Top venue to stop “intrusive” shows

One of the south’s leading competition venues, Hurstbourne Equestrian Centre at Manor Farm, Whitchurch, Hants, is to stop holding affiliated competitions.

Anne Dicker, manager of the centre, explains: “The owner doesn’t want to hold shows any more: he finds it intrusive to his riding and his property. He would like to have the ability to ride in his facility at the weekends and the shows are currently making that impossible.”

Manor Farm was originally set up by Jennie (pictured) and Anthony Loriston-Clarke in 1992 as a show venue and stud (Catherston).

The property was sold in April 2001 to Tim Tacchi and Bettina Kunzle-Tacchi when the Loriston-Clarkes moved Catherston Stud to Over Wallop, near Stockton, Hants. Their daughter, Anne, stayed on at the newly named Hurstbourne EC as manager.

Following a difficult phase for the centre during foot-and-mouth, Hurstbourne took off as a show venue, particularly for affiliated dressage, and has gone from strength to strength ever since.

In the past three years, it has held three days of shows and clear round jumping each week, plus Premier League show jumping and dressage and dressage winter semi-finals. The centre has both indoor and outdoor facilities.

The centre will now concentrate on liveries, while Anne will continue to teach and hopes to offer clinics.

“Unfortunately, we’re such a successful venue that we can be seen to be the maker of our own demise,” Anne adds.

All the shows listed in the dressage omnibus schedule until the end of September will run as planned, while the centre’s last BSJA show jumping fixture will be from 23-24 July.

This article first appeared in H&H (15 July)

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