Pony Club "Mega Rally' starts today at William Woods

The Pony Club "Mega Rally' runs today through Saturday at William Woods University. About 85 competitors from eight different states will be in attendance.
The Pony Club "Mega Rally' runs today through Saturday at William Woods University. About 85 competitors from eight different states will be in attendance.

The Midwest Region of the United States Pony Club is holding its annual "Mega Rally" today through Saturday at William Woods University. This is the fifth year for WWU to host the competition.

A Mega Rally is an event in which teams of horses and riders compete in the disciplines of show jumping, dressage, eventing and tetrathlon (running, swimming, riding and marksmanship). This year, Western dressage and trail riding have been added.

The Midwest Region includes all or parts of Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa and the Dakotas. About 85 competitors from these states will be in attendance, vying to qualify for the Pony Club Festival competition in mid-July at Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Ky., according to a press release from William Woods University. The festival is considered a national championship competition.

"A Pony Club Rally, unlike a regular horse show, gives pony club members the opportunity to compete as part of a team. Members work together to earn awards in their chosen riding disciplines, and in horse management," Melissa Purvis, administrative assistant in the WWU equestrian division and secretary of the local club, Hinkson Valley Pony Club, stated in a press release.

"Although some of the teams will be made of team mates from the same club, many of the teams are "scramble teams,' composed of team mates who have never met or worked together before the rally."

Pony Club differs from other competitions because the members are judged on their horse management skills, as well as their riding.

For more information, contact Purvis at (573) 592-4397 or [email protected] or visit http://midwest.ponyclub.org.