2017 Bullio Arabians Trans-Tasman Competition wrap
The 2017 edition of the Trans Tasman competition, sponsored by Bullio Arabians, was staged during the 2017 Equestrian Australia Endurance Championships on the 19-20 August. The world class endurance complex, Stirling’s Crossing Club, which is the brainchild of Matthew Sample, provided a brilliant back drop to this friendly, international competition with New Zealand.
The Trans-Tasman competition is focussed on providing newcomers to the international competition scene with a user-friendly and low-budget introduction to what to expect when competing in international endurance teams. Horses are kindly lent to the visiting team by the host nation. This reduces cost, effort and stress of taking a horse overseas.
This competition has been run between Australia and New Zealand for a number of years but went into hiatus in 2012 due to the previous pressures of organising this event on the biennial basis. Equestrian Australia’s Endurance Committee was keen to get the competition going again and contacted ESNZ who were equally enthusiastic about resurrecting the Trans-Tasman concept.
After a re-write of the rules and agreement by both parties that the main focus of the competition would be to remain as a friendly event conducted in a supportive and sporting manner, the wheels were put in motion to get the event happening.
The competition was run over two events – the 1* 80km event in which 3 riders from each team competed and the 2* 120km event in which the remaining team members competed. In previous events, the winners were declared on the basis of the shortest elapsed time but this was not possible this year due to the spread across events. Consultation with ESNZ resulted in the winner being calculated on the basis of points awarded for a position within the field for each event.
This year’s edition was a very good competition and it wasn’t until the last Australian horse crossed the line at the finish of the 2* event that the outcome was decided. Congratulations go to the New Zealand team for taking home the perpetual trophy!
The event epitomised the ideals of the competition with everyone competing in a very friendly and encompassing way with lots of interaction between the teams. Most of the team members were young riders and it is very encouraging to see the calibre of our up and coming competitors, boding well for a strong future of international competition.
The Australia team consisted of the following members:
- Chef – Tora Thomas
- Amelia Napier – 2*
- Sorsha Stuart-Rokvic – 2*
- Emma Dimech – 1*
- Louis Ryan – 1*
- Elexis Webb – 1* reserve rider
- Alissa Woods – 2* reserve rider
The New Zealand team consisted of the following members:
- Chef – Kelly Haywood
- Amanda McConachy – 2*
- Vanessa Tiffen – 80km AERA
- Tessa Wells – 1*
- Ana Whitehead – 1*
Many thanks need to be extended to the very generous owners of the horses supplied to the New Zealand and Australia team members. It is a big ask to entrust your horse to someone you haven’t met before nor know how they ride and it is a strong statement of the level of support that our endurance stables in Australia show to the sport. Horses were provided by the following stables to the New Zealand team:
- Brook and Leigh Ann Sample (Brookleigh Stud)
- Bec Miller and Craig Ellison (Boonara Endurance)
- Natasha Burton (El Taj Arabians)
- Fiona and Robert Fenech (Wog Endurance)
Horses were also provided for the Australian team by:
- Akhmed Pshunov and Kaylea Maher (Rushoz Endurance)
- OSO Arabians
The next edition of the Trans Tasman competition will be held in New Zealand in 2019. We all look forward to going across the ditch and bringing home the silverware.
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