Waikato takes N.Z. Pony Club titles

Press, 27 May 1985, Page 38

Waikato takes N.Z. Pony Club titles

By

CAROLE VAN GRONDELLE

Waikato riders continued their brilliant winning form at the New Zealand Pony Club championships at the week-end with the team captain, Judith Charleston, taking the individual title in the Al class, and the team taking home the most important trophy, the Teams Championship Challenge Cup. A former champion, the Franklin-Thames Valley team (winner of the cup for the last four years) however, was pipped for second place by two South Island teams. Ashburton-South Canter-bury-North Otago came second, and CanterburyWestland placed a close third. This is the best placing the home team has ever achieved in the national championships. The final phases of the event, the cross-country and show jumping, were held on Saturday at Riccarton Racecourse, in brilliant sunshine and attracted a crowd of several thousand spectators. From early in the competition, the Waikato team almost totally dominated proceedings. On Friday, Charleston, riding her impressive. 13-year-old chestnut gelding, High Rate, had won the Knox-Thompson Perpetual Challenge Cup for the best individual dressage score. Looking every inch a

rider of international class, she maintained her dressage score of 25.33 through to the finish on Saturday, after riding a fast and polished cross-country and a magnificently controlled show jumping round. Charleston, aged 20, one of New Zealand’s top young riders, won the D.C. Trophy in 1981 at the Ashburton championships in the first year of eventing for her horse, High Rate. She has ridden successfully in Australia. and was a groom at the Los Angeles Olympics. She is now aiming for the world three-day event which is being held at Gawler in Australia in May next year. A fellow Waikato rider, Bernese Muir on Happy Wanderer, took a close second in the Al class, by also maintaining her dressage score to the finish. Franklin-Thames Valley rider Maree Brunton, on High Time, moved up a notch from her dressage placing to take third over all. For the first time in 24 years the winner of the Dorothy Campbell Challenge Trophy was a South Islander. Charlotte Young, aged 16, riding Ryvahd, for the Otago-Southland team, led the competition among the young riders from the start, with a dressage score of 33.78. She rode a clear, fast cross-country and a faultless show’ jumping to maintain first place. A Hawke's Bay aider,

Louise Trumper, riding her bay gelding, Bannister, moved up two slots to take second place over all. The third Waikato rider in the top placings was Bridget Cashmore on Casino, who took third place in the D.C. class. The cross-country course which spanned a large part of the racecourse, generally rode well. Some trouble was caused by a set of in and out hunt kennels, and a brightly-painted fence resembling a racecourse starting stalls. Horses had to jump beneath a “roof” and into dark trees and there were a number of refusals and eliminations. A series of four jumps in and out of water further around the course also caused a number of refusals and a few falls. Otherwise the course flowed well, and there were few time penalties amongst the majority of riders who finished. The show-jumping course was quite tight with several changes of rein, but it caused few difficulties. Results.— N.Z.P.C. Championships Challenge Cup: Waikato (137.77), 1; AshburtonSouth Canterbury-North Otago (194.11), 2: Canterbury-West-land (198.22), 3. Al class.— Over all: J. Charleston’s High Rate (25.33), 1; B. Muir’s Happy Wanderer (30.22), 2; M. Brunton's High Time (35.33), 3. D.C. class— Over all: C. Young's Ryvahd (33.78), 1; L. Trumper's Bannister (35.11), 2; B. Cashmore's Casino (38.44), 3.