Most will remember the time they plaited up for their first Dressage competition and pulled on the unforgiving white jods. For Townsville Dressage Club President, Tony Pickersgill, that moment is still vivid and his love of the sport only grew. It wasn’t long before he was setting up arenas and allocating draws on the Townsville Dressage Club’s Committee.
Fast forward 29 years and Tony is presented with the opportunity to contribute further to this great sport by taking on the role of President on the Committee, a position he has now held for six years with the club celebrating its 35th anniversary this year.
“The ride with Townsville Dressage Club has been memorable and rewarding. We’re a small club that like so many others, runs on volunteer hours and passion.”
“Being so far north, we’re a bit removed from the opportunities that present in some of the larger areas but this has never been a barrier for the Club in providing development opportunities and a high calibre of competition.
“In 35 years we’ve hosted 10 different coaches, in excess of 150 clinics and over 150 events. The reward comes when you see more nominations and growth in percentages.
“It’s even more exciting when we see our riders compete at the large Southern competitions. We’ve got some very talented young riders coming through from the North.
Access to quality judging plays a huge role in this success and we’ve been very fortunate to have a number of talented judges all too happy to enjoy a weekend in the tropics, volunteer their time and share their experience.”
The invitation is always open to more quality judges and coaches to visit our riders in the North.
To get in touch with Townsville Dressage Club, email tsv.dressage@hotmail.com or find them on Facebook.
