After this we were taken to the organiser’s house about an hour out of Washington where we had a casual dinner and waited for the rest of the teams to arrive.
This turned out to be an absolute disaster for poor Dee the organizer. The Hong Kong team missed their connection and were delayed until the wee hours of the morning. The Australians also had two members miss a flight and didn’t arrive until the next day. The security is so tight in the airports now that you need to allow for quite some time on the ground in between flights to get through all the checkpoints.
Then we were whisked off to the Capitol buildings for an interesting tour through the equivalent of their Parliament buildings and some wonderful museums.

Not enough time allowed for here but the Hong Kong team were grateful, as they were exhausted. By this time we were all staying with our billets and were fortunate to be spoilt by both where we stayed and the people who hosted us.
Alan and Murray really fell on their feet with rides in a different vehicle everyday including a Harley Davidson motorbike and one of the latest Corvettes! The rest of us were billeted separately, with members of other Nations teams. Laura’s house had a huge 70’s style indoor swimming pool with a diving board and we all had a barbeque there one night.

Our next 2 days were spent at Waredaca Farm in Laytonsville. This was a beautiful venue for our first competition-the scrambled teams event.
The first morning we got to try our horses. Unfortunately there were not enough to go around so we shared one horse with Hong Kong. This was the horse Murray rode and was luckily a nice horse. Laura’s horse was described as serviceably sound! He was a sweetie but rather stretched to compete on the hard ground. Simon’s horse proved to be a real challenge and I’m sure no one else could have done a better job. Christens horse was nice on the flat but had a slightly unconventional jumping style and she rode him very well.

That afternoon our riders competed in the dressage phase of the Scrambled teams event. Christen won the dressage, which was a great result. All the Kiwi horses were beautifully presented – we plaited (or braided!) - all of ours and wore our black saddle blankets kindly donated by Matamata Saddlery. These were left with the horse owners after the competition and were highly coveted, emblazoned with the silver fern.

The next day they all jumped a combination of show jumps and cross country fences. Murray was first to go but as we were to discover during the rest of the trip we spent lot of time hurrying up to wait…. This meant that by the time Murray got to go his horse got a bit cold on it and refused the first fence - but went on to have a clear round. Laura’s horse was much the same and Simons nearly so but was driven over the first only to nearly tip him off on the exit from the fence as there were steering difficulties. Simon also jumped clear but had to turn a circle between two related fences, as once again steering was an issue. Christen flew around clear which kept her in the lead.
At prize giving Christen won a prize for her dressage place and her team won the event overall. Laura also won a prize for going closest to the optimum time. Alan made a lovely speech thanking all the organizers and horse owners on behalf of all the competitors.

We spent the next day jump judging at Maryland’s Horse Trials. This was a one star event and a new course. It caused some difficulties for riders. It was a very hot day-temperatures in the high 90’s but we were very well catered for. We also bumped into a familiar face - Donna Smith who is based just up the road at the O’Connor’s - she had students competing. It was lovely to hear another kiwi accent though it is gradually being watered down.

The next two days were spent at Bethany College in West Virginia. This was a six-hour drive away from Washington and scheduled as down time and a chance for all the Teams to get to know one another. This was the first opportunity for all of us to be accommodated together.

We were supposed to go for a trail ride at the Peace Point Equestrian Center - an amazing complex next door to the College. A shortage of horses meant that this did not eventuate however I asked the manager of the Center if he could scrounge up any horses at all and they kindly came up with six. All the riders voted to let the Hong Kong riders, coach and manager have these, as this was an opportunity for them to experience wide-open spaces.
They loved it and the Coach told me it was the first time that she had heard the girls laughing (hysterically) while riding. This was so great and what these exchanges are all about.

Then it was back on the bus and off to Kentucky. Yay! The opening ceremony was held that night in the indoor arena at the Horse park. It was still very hot especially in our formal uniforms! We were accommodated at the University of Kentucky and we had a couple of days before the competition to visit some of the most amazing Equine complexes in the world. First was Keeneland – the race track (with its wondrous new surface) and sales complex.

Then the Kentucky Equine Research Center. WOW! One of the highlights for us was seeing a horse working on the treadmill - from walk to gallop. So cool!

Then to Hagyard Equine Medical Institute. This is the biggest and best equine veterinary practice in the world. We were very privileged to be allowed to see these facilities. A real highlight.
After that it was off to the Kentucky Horse Park, which is an incredible venue. There are museums, indoor and outdoor arenas, a parade of breeds and the most beautiful bronze sculptures. This will be the venue for the next World Equestrian Games - plans include a new huge indoor arena and hotel. The park is 1200 acres so there is plenty of space for further development.

Normally the horses allocated for the Nations Cup are available for trial the day before the competition. However because the U.S Pony Club Festival was being held at the same time the horse accommodation was all full. There was eventing, show jumping, Games, Tetrathalon and Quiz all being held at the Park. Quiz is a very popular event in the U.S and England; especially with younger competitors - and horses are not required. I’m sure many riders here would love it too.

Friday was the big day and it seemed to be a long time coming. Our horses were to be available by 12pm that day but a huge thunderstorm further delayed their arrival.
Everyone seemed convinced that this was a substantial problem and when I enquired why I was told -“It’ll strike ya’ll dead!” So not being one to tempt fate we all politely obliged and hid in appropriate “lightning safe” shelters until the storm had passed.

All of this meant it was closer to 1pm when we finally got to try our horses. We had been given a brief bio on each horse so we collectively decided who would trial each horse first. Only four were available so we had no spares in case one didn’t work out. I made one change on seeing them in the flesh and on they got.
We had about 20 minutes on these horses - then everyone had to get off when they decided to bring the start time forward to 2.30pm and we had yet to walk the course. Our riders worked like a well oiled machine - very organized and professional. We were the first to get everything done.

They rode 2 identical rounds of show jumping fences. It was quite a tricky course with a lot of related distances - some on curving lines, and it used a bank in the middle of the stadium. There would be a jump off if 2 teams ended up tied. All our riders were brilliant and we finished on 12 faults after the two rounds. The next closest was Australia on 24, then Canada, Hong Kong and finally the USA - so no jump off required.

No sooner had we had the presentation and a quick photo session than there was another panic about an approaching storm so we had to scatter in all directions. This was great shame as we didn’t get a chance to enjoy the win – Nature called and we were out of there!

An informal dinner was held that evening in the dining room in the indoor arena. Alan took this opportunity to once again thank everyone and say a proper goodbye.
NZPCA can rest assured that our riders – Simon Gordon, Christen Hayde, Laura Madden and Murray Riches were exemplary ambassadors. Everyone loved them, they mixed extremely well and were a breeze for Alan and I and rode like superstars - and of course they won! A perfect way to wind up the trip.

I would also like to thank our mums - their help was unbelievable and we really couldn’t have done it without them. Special thanks to both Julie Madden and Susie Gordon for their help with the uniforms -we all looked incredible.
My thanks to Alan for his cool calm approach and his unquestioning support for both myself and the team.

By Jacque Williams
Coach 2007

The riders would like to add their thanks to the sponsors, their Pony Clubs and everyone who made this trip possible including Alan Ferguson, their manager and especially Jacque Williams their coach. They were much envied by the other teams!

Guess who was on our plane home? Webmaster thinks it's Jonah Lomu!