14 February 2005

Subject: Notes from the NESC members meeting last Wednesday.

Hey everyone- following are my notes from the meeting we held last Wednesday at 6 pm. Many of you missed it (a lot of you apologized for forgetting!) so we will be sure to REALLY publicize the next one!!

Anyway- the notes cover pretty much all we discussed. I hope they are accurate. Any errors or omissions are my fault entirely (we were drinking wine....)

Please read through the items- there’s a lot, but then there are lots of things happening! (I’ll post a copy of this on the board at NESC, too).

See you at the Club -

Barb

Notes from the NESC “Members’ Meeting” held Wednesday February 9, 2005.

Not many people turned out for this first members’ meeting. We hope in future, many more will attend. Following are some notes of the items we discussed.

The recent competition held at NESC

Great event! It was well done with lots of organization and work by our instructors and staff (and RIDERS!). Some ideas for future:

If you have additional suggestions, please add them to our list (contact Barb) so we can consider them before the next event.

Upcoming Competitions

There are a few competitions coming up at other clubs (open to all clubs):

February 19-20 RBSC (Royal Bangkok Sport Club, aka “Polo Club”)

March 25-27 EP (Equestrian Paradise) jumping

April 9-10 GCP (Garden City Polo) Open

April 29 – May 1 Horseshoe Point

Details about these competitions will be posted on the bulletin board as the dates get close. Please let your instructors know if you are interested or have questions.

In-House Competition

We would like to have our own “in-house” competition before the end of the school year (around the last week of May?). It will include categories for most of our riders, including those too junior to compete at the inter-club events.

We may invite Alison Claas from St. Andrews to bring some of her riders, many of whom are also fairly inexperienced. We intend for this friendly competition to provide some experience and understanding of competition behavior and preparation to our newer riders, as well as being fun and interesting for all.

Campout!

NESC will have a Kids’ Campout on Friday March 4th! Details have not been finalized yet, but we intend to have the kids sleep in tents set up in the big arena. We may have a campfire (safely contained in the center of the round pen), and will have various activities (like the ever-popular flashlight tag! and more). For simplicity, we’ll probably just order pizzas for dinner. Maybe parents can provide desserts? More planning is yet to be done...... We have a signup sheet in the office: please sign up any kids interested in attending. Also- we need a few parent chaperones, to help organize the games and to sleepover with the kids.

Other NESC riding activities

We’re considering adding a few new activities, IF there is enough interest to make them worthwhile-

First, would any of the kids be interested in a quadrille class? Quadrille is a form of riding done in coordination with the other members of the group, on matched horses (size/gait) so they can perform mirroring movements (kind of like a dance choreography). It is beautiful to watch! Maybe the class would perform for us at the competition in May?

This would be a once-a-week class, with an instructor, and would count as a riding lesson, replacing one of the once- or twice- weekly lessons in your membership, or as an additional lesson. It might meet after regular lessons are finished (so from 6-7), or maybe during a 4pm “private lesson” time slot. If we do put together a class- the riders in the class need to be seriously committed to attending regularly. When one rider misses a practice, it leaves their partner without their other “half”. So we need riders who would be dedicated to the class and its discipline. Let Barb know if you are interested.

Second, we’re thinking of starting up a weekend pony club. It would meet for an hour or so(?) every Saturday or Sunday. We would try to schedule it during “off hours” not conflicting with people’s regularly scheduled lessons, 11am on Sat morning? or possibly 6-7 on Sunday? Costs are not calculated yet (depends on how many kids participate, how many instructors are needed and how much use of ponies and grooms). We need to get an idea of how many kids are interested before we do any more planning. Please add your names to the list in the office if interested. (Parent assistance will be needed, depending on the activities.)

Pony Club provides an opportunity for riders of all levels to do activities beyond the usual lesson work. They might have gymkanas, or other games, learn more about care and keeping of ponies and stables (grooming, first aid, etc) and can work toward achieving Pony Club “Grading” certificates. These grades are based on the rider attaining a certain level of riding skill and other knowledge, which is specified for each level of grading. The first level is the D level and is fairly basic. The grades progress into increasingly advanced levels of riding ability and additional knowledge. The certification is recognized by Pony Clubs in the UK and affiliates in other countries.

Bulletin Board and Information

We will organize our blue bulletin board so that it is easier for members to find out what is going on. The “new” board will have a section for “Upcoming Events” and all notices of competitions and events will be posted there. Well in advance of the dates, we hope!

We will also have a section for member FYII (For Your Interest and Information) where we will post announcements of outside activities (like exercise classes, coffee mornings, lectures etc) which people might find of interest.

Notices relating to NESC Information and News will be posted near the office (or on the windows as is done presently).

So PLEASE make a habit of checking the board(s) for lots of great information......

We’d also like to hold “Members Meetings” regularly (once a month?). It is a good way to exchange ideas and suggestions and get everyone up-to-date on what is happening in and around our club. Maybe the next one can be a Friday afternoon “happy hour” where we can wind down at the end of the week with a glass of wine and some snacks and chat about “stuff”. Watch for an announcement of date/time!