Ashburton: Locals Looking for Strong Showing on Hometurf

Ashburton Area Grand Prix Showjumping & Showhunter Show

Ashburton Showgrounds

January 16-17

Locals Looking for Strong Showing on Hometurf

Local riders will be hoping the hometown advantage will give them the edge as the ESNZ Ashburton Area Grand Prix Showjumping & Showhunter Show gets underway at the Ashburton Showgrounds tomorrow (Saturday).

Baking up from victory at the Canterbury Showjumping Xmas Cracker and South Island Championships prior to Christmas, Ashburton’s Candace Kingsbury will be looking for another strong performance in the Caledonian Holdings/Orari Estate Amateur rider series with her 13-year-old mare Miss Serendipity II.

The pair has been ultra-consistent this season and currently lies in second place on the national Caledonian Holdings Amateur Rider Series just four points in arrears of current leader Glen Hicks, but she’s not getting too excited yet.

“There are still plenty of shows to come and anything can happen, and there are a lot of competitors nationally in the series. We just take each show as it comes and try to enjoy it. If it goes well and we get placed, it's a bonus,” says Kingsbury.

Up against a strong 19-field line-up, Kingsbury wasn’t expecting too much from Miss Serendipty II this weekend. “We are usually a bit rusty after the Christmas break as we haven't had a show for a few weeks.”

Sister act Kimberley and Jamiee Bird, who have recently returned from a successful northern campaign, will also be gunning for success. With four wins to her credit already this season, Kimberley and Ngahiwi Summer are the only local combination taking on a stellar field of 10 combinations in the Canterbury Equestrian/Paul Smith Earth Moving Young Rider, while they are also down to contest the Equissage/Ashburton Toyota Grand Prix up against Invercargill’s Nicole White on Cricklewood Ace. Meanwhile, Jamiee is up against a strong field in the Telford/Rainer Irrigation Junior Rider aboard Wenrose Vertigo.

The other highlight of the weekend will be the return to local competition of Barrhill’s Susie Hayward and her stunning imported stallion, Andretti, in the South Canterbury Saddlery Horse Mini Prix Series, and also the Country TV/Neumanns Tyre Service Pony Grand Prix which features an all-star line-up of the leading pony riders including Wellington visitor Sophie Scott with Benrose Playtime and Waiotahi Belle.

International course designer Roger Laplanche of South Canterbury will be designing in ring one, while ring two and three will be designed by Emma Barker and Tony Hutton respectively.

The show has three full rings of jumping and a show hunter ring in operation over both days catering to riders of all levels jumping from 70cm right through to Grand Prix. Despite the dry summer, the grounds are in tip-top shape with the A&P caretaker doing a fantastic job of keeping them well-watered of the holiday period.

Jumping action starts at 8.30am. Entry to the grounds is free.

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