INTRODUCTION
Show Jumping takes place indoors and outdoors and can be enjoyed all year round. The courses are made up of coloured fences which can be easily knocked down. Competitors will get faults if they knock a fence down, stop at a fence (refusal) or run around a fence (run out).
Most PC show jumping competitions are now run as “single phase” with around 6 fences untimed continuing on with another 6 fences in a timed section as opposed to the traditional 2 phase competition where If you manage to jump a clear round, you go through to the jump-off. The jump-off is a shortened course which is jumped as fast as possible. The winner of a show jumping competition is the horse and rider with the least faults and the fastest time in the timed section/ jump-off.
There are a number of venues accessible to Newmarket which hold regular show jumping competitions at varying heights, including Frenches Farm, Topthorn, Suffolk Equestrian Centre (formerly The Jays), Forest Edge and Anvil Park Stud and Boyton. Members are advised to look at the venue’s website/facebook pages for further details.
TRAINING
As a Pony Club we are very fortunate to have a full set of Jump for Joy show jumps and show jumping tuition will take place during PC rallies throughout the year at Horseheath, Palace House and various other venues.
For Junior Members there are regular sessions held from October to April at the British Racing School, Newmarket. These are divided into 3 groups with sessions ranging from lead rein up to 70cm, taught by Sarah Burton. The dates of these can be found on the N&T PC website under Booking Events and are organised by Nat Allen.
For those members competing at 80cm and above John Adams provides training sessions throughout the year. The John Adams sessions consist of either individual 30 minute lessons, pairs for 40mins or a group lesson which will generally be in groups of 3 for 60 minutes. The majority of sessions will take place on a surface at various locations with Palace House, Newmarket being a main location. These are organised by Zara Wise.
Dates for 2023 John Adams Show Jumping Training Sessions will be as follows:
WED 15th FEB Palace House (Half Term)
WED 29th March Palace House (Easter Hols)
THURS 6th April Palace House (Easter Hols)
WED 12th April Venue TBC (Easter Hols)
THURS 1st June Palace House (Half Term)
WED 12th July Palace House Team Training (Summer Hols/after school)
WED 19th July Palace House Team Training (Summer Hols)
WED 2rd August Palace House (Summer Hols)
WED 9th August Palace House (Summer Hols)
WED 23rd Aug Venue TBC possibly regional Champs training (Summer Hols)
WED 25th October Palace House (Half Term)
Please book on booking events early to avoid disappointment.
INTER BRANCH COMPETITIONS
There are various inter branch PC competitions throughout the year and we are always keen to field as many teams as possible in classes from 30cm upwards. These competitions are great fun and members are urged to take part, even if they are relatively new to show jumping. It is all about building confidence and experience and nobody will mind if it all goes horribly wrong as we have all been there!! Emails and Watts Apps will be sent out to members ahead of all competitions and it would be hugely appreciated if everyone could reply ASAP as compiling team entries can be a lengthy process. Zara Wise is the show jumping secretary. Please feel free to contact her with any queries. Dates for Inter Branch SJ Competitions are listed below and on the Area 8 Pony Club Calendar.
Members who are interested in taking part in competitions are strongly encouraged to join the N&T Show Jumping WhatsApp group. Information about upcoming competitions will be posted here as well as updates throughout the year on teams etc. Please contact Zara Wise on 07775727503 to join the group.
NEWMARKET AND THURLOW TEAM SJ COMPETITION SAT 21st OCT
On Saturday 21st October the Annual N&TPC Show Jumping Competition will be held at Horse Heath. This is a hugely popular event and a significant fund raiser for our Pony Club. The success of the event depends on volunteers and it would be greatly appreciated if as many members as possible offer to help. This will be a Spring Festival SJ 2024 preliminary round.
SPRING SERIES
The Pony Club Spring Series of Show Jumping competitions takes place throughout the year at three different levels. There are three stages to the competition: Preliminary Rounds which are held at various venues between April 2023- Dec 24 (see the main Pony Club website for details). The top 5 riders will qualify to go forward to one of 19 Area Competitions to be held in Jan 24. You must attend your own Area Competition. The Open competition has no Prelim Rounds involved, members qualify by competing at an Area competition where the first three qualify for the Championships. Those that are successful at their Area Competition will go forward to the Championships in Feb 24 at Arena UK. Our own SJ competition 22rd October will be a Preliminary round.
BURGHLEY PONY CLUB SHOW JUMPING 1st Sept
Every year the branch is invited to send a team to the Pony Club Show Jumping Competition at Burghley. It is an honour to represent the Pony Club at this prestigious event and priority is given to the older children who are still keen participators in the Pony Club. The selection for this is made by John Adams in the summer. The first round is 105cm and members must be under 18 years of age on the day of the competition.
(BLENHEIM EVENTER CHALLENGE not confirmed yet maybe won’t happen) Mid Sept
AREA COMPETITIONS
Regional Qualifier and Championships
The Pony Club Regional Championships (formerly known as grassroots) is reserved for the more novice members and is a wonderful introduction to Area Show Jumping. Both Regional Qualifier and Championship fences are 80cm in the first round and 80cm in the second round with two single fences at 85cm. To be eligible you must not have represented your Branch at area level at 90cm or above. Members are encouraged to consult the 2023 Pony Club Show Jumping rule book (available via the main Pony Club website) for full eligibility and other details.
In 2023 the Regional Qualifier will take place at Frenches Farm on Saturday 22nd July while the Championships will be held at Gt Witchingham on Sat 23rd Sept.
Area Show Jumping
There are 3 levels of team/individual competition at Area level: Novice (90cm), Intermediate (100cm) and Open (110cm) and this is a qualifying competition for the Pony Club National Championships in August. We are generally allowed to enter at least two teams, made up of four riders in each team, plus two individuals for each class. In 2023 Area Show Jumping will take place at Frenches Farm, on Sun 23rd July.
John Adams is the Newmarket and Thurlow show jumping trainer and Area team selector. If any child is interested in being considered for the Area teams it is essential that they are booked into some of these sessions so that John can assess the child and pony, it is not possible to be chosen for a team without John knowing your ability. In order to be considered you must also be available for the PC Show Jumping Championships held at Off Church Bury 16th-22nd Aug.
ELIGIBILITY
It is important that Pony Club Members familiarise themselves with the eligibility rules which apply to all Area Competitions, including Regional. Both the horse/pony and the PC member need to have attained at least 3 rally points since 1st July 2022, with the minimum of 1 being in 2023. At least 1 of these points has to be attained by both the horse/pony and the PC member attending either PC Camp or an activity advertised as a ‘Rally’. You must also attend at least one John session to be considered. Further details are available on the “Area Competitions” page of the Newmarket & Thurlow PC website please do read this.
Team Show Jumping Competitions scheduled for 2023 include:
Sun 29th Jan Area 8 Spring festival and Windsor Qualifier at Eastern College
11th– 12th Feb Spring Festival Champs at Arena UK
Wed 15th Feb Thetford Chase Team Friendly at Anvil 30cm- 70cm
Saturday 20th May Rockingham Castle Team SJ invitation only limited numbers 70cm- 90cm
Sunday 21st May Waveney Harriers Team Friendly at Geldestone Hall, Sotterley open to all
Sunday 18th June Soham PC Team Team Friendly SJ (Isleham) Open to all
Saturday 22nd July Regional SJ (80) Frenches Farm
Sunday 23rd July Area SJ (90,100,110) Frenches Farm
Tuesday 16th-21 Aug NATIONAL PC Championships – Offchurch Bury
Saturday 27th Aug REGIONAL Championships Horse Heath
Thursday 31st September Burghley Team SJ invitation only
Sunday 8th October East of England team SJ Fitzwilliam
Saturday 21st October N&T Team Show Jumping
Please keep checking the Area 8 PC website for more dates
Please contact;
Zara Wise
07775727503