Teenager wins event training grant

Peter Mason, a 16-year-old member of the VWH branch of the Pony Club, from Bibury, Glos, has scooped one of the top awards in the country for young event riders.

The annual bursary is in memory of Mrs “Urky” Newton, a passionate cross-country and hunting enthusiast, who was East Midlands District Commissioner for many years.

The prize is a week’s training with former Olympic event rider and British Eventing chairman Jane Holderness-Roddam.

The bursary was introduced in 1997 under the instigation of Mrs Newton’s nephew Arthur Packard. “Urky” had been a District Commissioner, branch secretary and was the area representative for Area 6 (East Midlands) for many years. She was also a member of the horse trials, show jumping and dressage committees.

Her real passion was cross-country riding, especially hunting to hounds, which she felt was the best education for riding cross-country.

Peter, a keen team chaser whose mother Chris led the Fosse Manor team for 10 seasons, was judged to have shown the most competent horsemanship on the cross-country course at this year’s Pony Club national championships at Sansaw Park in August.

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