May PONY magazine 2013

30 HORSEY THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU’RE 25!

9 770032 425171

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May 2013 £3.25

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from Olympian Tina Cook!

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● NEW PONY VIP Club! ● Take off a bridle! ● Be confident in the stable!

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“I jumped a Olympia – and wton!”

“My ovedrad alm my p ost ony! ran ”

fab poster pages!

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Inspire a fast pony to slow down

COULD YOU WORK FOR A HORSEY CHARITY? BE ACE AT MOUNTED GAMES!

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21/03/2013 14:08

Meet the horses!

“We look for horses that want to learn. They must be forward-going to ride, but patient and friendly also. Most of all, they must be chilled out and good around people.”

ROTS has six horses in their stunt team: ❀ Rocky is a 30-year-old, TBxID ex eventer. He loves attention and is now retired from shows. ❀ Shamus, the big guy, is our vaulting horse. He’s a 17.3hh, 17-year-old TBxcob. He loves performing and is an ex dressage horse. ❀ Brego is one of the trick riding horses. He is a rescue horse but with lots of patience and work he has become one of the most placid horses in the team. He is a eight years old and TBxID. ❀ Drino is another of the trick riding horses, he came to us all the way from Spain and is a nine-year-old PRE Andalusian stallion. ❀ Sunny is a seven-year-old Arab who had a tough time as a foal as he was rejected by his mother.

He also is a trick riding horse. ❀ George is our cheeky little pony. He’s a 12hh Welsh Section A and he loves cuddles. He can do lots of tricks, like bowing.

Why don’t you wear hats?

“For safety – can you believe it? When vaulting or stunt riding it’s more dangerous to wear a hat as it could get stuck on the tack.”

“We have just started offering stunt experience holidays, which is very exciting and proving quite popular.

We have a very busy show season ahead and have our first show in England this year.”

Shamus with Kirsty and H Ellie, azel

What can people expect to see at your shows?

“It depends on the size of show we are performing at and the theme we choose but you’ll usually see vaulting, trick riding and Roman riding. In some of our themed shows you will see juggling, skipping and hula hooping on horseback, sword fighting, jousting games, trick offs (like a dance off but trick riding) and blindfolded vaulting!

rego with Sunny and B and Beth Suzie, Kirsty Visit www.ponymag.com for more details

PONY Magazine recommends that riders wear an approved and securely fastened riding hat at all times when mounted

What exciting things are happening in 2013?

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Tina’s top training for

SJ success!

Follow our super new show jumping series with triple Olympic medal winning Tina Cook!

Our Trainer Tina Cook is a brilliant British event rider! She’s been at the top of her game for many years and has won no less than three Olympic medals – bronze team and individual at the 2008 Beijing Games, and team silver at the London Games last year. Tina enjoys teaching young riders, keen to impart her knowledge and skills to the next generation of equestrians.

Warming up

Our models

Imogen has owned Maggie for a year-and-a-half. They enjoy jumping but Maggie can get very wound up so Imogen wants to work on getting her to relax.

Tara has not owned six-year-old Spot for long. Spot is quite green but Tara hopes to try eventing this summer.

“In both XC and show ju mping there will be times on the course when you need a short, bouncy canter and times when you need a more onward-bound canter. To be able to control your pony’s speed and stride smoothly, without him throwing his head in the air and losing concentration, is a good skill to master.

Canter your ponies around and ask them to flex and lower their heads. Canter in a light, forward seat for six-to-eight strides, then sit in the saddle for six-to-eight strides.

And it’s not all in the reins, it’s in your seat and upper body. You want your pony to learn not to resist against your contact or throw his head in the air when you change your seat. F lex to the inside, flex to the outside and ride a circle every now and again.

Use half-halts to steady your pony and ask him to soften. You need control of your pony in the school – if he doesn’t respect you here, you won’t have much chance riding across country!”

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The set up...

... a single fence, on the centre line at X, pointing towards A and C

Jumping on a figure of eight When you ride a XC or SJ course you sometimes have to jump fences at awkward angles, and this is a great exercise for practising that. It teaches the rider to manoeuvre their pony, change direction and canter lead easily, and encourages the pony to be more responsive to the aids. The decisionmaking process is also great for improving rider coordination.

It’s a very good exercise for ponies that tend to rush, and quickly teaches ponies to slow down and balance themselves.

Finally, it’s a great way to begin teaching flying changes.

“Okay, let’s see you pop over this. I’m looking for good rhythm. Start the exercise by riding two or three times over the fence on the sa me rein – so on a circle – to establish some rhythm in the canter. Then progress to your figure of eight. I want to see you straighten up for the last three strides of the approach.

Then, as you take off, decide which way you want to land and open that rein whilst stepping your weight into that stirrup.”

Turn the page for more...

Huge thanks to Tina Cook and Stonar School for inviting us to report on this clinic 9

dressage ssage diva!

Diary of A Charlotte gives us the insider news on gongs, ponies, HOYS memories – and even belts!

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Valegro and Charlotte in action!

This is it, the gong! It was a very proud moment to collect an OBE!

Charlotee Dujardin, OBE!

This was a really special month for me – I’ve been to the Palace! (Buckingham, that is.) It was so exciting to meet Her Royal Highness Princess Anne, the Princess Royal, and receive my OBE. We all love dressing up and this time I had the perfect excuse so I treated myself to a Paul Costelloe coat and a fabulous hat from Rachel Trevor Morgan – and, of course, some fab shoes! It was a wonderful day and one my family and I will never forget.

More pony memories

Me and Ardenall Royal Secret winning at Hickstead!

Last month I promised to tell you more about my ponies.

Well, after I grew out of Grenny, my lead rein and first ridden pony, I moved onto the 12.2hh show pony classes on Ardenall Royal Secret, who used to be my sister Emma Jayne’s pony. When she rode her they won 18 out of 18 classes! We called Royal Secret Silly Milly at home, but she wasn’t at all silly, she was amazing!

We took her to all the UK’s major county shows and championships such as Royal Windsor, Cheshire County, Royal Cornwall and the Bath and West, and she did so well that we qualified for the Horse of the Year Show many times. In fact, we won Pony of the Year at HOYS twice, were reserve once and came second in our class four times! I was so proud of her. Silly Milly’s party trick was to pull funny faces at feed time. We all used to laugh at her and she loved the attention – I’m sure that’s why she did so well!

Four hooves vs four wheels

I have been thinking about buying a new car. My Audi is a little bit small for all the riding gear I have in the boot and on the back seat, and it is also a little bit scary to drive in the snow. Out of the blue I had the most fab news – I’ve been offered a four-wheel-drive car! It’s a Mitsubishi Outlander, perfect for my horsey lifestyle, and I LOVE IT. Do come and say hello to me at Badminton Horse Trials – I will be there representing the Mitsubishi brand as an ambassador (sounds posh doesn’t it?).

Horsey prezzies

Finally, don’t forget to keep the bling spirit alive and check out the Classic Dressage website. They have a fantastic Otto Schumacher belt which has your country’s flag embedded on one side and the colours of the flag on the other side. It’s so patriotic and perfect for a lovely present for a horsey person (perhaps even HRH Princess Anne! Do you think she would like one?).

Have a great month. Treat your ponies to a lovely groom and trim on the next warm spring day, and maybe I’ll see you at Badminton. Don’t forget to come and say Hi!

See you next time!

Brought to you by www.classicdressage.com

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Introducing... the epic NEW

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What is PONY VIP Club?

The VIP Club is the brand new, super-cool PONY Magazine Club! As a PONY VIP you can: ❖ Get exclusive access to secret areas on ponymag.com, full of extra stuff for VIPs only ❖ Claim your VIP gift at the PONY stand at selected events ❖ Use your VIP points to send off for exclusive rosettes and gifts ❖ Decipher the codes to reveal tips from top riders and Team PONY Plus you’ll receive: ❖ A mega VIP member pack! ❖ Exclusive VIP newsletters!

Join today and you’ll be able to use your Code Breaker to translate this Club Chat from Team PONY! Find more online!

epic extras!

Check out the members section on ponymag.com where members can gain access to VIP only extras – including special offers from these companies!

access pony area

Rock up to the PONY stand at any of these events, flash your PONY VIP wristband and you’ll get an ace PONY gift! Here’s where to find us in 2013! ❂ Badminton, Gloucestershire May 2nd-6th ❂ The Pet Show, Warwickshire July 20th-21st ❂ Burghley, Lincolnshire September 5th-8th ❂ Blenheim, Oxfordshire September 12th-15th ❂ The London International Horse Show at Olympia December 16th-22nd

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great gifts!

Send four VIP or Charlie points to get this super-cute Saddle Club notebook and stationary set!

Available while stocks last!

Offer available to UK members only until the end of May 2013 Don’t forget to include a large (A4), stamped, addressed envelope when sending for gifts or rosettes!

secret codes As of next month, rider tips will be written in a top secret code that only PONY VIP members can decipher!

We asked awesome eventer Oliver Townend what he thinks is the most important thing to remember when riding cross country. He says, “Listen to your horse’s breathing and keep to the rhythm.”

TT E E R R C SSEEC

PP TTOO

POINTS FORM FOR GIFTS/ROSETTES ❒ I enclose a large (A4) stamped, self-addressed envelope with correct postage for a large letter, first or second class.

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❁ Until January 2014, Charlie Mag Club points will be accepted for MINI rosettes. ❁ The existing mega rosette will be available until January 2014 in exchange for a mixture of Charlie points and VIP points. ❁ Soon there will be a super-new VIP rosette available exclusively in exchange for VIP points! Keep your eyes peeled for the cool new design!

Mini rosette – 4 Charlie points Mega rosette – 8 Charlie or VIP points Colours may vary from those shown

Get your PONY ViP 2013 member’s pack ! *

Your membership will last for a whole year and during that time you can collect VIP points which you’ll find printed in every issue of PONY Magazine. When you’ve saved up enough VIP points, exchange them for an amazing VIP rosette or one of the exciting offers you’ll see in future magazines!

Included in your yearly membership are these amazing goodies:

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Exclusive VIP drawstring bag Unique membership card Secret code breaker VIP wristband VIP window sticker P TO VIP badge VIP pencil

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Existing Mag Club memberships will expire by the end of January 2014. Charlie points will not be accepted for any offers after the end of January 2014. All rosettes and offers are subject to availability. Please allow up to 28 days for delivery of Club products.

No photocopied points will be accepted.

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