pony FEBRUARY 2022 ISSUE 150
LONDON INTERNATIONAL HORSE SHOW Coverage of the BSPS Le Mieux Heritage Final Shetland Pony Grand National
Behind the scenes with JESSICA TALBOT
• IZZY ARMSTRONG on her jumping superstar, Captain • NEW FOREST Point to Point • Jaqueline Berg on her driving Dartmoor detectives
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2 | The Native Pony | February 2022 Issue | info@showingworldonline.co.uk
MADE IN OUR OWN
UK MILL
A word from our editor Dear Reader, This issue was pulled together as we negotiated our way through the closing month of yet another tumultuous year and stepped gingerly into this one. My social media feed is often peppered with memes, but over the new year, one struck a chord with me and I giggled every time I saw it. The general surmise of it was that hopefully, someone will have given 2022 a good pre-emptive session on the lunge before we all got on board. I’m still hopeful that’s the case, especially as my diary really is filling up with shows and events that I would dearly love to attend. Until late November 2021, few words had evoked in me the same mixture of stomach-knotting nerves and brimming excitement. HOYS. OLYMPIA. ROYAL WELSH. CHRISTMAS. I could go on, but you’ll have surely caught the gist of what I mean. Well, now I have a new word to add to the mix: EDITOR. So, it’s probably fitting that my first issue as editor should have coverage of the London International Horse Show – the ‘new’ Olympia. Just as we enjoyed watching showgrounds across the country reopen their gates and showrings last summer, it was wonderful to see ponies returning to London for the BSPS LeMieux Heritage Final, albeit in its new home at the Exel Arena. How fortuitous for us all that the London International Horse Show organisers were able to accommodate the final at such short notice! I’ve more to say on the new venue in this issue’s ‘talking points’ so I won’t say any more here, but suffice to say that the heritage final really was quite the spectacle and a pleasure to watch. You’ll find further coverage of the show in the forthcoming Showing World, so be sure to pick up a copy of that, too.
but their people are, too. I am extremely grateful to the wonderful individuals who give up their time to promote ‘their’ breed in the magazine. To those individuals: thank you. To everyone else, make sure you keep abreast of who to contact and for what. One such story I had never heard of before was that of the New Forest Point to Point. Boy! Do I wish I had a New Forest to take part! It looks tremendous fun! I take my hat off to the riders and ponies to traverse the landscape at such speed. On the other hand, a story I had previously heard and had wanted to write about was section D, Rhencullen Tommy Tucker’s tale. His breeder, Carol Prater told my sister, Maggie about him at HOYS and I had to find out more. It took me a while, but I tracked down his rider, Izzy, and the rest of the tale isn’t history, it’s written-up in this issue for you to hear, too! Anyway, back to where I started : pulling together this issue. When the final pages of this magazine were set, I felt a surge of excitement; my first magazine as editor was about to leave my hands and embark on its journey to you, the reader. Now, as I imagine you flicking through with your morning cup of tea, my stomach is turning faster than the tumble dryer. So, all that remains to say is this: I sincerely hope that you enjoy reading it as much as I have enjoyed editing it.
- Beth
As well as the native showing, I thoroughly enjoyed the nail-biting Shetland Pony Grand National unfold. It just goes to show that there’s merit in the label, ‘small but mighty’, as the ten ponies and jockeys at the show more than rose to the occasion: they raised the roof. I have always had an appreciation of the equine in all shapes and sizes: natives, part-breds, sporty, chunky, big and small. Equine behaviour, science and training of all kinds has also fascinated me. But my new role with the Native Pony is forcing me to delve deeper and look beyond the showring and the showing community for the stories that I write. It’s been a revelation and I can honestly say that I’m loving it. It turns out that natives of all kinds are even more wonderful, even more popular, and even more versatile than even I believed. Not only that, but their heritage and associated traditions are so very interesting. Because of the breadth of disciplines covered in these pages, I won’t lie, the prospect of sourcing a sufficient amount of engaging content to fill the pages scared me. Where on earth would I find the Dales doing dressage? Or the Exmoor driving star? It turns out I needn’t have worried. Not only are the native ponies wonderful,
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Contents Features 6. London International Horse Show 14. Captain - Ready for Take-Off 18. In the Spotlight: Jessica Talbot 30. New Forest Point-to-point
Regulars
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22. Ruth on the Hoof 48. Out and About 52. Connemara Breed News 55. Dales Breed News 56. Dartmoor Breed News 57. Fell Breed News 58. Highland Breed News 59. Shetland Breed News 60. Exmoor Breed News 62. Welsh Breed News 64. New Forest Breed News
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30 Disclaimer: The view and opinions expressed within the magazine are not necessarily those of the editor or Showing World Limited and while every effort has been made to ensure the information contained in the magazine is correct and current at the date of publication, Showing World Limited will not accept any liability. Showing World Limited will not be held responsible for the appearance of photographic material supplied without the necessary consent, copyright and/or photographer’s details. In
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addition, Showing World Limited offers no guarantee of publication and reserve the right to edit any reader’s letters, press releases, reports and articles submitted. Showing World Limited 2022. All rights reserved. No part of Native Pony may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, transmitted or shared in any form or by any means, including, but not limited to; electronic, mechanical, digital, photocopying, recording or otherwise without prior written permission of Showing World Limited.
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Talking Point LONDON INTERNATIONAL HORSE SHOW:
THE VENUE
Native exhibitors and enthusiasts breathed an enormous sigh of relief when the London International Horse Show team saved the day to host the BSPS Heritage final. Nevertheless, the news was also met with a degree of scepticism on account of the show’s new venue: the London Excel Arena. How could it ever match the arena at Olympia? I for one was pleasantly surprised. For a start, negotiating my way there from the opposite end of the M4 was much easier than I anticipated, and parking was undoubtedly easier. It was a journey I could contemplate in a lorry should I be lucky enough to qualify again. Once inside, the sheer scale of the venue was startling and for me, that was one aspect in which it fell short. Somehow, the intimate sense of festive magic that its Earls Court counterpart conjured was lost in its vastness. But then, once seated, the arena wasn’t a disappointment at all, and given I was rendered teary when little Cliodna McEvoy smashed the Mini Major Final on her inimitable Princess, there’s no denying that the magic was present in abundance. The only thing missing at that point were those iconic gold horses – you know the ones I mean! It struck me that the working-in arena was also an upgrade. To me, it looked bigger and I liked the addition of the spacious
The BSPS Heritage finalists wait for results.
bar area to the side. Then again, as a spectator, I’m aware that I had but a small slice of the overall picture, so I was keen to find out what competitors felt. Native producer, Samantha Roberts said: “I loved the extra space; the huge collecting ring and more space in the ring. The light was better, and it felt like there were millions of people in there; and the screen was lower than it used to be which caught a few ponies out when they saw it. The stables were also spacious and clean and hadn’t been used by anyone until we came in. But I missed the golden horses and the classic architecture of the Grand Hall. Then again, it still gave that amazing ‘hair standing up on the back of your next’ moment when you trotted back into the afternoon’s prize giving. The atmosphere at that time was amazing as always.” Winning rider Rebecca Penny agreed: “I liked the venue and the unloading of the ponies straight into the building instead of on to a road was amazing. We got a huge upgrade from the usual toilet as a changing room and the collecting ring situation was much better and the ring was also bigger. Yes, the golden horses were missed but I think it had so many other plus points that it didn’t massively matter.”
The show felt as festive as ever!
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