Equestrian

The Casino Showground and Racecourse has had a massive makeover and was officially opened on April 20 ... The  new facility  includes a large undercover arena, an outdoor sand arena, turfed areas and covered stables, a new racehorse stable complex to accommodate up to 80 horses, and new car, truck and float parking areas.

Riders and spectators from around Australia will converge on the Region this weekend for the 22nd annual Paradise Lagoons Campdraft. The Paradise Lagoons Campdraft Association received $10,000 towards the event during round two of Council’s 2023/24 Community Assistance Program (CAP).  

Over the weekend, the 120 best pony club riders and their horses from Victoria and southern New South Wales participated in the 2024 Pony Club Victoria State Horse Trials Championships held at the Finley Pony Club ... Amber King-Gee, a local rider, competed with her horse New Indian Rupee in the Grade Three Division B.

The husband and wife team of Blake and Ellen Jones completed a recent Coolamon Cup three peat after Keto (Sweet Lou) led all the way to snare the harness racing silverware. Local reinsman Peter McRae was handed the reins on the Ellen Jones trained $3.60 second elect while her husband was in charge of the stablemate American Legacy.

Twenty-three horses and riders tackled the WA Endurance Riders Association Denmark ride on Saturday, May 4. The ride base was on private property on Mt Lindesay Road and riders tackled distances ranging from 12-80km on local roads and forest tracks.

The 2024 Adelaide Equestrian Festival has again lived up to the hype, with record-breaking crowds and some of the finest displays of horsemanship in the country on show ... David Middleton had an event to remember, winning the International CCI5* on his homebred WEC In The Money after winning the event at Gawler 24 years ago.

A united passion to ensure the welfare of thoroughbred horses by educating and training a skilled workforce is at the heart of a new Thoroughbred Breeders Association (TBA) online learning platform. TBA Learning ... was initiated in response to a desire to improve horse welfare, but the end result offers so much more.

While the big, elite events like Dressage and Jumping with the Stars and the Sydney Royal Easter Show were in full swing, the youngsters who could possibly feature in those events in the future were planning an assault on the Victorian State Mounted Games Championships.

Fourteen million dollars later, Casino has a world class equestrian centre with an undercover arena and shaded seating for 2500 people to watch events at the Casino Showground. At the official opening ... the speeches took place on the arena floor as horses and riders wound their way around the huge space.

The Sydney Royal Easter Show’s breed classes have again provided a highlight for spectators as the best of the best go under the judges’ eyes.

Nicki Barnet. Three of South Australia’s up and coming riders and their ponies have set off on the journey of a lifetime to the National Pony Racing Series Finals, which takes place at Royal Randwick in Sydney on All Aged Stakes Day on April 20. Supported by Racing SA, Cheyenne Crane and her pony Phoenix will represent SA in the large pony category...

The 2024 Man From Snowy River Bush Festival attracted record crowds on Friday and Saturday night in a celebration of Australian bush heritage ... The live concert on Friday night drew an estimated crowd of 8000 while the Wrangler Xtreme Broncs Australia rodeo on Saturday night was attended by a record 10,000 people.

The 2023/24 National Pony Racing Series reaches its peak with a thrilling final at Sydney’s Royal Randwick Racecourse ... Young riders, aged 9 to 15 years, representing Pony Clubs nationwide, will vie for victory ...

If ever a pony club could lay a claim to having produced famous riders, it’s Emu Creek. Four former members of the Victorian Western District club — Wayne, Barry and Clarke Roycroft and Phillipa Glennen — have become Olympians ... Pony club parents don’t seem to mind travelling, and the event drew competitors from across the state.

Peter Hibberd. The Charlton Harness Racing Club in conjunction with the Djaara people ran its annual race day at Charlton on Wednesday. Being the traditional owners of Country across central Victoria, the land on which the harness racing training centre is based was granted to the Charlton Club in 2012. Every year since, the Club has a special day to celebrate this important event.

Preparations are in full swing for this year’s Man From Snowy River Bush Festival (April 11th-14th) which is expected to be one of the best attended and most successful in its 29-year history. "We are genuinely excited with what we have in front of us in delivering the 2024 festival," said festival chairman, Cameron Jackson.

Mackenzie Walch, 18, has only been riding seriously since 2014 but the talented young eventer has just represented her country for the first time ... With eventing as her first love, she rose through the ranks and is now part of a group of young Tasmanian riders who find it necessary each year to compete on the mainland to get strong competition experience.

Member for Condamine Pat Weir has used a speech in Parliament to call for more investment to improve sporting facilities in the Toowoomba Region ... "The Toowoomba region was hopeful of a significant economic opportunity for its growing community with the announcement of the Olympic Games, especially given its close proximity to Brisbane and ongoing advocacy for a passenger rail connection to the south-east corner," he told Parliament.

The Gypsy Cob is one of the “new” breeds being seen in Australian show rings in recent years. Their history is based in the Romani culture. As their work horses and living with the Romani families, they developed a strong work ethic and equitable temperament. They were so cherished by their owners that the saying was that “gypsy gold does not clink and glitter, it gleams in the sun and neighs in the dark”.

Welsh ponies seem to bloom in March, with NSW leading the way, followed by the Victorian show later in the month. The 2024 NSW All Welsh Show was held at the Hawkesbury Showground, Clarendon, which is just west of Sydney before the Blue Mountains.

Yanco Agricultural High School polocrosse riders and Equestrian Centre competitors have been achieving success recently ... competed in the Yass PoloX carnival held at Hall in ACT ... The Yanco Agricultural High School Equestrian Centre at Yanco is booming with 24-plus horses now in residence.