Georgia Allison on Kotahi II being presented the Petticoat Lane Performance Horses Adult Equitation Series for 2023-2024 by Joan Couper.  Photo by Michelle Clarke.

 

  • Petticoat Lane Performance Horses Adult Equitation Series

 

A ‘project’ pony has turned up trumps for Oxford equestrienne Georgia Allison who added to her bulging show hunter trophy cabinet, winning the Petticoat Lane Performance Horses Adult Equitation Series.

Sandow Jacob did all the hard work for his doting owner but didn’t make the trek to the Land Rover Horse of the Year to seal the series.

Equitation is Georgia’s thing having previously won both the junior and pony equitation series.

Instead of her seven-year-old Jacob at HOY, she had a catch ride in Andrea Kewish’s Kotahi II.

“It was just too expensive to bring Jacob all the way up, so I competed on Kotahi II. “

She couldn’t even jump him the first day she rode him because there were no jumps out, so it was straight into business for the warm-up and the equitation final class. “He was very good,” she said.

But she and Jacob had done well in the lead-up with 12 wins and the final, so finished on maximum points.

She bought Jacob as a green broke three-year-old with the plan to keep him for six months to produce and sell on. Mum Bridget had other ideas. “After our first show she just said, ‘I want half of that one’, despite him being in the pipeline to be sold.”

Georgia says he’s a relatively straight forward horse but with a big stride, so the early challenge had been bringing that back a little. “He is an absolute class clown. If you didn’t have a sense of humour you wouldn’t own him. He wants to be involved in everything, loves being the centre of attention and everything goes in his mouth.”

This is Jacob’s first ‘real’ season. He managed the first and last show of last season, missing the bulk of it due to injury.

“Our aim at the start of this season was to be top six in the three series – we were seventh in the open high points, fourth in the amateur high points and won the equitation.”

Show hunter has been Georgia’s passion since she was about seven and she headed to her first HOY at nine. She loves that show hunter rewards good riding. “You can’t do well if you don’t ride well. I like equitation because it is a little different in that you don’t have to have the best horse to do well. Your horse may not be a text book show hunter pony but if you ride well you are rewarded.”

The 22-year-old is just completing a sports science degree at university. With the show hunter season finished, Jacob and Georgia have been out eventing and she’s hopeful one day she can make him go fast enough to showjump. “He should be able to! He is five eighths thoroughbred, a quarter gypsy and the rest is Clydie and Welsh cob. He’s got all the jump but lopes around looking very quiet instead of fast.”

 

For full results, head to https://www.evoevents.co.nz/resultClass/2135885779/2146938849/-1

Diana Dobson – 20 March 2024