Airlift Ensured Success Of Pony Club Championships

Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31380, 27 May 1967, Page 11

Airlift Ensured Success Of Pony Club Championships

''■'HE New Zealand Pony A Club championships aft Blenheim last week-end win be remembered for the magnitude of "Operation Pega* sus.” When it seemed pos* sible that the nil strike} might not end in time to bring the 60 North Island; horses and ponies to Picton , by sea the president of the Pony Club (Mr C. Levin) and tile championship presi-1 dent (Mr* M. A. Craven)' organised a special air-lift Bristol Freighters made a serie* of flight* carrying seven horses each time, together with their riders and gear, while special passenger flights took relations and supporters. The horses travelled well and were noticeably less tired than they would have been had they travelled by float Blenheim float owners did an excellent job of transporting the horses from and to the airport and the cross-coun-try come. The standard of. the 42 competitor* in the dressage event* for the Dorothy

Campbell trophy (under 17 years) and the A.l Cup (17 years to 21) was rather disappointing, although in the former, Sir Winston (Miss C. Hyland), of Gisborne, and Sonny Boy (R. Horrocks), of Wanganui, performed well for marks of 34 and 36 respectively. In the A.l section Delmont Lad (Miss A. Baxter), of Rakaia, produced an outstanding test which gained the record mark of -24. In second place was the Whakatane horse. Shannon (L. } Davis), with a mark of 36. The main interest for both 1 spectators and competitors llay tn the cross country phase which, with the show ’jumping, was held on the ♦second d*y. The course was * testing one over 2825 yards ■*rf hilly country. The fences, ;* number of which were at Maximum height, were beautifully built and cleverly - *lted and all required tmought on the part of the rfiders. Refusals were common, aind a number of horse* and

riders fell, fences four and 16 (both combinations) causing the most trouble. Fortunately only two of the falls were serious; Mis* M. Morton, of Southland, was knocked out when* Flash-

light fell at. the first fence, and D. Snowden, of Whangarei, broke his collarbone when Cherry Red overjumped at the first part of fence 16 and came down, badly injuring her knee. Although the mare will probably never jump again, she can be saved for breeding. Most of the top scorers in the dressage phase came through the cross-country without incurring penalties. Miss Baxter in the Al section, with a lead of 12 points, could afford to have two rails down in the show jumping and still win,, but the D.C. section was more open with only two points separating the first two competitors. No major upsets occurred in this phase among the leaders, although a rail down cost Cavalier (W. Rutherford) his third place in the Al Cup. In conjunction with the individual competition* a teams’ competition for the Presidents’ Trophy was run between the 14 pony dub area*. Uris was won for the second time by South Canterbury. Bay of Plenty was second and Gisborne-Wairoa third.