Two new showing championships — each with a £1,000 first prize — have been introduced for this summer by the North of England Show series (NES).
The championships, one for ridden coloured horses and another for amateur riders (under Sports Horse Breeding and British Show Horse Association rules) bring the number of £1,000-to-the-winner championships run by the NES to eight.
Show producer Robert Walker took one of the finals, the Deanwater Hotel ridden show horse championship, last year.
“This is one of the biggest prize-funds of the season and a real boost for the sport,” he said.
Organiser Stuart Hollings said: “We started running these championships about 10 years ago and felt the time was right to introduce these two classes.
“In this economic climate it is wonderful that sponsors are still supporting the shows.”
The Wood family supreme ridden coloured championship will be held at the North of England In Hand and Mountain and Moorland Show on 24 July at Warren Farm Equestrian in Formby, Liverpool.
Caroline Hamilton, chairman of the Coloured Horse and Pony Association, said: “This brings coloureds on a par with the other types of show horses that have more opportunities.”
“The Fieldmaster” supreme amateur ridden show horse championship is at the Summer Horse Show on 3 July at Warren Farm. It is sponsored by Irene Susca and named after her winning Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) heavyweight hunter.
It will have qualifying rounds in amateur hunter, hack, cob and riding horse classes across the country.
Ms Susca told H&H: “We wanted to encourage amateurs. I won on The Fieldmaster at HOYS in 2008 so wanted to show people that, as an amateur, dreams can come true.”
For more details visit www.northofenglandshows.co.uk
This article was first published in Horse & Hound (21 January, ’10)
