Theresa Drake and I had a lovely trip to the Guernsey Group on 27th September to do a couple of coach reviews and also some training. We even had time for a quick visit to Castle Cornet before the sessions started.
Everyone at the group made us feel really welcome and it was lovely to see so many volunteers enjoying the lessons with 4 wonderful ponies. We did some training on leading and it was great to see the volunteers and ponies working together in partnership with each other.
We also got to meet the wife of the Lieutenant-Governor of Guernsey, Louise Cripwell, who is a regular volunteer with the group.
Congratulations to Heidi Ephgrave and Liz Froome who both passed their reviews with flying colours and a very big thank you to Liz for ferrying us around and providing us with a wonderful lunch at her house.
Daisy Britnell, a Garsington independent rider competed at the National Championships and was placed 3rd in the G7 canter class, which is a tremendous achievement for Daisy.
The Board of RDA UK are delighted to announce the appointment of Helena Vega-Lozano as Chair Elect. Helena will bring extensive experience and expertise to RDA having served in roles across the private sector and not-for-profit; and a strong connection to our mission through her lifelong passion for horses, animals, and the natural world.
As a senior Partner and Consulting Board member at Deloitte, Helena leads the Sustainability practice across the Finance and Supply Chain business. During her seventeen years as a Partner with Deloitte, Helena has led numerous programmes for clients, ranging from governance reviews and designing Board strategy and KPIs through to performance management, HR and talent management, risk management and controls, and driving technology and digital change.
Helena is also Chair of the Trustees at Mare and Foal (an equine rescue charity) and is a Volunteer Counsellor for Childline (NSPCC) handling front line calls and digital engagement with young people using the Childline service.
Helena is excited to join RDA and looking forward to meeting the RDA community over the coming months: “I am very much looking forward to meeting and listening to the wonderful RDA participants, volunteers and staff, and building my understanding of everything you do, so that together we can harness our collective knowledge and experience to enrich the lives of even more disabled people through horses. As a trustee, it is a privilege to be able to blend my business experience with my passion for equines. There are many parallels between the federated structure of RDA and the network of national and regional practices within Deloitte, and I am looking forward to drawing on this to help shape the vision and direction of RDA for the future.’ Helena has recorded a short video to introduce herself. You can watch it here.
The day consisted of the Introduction to Dressage Tests 2 and 4, Handy Pony and the Walk in the Woods.
The Wyfold Group have sent an account of the day together with these wonderful photos of their riders, their families and volunteers, giving a thumbs up to the RDA at the Wellington and Dummer Fun Day.
“It proved to be a very enjoyable and rewarding day and well worth the effort of ‘getting it all together!’. The smiles of our riders and the happy faces of our parents were our biggest reward.
These sorts of occasions are very important as they produce memories to be cherished and experiences to be valued.
Sadly only 2 teams turned up, which was a great shame as these events take an awful lot of planning and organisation. However, it did mean that Wyfold carried home a heap of trophies and rosettes which delighted their riders and families.”
We hope Wellington and Dummer organise a Fun Day next year and more groups can go to support such a great day out.
We are so proud of all of the riders who represented Abingdon RDA at the National Championships this year: every one of them has faced challenges in reaching this stage of such a unique and prestigious competition and are a credit to us as a group!
– Mia Prowse & Ocean (borrowed with great thanks from the RDA National Training Centre) – L2 Show Jumping, not placed but a wonderful achievement. Our first competitor ever in this class and on a horse she had only ridden once prior to the day of the class!
Sophia Aitken & Marshall – Introduction to Dressage walk – 3rd place out of a huge class of 33 junior riders. This was Sophia’s first time competing at Nationals. She was expertly led for her class by Julia.
Natalie Anderson & Jimbob – TVI walk – 1st in Junior section. Natalie was aided by a team of talking letters who put on a rosette-winning performance too. There was a fantastic atmosphere in the arena while Natalie’s test was going on.
Alfie Brew-Lee & Jimbob – Grade 7 walk – 5th place in a very tightly contested class. It was wonderful to see Alfie ride at Nationals in person after his class was cancelled last year due to the heatwave.
Megan Marriott & Lisa – Grade 7 walk & trot – 8th place in one of the largest and closest scored classes of the weekend – a very impressive achievement, especially as this was Lisa’s very first RDA competition.
Tara Aitken & Bean (borrowed with great thanks from the Townsend family) – unplaced in a huge Grade 6 walk class (but a fantastic test all the same, especially outdoors in strong winds) and 2nd place in the Grade 6 walk freestyle, riding to some great tunes mixed by Darren Woodlow. Tara and Sophia were the first mother and daughter duo we have ever qualified for the championships, and it was wonderful to see them supporting each other.
Frankie Townsend, our independent rider who competes on her own ponies, brought home an impressive 1st place in both the Grade 6 walk/trot grade test and freestyle (in the Open section, where she was competing against adults) on Bean, and also 6th place in her first ever showing class on her other pony, Aurora. Frankie’s family offered a lot of support to the rest of the group during the weekend, which really added to the fantastic team atmosphere and was so appreciated.
We also achieved 4th place in our first ever entry to the costume freestyle class, featuring Sophia as Cruella DeVil and not quite 101 volunteers and coaches as the Dalmatians she was trying to catch (not forgetting Becci as Henchman Horace the Dogcatcher – complete with ominous moustache). The judges offered some flattering reviews of our acting and storytelling skills!
It really is a huge team effort both home and away to bring any number of riders and horses to an event of this scale, so huge thanks are owed to the staff and volunteers who put in so much time on preparation, packing, transport, training, and care of the horses (and people!) over the weekend. Team Abingdon have been attending RDA Nationals since its inception and it’s wonderful that we are still able to offer riders and other members of our group such an exciting and fulfilling opportunity. Now – what’s next?
