Glen Innes Pony Club’s Jamboree team gathered at the showground on Wednesday to put the finishing touches on their preparation ahead of Zone 13’s annual event to be held in Tenterfield from Friday.
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The three-day competition is the biggest one in the region and provides a platform for riders from across the Zone to qualify for state and national level teams.
This round will be a little bit special for two of the club’s members.
It will be the last competition for team captains, Rachel Kiehne and Monique Duddy.
Duddy, who is one of 20 to be chosen to take part in the event, said she is looking forward to the competition in Tenterfield later this week and is excited to see what the future holds for her.
“I’ve been in the club for as long as I can remember,” she said.
“I don’t really have a next step but to just to see where life takes me.”
Kiehne said she was also feeling positive about the weekend and is hoping for a great result to mark the end of an era for her.
‘The whole team is looking forward to going to Jamboree and having a good time,” she said.
This is the cream of our region as far as pony club and it is always a tough one.
- Jacqui Cave
“Hopefully we will end up with some great results and more importantly just have a good go.”
With every discipline covered across the three days and every club from Zone 13 represented, competition will be tough.
The Jamboree is a step up for many riders from the Interclub competitions held at the end of each year with more clubs at the event this weekend.
Despite the challenge of facing the region’s best riders, Glen Innes club’s chief instructor Jacqui Cave said this year’s team will put in a good showing and will be no pushovers.
"This is the cream of our region as far as pony club and it is always a tough one,” she said.
"We have a team of 20 and a strong team so we will mix it with them.”
While the rivalries are fierce inside the arena, the friendly nature of the competition doesn’t go unnoticed with many of the opposing clubs gathering after the day’s events for a bit of social fun.
"When all the clubs get together, socially we have a great time as well,” Cave said.
"We have a great rapport with each other and a great friendship base so we enjoy it for the social side as much as anything.”
Dressage, show jumping and campdrafting commence Friday with hacking, sporting and more jumping on Saturday. Sunday rounds out the event with sporting, finals and presentation.