Tarwin Lower welcomes riders

TARWIN Lower Pony Club welcomed an enthusiastic group of participants from around the region on Wednesday, January 12, with riders and their horses put through their paces in a range of disciplines.

“We’ve got the Olympic disciplines represented today, show jumping, dressage and cross country,” club president Jess Finlay said on the day.

While those are the areas pony clubs focus on most, Wednesday’s riders also took on the challenge of learning some of the skills of Working Equitation.

Although less known in Australia, Working Equitation is a worldwide sport, combining four elements.

They are dressage, two obstacle phases and cattle handling.

Natasha Nash kept a watchful eye on proceedings, providing riders with advice as they negotiated obstacles, with that being the major focus of the clinic’s Working Equitation section.

The sport of Working Equitation is inspired by working horses.

“In European countries they still use horses a lot for working, so those skills have been put together in a sport,” Nash said.

That helps explain Working Equitation’s popularity in Europe.

Tarwin Lower Pony Club holds a monthly Sunday rally at Tarwin Lower Recreation Reserve, with the next one taking place on January 30.

Rally attendees enjoy a mix of coaching, games and jumping.

“We do a few different disciplines each rally,” Finlay said.

Phone 0418 591 195 for further information about Tarwin Lower Pony Club.