Top course designer for Wairoa

HAVE LEGS, WILL FLY: Simon Wilson competes aboard McMillans Midway Smooth Dude at the 2015 Wairoa A and P Show. Picture by Clare Gordon

ORGANIERS of the Wairoa A and P Show have attracted one of the best showjumping course designers in the Southern Hemisphere.

Australian John Vallance has been part of the design team for four Olympic Games and travels the world designing and sharing his knowledge. He is no stranger to Kiwi shores, having been at many a Farmlands Horse of the Year Show as well as other top events around the country.

One of the highlights of his career is working with emerging course designers.

“It is a very rewarding part of my role,” says the horseman, who hails from New South Wales.

“It is not an easy task and the development is time-consuming, but it is hugely rewarding.”

The annual Wairoa Show, which this year celebrates its 114th year, has attracted record numbers and had to close entries to cope.

Show manager Sue Wilson says 30 more yards have been added this year for the extra horses, with the race course also being used to accommodate some of the 373 combinations.

Competition starts tomorrowy with a two-day dressage tournament, followed by showjumping, show hunter and ring classes on Friday and Saturday.

The Equissage Grand Prix (1.4 metres to 1.5m) has attracted some top entries from the wider Hawke’s Bay area. They include husband and wife Simon and Claire Wilson (Waipukurau), New Zealand Performance Horses’ Daniel Blundell (Ocean Beach), former New Zealand representative Robert Steele (Dannevirke), Bernard Denton (Feilding), Larina Dolman (Gisborne), Nicki Booth (Masterton) and Geordie Bull (Taupo), among others.

Guest judge and entertainer for the show is Te Radar.