anyone doing pony club camp?

[burberryqueen]

new to pony club but dd 14 is doing the camp with her pony,,,,,it seems a bit cliquey ofc but then it would to a new person i suppose...
what to expect/avoid?
i volunteered for one revolting job right at the beginning in the hope that would let me off the hook for the week.
anyone?
tia

[TessWales]

Hi Tia,

we have just been to our first ever pony camp with my daughter 6 and son 7. We absolutely loved it and the kids improved so much. Go for it!

Don't worry about the "cliquey". Your daughter will be part of a team and you get to know all of "the others". I was a bit worried to begin with but soon learned that everyone was really helpful to us the "newbies".

[Mirage]

We've just come back from our 2nd camp.There are a group of likeminded mums whose kids don't have push button ponies,but what they can afford/loan or borrow.We tend to stick together,but I have found even the stereotypical ponyclub mums are very nice and helpful.Last year we had the pony from hell,who had to be retired in disgrace after the first morning.However,DD2 was offered rides on all the other ponies in her ride,and the instructor bought one of hers in for her too.

I don't get involved in bitching and giving my opinion on other people's ponies,especially as a lot are loaned around and you could be inadvertently slagging off a pony to it's owner.A few of the mums are on their own there with 3 different kids in 3 different groups,so volunteering to keep an eye on their child/take photos/hold their pony,whilst the mum is watching or helping another sibling always goes down well.

Have fun,we loved it and the girls have come on no end after camp,you can really see the difference. I've also made some very good friends there too.

[Mirage]

Oh,on the last day,we are expected to plait up and wear tweed.No one actually tells you this,it seems to be an unwritten rule.I can't plait,so our ponies looked 'interesting',but I told the dds that if anyone commented,to tell them to come and see me about it. No one said a dicky bird well,not to my face anyway].

[burberryqueen]

ooh tweed - not sure we can manage that

[Mirage]

We trussed ours up in their tweed on Thursday,the hottest day of the year and could hear the little jockey next to us having a teary meltdown because her jacket was too tight.We got to our mustering point only to be told that we could remove jackets and didn't need them.

I find owning a grey pony who lives out and being unable to plait means that we never get picked to represent our ride in the 'best turned out' competition.This saves hours of faffing and extra work. The 'lucky' mum whose son was picked to enter, got up at 5.30 to groom and turn out.

[burberryqueen]

oh oh us mums have been told not to do that!!

[Gilbertus]

Me. Dd1 has just finished her camp. She had a great week apart from the last day when she and dpony fell apart in the show jumping. They were both exhausted, he didn't want to do it but she made him. It wasn't pretty and she ended up in tears with her confidence in her boots we're both feeling a bit upset about it. She looked awful and used her whip too much and dpony bucked which he has never done with us. Dd1is mortified esp as some other parent were not kind. Every girl from her school that went won some kind of rosette apart from her, even though she was the only one to get up every morning and help the instructors feed the ponies.

Dd2 off to junior camp next week and hopefully hers will end better! Non residential so easier.

[SaggyOldClothCatPuss]

Well firstly,
You will unload your absolutely gorgeous, perfectly behaved and immaculately turned out traditional Shetland to stares, guffaws and small open mouthed, pointing 6 year olds, who have never seen a non welsh show pony in their lives,
and then, according to a PC mother wearing a navy pleated skirt, loafers and an alice band, your pony will be
too big,
too small,
too fast,
too slow,
not able to jump high enough,
the wrong colour,
your tack will be wrong,
you will need a stronger bit, probably a gag,
definitely daisy reins,
should definitely be sold immediately and replaced with x perfect push button pony which wins everything,
and your DC will be in a group with some kind of pony club prodigy who is the best thing since sliced bread and your child/pony combo is holding the little darling back,
you will be accused of being a lesbian,
and that replacing dropped poles is far to difficult for your apparently gay, and actually a qualified AI instructor, companion,
and you will be told that your daughter doesn't need her special dietary requirement gluten free biscuits as there are complementary bourbons you know...
All before the actual instructor has asked your child her name!

Ignore the daft cow, make friends with the first frazzled looking scruffy mother you meet, and stick to them like glue, and you will be just fine!

[SaggyOldClothCatPuss]

Or alternatively, run for the fucking hills and don't look back!

[Gilbertus]

that is scarily accurate

We had the daughter of a celeb in dds ride. She won both ride prizes and her celeb dad got a special rosette

[SaggyOldClothCatPuss]

Oh I know! We only went once! I vowed never to return! Every single thing I wrote above ACTUALLY HAPPENED! I am scarred for life!

[Gilbertus]

I've already fallen out with the dc

Really not cut out for it but the dds like it and I've bought them the coats now

[Gilbertus]

We had the worries about some being held back the bitting advice and dd1s meltdown in the sj was like fuel to the fire.

There are some nice mums though but the senior level is very competitive

[SaggyOldClothCatPuss]

I would keep the jackets and look for a local riding club instead.ours is excellent.
Oh, and keep your ears open for ex PC ponies going cheap or free. We have had our best ponies like that. Turn them away for a couple of months, remove the gags and gadgets and treat them like actual living creatures and you can reap dividends!

[burberryqueen]

@ saggy - sounds traumatic!

[burberryqueen]

luckily our (welsh!) pony looks the part and even has a prefix -
i am quite sure someone will tell us she is too small tho......
wtf are 'daisy reins'?

[Gilbertus]

There's a fab riding club locally but it's still too far to travel to easily (we are v rural)

[CMOTDibbler]

There are 4 PC families at our yard. One is nice, normal, unfussy. One is OKish. The other 2 never just go for a hack (we have amazing hacking), and are all I fear about PC.

But ds is desperate to do tetrathlon, and I've promised him we'll go next year. Am terrified, even though I can plait nicely (did all the ponies for the PC centre girls at the yard on Saturday for their dressage test), ds's pony is a v well bred welshie, and ds likes fast and high.

[SaggyOldClothCatPuss]

We were given a fabulous registered welsh A ex PC pony, mainly because she refused to play any more! She is by Pendock Legend! Her equivalent, with foal at foot sold for 6k at Fayre Oaks a few years ago!

[burberryqueen]

well thank you everyone for your tales of camp .....fascinating indeed, I would love to know where in the UK you all are...south/north/east/west?

[SaggyOldClothCatPuss]

North Essex. Ours is Essex and Suffolk pony club. Scary!

[ExitPursuedByABear]

You go to camp with them

Not round here you don't.

Deliver child and pony Monday morning and collect Friday evening.

Sorted

[Gilbertus]

We do that at senior camp (ie after 11). Mini camp (under 8) and junior camp (8-11) go every day

[ExitPursuedByABear]

Dd is 13 so that explains it.

[Butkin]

Our Mini Camp (2 days for under 8s) was really fun. Junior Camp is 5 days - going every day for off the lead reiners aged 8 to 11 and we have intermediate camp which is 5 days residential for 11-15 although one of those days the parents have to take the ponies to a cross country centre for a day trip. We do run a Senior camp for 15+ but this is only 2 days non-residential with a final BBQ which is really for high level badge training and a last social before they give up.

I loved Saggy's recount. I can quite easily see some of our PC mothers (not actually the Committee who - like me! - are really nice and friendly) being similarly bitchy ("stones and glass houses" come to mind). To be fair if children turn up on reasonably well behaved ponies and everybody pitches in they would get on fine at our PC. One thing about our PC is that we don't care what the ponies are, or how much they cost, but they do need to do the job and give their jockeys a nice time. The parents we don't like are the ones who don't do their share..