May 2013

Welcome to Spring??
Anyone who cares to look back to the beginning of the February newsletter will see that I said something about having dug our way out of the snow. Little did we know what March had in store for us (in my case, getting stuck in Derbyshire in the snow and not being able to get home for several days)! Apologies for the various events we had to cancel owing to snow, most of which have now been re-arranged. Even thought the sun was beginning to do its stuff, and had I got my act together and sent this out a couple of weeks ago, I would definitely have been able to say that Spring had finally arrived. At least the grass is finally growing and the countryside looks lush again, even if it isn’t time to discard the winter coats yet. Hopefully, everyone’s spirits are lifted and you are all ready to join in all the things we have planned for the Summer.

Website

If you haven’t already been checking this out, please do have a look. As well as up-to-date information about all our events and activities there are details of the growing number of local businesses who are offering discounts to our members (Butterfly Laundry is the latest) and access to the Monty Roberts University for members only!

Forthcoming events

Haworth and Oxenhope District Bridleways Group exists to safeguard our local bridleways. The events we hold highlight these and help to raise funds for their protection and extension. Most dates/activities for 2013 have now been finalised, so please make a note of these and try to keep some free so you can join in. It does, perhaps, need saying that we try very hard to pick dates and venues to suit as many people as possible but please remember “you can’t please all of the people all of the time”

Monthly Meetings

These are all held at The Old White Lion, Haworth on the Tuesday nearest the 20th of every month. This is a long-standing arrangement and, although we appreciate that this may not suit all members, there are no plans to change this; it is fair to assume that no particular evening would suit everyone and a decision to vary the day would jeopardise room availability and lead to confusion. We try to publicise dates and speakers well in advance in the hope that all members can make arrangements to attend. Junior Meetings start at 6.45pm and are followed by the Senior Meeting at 8pm. As well as sharing information, we have a talk by a visiting speaker (usually lasting around 45 minutes, followed by questions), a raffle and a chance to socialise.

We always welcome suggestions for speakers, or perhaps you would like to come and give a talk yourself. As you can see, we are still in the process of booking speakers for this year. Please contact any committee member with details.

Date Speaker/Subject
18.06.2013 The legalities of horse ownership – Michael Bower (Turner & Wall)
23.07.2013 Sue Hogg – Bridleways and Rights of Way
20.08.2013 Quiz and Table-top Sale
24.09.2013 TBC
22.10.2013 John Millar (Aireworth Vets)
19.11.2013 AGM
We do not hold a meeting in December

Membership

Many of our activities can only be accessed by members and ALL are cheaper for members. Many local businesses also offer discounts to members, so if you haven’t rejoined yet, please do so using the Membership Form by following the link at the top of the page.

Pleasure Rides

We kicked off the season with a very well-attended May Day Ride around Oxenhope on Monday 6th May, with the award for best- decorated horse and rider being shared between Karen Ballantine on Dude and Margaret Howley on Walter. Our other rides, planned to take in parts of the Calder-Aire Link are planned for Sunday 21st July and Sunday 29th September.

There will also be a Pub Ride around Oxenhope on Saturday 10th August and our annual Poppy Day Ride on Sunday 10th November.

Mount up for Manorlands
This will be running again this year, on Sunday 26th May, at Coniston Cold. Many members took part last year, either as riders or stewards, so watch this space for further details. Alternatively, full details can be found on www.sueryder.org

To show or Not to show?

The committee has spent a large proportion of every meeting discussing whether or not to organise an Annual Show this year, following a poorly attended event (particularly in ridden Classes) in 2011 and cancellation owing to the weather in 2012. The In-hand Fun Shows on Penistone proved very popular last year and we intend to hold 2 of these during the Summer, but we need feedback from members before committing to a major show. A discussion site has been set up on the home page where we need you to let us know whether you would compete, which classes you think we should include and whether you would be prepared to take a leading role (alongside the committee) in organising a show. We need this feedback before the next committee meeting on 11th June, when a final decision will be made.