Whakatāne-Edgecumbe Pony Club celebrated a successful season with a closing rally late last month.

The rally was a chance to have some fun and celebrate the progress each rider and their horse had made over the season.

The parking area was packed with utes and floats, ponies and horses, riders in their pony club uniform and families whose support and hard work make pony club possible.

Younger riders enjoyed games, including a mounted egg and spoon race with an Easter twist of balancing three Easter eggs at once while also guiding their ponies.

The kids loved the combination of a sack race down to their pony and then a trot back to the finish line.

The evening was topped off with an Easter egg hunt, this time on foot.

The more confident riders enjoyed the challenge of jumping a combination of four jumps, with their heights gradually increasing.

After a few years of decreasing membership, numbers have increased with the Edgecumbe Pony Club leaving its location to work with the Whakatāne Town branch.

The combined club has 24 riding members aged under 18, and 50 members in total, including parents who supervise their children and help the club function, coaches and adult riders.

Some members graze their ponies and horses at the pony club grounds on Keepa Road, which is leased from Whakatāne District Council, and others graze elsewhere.

The club has a strong group of beginner riders aged from four to intermediate age in its lead rein/just-off-the-lead group.

There is also a group for confident beginners and those working towards their D and D+ certificates.

There is a third group of riders working towards their C certificate, many of whom are competing regularly and representing local high schools at equestrian events.

At the beginning of the 2024-25 season, the pony club was the grateful recipient of a grant from the New Zealand Community Trust which enabled it to pay for coaches to work with the various groups of riders.

This has meant each ability group had its own coach, with a programme tailored to their needs.

The funding also allowed the club to run more intensive clinics covering showjumping, cowboy challenge-type obstacles, horsemanship and to focus on riders preparing to sit their certificates.

The New Zealand Pony Club Association has a syllabus which riders work through to develop their skills and understanding of how to care for their horse.

There have also been several rallies held to broaden the experiences of members, such as a trek over farmland, an overnight camp at Racecourse Park, and practice over cross country jumps.

The club has hosted some very successful events over the season, beginning with the Whakatāne District Gymkhana.

In February, the club ran the Bay of Plenty Schools Showjumping at Racecourse Park, and it has also run two successful practice showjumping events at its Keepa Road grounds.

These showjumping days were great fundraising opportunities for the club and an opportunity for riders to have fun in a supportive atmosphere.

Pony clubs have a strong history in Whakatāne, with many people holding memories of the adventures they enjoyed with their ponies, and riding to rallies and events before float transport became common.

The friendships, skills, hard work and determination that horse riding requires makes it a sport that can shape a young person far into the future.

Some people think horse riding is glamorous and all about prestige, but for most young people, the love and care of their pony means early mornings and hard work making sure their best mate has everything they need.

Wheeling barrows of pony poo and keeping your pony fit and well is a time- consuming job but the relationship a young person builds with their pony is so fulfilling.

The pony club thanks all the parents, coaches, and supporters who have made this season such a success and plans are already under way as it prepares for the season to begin again in September.

If you would like to know more about the pony club and what it involves then please contact the committee via email [email protected]