Singapore Horses Thrill Kilcoy Locals!

On Tuesday 25 May a show was held at Glen Haven Park and a selection of local residents were invited to view their performances. The horses handled the 1.20m course with aplomb and the visitors were thrilled to see such amazing athletes up close and personal. It was a great day for the horses and spectators alike! Once quarantine commences on 1 June, no external visitors, except for necessary horse care personnel, will be able to access the horses, so the Kilcoy locals felt privileged and enjoyed being the last lay people to view the horses before they head off to Singapore!
(photos: {top - bottom} CP Rosie loving the attention from her adoring public; Paula on Flash Top Hat and Emma on Belcam Hinnerk reliving the course for the visitors; Olivia and Gatineau, receiving applause from the crowd after a successful round - Gatineau does loves attention; Travelling Soldior and Olivia showing fine form over the wall; and Travelling Soldior playing to the crowd after another clear round)

Glen Haven Glory at Gympie!

It's starting to sound like we're really blowing our own trumpet, but Gympie Ag Show was the last one before the Singapore horses go into quarantine, prior to the trip to their new home - so we have to make the most of it! The show started well on Thursday 13 May with Paula and Randlab Capone placing 2nd (by .7 of a second!) and Randlab Levitate placing 6th in the 1.40m class.

On Friday, Glen Haven riders had another good day with Emma Smith winning the D Grade Championships on her own stallion and Olivia placing 2nd on Singapore horse Gatineau, out of approximately 90 horses.

The Young Rider and Junior Championships were held on Saturday and Olivia excelled in both these events by placing 2nd on Singapore horse Gatineau, 3rd on GH Enzo and 9th on Singapore horse Van Diemen in the Young Rider Championships, out of 40 horses. Olivia then went on to win the Junior Championships on her horse Bucks Bunny, from a field of 68 horses. Bucky and Olivia certainly are on fine form at the moment! To top off the show, Olivia and Singapore horse Van Diemen, were snapped in the main ring by The Gympie Times newspaper photographer (as pictured above).

Now Gympie Show is over, the Glen Haven team are getting ready to go into quarantine mode from 1 June so there won't be any more shows until the big event in Singapore in August!

Glen Haven Park Romp it in at Roma!

Wednesday 5 May found the Glen Haven Park team making the 6 hour trek to Roma in South West Queensland to compete in the Roma Agricultural Show, which was held on 6 - 8 May. After such a great weekend at Nambour a few days before, everyone was on a high about the trip to Roma. On Thursday, the first day of the show, Paula had a good win in the 1.40m class on Randlab Capone and then Olivia went out and dominated the placings in the 1.20m class, getting 2nd on Bucks Bunny, 4th on Singapore horse Van Diemen and 6th on Singapore horse Gatineau. Friday dawned fine and very chilly and everyone was ready for more showing! Olivia once again started the day well and stood out in the Junior class, placing 1st on Bucks Bunny and 2nd on Singapore horse Pearl Monarch. Olivia backed this up with a 2nd placing on Singapore horse Van Diemen and 5th on Glen Haven Gosh in the 1m class. Next up was the 1.20m class, where Olivia was once again successful, placing 2nd on Singapore horse Gatineau and 3rd on Glen Haven Enzo. Saturday was another beautiful Queensland day and the fine weather seemed to reflect Glen Haven Park's ongoing form for the show! Out of a field of 25 horses, Olivia won the Junior Class on Bucks Bunny, then placed 2nd, 4th and 5th (respectively) on Singapore horses Van Diemen, Pearl Monarch and Gatineau. It was definitely looking like Olivia and the Singapore horses' show when she finished up her successful run by placing 2nd and 4th on Pearl Monarch and Van Diemen in the D Grade Championship out of 31 horses. All classes at the show had good numbers and everyone was thrilled with their successes. Of course, no-one had time to take any photos that were useful for the blog, except the one below of the horses dozing in the early morning sun, which is quite sweet. Next show is Gympie Ag and I have demanded that someone take at least one photo of a horse on course and, if the showing gods are kind, someone from Glen Haven Park getting a ribbon!! Watch this space for news on Gympie next week!

Great Weekend at Nambour for Glen Haven Park!

The 2010 Nambour Showjumping Championships were held at Nambour Showgrounds on 1 and 2 May. Glen Haven Park attended with a tribe of 20 horses and the weekend certainly turned out to be a huge success for everyone on our team! The GHP trail of glory started with Olivia Hamood and Bucks Bunny winning the Junior Championship and Olivia and Singapore horse, Van Diemen, placing third in this event (out of some 45 horses). This great achievement was followed by Emma Smith on her own horse, Ash, winning the 1.10m Championship and fellow GHP team member Tom Sedger placing second on his mare Wirragulla Ophelia. Singapore horse Little Miss Sunshine and Emma, also put in a faultless first round in the 1.10m class, with an unlucky four faults in the jump off.

To continue with the winning streak Paula Hamood and Singapore horse Flash Top Hat won the 1.25m Championship, Olivia on Bucks Bunny followed closely to be placed second, then to top this off Olivia and Singapore horse Gatineau finished fourth, ensuring that GHP won and dominated the top placings in 3 out of 4 of the Championship titles. Following her success over the duration of the show, Olivia was awarded Leading Young Rider of the Show and was presented with a beautiful Pariani bridle for winning this prestigious award.

Everyone at Glen Haven Park would like to express their appreciation to Paul Raymont and his team for running such a professional show and for the opportunity to compete in a high quality arena, with excellent footing and plenty of room, which is not often seen in Australia!

Photos: (top) Van Diemen and (bottom) Flash Top Hat showing their winning style