Spalding Horse and Pony Club
Darcie Darbyshire

The Spalding Horse and Pony Club held its annual Spalding Show last Sunday.
The all-day event kicked off with a whole morning of hacking and progressed onto fancy dress, show jumping and novelties. At the end of the day prizes were awarded to a winner and runner up in each age group, based on points accumulated throughout the day.
Many horse competitors and enthusiasts from all over Geraldton joined the Spalding Club for the event, including neighboring Clubs Walkaway Horse & Pony Club and Moonyoonooka Horse & Pony Club.
SH&PC holds many different events over the course of the year, including 13 rallies, various zone schools, 2 station camps, fun days, 2 shows and lots more.
The Club aims to teach youths aged between six and 21 years horsemanship in a fun and engaging way. Spalding Horse and Pony Club teacher and coach Karin Christie has been involved with the Club since it first started in 1970. She said a lot of work goes into preparation for the Annual Show.
“The instructors help the children weeks beforehand and educate them about rules, regulations and show etiquette. The committee organizes judges, canteen rosters and ground event helpers”
Karin said that Rider Events are judged solely on the rider and their ability and capabilities, regardless of whether the horse is misbehaving.
“All other hack events are judged on the horse behavior, looks and conformation,” she said.
The Club currently has over 70 members and 20-year-old Tori Beaver has been riding at Spalding PC for 5 years.
Tori started riding when she was 10 years old and has been competing for 14 years. She has been training her current horse, Tiger (Artillery Prince) for 2 years.
She said she loves how Spalding always puts a great show together and she has always enjoyed the day.
“I love competing!! Even when things go wrong on the day you can always be proud of something and can keep striving for more. It’s not until you look back at what you used to do (jump height, eventing levels etc) that you realize your moving forward and that is really encouraging. My favorite classes at shows are the jumping and games,” Ms. Beaver said.
“Competing gives me such a buzz, I know it’s not all about winning, but it’s the best feeling when you receive your 1st ribbon and you know the hard work it took to get you there.”