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The Pony Club Dengie Winter League Championships 2011

21st April 2011

The prestigious Pony Club Winter League Show Jumping and Dressage Championships 2011, generously sponsored by Dengie Crops Ltd the UK's leading manufacturer of fibre-based horse feeds, were held at Warwickshire College, Moreton Morrell, on April 16th-17th.
The Championships are the pinnacle of the Dengie Winter League, for around 200 Pony Club competitors, who have been taking part in qualifiers for both Show Jumping and Dressage at Novice and Open level, across the country during the winter months.

Some stunning sunshine made for a wonderful weekend of competition starting with the Show Jumping on the Saturday. Holly Horton (14) riding Sweet Delight from the Ridgeway Branch of The Pony Club proved a force to be reckoned with, taking the title with a jump off time of 29.83 which was a clear four seconds ahead of her nearest competitor. “I felt good after my jump off round, and thought it had gone well” said Holly, “but it was still nerve wracking whilst I watched the rest of the competitors go!”

Later in the day the Open level competition enjoyed one of the largest and possibly strongest fields to date, with 52 competitors. Amanda Hylands (21) riding Piccanto from the Iveagh Branch of The Pony Club demonstrated her ability to be the only clear round in the jump off, on a time of 38.01, to take the title honour. There was further success for the Iveagh Branch as Sarah Adamson (16), winner of the 2010 Open Competition, was received the Horsemanship Award, riding Drumnavaddy Priceless.

Sunday saw a morning of strong grassroots Dressage competition for the Winter League Novice competition, yielding four riders for the afternoon Ride Off. Millicent Logan (13) from the West Midlands Branch of The Pony Club proved the worthy winner with Tonto Warrior on a score of 71.30%. “I feel fantastic” said Millicent when asked about her win. “Tonto Warrior always stands out at a competition and I was so pleased to qualify, but I didn’t expect to win and now I am on cloud nine!”

The Open level riders continued to do battle for the placings during the afternoon, and as four riders came forwarded for the ride off Emma Wood (13) from the Vale of Aylesbury Branch of The Pony Club claimed the victory, on a score of 69.03%, riding Mr Bobby Dazzler.

Ian Hassard, Managing Director, Dengie Horse Feeds commented “As usual, the standard at the Pony Club Dengie Winter League Championships was very high and it is great to see riders from all over the country competing for their chance at glory in this prestigious event. Dengie Horse Feeds is proud to support such a wide pool of talent and I wish to extend my congratulations to show jumping winners Holly Horton and Amanda Hylands, as well as to dressage winners Millicent Logan and Emma Wood.”

Further information on The Pony Club Dengie Winter League Championships and The Pony Club’s activities can be found on the website at www.pcuk.org

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