Grassroots riders have the chance to qualify for a £700 prize “winner takes all” one-day event this September.
In what organisers hope will be an “exciting” challenge for unaffiliated amateurs, Snowball Farm Equestrian Centre, Buckinghamshire, is offering the prize to the victor of the 90cm class at its horse trials on 23 September.
Riders can qualify for the final at two Snowball-run events, on 21 April and 26 May, and also at a High Wycombe Riding Club competition, to be run at the same venue on 27 May.
Five will qualify from each section, of which there will be four at the first two competitions and two at the riding club event.
“We’re hoping it’s going to be really exciting, and really competitive,” centre co-owner Natalie Western Kaye told H&H, adding that she was inspired by the £15,000 prize fund unaffiliated series run by Aston-le-walls and Tweseldown last year.
“There’s nowhere that offers big prize money like this at this level, and we thought it would be really nice for up and coming riders.
“It costs such a fortune, to compete as well as run events, horses aren’t cheap, and this is a lot of money to win.”
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Natalie said Snowball Farm ran British Eventing competitions for some years and hopes to secure a date in the BE calendar in future.
Enjoy all the buzz of a stay-away championship show, with a prize fund of about £1,000 at each level of
“The classes will be run under BE rules and using a BE90 dressage test, and it’ll be a professionally built cross-country course with frangible pins if needed, and the ground prepared as we’ve got all the equipment,” she said.
“We hope to draw lots of people in and that it will be very excited. I’d say to people, go for it! With that prize money, you’d be mad not to.”
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Eleanor is an experienced journalist who spent over eight years working for local and national newspapers before joining H&H as news editor in March 2016. Passionate about equine welfare and exposing the truth, Eleanor has reported on all aspects of the industry, from Brexit to anti-bullying campaigns, and from dressage rules to mules. Her sport of choice is showjumping, in which she competes her own horses, and she also enjoys reporting at local jumping shows through to international championships.
