ICB Cross Country Training Clinic
A very successful first go at the ICB Cross Country Clinic! Riders and horses thoroughly enjoyed their training – splashing away in the water, up and down the Rasta bank, and being bold and brave over the various flagged jumps around Base.
Some riders braved the country for the very first time and felt the boost of confidence as their horses showed super sporting enthusiasm and mastered the jumps as if all of them have been doing it for years!
The riders all started with a course walk with Tim Payne, guiding them through the courses and giving them valuable advice on knowing their tracks and being sure of their routes. The importance of walking your course correctly is often underestimated, and the benefit of having the course builder talk you through it will forever bring you a better understanding. From there, the riders hopped on their noble steeds and gathered with their groups. Each group had a different instructor who would focus on some of the more challenging obstacles – banks, water complex, skinnies, and ditches – all areas where one is bound to have some scare – either from the horse or the rider. Our trained instructors then guided their students to confidently master the obstacles. They then had guidance on how to ride the track to suit the time set for the course, and finally completed the full course.
On Sunday, riders were given the chance to ride the course with their time recorded. The combination of all of the above training led to successful completion and confident riders.
We would like to thank all the instructors – Tim Payne, Shane Rorke, Patrick Brown and Paul Heart for their dedication and time spent on the riders. You have all opened a new door for riders and the Eventing community, we hope to see the sport grow even stronger and look forward to see your students rise to the top!
With all the positive feedback and results from riders, we have set the next clinic date to be on the 3rd of October 2020. Bookings can be made with Mandy Thomas (mandy@cirrustravel.co.za) to secure your slot.
We are very excited to be seeing all of you and more new faces here for the next one!
