This Sunday is Mother’s Day in Australia so many mums will be enjoying a well-deserved lie in with maybe breakfast in bed or lunch out somewhere. But not if they are Victorian eventing mums who are more likely to be up early, packing up the horse float and spending the day at Ballarat Horse Trials!
This event goes from strength to strength each year and over 370 competitors are entered for the weekend competition. Classes include CIC 3*, 2* and 1* divisions this year, making it a perfect event for a last minute qualification for Melbourne International Horse Trials (entries close on Monday 12th May for MIHT by the way) and there are plenty of riders contesting the Pre-Novice, Preliminary and Introductory classes.
The event is also a qualifier for the Equestrian Victoria Interschools championships in the CIC1*, EA105, EA95 and EA80 levels so there are plenty of junior riders with a qualification aim too this weekend (those eventing mums certainly won’t be getting a lie-in)
Ewan Kellett, course designer extraordinaire, is on home turf here and has produced some really good new courses in recent years at the Ballarat Pony Club Grounds thanks to all the fundraising efforts of a very motivated committee. The cross country phases are held on Saturday and Sunday with the Intro classes kicking it all off on Saturday at 2pm and the other classes heading out on course on Sunday. We’ll have the camera crew there on both days so all riders in all classes will be filmed – get ready for some good viewing!
Last year's Melbourne 3* winner Katja Weimann and BP Flamboyant at Ballarat 2013
There are the usual suspects of the Victorian eventing scene competing this weekend; Will Enzinger (who no doubt will have a careful eye on a certain horse competing at the other B event during the weekend) doesn’t have a 3* star horse competing but Ruban Son is back and entered in the 2* as are the evergreen Mousetrap and Wenlock Aquifer. Most of the entries in the 3* are likely to be heading to Melbourne so this could be an interesting test of current form for the likes of Amanda Ross and her two chestnuts, Rob Palm also on two horses, the in-form Natalie Davies, last year’s Melbourne 3* winner Katja Weimann riding BP Cosmopolitan and Rohan Luxmoore on his Melbourne 2* winner Bells ‘N Whistles.
South Australian rider Jaimie Stitchel is also competing in the 3* and her compatriot from across the border Megan Jones is competing Kirby Park Impress amongst others, fresh from their CIC1* win at Sydney. Hopefully we’ll also get a good look at Megan’s flash new truck this weekend!
See you at Ballarat and if you can’t be there, make sure you follow the weekend’s big B events here on AEL in our 4* member only content
