The 31-year-old has been attending the North Island Championships for about 15 years.
He has four horses in Tauranga. Two of them - Grand Coeur 36 and Balouboy Du Busson - will be going to Hastings.
The four days of the North Island Championships began with the Farmer Audi 1.35m Classic on Thursday afternoon with Tarver-Priebe on Grand Coeur 36 not making it through to the jump off.
There was some consolation, though, when he finished second in the subsequent charity slalom event, and also raised $1900 for the charity SANDS.
But it was back to the serious competition yesterday.
"The main aim is to just be consistent with all the horses and build up to HOY. This isn't a qualifying event, but we want to be finding a bit of form now for HOY, but being the North Islands, it's a reasonably prestigious event'."
He said doing well came from focusing on his own riding and being consistent rather than what other riders are doing.
"Basically it's you and your horse really. You've got to be happy with your own round and set a target for yourself. We set ourselves goals for where we wanted to be at the end of the year and we are always working towards that. If you become consistent, the results come.''
At the other end of the experience scale, Rotorua's Oliver Croucher, 17, is in his first season competing in the young rider (21 and under) series. This weekend's show includes a round of the series and there are four more - including one at the Horse of the Year Show. Going into this weekend Croucher is in eighth place in the series. He is also competing in the junior rider (under-18) series.
Croucher and Waitangi Wi Fi didn't have the best start to the weekend in the Farmer Audi 1.35m Classic.
"The horse did well, but had a few down. I just didn't really get him going right, but he jumped really nicely."
While he is focusing on the junior and young rider class, he may, if Waitangi Wi Fi is jumping well, enter the North Island Championship class tomorrow.
"I am aiming to get placings in both the junior and the young rider - but there is some pretty stiff competition in those classes.''
Croucher has been riding since he was 7 and jumping since 2014. Also riding in the young rider class is Rotorua's Mikayla Herbert.
The North Island Championships are being hosted by the Tauranga Showjumping Group. Committee member Sally Steiner says 540 horses and 289 riders will converge at the Tauranga Racecourse for the event.
