2008 AREA 18 & BRC CHAMPIONSHIP DATES

Area 18 Qualifiers, BRC Championships & Other team competition dates

18th May Area 18 Junior Outdoor SJ & Style – Cleeve Prior, Evesham (CropRC)
31st May – 1st June BRC Festival of the Hunter Championships – Aston-le-Walls, Nothants
15th June (tbc) Area 18 Horse Trials – Snowshill, Broadway
5th July Area 18 Dressage to Music – RDA Cheltenham (LVFRC)
13th July Area 18 Snr & Jnr Novice Dressage, Pairs, RT – Swanley (CERC)
20th July Area 18 Snr Open Dressage – West Littleton, near Bath (BkRC)
27th July Area 18 Senior SJ & Style – Blackmore Park Rd, nr 3 Counties S’grnd, Malvern
8/10th August BRC Horse Trial Championships – Offchurch Bury, Warwickshire
6/7th September BRC Dressage/RT/Style/SJ Championships – Lincoln Showground
11/14th September Blenheim Horse Trials – Woodstock

JUNIOR SJ TEAMS
Prelim entries have been made for the Area Show-jumping on May 18th. We are sending two show jumping teams, and one style jumping team. There are a couple of slots available if anyone is still thinking about it! Please contact team manager - Lisa Edmonds, High Walls, Burford Rd, Brize Norton, Oxon. OX18 3NS tel 01993 844768. ASAP

AREA 18 HORSE TRIALS – 15 JUNE 2008 AT SNOWSHILL, BROADWAY
This year we will only be sending one Novice team and one Intermediate team, plus two Intermediate individuals, but hopefully we will acquit ourselves well. We are on for hat-trick if the Novice team qualifies for the Championships again – no pressure then!
Karen Saunders

HICKSTEAD – TEAMS OF THREE SHOW JUMPING
This year the RIHS clashes with the Area 18 Show Jumping qualifier on 26/27th July and we will probably only send one team this year (maybe two). If you want to go, but haven’t got in touch yet – please hurry!
Bev Townsend

AREA DRESSAGE TO MUSIC (DTM)
This is on Saturday 5th July at RDA Cheltehham. With the sessions that Fiona and Pam have run over the winter, we are hoping to have a few more entries for this discipline this year. There are classes for Pairs, Freestyle Novice and Freestyle Elementary.
AREA NOVICE DRESSAGE, PAIRS & RIDING TESTS
This is a week later, on Sunday 13th July at Swanley. Team members are also scored as individuals and can qualify even if the team does not. The tests are as follows;
Novice Dressage – 4 riders x Prelim 13 (2006)
Pairs Dressage – BRC Pairs 4
Riding Test – 2 riders x BRC RT6 (2005), 2 riders x BRC RT8 (2005)
AREA OPEN & MEDIUM DRESSAGE
This is another week on, Sunday 20th July at West Littleton, nr Junct 18 M4. Team members are scored as individuals so can qualify if the team does not. Tests are;
Open Dressage – 1 x Nov 20 (2007), 1x Nov 27 (2007), 1 x Nov 30 (2006), 1 x Elem 48 (2007)
Medium Dressage – Individuals only Med 64 (2006)
For a place in any of the above teams, I will need to be sent separate copies of your horse’s fluvac certificate (name & picture), plus which competition you want to do. The deadline for putting your name down for any of the dressage events is 31st May.
Sue Odom

BLENHEIM TEAM CHALLENGE
This year the organisers have changed the format from pure Show-jumping to a Derby style competition so that all riders will jump a course of show jumps plus some cross-country style fences. Riders 1 & 2 will compete in the morning over 8 - 10 show jumps leading onto 6 - 8 efforts over portable/fixed cross country fences. Riders 3 and 4 will compete over the same obstacles in the afternoon. The maximum height of obstacles will be 1.05m (3’ 6”) with maximum spread of 1.55m at base; however the majority of fences will not exceed 1.0m (3’ 3”) in height.
The SJ phase will have one double combination and must be jumped at a speed of 325m/minute. Competitors then go to the XC phase where the optimum time is based on 400m/minute. Rosettes will be awarded at the end of the day to all competitors who have completed both phases.
We have been invited to enter a team for this event and the new format will increase the number of teams competing there to 30, so I would really like to put forward a strong team. I will be ‘talent spotting’ at all our Members’ show jumping/Open Show as well as the Area events! If you would like to be considered, please let me know. We always have masses of supporters along with us at this event and I’m sure with the change in format, there will be even more to make it a very special day.
Bev Townsend