NEWSLETTER January 2010

Hello Everyone:

As 2010 rolls around we will be missing a very important component of our Association. Marion Ratcliffe, our Executive Officer, retired on December 31st, 2009. We wish Marion well and have certainly appreciated all the tireless effort she has put in over the many years she has been with the THJA. Good luck Marion, we will miss you!

The 2009 championships were a tremendous success. Thank you to Cindy Ballantyne and Leslie McCormick for co-chairing them. Thank you also to Roy and Sue Fish for the show and stabling management at the Championships.

The organizational format for the 2010 Championships has been altered. A sub-committee of the THJA has been set up to manage the organization of the Championships. The Chair of that sub-committee for 2010 will be Ken Denouden and with this new format each zone will be responsible for populating the committee. This new initiative will bring more contribution from each zone on an annual basis.

The number of horse/rider combinations that competed at the 2009 Championships was approximately 480. Obviously for 2010, with the addition of three new core divisions, the number of horses eligible will increase. This will be quite a challenge for Ken and his committee but the Board is confident that Ken is up to the task.

Your Board of Directors has also set up a sub-committee to examine ways where those divisions at the championships that do not have their full complement of entries can be fully populated. The goal is to give as many opportunities as possible for horse/rider combinations to attend the championships.

That’s the good news. The bad news is that we increased the THJA membership by $5.00. You will notice on your renewal form the return address is the OEF and the fee for 2010, if you were a member in 2009, will be $15 if paid by April 30th and $20 after that date. The fee for first time members remains at $15. You can also pay your membership with your OEF 2010 membership.

We wish you well in your competitions this year. The THJA Annual General Meeting will be held on March 28th at the Airport Travelodge. Hope to see you there.

Paul Morgan
THJA & Eastern Zone President – 613-257-2184 – Ashland@sympatico.ca

A sincere thank you is extended to Cindy Ballantyne, Leslie McCormack, Roy Fish and all the members in the Central West Zone for their work in organizing the 2009 Trillium Championships. The weather was great, the tack room contest was very competitive and the social activities were fun. We recognize the schedule was long on a couple of days but hopefully that will be rectified in 2010.

We are giving everyone competing on the Trillium Circuit a heads up if you qualify for the 2010 Championships. We recognize that the season hasn’t started yet but it will be here before you know it. And the competitors will be counting points and working very hard at qualifying for the championships.

For 2010 the Championships will start on Thursday morning and end on Sunday afternoon. This change is necessary because we have added one new Hunter Division and two new Jumper Divisions.

If you are an Adult Amateur in 2010 please remember to apply for your Amateur Status with Equine Canada. This can be done when applying for your 2010 Sport Licence by filling in the box and paying the additional $10. If you do not have this Status you will not be eligible to compete in the Adult Divisions.

New Pilot Project -- 2’6” Core Hunter Division

The Board of Directors has approved a new Pilot Project for the 2010 show season, With some restrictions, competitors will have a new 2’6” Open Hunter Division to compete in to qualify for the 2010 Championships. Cross-entry into any other divisions for horse/rider combination is not allowed. This pilot project will be revisited in 2011.

At the November 2009 THJA Board of Directors meeting it was agreed that in order for the new Core Division – 2’6” Open Hunter -- to be eligible for the 2010 championships there must be a minimum of four Zones offering this division and a minimum of four shows within the zone providing the division.
Just a reminder that you need to compete in that division in at least 4 shows in that zone to qualify.

New divisions in the Jumper Ring for 2010

Two new divisions have been added in the Jumper Ring for 2010. And the jumper heights are now calculated in metric.

.85m (2’9”) Training Jumper Division (New)

1m (3’3”) Child/Adult Jumper and Training Jumper Divisions. (New Training) In the 1meter Child/Adult Jumper the horse/rider combination cannot do any other 1m Jumper division at the same show. The 1m Training Division can be run concurrently with the Child/Adult with one course walk and two sets of ribbons.

1.15m – (3’9”) Trillium Jumper Division – open to everyone.

1m – Jumper Medal – Open to Junior and Adult Amateur riders only.

Horses are limited to two jumper divisions plus the Jumper Medal plus any other miscellaneous classes.

The Host Zone – which in 2010 is South West – will be responsible for the theme of the Championships together with some other yet to be decided responsibilities. The new Committee, which will be chaired by Ken Denouden, will consist of one representative from each Zone. More details on the Championships together with the names of the committee members will be available for the next Newsletter in early Spring.