Index
Page 3 …………………………………………………………………………………………….. / WelcomePage 4 ……………………………………………………….……………………………... / PCAV & Midland Zone
Page 5 …………………………………………………….…………………….………….. / People you should know
Page 6 ……………………………………………………………..……………………….. / Contacts
Page 7 ……………………………………………………….…………….…………………………. / Membership
Page 8 ……………………………………………………………………………………………… / Membership card
Page 10 ……………………………………………………………………………………………. / Attendance
Page 11 …………………………………………………………………………………………….. / Rally days
Page 12 ……………………………………………………………………………. / Uniform
Page 13 ………………………………………………………………………………………………. / Tack & Gear check
Page 14 ………………………………………………………………………………………………. / Certificates
Page 15 ………………………………………………………………………………………………. / Are You Ready to Compete?
Page 17 ………………………………………………………………………………………………. / Grading
Page 18 ………………………………………………………………………………………………. / Instructors, Camps and Competitions
Page 19 ………………………………………………………………………………………………. / Parents/Guardians/Helpers and Etiquette
Page 20 ………………………………………………………………………………………………. / Volunteering Guidelines
Page 23 ………………………………………………………………………………………………. / Other rules
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Welcome
Welcome to the Maldon Pony Club. We are one of the 17 clubs in the Midland Zone, and the 204 in the state of Victoria.
We are situated at Maldon Recreation Reserve, Lewis Road, Maldon.
We have a pre5 to grade 1 cross country course as well as sand areas for our other activities.
Our club rooms have recently been refurbished.
Maldon pony club has an annual awards night with many awards for our members to work towards along with efficiency certificates.
At Maldon we aim to:
- To encourage young people to ride and to learn to enjoy all approved types of sport connected with horses and riding
- To provide instruction in horsemanship and riding and to instil in the members the proper care of their animals.
- To promote the highest ideals of sportsmanship, citizenship and loyalty, thereby cultivating strength of character and self-discipline.
Pony Club is a global movement that has been established in 15 countries around the world. With a membership count of over 102,000 people, it is the largest organisation of riders to exist today. The concept was born in Britain in 1929 as a way of encouraging local youth to get riding, whilst providing them with instruction they may not have had access to otherwise. It took only a year for the notion of pony club to spread to Gibraltar in Spain, and so began the movement which is still going strongly today.
Pony Club is quite a prominent organisation in the equine industry in Victoria. Within the ten geographical zones, there are around 200 clubs, with roughly 6500 riding and adult members registered each year. Membership consists of 3 categories: Junior Riding Members (minimum age is up to individual clubs to decide; although usually it is around 3 or 4 and under 17) Associate Members (between 17 and 25 (until the 30th June following their 25th Birthday)and Adult Members.
Pony Club is an excellent way for riders to learn in a fun, encouraging atmosphere, whilst teaching responsibility and providing the opportunity for new friendships.
The Pony Club place in order of importance:
- The safety of the rider
- The comfort of the horse
- The enjoyment of the rider
- The progress of the rider
The Pony Club aim is not to produce individual riders of exceptional ability, rather to help ALL members improve their riding skills and to enjoy the experience.
Please visit our club website:
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PCAV & Midland Zone
Maldon Pony Club is an affiliated member of the Pony Club Association of Victoria, and as such we are bound by it’s Code of Conduct, Rules, Regulations and Syllabus of Instruction.
For more information on PCAV visit – About Us
Membership of the PCAV provides access to all appropriate PCAV activities; permits members to compete at state events and provides insurance cover for members.
PCAV is divided into ten Zones, and Maldon Pony Club is in the Midland Zone.
Midland Zone
Our zone has regular meetings to keep the zone running smoothly and holds events in all disciplines annually along with instructors school, camps etc.
As well as competing at Zone events, our pony club has a responsibility to Zone and State to assist in:
- Setting up dressage/showjumping areas
- Catering
- As well as competing at these events, the club has a responsibility Ground/event management (including parking)
- All parents are asked to assist so that these tasks are not left to one or two parents.
- Our Club also has two Zone Delegates to attend Zone meetings on our Club’s behalf.
To learn more about the MidlandZone, go to their website:
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People you should know
At Maldon Pony Club we have a range of people in official positions that are willing to help you out wherever possible. Fellow members are also a good point of call if you are unsure of where to go for information.
President: Terry Franklin (who to contact in relation to general Pony Club enquiries)
Vice President: Kim Williams (who to contact in relation to general Pony Club enquiries)
Secretary: Kira Chalmers (who to contact in relation to Pony Club administrative matters)
Treasurer: Jody Pickering (who to contact in relation to Pony Club financial matters)
District Commissioner (DC): Julie Robins (who to contact in reference to competition gradings andrally information)
Chief Instructor: Nicki Chalmers (who to contact in reference to rally information)
Event Secretary: Nicki Chalmers (who to contact in reference to event information eg. Competitions,closing entry dates etc.)
If you aren’t entirely certain of who is who, or who to contact, our members are more than willing to point you in the right direction.
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Contacts
Name / Position / Email / Contact #Terry Franklin / President / / 0409 679 592
Kim Williams / Vice President / / 0421 999 706
Kira Chalmers / Secretary / / 0407 140 580
Jody Pickering / Treasurer / / 0428 148 474
Julie Robins / District Commissioner / / h: 5448 8385 m: 0407 327 055
Nicki Chalmers / Chief Instructor / / 0407 054 851
Linda Nancarrow / Newsletter /
Kira Chalmers / Uniform Co-coordinator / / m:0407 140 580
Nicki Chalmers / Events Co-coordinator / / 0407 054 851
Kira Chalmers / Clinic Organiser / / 0407 140 580
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Membership
Membership fees are set each year at the Annual General Meeting. From February rally onwards, fees are paid on a pro-rata basis until June, when full fees for the year are due, and MUST be paid by the 30th of June. At MPC, fees are reduced for more than two riders in the one family. The Club try to keep our fees to a minimum but in return ask that you and your family assist with working bees, setting up, packing up and running of events and clinics.
Maldon Pony Club Inc offers Senior Riders (over 26 years of age) membership. Priority is given to existing members of the main group (Under 26) who become ineligible for associate membership and wish to continue with Maldon Pony Club Inc and Pony Club Association of Victoria, as well as parents of our junior members.
A monthly newsletter is produced and is emailed to each member and or their family as soon as practical after the Pony Club's monthly committee meeting.
The newsletter is very important as it contains relevant information to Club activities, committee decisions, PCAV news and other issues, clinic information and event entries. Please read the newsletter carefully so that you know what is going on in your club.
Members are classified as:
Fees for 2015/16 are as set out below
Junior Riding MembersRiding members under the age of 17
Fee 2017/18 year$240 including $138 PCAV component.
2nd and subsequent member $225 including $138 PCAV component.
Associate MembersRiding members aged between 17 and 25 (until the 30th June following their 25th Birthday)
Fee 2017/18 year$260 including $158 PCAV component.
Adult MemberAn adult over the age of 25 that is a member of a club for insurance reasons only covered by PCAV.
Fee 2017/18 year$175 PCAV
Service ProviderMembers who provide Instruction to Riding Members at this club, who do not have children of their own as members here. They must have a current Working with Children Card.
**please note the above fees may change after June 30th 2017**
Our Fees are used to – pay affiliation to PCAV which includes insurance; and
to the Zone for it’s administration. A percentage goes to the purchase and maintenance of our buildings and equipment, while we also pay qualified instructors for Rally Day.
Fees are due in May, for the following membership year; in order that the Secretary and Treasurer can be prepared for the annual PCAV Strength Return and have rider’s cards ready for the first week of July.
Failure to pay on time will leave Riders without Insurance coverage and they will not be permitted to ride at the July Rally nor compete at any PCAV events.
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Membership Card
When paid up the Club Secretary will register the Rider with PCAV, who will issue a membership card which must be produced at each Rally, for attendances and gradings to be recorded as proof of attendance. Cards must not be tampered with; or altered by anyone other than the District Commissioner or Card Secretary.
- A junior club member (under 17) must attend 5 rallies, two of which must be by the combination within the preceding 12 months. However, within the first six months of new club membership only two mounted rallies by the combination is required.
- An associate member (17 years and over) may continue membership of the club and receive PCAV benefits until June 30th following their 25th birthday. Associates must have two mounted rallies by the combination within the preceding 12 months.
- Qualifying a horse – at a rally the horse that is intended for qualification needs to be presented to gear check and to be ridden for at least 3 out of the 5 activities on the day or 2 of 4 activities if that is what is timetabled. There is no obligation to ride only one horse at a rally but only one horse per rally can be qualified.
All financial members are issued with a pony club card. Your pony club card is your pony club 'passport' and needs to be treated as a VIP document. To compete at pony club events your grading’s must be up to date. It is your responsibility to check that you are graded in the appropriate grade for the appropriate discipline before entering a comp. The card has your personal details in it plus the name of the horse/s that you ride at the rallies.
At each rally you attend your card will be completed by the card secretary. The date of the rally will be recorded along with the initial/s of the horse you rode at the rally. If you are absent the word absent will be recorded against the date the next time the secretary sights your card.
It is vitally important that cards are kept up to date especially if you wish to compete at a pony club event. Riders cards are checked at all events for attendance and gradings and an incomplete card will result in the rider being unable to compete.
At the back of your card there is a section to record you’re grading in Horse trials, Dressage, Show jumping and Combined Training. Only the District Commissioner may complete this section. If you need to be graded or have your grading changed please place a note to this effect with all relevant details in your card before placing it in the red tin at the rally. The Card Secretary will then let the DCknow and your card will be updated. Please understand that the rally day is a busy day for the admin volunteers so you need to check your card before leaving the grounds on rally day to make sure all details are correct.
Cards need to be placed into the attendance card tin (in club rooms) at the start of each rally prior to gear check each rally. The DC or card secretary will not chase cards to be signed.
Lost or Damaged Club Member Cards
Advise the DC if you have lost or damaged your club member card. The club will apply for a replacement card from PCAV. You will be charged a fee for the replacement card. A Club Members Verification Form is available for emergency use only, if a replacement card cannot be issued from PCAV in time. They are not to be used in place of a member card for any length of time.
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Remember that if you do not have your grading card at an event conducted under PCAV rules you are not permitted to participate.
Junior and Associate Members can only be a member of one Pony Club at a time, if they are moving to another club while a financial member of another, or were in the last financial year; they require a signed transfer form to be completed and sent into PCAV Head Office.
All riders need to sign the clubs register (sign in) book prior to each rally. This helps to maintain (backup attendance records) an attendance register for all club rallies, working bees, activities etc.
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Attendance
Leaving Early/Arriving Late
If a rider needs to leave early the rider is expected to inform the Instructor and DC as a matter of courtesy and safety. The DC needs to know the whereabouts of riders and families at all times during the rally. The need to arrive late or leave early on a rare occasion is understood. However regular occurrences (i.e.: more than 3 per pony club year) will result in “absent “being recorded in the membership card. This is because the PCAV expects that the attendance qualifications will be achieved by attending full rallies. Also it is unfair that frequently tardy members should be rewarded and qualify when other members attend all day.
Parent/Guardian Duty
It is a condition of membership that a parent or guardian be in attendance with their child at all times. This is a safety issue. If a parent /guardian needs to leave during a rally another guardian must be appointed and accepted. The sign in book is open and available at every rally and must record the guardian details and acceptance of responsibility.
Rally Attendance
All riders must notify the DC by email or telephone no later than the Thursday prior to the rally and advise if they will be attending the rally or not. If a rider is unable to attend a rally it is important to advise the DC prior to the rally if possible. This allows effective planning of the rally especially booking of instructors which cost the club money. Failure to advise the DC of intent to ride at the rally will result in the rider not being allocated to a group and hence the rider will miss the first lesson.
Unmounted Attendance
Riders who cannot ride due to illness/injury to themselves or their horse may attend a rally unmounted and receive “unmounted” attendance accreditation in their card. To be eligible the rider must be in full uniform and attend or help out at activities as directed by the DC. An unmounted rally counts as a qualifying attendance for competition as long as the combination has two mounted rallies in the preceding 12 months of the competition date
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Rally days
Rallies are the monthly gatherings of our members. These take place on the first Sunday of each month (with the exception of January) at our grounds at Lewis Road, Maldon unless otherwise stated. A timetable of the rally showing the members groups and the day’s activities is displayed inside the club rooms from 8.30am.
In the interest of the most effective grouping of riders all members are requested to contact the District Commissioner by email, or text no later than the Thursday before the rally advising if they will be attending the rally or not. Failure to advise the DC of intent to ride at the rally will result in the rider not being allocated to a group and hence the rider will miss the first lesson
The collation of the groups is largelydetermined bythe numbers of riders attending on the day. We try to break groups into an even number taking into consideration the size of horse, friendship groups and the education and jumpingstandard of the horse.
Riders can be mounted or unmounted, and a wide range of activities are often scheduled, and can cover a diverse range of equestrian skills – flat work, dressage, jumping, games cross country, navigation and anything else that can be thought of to provide a broad range of experiences, fun and education for riders. Whilst due emphasis will be given to providing a solid foundation in the elementary areas of flat work and jumping, the aims of pony club are to offer a variety of activities. Pony club is not solely about instruction and certainly not about concentrating on one area of riding.
A typical rally day follows the following format:
Park your vehicle & float or truck. Secure your horse to your float/truck or place in a yard. Bring your membership card and drop in the box at the office and check what group you are in and what activity you have first.
9:00 - riders assemble to help set up
9:30 - gear check (in front of the club rooms)
10:00 - lesson 1
11:00 - lesson 2
12:00 - LUNCH
1:15 – information session
1:30 – lesson 3
2.30 – lesson 4
3:30 - pack up gear for the day & collect your membership card
*please note the above may vary depending on the number or riders*
Rally Days are organized by the District Commissioner.
All manure and hay in yards must be cleaned out and place around treas.
Things to bring to Rally Days – Lunch or money for the Canteen
Feed for your mount
Bucket for water
Secure Headstall and lead rope, rug in winter.
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Our Uniform
In Pony Club, every Club has their own distinct uniform and colours. These must be adhered to at all times when representing the club at competition/s.