Behind the Scenes of the Saddleworld Australian Dressage Championships

The Australian National Dressage Championships has become great event for all to enjoy - the riders, the spectators and hopefully the horses. Like all sport events it has taken years to evolve and is now one of the highlights of the Australian dressage calendar of events. It attracts riders and spectators from across our large continent and judges from around the world.

Before, during and after the event, a number of articles are published in magazines and websites. 'Tweets' and 'Statuses' are spread across social media sites.

Most of the 'talk' is about the riders, the horses, the results and occasionally the judging. For this reason I thought it was time we had a look behind the scenes and discover what it takes to organise the 2012 Saddleworld Australian DressageChampionships.

The first question I needed answered was how did Dressage NSW (DNSW) get to be the organisers of the Nationals? The President of Dressage NSW, Prue Spurrett, clarified this. "Post Sydney 2000, the Australian Dressage Championships were run in Victoria in 2000 and 2001, returned to the Sydney International Equestrian Centre (SIEC) in 2002 and 2003 and back to Victoria in 2004. DNSW was asked by the then EFA Dressage Committee to consider holding the Australian Dressage Championships on a regular basis. It made sense for equestrian sport to have a long term ‘home’ after the financial commitment put into the development of SIEC for the Olympics. The infrastructure and grounds were at that stage unique to Australia as was the concept of an equestrian centre purpose built for ongoing International events, not just an Olympic ‘one-off’, so from 2005 we have run them in NSW."

At the helm of this competition is the very competent, Toni Venhaus (pictured above). Toni's job is to not only do most of the work but to also ensure that all the components come together for the event - not an easy task! The 'Action/Task List' is six pages long. It covers all the areas which need organising. I won't go into all of them as that too would take six pages but to give you an idea, here's an excerpt:

• Official appointments – International Judges, Stewards, Vets, Farrier, Appealcommittee, Doctor, Stabling Manager, Gear Steward and Marshalls.
• Administration/Secretarial – competition planning, schedules entries, draw,rider information packs, camping allocations, volunteer roster, hiring of officeequipment, First Aid, Judges - invitations, confirmations, flight bookings andaccommodation, gifts, transport shuttle services.
• Sponsorship - Majors, minors, funding applications, invitations to functions,thank you letters.
• Trade Village - site allocations and infrastructure.
• Hospitality - catering, wines, ticketing, flowers, catering for all volunteers,judges and media.
• Promotion/Advertising - brochures, program, flyers, art work, distribution.
• Financial – budgets, funding applications.
• Ceremonies and presentations - trophies, format, prize money, sound system.

I'm going to stop there as there's not a lot of enjoyment reading lists and believe me, the list goes on! The photo at left shows what the Venhaus residence looks like at the moment.

Toni is seasoned at organising such an event. She has had the reins in her hands for many years and has been the Event Director of numerous events, which have won awards from Equestrian Australia. Like all of the people behind the scenes, Toni is only focused on making sure that the Saddleworld Dressage Championships is a great showcase of what is being achieved in Australia in regards to dressage. "We all work extremely hard to make it happen but the main focus is making sure our horses and riders get a chance to gauge their performances against the best in Australia and at the same time, in front of international judges. It's a great stepping stone for them to reach their goals. Although we do a lot behind the scenes, it's not about us, it's ultimately about the horse and rider."

This humble opinion seems to be abundant. I spoke with the Treasurer, Judy Wilson who said, "I have a 'back room' job at the Nationals. I'm mainly concerned with the financial aspects – paying judges, making sure people have change, counting the takings – all pretty boring stuff!" I had to ask if she thought the competitors were aware of what is involved? Judy grinned, "I very much doubt it unless I fail to pay their prize money, which does tend to grab their attention! I've been doing this role since the early 2000s and I enjoy being involved. The worst part of the job is finding parking and the best part is having a front row view of the indoor competition and getting to eat lunch in the marquee!"

Like all events, it doesn't always go to plan. Prue Spurrett shared one of those moments. "One of our earliest events at SIEC saw bucketing rain, gale force winds and the enduring memory of the late Anne Honner hanging on for dear life as the wind howled around, shifting the judges box at C in the main arena sideways – risk management definitely hadn’t taken nature into calculation!" Don't you hate mother nature!

So, there is now another reason to go and support the Australian Dressage Championships. It's not just about the horses and riders, it's also about the army ofvolunteers that make it happen. Hope to see you there.

The Saddleworld Dressage Championships run from 25-28 October.

Quick Links

• For all the information visit www.dressagensw.com.au/nationals
• View dressage horses for sale on Horsezone

Story & Photos: Scott Pollock