HRH The Princess Royal to visit the Suffolk Show

HRH The Princess Royal is to attend this year’s Suffolk Show on Wednesday June 1, 2011, at Trinity Park.

The Suffolk Agricultural Association, organisers of the annual two day agricultural Show, said they were absolutely delighted and extremely honoured when they received the news that Her Royal Highness is to attend the Show, and are now working on the details to include the Princess Royal in many aspects of the programme, particularly those that reflect her own interests.

Executive Director Christopher Bushby told the EADT:”This will be the Princess Royal’s fourth visit to the Show. The first was as Princesses Anne in 1982, the second and third visits as the Princess Royal in 1998 and 2004 respectively. Her Royal Highness’s programme is currently being finalised but she is expected to visit all four corners of the Show and present the Long Service Awards to individuals who have worked for more than 30 years in the agricultural industry. She will be meeting many different people representing many organisations that make up the Show. Her visit will truly enhance what already promises to be a very exciting Show and we are very delighted and honoured that she is attending,” he said.

It is highly likely that the Princess Royal, who is a Member and Director of the London Organising Committee for the Olympic Games and the British representative for the International Olympic Committee, will spend some time in the Suffolk Sports Village and bring welcome encouragement and areal boost to Suffolk’s Olympic and paralympic hopefuls who will be present. Many of them will be attending and demonstrating their sports in this newly expanded area near the Foxhall entrance where the Olympic mascots Wenlock and Mandeville will also be present. The public will also have a chance to try out many of the 25 Olympic sports.

The Princess Royal is the only member of the Royal family to have competed in the Olympic Games when as Princess Anne she was part of the British Olympic Equestrian Team in Montreal in 1976. She is a patron and honorary member of the Suffolk Horse Society and likely to take more than a keen interest in the many equine events around the Show, including the new ridden classes for heavy horses.

For further information and to keep up to date with all the events happening at the Show as well as purchase discounted advance tickets visit www.suffolkshow.co.uk

Hat Trick of equine qualifiers for the 2011 Suffolk Show on June 1 & 2

The Suffolk Show has scored a real hat trick and been declared a qualifier for the first time for both the Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) and Olympia, in addition to the existing Royal International Horse Show (RIHS).

All the details will be in the equine schedule available in mid February but the new qualifiers for HOYS are Working Hunter Ponies (plaited), The PRP Rescue Services Mountain and Moorland Working Hunter Ponies and Shire Horses. Entrants to the Working Hunter Pony classes can be affiliated to the National Pony Society (NPS), Ponies (UK) or the British Show Pony Society (BSPS).

The Suffolk Show has also been awarded the Olympia Heritage Ridden Mountain & Moorland (M&M). It is one of just a few county shows to offer direct qualification to the world-famous final held at Olympia, the London International Horse Show. These classes are now affiliated to the BSPS.

Improvements and expansion to the equine judging horse rings will enable the Show to host more classes. The Levington and Nacton ring complex has been extended to include the new Foxhall ring. For the first time there will be classes for ridden sport horse, in-hand and ridden foreign breeds and Veteran Horse Society qualifiers for both in-hand and ridden horses over 15 years.

The working cob class is now for the working show horses and open to hacks, cobs, maxicobs and riding horses.

Heavy horses have always had a strong profile at the Show and this year will be no exception. The Percheron Horse Society will be holding its breed show for the duration, which will not only include in-hand classes on Thursday, but a ridden heavy horse class on Wednesday at 5pm as well as turnout classes throughout both days which are both open to all breeds.

For further details and to download schedules and entry forms and a list of judges (from mid-February) visit the website at www.suffolkshow.co.uk or call Elizabeth Payne, Livestock Officer on 01473 707115.

Sparkling success for new farriery event

More than 60 apprentice and qualified farriers from right across the country, including members of the England and Ireland teams, took part in the Suffolk Agricultural Association’s first accredited training day and farriery competition, held outside of the Suffolk Show.

The Eastern Counties Spring Championship was an open event and held following a day’s hunter shoeing tuition with one of the UK’s most eminent farriers, Gary Darlow AFCL( Associate of the Farriers Company of London) from Knutsford, Cheshire, who judged the championship. Mr Darlow, as seven times national champion and winner of every shoeing and shoe making title in the UK, gave practical hunter shoeing training for both qualified and apprentice farriers and participants were awarded the equivalent of four training points.

The Eastern Counties Spring Championship held the following day comprised 133 rounds of shoemaking and shoeing in just under eight hours in six classes, two open to registered farriers only, with prize money totally more than £1800 and a first prize of £500 for the open Hunter Shoeing class.

There were money prizes for the first four in each class, except the Eagle Eye which had one winner. The event was sponsored by AJN Steelstock Ltd and Handmade Shoes (UK) Ltd and supported by the Worshipful Company of Farriers who provided silver or bronze medals.

Chief steward Stuart Garrard DWCF (Diploma of the Worshipful Company of Farriers) a farrier and for the past four years head steward of farriery at the Suffolk Show co-organised the event with Ben Duthie. Commenting on the success of the day he said,

”We hope this will be the first of many such days. The feedback was excellent. It was highly successful and drew farriers and apprentices from all over the country ensuring standards were high and confirming there is a definite need for events like this.”