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Moving to the Melbourne Showgrounds brings a whole new dimension to the competition program. The Grand Pavilion will be transformed into the largest indoor arena Australia has ever seen. Hosting competitions such as the World Cup Dressage, Reining, and Cutting as well as the Australian Horsemanship Challenge: The Way of the Horse.
The new purpose built outdoor competition stadium with seating for 3000 will enable the event to introduce Equine competitions that EQUITANA has not been able to cater for in the past. These new elements, will ensure large crowds of spectators and competitors to EQUITANA. The competition program inlcudes: World Cup Jumping, Campdrafting, Polo, Mounted Games, Show Horse classes and Harness Driving .
You can see 2005's Competition results here.
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EQUITANA Asia Pacific 2008 - What's On
Grand
Pavillion & Arena
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THURSDAY 20/11/2008
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Saddle Horse Championships |
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Reining Masters |
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EFA Stars of the Future Jumping Competition |
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Inter I Freestyle Dressage Competition |
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Parelli Education session |
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Mounted Games |
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Breed Display |
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Eventing Clinic |
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The ACE Jump and Drive celebrity event |
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* An Evening with Guy McLean 7.30 pm |
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FRIDAY 21/11/2008
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* Specialist Clinic: Pat and Linda Parelli - 12 noon |
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World Cup Dressage Grand Prix |
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Western Pleasure Horse competitions |
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Obstathon Driving competition |
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The Way of the Horse selection and first introduction |
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Breed Display |
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Miniature horse exhibition |
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Mounted Games |
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Polo Exhibition game |
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* Western Spectacular 7.30 pm |
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SATURDAY 22/11/2008
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* Specialist Clinic: Andreas Helgstrand – Dressage 10 am |
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The Way of the Horse |
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Showjumping Clinic |
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Camp Draft Competition
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Breed Display |
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WC Jumping Warm up event |
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Parelli Education session |
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Mounted Games |
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PCAV Grade 1 Showjumping
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Equitana Art Auction |
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* Dressage Spectacular 7.30 pm |
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SUNDAY 23/11/2008
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* Specialist Clinic: All Star Clinic 4.30 pm |
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Masters Cutting Championships |
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Parelli Education session |
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Breed Display |
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The Way of the Horse Final |
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The Farmhand Futurity Showjumping |
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World Cup Showjumping |
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Mounted Games Finals |
* Separate ticketed event, all other events are General Admission
Exhibition hours: 9.30am – 7pm Thurs-Sat 9.30am – 4pm Sunday
Please note: Program is subject to change without notice.
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Pacific League World Cup
Dressage Qualifier CDI-W
EQUITANA is excited about the opportunity to host the Pacific League World Cup Dressage Qualifier for 2008.
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This competition is held over 2 days.
The Grand Prix will be ridden on Friday and the Grand Prix Freestyle or Kur will be held during the Dressage Spectacular on Saturday evening.
The FEI World Cup for Dressage Riders is a series of competitions at FEI Grand Prix level, coprising a number of qualifying events and a Final. It is conducted under the FEI rules for Dressage and World Cup dresage rules. At Equitana riders from New Zealand and Australia will have the last chance to qualify for the prestigeous World Cup Pacific League final which will be held at Werribee in December.
The judging panel includes Uwe Spenlen from Germany, Allison King from Hong Kong and Helen Hughes Keen from New Zealand.
Contact
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or phone 03 9596 8744 for further information.
Entry forms will be available for download from this website soon.
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World Cup Jumping - CSI-W
EQUITANA Asia Pacific is excited to host a World Cup qualifier Jumping competition. There will be a warm up competition on Saturday afternoon followed by the World Cup event on Sunday.
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The Grand Prix is the highest level of show jumping. Run under FEI rules, the horse jumps a course of 10-16 obstacles. Grand Prix-level show jumping competitions include the Olympics, the World Equestrian Games, the World Cup Series and the Nations Cup Series. It is designed to test the stamina, precision, power, and control of both horse and rider. The courses usually include tight twists and turns, very high and colorful fences designed to test those riding them. It takes a great amount of training and conditioning to get both horse and rider prepared for such an event.
For further information please contact:
Sicca on
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phone: (03) 9596 8744 or
Alex on
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phone: (03) 5977-5192
Entry forms will be available for download from this website in August.
Entry forms will be available for download from this website soon.
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Cutting
At Equitana you will have the opportunity to see thirty of our top cutting horse riders, both professional and non-professional, working their magic on herds of cattle. Make sure you are there Sunday morning November 23rd and watch the Equitana Cutting Masters Championship.
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Equitana Cutting Masters Championship - The event will last about two and half hours. This is no demonstration; these cowboys are competing for thousands of dollars and the riders are aboard the best and fittest horses in the country. See you there!
It is getting toward the end of another hot dusty day and both you and the horse are tired. There is still one heifer left in that huge herd of cattle and she has to be gotten out. We only want the one beast – not a dozen, and as luck would have it, the one we want is in the middle of the mob. Somehow we have got to sneak in to the herd right up to where she is, get behind her and slowly move her through the herd and get her out in front. We have succeeded and the herd has hardly moved. Now we then must keep her from returning to the mob; all this without disturbing the rest of them.
This is going to depend on your horse. He must be really cattle smart and once he knows which cow you want he will need to do the work himself. When the cow is out front he has got to be athletic enough to counter every move of the young cow. His job is not over until the beast is roped and led away. Now the cowboy can wash and feed his steed and relax until tomorrow.
This scene, enacted every day all over Australia, has become a sport in which a horse and rider must cut out a cow from the herd and hold it away from that herd. Each move of the cow must be countered by the horse, literally nose to nose. To make it more difficult the rider may not cue the horse and the reins must be loose. This then is Cutting. Each horse has only two and half minutes to do all this. The horses are very highly trained and arguably the most athletic horses that exist in competition. There are two judges both of whom are highly qualified to judge this competition. They attend judging seminars and tests and judge all over the country. The whole sport is run under the rules of the National Cutting Horse Association Inc. in Tamworth NSW. There are classes for all levels of the sport from Youth to Professional, beginners to top riders and a class just for you!
For further information please contact Dr Paul Older (03) 5942-5068
Email:
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Reining
The Reining Competition at Equitana will be an exciting event for sure, featuring some of the country’s top reiners, including several NRHA World Champions. They will all be hoping to slide and spin their way home with part of the minimum $10,000 prize money.
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Reining is a judged event designed to show the athletic ability of a ranch type horse within the confines of a show arena. In NRHA competition, contestants are required to run one of ten approved patterns, included in the NRHA Handbook.
Each pattern includes small slow circles, large fast circles, flying lead changes, roll backs over the hocks, 360 degree spins done in place, and exciting sliding stops that are the hallmark of the reining horse.
The NRHA Judging System is recognized as the leading format for judging an equine event that combines technical and stylistic elements coupled with consideration of "degree of difficulty". Many segments of the equine judging discipline have openly embraced the NRHA Judging System.
Reining has flourished in the last decade internationally. In 2006, there were over 660 approved shows worldwide with a prize payout of over $10million (US). Reining in Australia will embrace the international competition when it supports an Australian team at the 2010 World Equestrian Games in Lexington, Kentucky (US).
For further information about the Reining competition at EQUITANA contact Debbie Versluis on 0416 204 397 or
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www.reiningaustralia.com.au
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Western Pleasure
The National Pleasure Horse Association (NPHA) will be featured at Equitana 21st November 2008 and we welcome USA Judge and Trainer Mr. Carl McCuistion, to Judge the Exhibition Events and conduct a Demonstration on the Western Pleasure discipline.
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Mr McCuistion, who comes from Oklahoma, has trained professionally for over 25 years and has judged for the past 10 years throughout the USA and other countries extensively. Carl is an approved Judge with the AQHA, APFA, NRHA, NRCHA and USEF and has officiated at clinics all over the world including Germany, Austria, Brazil, Argentina, Japan, USA and Canada.
The NPHA will be inviting the top horses and riders from their Celebration Show, which is being held at Sydney International Equestrian Centre in September 2008, to compete and take part in the demonstration.
Entry to these events will be by invitation only. The following will be held on Friday morning in the main competition indoor arena.
Yearling Lungeline - Buckle & $ 500 prize money paid to 3rd
Open Western Pleasure - Buckle & $1500 prize money paid to 3rd
Amateur Western Pleasure - Buckle & $ 800 prize money paid to 3rd
Youth Western Pleasure - Buckle & $ 500 prize money paid to 3rd
Open Hunter Under Saddle - Buckle & $1000 prize money paid to 3rd
The National Pleasure Horse Association of Australia was formed 24 years ago by people with a passion for promoting the Western Pleasure and Hunter Under Saddle equine disciplines.
Western Pleasure is one of the most popular western show events. A good Western Pleasure horse should be as the name implies: “a pleasure to ride”. Contestants compete as a group, traveling around the perimeter of the arena on the rail and are asked to walk, jog, lope and reverse the direction of their horses at the judges’ direction. Riders must hold the reins according to the head gear the horse is shown in i.e. Snaffle - horses are shown two handed while bridled horses are shown with one hand. A rider cannot change hands on the reins during the class. A rider cannot touch the horse or saddle during the competition with his/her free hand
Every year the NPHA holds an annual show which is the pinnacle of the show season in Australia, being the largest western horse show in the southern hemisphere. All breeds are eligible to compete at the NPHA show but the majority of horses competing are Quarter Horses, Appaloosas and Paint horses.
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Saddle Horse and Rider Championships
EQUITANA Asia Pacific will host the Saddlehorse Championships. This popular style of competition will be brought to the public’s attention with the highly experienced and professional riders riding their immaculately presented horses.
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The 2008 competition will see some of Australia’s best horses and riders competing for the title of EQUITANA Asia Pacific Supreme Champion Saddle Horse and Equitana Asia Pacific Supreme Champion Rider.
Horses and ponies will compete in the following groups: Hacks, Galloways, Large Ponies, Small Ponies and Shetlands. These horses first work around in a circle as a group, then each horse will perform an individual work-out, after which the overall Supreme Champion is chosen by the judge.
The riding Championship will be decided by riders in the 3 different age categories: Senior Rider (18 yrs and over), Intermediate Rider (over 14 yrs and under 18 yrs) and Junior Rider (12 to 14 yrs). These riders will also work in a group, followed by individual work-outs, after which the judges decide the Supreme Champion Rider.
Saddle horse is a sport for all ages from tiny five-year-olds with Shetland ponies to elderly people who still find it a happy and pleasant pastime.
For further information pelase contact Jan Smith 0417 527 412
Email:
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To download a nomination form click here.
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Campdrafting
Campdrafting is a uniquely Australian horse sport which has been in existence since the late 1800’s and originated on the vast Northern Cattle Runs, where fences and yards were few. Cattle were sorted or drafted for different reasons, calves for branding, weaners to other parts of the run, or fats for sale.
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Friendly rivalry existed between stockmen as to who had the best camp horses. When not working, the stockmen competed to prove their claims and pass the time. As you can imagine, the odd bet was placed at these impromptu competitions and at the end of a day’s work, there were yarns a-plenty around the campfires. It is from these competitions and social gatherings that the more formal Australian sport of campdrafting evolved.
Today campdrafters range from amateur to professional stockman, with whole families testing their riding and horse skills against each other and the cattle.
The aim of the competition is to cut a beast from a small mob in the camp, moving their horse among the cattle quietly and bring the chosen beast to a gate at the other end (front) of the yard, for a short time blocking the beast two or three times preventing it from returning to the mob. When the competitor feels that control of the beast has been demonstrated to the judge, they call for the gate to be opened. Once on the arena, the competitor is working against the clock (forty seconds) to guide the beast around two pegs in a figure of eight pattern, and then drive the beast between a final two pegs known as the gate.
The best combination of control of the beast, riding skills, speed and completing the course scores the highest points. It is not unusual to see a beast gated in under twenty five seconds, demonstrating the speed and agility of the specially trained horses.
The ability of the horses, combined with breathtaking horsemanship, makes campdrafting a sport for both competitors and spectators.
For further information contact Marilyn & Tony Bowden –
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, (02) 6386 6204
www.campdraft.org.au
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Mounted Games
EQUITANA Asia Pacific 2008 together with The Australian Mounted Games Association (AMGA) will host Mounted Games Interstate Challenge introducing riders from NSW, SA, WA, QLD and VIC. The competitions will feature a pair’s and teams competition with representatives from each state.
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Mounted Games are a series of very fast races, exciting for participants and spectators alike, performed by young people on ponies.
The riders require a high degree of athletic ability, good riding skills, hand-to-eye coordination, general determination to see things through to the end and a competitive and team spirit.
Come and experience the excitement of high speed changeovers that Mounted Games have to offer.
For further information about the Mounted Games competition at EQUITANA contact John Beale on (02) 9979 5033 or
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www.australianmga.com
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Carriage Driving
The ACDS Victorian Branch will again be part of EQUITANA in 2008. They will be conducting an Obstathon, modelled on World Cup Driving, in which we aim to showcase the sport of driving to a wide audience drawn from the larger equestrian enthusiasts community.
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The aim is to promote carriage driving as a legitimate sport, while showing the different breeds suitable for the sport. At Equitana 2008 we will present some of the country’s best drivers in single and pair harness.
The course combines two of the three elements of a Carriage or Combined Driving event (CDE) – the Cone Driving and Marathon Obstacles. A CDE usually consists of Dressage, Marathon and Cone Driving competitions combining scores in each to produce the winner. In the Obstathon the Cones course include two Marathon Obstacles which are driven in numerical sequence on the course. The objective is to register the fastest and cleanest round.
For further information about the driving competitions at EQUITANA contact Angela Hennel on (03) 9439 7843 or email
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ACDS Victorian Branch website
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Polo
Polo is very straight forward as a spectator sport. There are six periods (Chukkas) of seven minutes. There are four players in each team. The No. 1 and 2 are basically forwards. The No. 3 and 4 are equivalent to five-eight and back in Rugby.
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The players should mark their opposite number; that is the No.4 should mark the No. 1, preventing him from scoring by hooking and riding off.
There is no “offside” rule. The rules are common sense based on a player having the “right of way” in order to eliminate danger.
Therefore, no player shall play with his left hand. Play starts from a line up in the centre by one of the two umpires throwing the ball.
The team that scores the most goals wins. Behinds don’t count. The umpires will award penalties depending upon the severity of the infringement. When a penalty I is given, a goal is signalled and a throw in occurs 10 yards out from the penalised team’s goal mouth.
Penalty II –30 yards free hit
Penalty III – 40 yards free hit
Penalty IV – 60 yards free hit
Penalty V(a) – free hit on the spot
Penalty V(b) – free hit from the middle of the ground
"Chukka"
Also called a period. There are six chukkas in a polo game (four in arena polo & low goal polo) each lasting 7 minutes plus up to 30 seconds in overtime. If, during the 30 seconds, the ball hits the sideboards or goes out of bounds, or if the umpire blows his whistle, the chukka is over. There is no overtime at the end of the sixth chukka unless the score is tied, at which time a seventh chukka will be played until the first goal is scored. A player returns to each chukka on a different horse. Although he may rest one for a chukka or two and play him again.
The essence of the game is team work.
www.victorianpoloclub.com.au
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