly get rid of the bulk of the newsletter, which
Less 5% for 3 insertions, less 10% for 6 insertions consequently runs into many pages and is tedious to
Inserts (Commercial) R630 download. Your suggestion has been adopted for this
Members & Aff Clubs R515 edition with the approval of Exco and, no doubt, many
WPHS members. Now this does put more pressure on the
disciplines and readers to supply news and photos...
Boarding, Spelling, Rehabilitation,
Retirement – 130km from Cape Town
Lying at the foothills of the Kleinriviersberg in the heart of the Overberg, is Shabach
Endurance Stud's property. The horses have their own safe large paddocks with shelters
or roam in the veld as part of a heard.
Daily grooming and regular visits by a farrier and equine physical rehab practitioner,
makes it ideal for horses requiring special attention.
Owner, SA National Team Endurance Rider, Naomi Müller, is closely involved with
all the horses on the property.
Contact: Naomi Müller at 082 783 1802
