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We are holding a working bee this weekend from 10am – 2pm on Saturday and Sunday. We need to flag the XC course, whippersnip and mow.

Please advise Kate on canberraode@gmail.com if you are able to make it for catering purposes.

Don’t forget to enter our upcoming Eventer Trial that is being held at Equestrian Park.
This is a great day for all ages and abilities to enjoy the jumping side of eventing without the dressage!

The first competition will be a pairs cross country. The course will be quite short, with the fences having various height options so that all pairs can be catered for. There will be three “dressing fences” which the two horses must jump as a pair (ie side by side). Points will be given for these fences and penalties deducted for refusals and falls. There will also be an optimum time. The winning pair will be the one that goes clear with the most points for style over the dressing fences. In the event of a tie, the winner will be the pair closest to (and under) the optimum time.  For the Pairs competition, fancy dress is encouraged and there will be a prize for the best fancy-dressed pair. However, please note that this competition is to be run under the relevant EA rules. In particular, it is the responsibility of each competitor to ensure that they wear the correct safety helmet and boots.

The other competitions will be the Eventer Trials. They will consist of a round of showjumping followed immediately by a timed obstacle course (testing the all round handiness of the horse and rider) and then (immediately again) by a cross country course. There will be four classes: 60cm, 80cm, 95cm and 105cm.

Any horse may compete in the pairs competition as well as one Eventer Trial competition.

Prizes will be offered for all events. Ribbons to 8^th place.

For further information about the competition contact Kate MacKenzie on 6296 6118 or 0403200341 canberraode@gmail.com

Enter online at nominate

Entries are now being accepted online on nominate for the clinic with Sam Lyle at Equestrian Park, Cotter Road, Curtin.

Sam is a popular coach within NSW and QLD, and no doubt this will be another successful clinic.  So enter early to avoid missing out!

Please go to their webpage to view photos taken by long time supporter of eventing in NSW, Main Event Photography. 

12 April 2014: Peter Gillis XC Clinic

Peter is a very popular instructor and works well with all levels, including younger children, novice adults and the more advanced riders.  All are welcome with the restriction that riders must be EA members, or members of NCHTA (who get a $10 discount).  Entries will be opening 19/03/2014 on nominate.

Our Draw is now available for downloading:  March 2014 Draw

Please take the time to read the notes properly.

Looking forward to seeing you soon,

NCHTA Committee.

It’s all go, go, go for the NCHTA committee and our wonderful volunteers.  Here are some snaps from the recent “flag-makeover” working bee. Thanks so much to those who came to lend a hand!   We a having another working bee on the long weekend (8^th – 10^th March).  Please come along and help us prepare for the event.  Let us know if you can make it (for catering).

We are still desperately looking for jump judges for the 16^th of March – please tell your friends who may be able to donate some time.

Looking forward to seeing you all soon.  Don’t forget that entries close tonight!!!

Hi Everyone,

Before we plunge any further into event mode in the lead-up to our CNC, we wanted to give you a quick recap of the recent Lucinda Green clinic. Below is a review provided by NCHTA Committee Member and dedicated Volunteer Coordinator, Felicity Moran…..

Lucinda Green, six times Badminton winner – on six different horses – and a former World Eventing Champion, is an eventing legend. She is also an excellent teacher. Her Safe Way eventing course is a must-do for up and coming eventers competing confidently at intro or above.

Lucinda’s philosophy is based on the rider allowing a horse to learn to think for himself in tackling cross-country obstacles, as this will ultimately make him a safer ride.  Her emphasis is on forming a partnership – with the rider the senior partner, to be sure – rather than a relationship based on domination by the rider which can lead to the horse relying on the rider for direction in the face of incipient problems offered by ‘technical’ xc obstacles: – fine when the rider is in balance and ready to direct, but what if you’ve had a disastrous A element and you’re (hopefully temporarily) something of a wayward passenger as Element B rushes towards (or past) you?

Exercises in the first day used SJ equipment and footing to create open ‘galloping’ fences interspersed with small combinations. The combinations included ‘skinnies’ with random striding and ‘impossible’ angles to subsequent combination elements, to illustrate the extraordinarily demanding technical questions posed by today’s xc courses.  The focus was on getting horse and rider to adjust between the fence types and to take the initiative in getting themselves over obstacles however they were placed.

Despite my misgivings, the angles proved not to be impossible when ridden properly, but they were very tough.

Lucinda’s tenets:

1. The rider must use a defensive position jumping xc; better to look untidy but clear the obstacle in sufficient balance to ride for the next one; and anyway, being too far forward, apart from being dangerous for the rider, inhibits the horse’s ability to jump.
2. The horse needs to see the fence to assess distance and lock on to it, and he can only see at a reasonable distance through the lower half of his eyes, so his head carriage needs to allow this on the approach. He cannot see forward if he is on the bit, nor if his head is too high.
3. The horse’s near vision is through the upper half of his eyes – which is why he’ll drop his head at the last moment to look into that ditch or the water. In this instance, rider (in glued-in defensive seat, not half-way up horse’s neck, of course) may need to slip the reins before the obstacle, then ‘aeroplane’  the arms to resume contact while pushing him vigorously over the fence. Aeroplaning the arms is quicker than gathering the reins, and the rider’s response must be instantaneous to maintain forward momentum and get the horse over/ into the ‘looky’ obstacle. (Lucinda attributed this tip to observation of Andrew Nicholson.)
4. Never re-present a horse to a small fence. Make discomfort the consequence of his refusal (immediate tap with whip) and rein back if necessary in order to then provide enough impulsion to jump the fence.
5. Circling prior to jumping is not necessarily helpful! (see point two).
6. Straight-line halt on completion of each exercise. Lucinda regards this as the final and essential obstacle in an exercise, teaching the horse to listen and to stay straight for the next jumping exercise.

If NCHTA can persuade Lucinda to return in future years – on a weekend would suit most NCHTA members – it is worth saving up for. It may be one of the toughest clinics you’ll do, but it will enrich your xc training and riding methods and will provide helpful pointers on handling and educating your horse in general.

Hi everyone! Please come down to equestrian park this weekend for the easiest working bee ever! We are giving our xc flags a makeover. Help us repaint them in the shade whilst listening to some good tunes 🙂 There is no hard physical labour required. Just bring yourself! Both Saturday and Sunday from 10am until 1pm! Please let us know if you can make it by replying to the Facebook post or emailing Lindsey at canberraht@gmail.com. We really appreciate your help!