Riders jump to it at equestrian competition
Amara Thompson riding Second Kiss
(CNS): Cayman Riding School recently hosted the Cayman Islands Equestrian Federation’s (CIEF) Open Jumping Show, with riders competing on horses and ponies at four different heights ranging from 0.6m-0.9m. Tracey Surrey, owner and riding instructor at the school, said that all of the riders performed extremely well, with several competing at the higher heights for the very first time.
“Whilst competing is not our main focus at Cayman Riding School, we have an increasing number of riders wanting to participate in these shows,” she said.
“Whilst the children are more than capable of jumping these heights under instruction (during their weekly riding lessons), when it comes to competing they can get rather nervous having to compete in front of spectators. It is therefore a wonderful opportunity that the Cayman Islands Equestrian Federation organise these shows as it give all riders on the island the opportunity to progress and develop their riding skills.”
At the Sunday, 13 March, event, Skye Buckley won the 0.60m jumping class riding Jack, a Cayman pony owned and trained by Cayman Riding School.
Eva Muspratt, who also trains at the school, won the 0.7m jumping class with her own pony, Oscar.
The 0.8m class was hotly contested with three riders jumping a double clear round so the final placing were decided by the horse and rider with the fastest time in the jump off.
Jenna Boucher won the class riding Star, a Cayman horse that the school loaned to Boucher for the competition. Second place went to Chloe Fowler, riding her young horse, Billy, narrowly beating Amara Thompson who was on her own horse, Second Kiss.
The last class of the day was the 0.9m with Boucher again riding Star, marking their first time competing at this height. The pair came in first, just ahead of Thompson and Second Kiss.
“It is so encouraging that the local Cayman horses that we have rehabilitated and trained at Cayman Riding School are performing just as well – if not beating – some of the more expensive horses that have been imported to the island,” Surrey noted.
“It offers the opportunity to a much wider group of our young riders who would not normally be able to compete if they were dependent on importing a horse (to the island)”.
Category: Equestrian
