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4.1 Competition and Showing Issues

The ACT contains several facilities which are used for competitions or shows. These include:

As discussed in Chapter 3 of the Phase 1 report, these facilities vary widely in terms of the type, quality and area of the riding surface, the availability of stables, yards, camping areas, car and truck parking and other associated facilities, the opportunities for spectators and the opportunities for use by equestrian clubs.

None of the facilities has all of the characteristics desirable for staging high profile international or national events, or even major state events in many disciplines.

They are generally adequate for club or privately organised competitions or training. The specific needs of the various equestrian disciplines vary widely, not only in a technical sense but also in the social expectations of participants. For polocrosse and endurance riding, for example, an informal camping arrangement forms part of the event atmosphere for most participants, while competitors in some other disciplines expect higher accommodation standards for both themselves and their horses. The quality of the arena surface is critical in different ways for dressage, showjumping and reining, while breed societies are prepared to conduct shows using an arena surface of a lower standard, provided that supporting facilities such as stables are conveniently located nearby.

An important consideration for many clubs is the cost of hiring the facility, or maintaining it, if this is their own responsibility. This is a moderating factor with respect to the aspirations of some equestrians for future facilities, and is a pragmatic consideration affecting current usage.

It is evident that no one existing facility can meet the technical, social and financial requirements of all of the ACT equestrian bodies. The strategy therefore need to address how the existing range of facilities can best serve ACTEA needs and the extent to which these facilities may justify being expanded or augmented in the future. In this context, it is desirable to consider not only those facilities which receive regular use from a range of clubs, but also other facilities, such as pony clubs or commercial facilities which may be underutilised, but are an important potential resource for the local equestrian movement.

The Phase 1 report (Table 4.5) listed seventeen questions which identified the key issues relating to the provision of competition and showing facilities. The most fundamental of these is whether the general direction for the provision of future facilities should be based on providing a new, high quality facility as opposed to upgrading existing facilities. It became apparent at an early stage in this study that the latter direction was generally preferred.

The question which then follows from this is where the priorities for upgrading should be directed in relation to the facilities listed at the start of this section. From an ACTEA viewpoint, this choice is limited somewhat by the fact that it has no direct control over the development of most of the facilities. It can, however, influence ACT

Government grant funding to clubs which maintain their own facilities, and may also seek to influence government expenditure on other facilities (e.g. EPIC, Hall Showground). It can support indirectly the viability of club and commercial facilities by encouraging other member clubs to use them.

The facility of most direct concern to the ACTEA is Equestrian Park, which has been subject to a master planning exercise undertaken by Michael Creber in parallel with Phase 2 of the present study. While the details of this master plan are beyond the scope of the strategic plan, there is scope within the strategic plan for identifying the principles on which the master plan should be implemented.

Having established the priorities between the various facilities, it is then necessary for the ACTEA to determine how it sees the general direction for future development of each facility in which it wishes to maintain an interest. In some cases, it may not wish to influence the development at all, leaving such decisions to the operator.

Another key issue in relation to competition and showing facilities is their ongoing management. From an ACTEA perspective, this is currently most relevant to Equestrian Park, and is an important issue irrespective of the extent of future development. It is relevant also for the ACTEA to consider whether it is in the interests of equestrian sport for it to seek greater involvement in the management of any other facilities, assuming that it has the resources to do so. This includes training arenas associated with government horse paddocks.

The provision of training arenas at government horse paddocks may be seen as desirable in terms of encouraging 'grass roots' participation, but the financial and human resource implications of providing such facilities needs to be viewed in the wider context. To date, funding of such facilities has generally been from sources separate from ACT Government (BSR) funding to the ACTEA, and the paddock groups have had no formal affiliation with the ACTEA. If a more structured approach towards provision of these facilities at horse paddocks is to be adopted through the ACTEA, it may be necessary to formalise the paddock groups and their affiliation with the ACTEA. Alternatively, they may continue to operate informally and independently through the horse paddock management. Either way, there may be insurance implications with respect to the provision, management and use of these facilities which will need to be addressed.

A factor influencing the development of certain facilities is the extent to which they might serve as a 'home ground' for certain clubs. In this sense, a home ground is the venue where those clubs would conduct regular local events and training sessions, store equipment and possibly have an office or social facilities.

 Equestrian Park has become established as the home ground for showjumping, eventing and endurance riding [?], as well as being associated with the Canberra Lakes Pony Club. It has also been adopted by the Jerrabomberra Riding Club, which has abandoned its own grounds [?]. Hall Showground is the home ground for the Hall Pony Club and the Hall Polocrosse Club, and is the main base for carriage driving. All other pony clubs have their own grounds, with Tuggeranong Pony Club having a close affiliation with Tuggeranong Adult Riding Club. The National Equestrian Centre (Kerrabee) is the Canberra base for vaulting.

The one major competition club which has not had a regular home ground to date is the ACT Dressage Association (ACTDA). Because of the strength of dressage, which is numerically the strongest club in Canberra (see Phase 1 report, Appendix B), its preference for a home ground could be a significant factor in the future strategy for development of facilities. It is understood that the ACTDA sees Equestrian Park as its preferred home ground location, subject to upgrading of facilities to meet the needs of dressage.

The breed societies do not generally identify themselves with home grounds but, if they did, this may also have implications for the development of the relevant facility.

The strategic goals for development of competition facilities are unlikely to be achieved unless there is also a strategy for funding their achievement. Funding is required not only for capital works to improve the facilities, but also for their ongoing management. While it is not unreasonable to expect some funding from the ACT

Government, this is likely to be dependent on the ability of the ACTEA to generate its own funds, for example, through increased membership or increased payments for use of Equestrian Park for competitions and instructional activities. If the latter involves more competitions, this means increased voluntary effort by organising clubs. If it involves larger competitions, this may mean a need for better coaching resources to attract riders to the competitive side of equestrian activities.

The conduct of organised competitions, coaching and other activities is currently being curtailed by excessive public liability insurance premiums, an issue which extends well beyond the ACTEA. If a scheme can be developed which could bring premiums back to an affordable level, this could reverse the situation and create a more viable financial climate overall in which to improve equestrian facilities.

The level of ACT Government funding for the development and management of equestrian facilities can be influenced by many factors including the number of people that the ACTEA represents, its capacity to generate funding from other sources (both internal and external), the professionalism of its management in the context of BSR expectations and opportunities for negotiating special in-kind arrangements to reduce the financial burden on the ACTEA or its clubs.

The improvement of competition and showing facilities which are owned and managed by the ACTEA or its clubs thus raises a wide range of associated issues which are fundamental to the operation of the ACTEA. Facilities therefore need to be considered within a holistic framework for the strategic planning of equestrian sport. While it is not within the scope of the present strategic plan to deal fully with many of these wider issues, they are addressed in general terms where appropriate.

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