North Derry Pony Club

Good Luck to all riders heading to Pony Club Home Championships tomorrow !
Smile and enjoy the day 💖

✨ C+ RIDING SUCCESS! ✨

On Monday afternoon, these four superstars proudly achieved their C+ Riding Assessment! 🐴👏

A huge congratulations to Evie & Katie along with Harry & Oliver from Route Hunt Branch of the Pony Club

What a fantastic achievement! 💙

A massive thank you to Kyle from Aldertree Equine and Ami from AK Equine for their assessment, and to Ciaran Mc Cormick for all the preparation and hard work that went into getting them ready.

These kids are incredibly lucky to be surrounded by such supportive, knowledgeable and encouraging coaches, who continually challenge them to learn, improve and strive for the next goal.

Well done, — you should be so proud of yourselves! 🌟🐴

Do you know the 45 second rule?

Ringcraft is something honed over time but it is a really important skill when producing young horses!

When the bell goes, you have 45 seconds to start your round. Take full advantage of those 45 seconds; use the time to show your horse any particularly spooky fences you may have to jump or to get them relaxed, soft and listening to you before you begin. Don’t walk around aimlessly or feel rushed to start by the judge - the time is yours to use! Have a plan in place before you enter and use the full time available to you if you need it.

Sometimes you will be asked to go into the arena whilst the previous horse is still jumping. You should stay out of their way and try not to be in the horse’s line of sight when they are approaching a fence. This extra time can be useful for allowing your horse to look round the fences they will need to jump before your 45 second countdown begins.

A few other useful little tips:

✅ If there are still poles on the ground from the previous competitor, raise your hand and signal to the judges to pause the countdown. The course should be fully set before your round begins.

✅ If your horse needs to p*e or p**p before your round, you can also raise your hand and the time should be paused whilst they complete that necessity!

✅ Do not go through the start beam once the bell has gone unless you are approaching the first fence and intend to jump. Doing so could mean you are deemed to have started your round and may result in faults being given for crossing your tracks (and time faults incurred).

✅ When you have finished your round, ask your horse to return to a calm and settled canter before you pull up. If they spooked at a part of the arena mid round and you’re passing it on your way out, ask them to be soft and relaxed this time. Don’t just fall into trot and leave the arena. The small details matter for next time!

The better your preparation, the more relaxed you and your horse will be and the better the outcome should be! Remember - it’s supposed to be fun - so relax and enjoy it ❤️

Home Champ’s info

📆 Saturday 29th August
📍 Laurelview Equestrian Centre

✨ Area Dressage 2026 ✨

Now that the dust has settled on the Area 17 competitions for 2026 (with only Home Championships still to come 🤩), we’ve had a chance to reflect on what was such a fantastic day at the Meadows Equestrian Centre.

Hosting Area Dressage was a privilege, and seeing 235 combinations come through the gates made for a brilliant day’s competition. 🐎

Events like this don’t just happen. The amount of work that goes on behind the scenes is truly incredible—and every single bit of it is carried out by volunteers who generously give up their time to make these competitions possible. 🫶

A huge thank you to Fran and our incredible team of volunteers. From the first competitor to the last score card collected, your hard work, organisation and smiles kept everything running so smoothly. We simply couldn’t do it without you.

To our wonderful dressage judges—Coreen Abernethy, Corey Mawhinney, Yvonne Chisolm, Lucinda Webb Graham and Barbara McMurray—thank you for sharing your time, expertise and encouragement throughout the day. Your knowledge and commitment to the sport is so appreciated.

A special thank you also to our Dressage Liaison, Kyle Hayes, for all your support.

We’re incredibly grateful to KR Equine Veterinary Services Ltd for sponsoring the Vet on Call service throughout the competition. The welfare of our four-legged partners will always be our priority, and we’re so thankful for your support.

Thank you to JRS Photography for capturing so many wonderful memories from the day—we know competitors will treasure them for years to come. 📸

Thanks also to the
Meadows Equestrian Centre for the use of their fantastic facilities and for helping us host such a successful event.

We were also overwhelmed by the generosity of our prize sponsors. Your support helped make the day extra special for so many competitors.

🏆 Individual prizes – Glebeview Equestrian
🏆 Team prizes – WJ Chambers
🏆 4th Individual Prize – MC Arena
🏆 5th Individual Prize – Baileys Horse Feeds
🏆 6th Individual Prize – Connolly's RED MILLS
🏆 Bluegrass Horse Feeds

🏵️ Our beautiful rosettes were from the fab Awardboard Rosettes & Trophies UK

Finally, and most importantly, thank you to every rider, pony, parent, coach and supporter who joined us. Whether you came home with a rosette or simply achieved a personal goal, you should all be incredibly proud.

These competitions are about so much more than results. They are about learning, perseverance, sportsmanship, friendships and making memories that last a lifetime.

From all of us at North Derry Branch, thank you for making Area Dressage 2026 such a special day. 💙 We can’t wait to cheer everyone on at Home Championships!

The treats from Baileys are going down brilliantly thank you Judy Maxwell