They will be one of the highlights of the Bathurst Agricultural Show from Thursday March 30 to Sunday April 2 2023. The team is (from left) Angelique Esterhuizen, Anne White, Nicole Erasmus, Tracy Lloyd, Shelley Handley, Sandy Dewar, Cate Pike, Robyn Cloete, Sabrina Dean, Pippa Schlegel with Chrissie Cradock (standing).
Riding formation team a highlight of equestrian event
Visitors to the Bathurst Agricultural Show can see the province’s top riders and their horses in action as they compete in the equestrian section from Thursday March 30 to Sunday
April 2 2023.
Pam Golding have stepped up to the plate with sponsorship from the Port Alfred office for
the equestrian events, and a R20,000 boost to the Bathurst Agricultural Society from the
Pam Golding head office’s community project support fund.
Member of the organising committee for the equestrian events, Nicole Erasmus, said they would be offering both graded and ungraded dressage, show jumping and showing classes.
“All graded riders can accrue points —which then determines the level at which a horse can
compete,” Erasmus explained.
“Bathurst Agricultural Showgrounds is registered as a show holding body for the South
African Equestrian Federation (SAEF) for dressage, show Jumping and showing,” she said.
“The Bathurst Riding Club is also registered as a club for show Jumping and showing, and we are awaiting our club status for dressage.”
“Riders could come from all over the country but mainly we draw from the Eastern Cape,”
said Erasmus.
This year’s showing judge, Robyn Berry, is from KwaZulu- Natal and the course designer,
Ryan Sander, is from Gauteng.
The show Jumping judge will be Philippa Penrose.
A special treat will be the display by the Bathurst Riding Club’s formation riding team,
led by Chrissie Craddock.
The thrill for spectators is to see the unity between riders and horses, as they are put through their paces in a series of balletlike group drills.
Erasmus said for the Show, the team will have 10 members. “Getting a routine right is
hard work as you have to make sure you’re working together with your horse, as well as
watching your riding partner, plus keeping in time with the music,” Erasmus said.
“On top of that, the front riders set the pace, so they have to also keep an eye on the rest of the group to make sure no one is being left behind or that there’s a “traffic jam.
“When it comes together it’s a fantastic feeling and the horses really get into it as well.”
Robyn Cloete of Pam Golding’s Port Alfred office said their branch had been sponsors for the past two years. “We approached [Pam Golding CEO] Andrew Golding for support to prepare the showgrounds for this year’s event,” Cloete said. “It’s a community project, run by unpaid volunteers, and on that basis Pam Golding donated R20,000 towards maintenance.
“It costs around R25K a month just to keep the showgrounds going and the two years of Covid-19 lockdown, with no Bathurst Show, hit the organisation really hard. This once-off donation will help with preparations in the run-up to this year’s show.”
by SUE MACLENNAN
