Five Minutes With... Joanne Gregory

Joanne and Bruce Almighty following their win in the Gumz Farms $1,000 Select Amateur Western Pleasure Stakes

NPHA attracts top Youth, Amateur and Open competitors, in Hunter Under Saddle classes, as well as Western Pleasure

The Jayes Park $20,000 Two Year Old Western Pleasure Futurity is always a highlight of the NPHA - won this year by Gracefull Prophecy and Holly Johnson

NPHA attracts good numbers in its classes and in the stands, for the big money events, considering western pleasure is not considered to be a spectator sport

Joanne sees Hunter Under Saddle numbers increasing in future as more people breed horses especially for this event - like RQH Who's Ur Daddy - who is by Quarter Horse RQH Doing It In Style and out of a Thoroughbred mare (and he also wins Western Pleasure classes!)

Winderadeen Somethin Blue and Holly Marshall - there were still plenty of quality Winderadeen horses or those by Winderadeen stallions competing and doing well at NPHA.

If you want to win at NPHA it's important to hook up with a top trainer, such as Natasha Humphries - pictured here on Two Year Old Hunter Under Saddle winner TPL Smart Rendition. Other trainers who excelled at the NPHA are the team from Carolyn Johnson Performance Horses (Rockin Horse Ranch), Kristy and Kyle Mobberley, Tim French, Ross Gould, Ken Davison and Doug Hill - just to name a few.

The NPHA brings out the cream of the crop - including the gorgeous imported stallion - Smoochin (ridden by Holly Johnson) who won the Di Candilo Steel City $10,000 Three Year Old Western Pleasure Futurity from a field of top quality horses

Quarter Horses make up the majority of horses at NPHA, however, Paints and Appaloosas also feature - pictured is RQH The Dutchess and Kristy Mobberley - sixth placegetters in the Jayes Park $20,000 Two Year Old Western Pleasure Futurity

 

 

Anyone who attended the 2012 NPHA Pleasure Celebration will agree that it is one of the best run and most prestigious western shows in the country - events of this calibre don't happen out of thin air and NPHA is no exception!

Together with President, Joanne Green, and other committee members, NPHA Secretary/Treasurer, Joanne Gregory, works very hard to ensure the NPHA Pleasure Celebration is always the best it can be.

Joanne has been involved with the western industry for many years and in addition to her role with NPHA and showing her own horses, she is also an AQHA Accredited judge.

Jo Johnson caught up with Joanne to find out more about the NPHA, her lovely horse Bruce Almighty, and what it takes to win at this top level...

Joanne, congratulations on another great Pleasure Celebration Show - how did the NPHA first come into being?

NPHA was formed in 1983 by a small group of people who wanted to further the western pleasure and hunter under saddle horses in Australia. They wanted to concentrate on these two western disciplines and increase interest for competitors, by showcasing these events. So by forming an association, and then the annual pleasure celebration shows, more prize money was offered and competitors became more interested in these events. Back in those days more interest was concentrated on the cattle events with our western horses rather than these arena events. We have just completed our 28^th annual pleasure celebration show and the association is still going strong. We pay out the most prize money of any western horse show in Australia and our show is the culmination of the western horse show season in Australia.

How long have you been secretary/treasurer of the NPHA and how has it changed over the years?

I have been on the NPHA committee for the past 12 years and took on the secretaries role in 2003. Then when our treasurer left the committee in 2008, I also took on that role as well. We used to run our shows originally at Tamworth, then at Sugarloaf Equestrian Centre and Cobbitty, NSW, and since 2004 we have run it at SIEC. We have found this venue to be state of the art and very safe for all horses to show and stable at. Our competitors enjoy showing at SIEC and we have a regular booking there every year. We chose to stay at SIEC when AELEC at Tamworth opened, as approximately 40% of our competitors are from Victoria and Sydney it's a lot closer for them to travel to than Tamworth. The staff at SIEC are excellent. They form a huge part in the success of our show, nothing is a problem for them and they are always so helpful.

What do you enjoy most about being involved with the NPHA?

It is a very prestigious show and is well respected in the western show scene. It is the premier show to win and compete at and has a loyal following of competitors. I get a tremendous sense of pride when the show runs successfully each year and I love to see competitors having a good time. The committee are very easy to work with and we are a harmonious team.

You must have seen many great horses and performances over the years – do any in particular stand out?

There have been some wonderful performance horses over the years, way too many to list, but the one thing that does stand out is the effect that Winderadeen Quarter Horses had on our industry and the continual winning that they did with their horses. It was a shame when Winderadeen closed and such a sad loss to our industry, but they did leave us with some great horses that people are still enjoying now, both as riding horses and as broodmares and stallions.

How do you source your judges each year?

Every year I ask the judges for a list of recommended judges when they have finished judging our show. This has helped me to form a very extensive list of judges that come highly recommended. This is a lot better than just choosing them off the US judges listing and taking the chance that they are a good judge. We particularly like to get good western pleasure judges as this is the main focus of our show.

What were numbers like this year?

This year we had 283 horses competing, which was seven horses up on last year’s total. I thought this was very creditable considering the current economic situation. A lot of other shows were down in entries so I was pleased with this number of entrants. Back in 2006 we had over 300 horses competing, but after EI it has generally dropped to just under 300 every year. As far as western horses go these numbers are very good.

Which classes are most popular with competitors?

Definitely the western pleasure classes. It seems that most western competitors would love to have a great western pleasure horse and are always looking for that horse. Our halter classes are also popular. The last couple of years JVQ Stud have been instrumental in sponsoring a $20,000 Weanling Slot Futurity and a $10,000 Yearling Slot Futurity. This has increased the numbers of halter horses competing at our show and also increased the quality of halter horses.

Can anyone compete at NPHA?

We are an all breeds association. Our entries are made up of the three main western breeds, Quarter Horses, Appaloosas and Paints although the Quarter Horses, form the largest part of competitors. The show is open to any level of rider but generally it is aimed at the higher lever competitors of our western industry.

If someone wants to show at NPHA and be competitive, what tips can you give them?

To compete at this level you need to have a very educated horse and the guidance of a western horse trainer is also advised. We do have some talented amateur and youth competitors that compete very successfully, but the majority of horses at this show are under the expert control of a trainer. It is like most sports at the highest level, they still have a coach to help them out.

Does the NPHA hold any other events?

The NPHA also runs the NSW State Quarter Horse Championships, which is held immediately prior to the NPHA Pleasure Celebration show. This makes it more worthwhile for interstate competitors to come to our show as they get the two shows to compete at.

We also run exhibitions at Equitana every year on Western Pleasure. A couple of our members take some horses along to explain and show how western pleasure works and what is required of our western pleasure horses. We have had some great feedback from these demonstrations.

We also run clinics with international clinicians from time to time.

What future developments do you envisage for NPHA?

I see our hunter under saddle horses increasing in the next couple of years as people are breeding horses exclusively for these type of events. Over recent years we have seen a degree of specialisation with the western pleasure horse and breeding a horse to only do this event which has affected the hunter under saddle numbers and we have seen a decline in competitors in these events. By breeding specific hunter under saddle horses will increase the popularity of these classes dramatically.

Sponsorship for our show is increasing every year. We have a very loyal following of sponsors who love supporting our show every year which allows us to offer the prize money and prizes that we do. Without their support we could not run the successful show that we do.

You had a successful show yourself this year, winning the Select Amateur Western Pleasure with your horse, Bruce Almighty, how did it feel to win that class?

I do all of the work before the show as in entries/stabling/camping etc so I can have the time free at the show to compete. I hand over the office reins to some very able ladies from Tasmania who come up and run the office on my behalf to allow me to show my horse.

As my horse is only a three year old this is the first year I have been competing on him so I was thrilled to win this class. I have had a very tough year as I broke my ankle in December, so was unable to compete at a couple of other major shows, this win was a dream come true for me and something I have always wanted to achieve. Credit needs to also go to my wonderful trainer, Tim French, and my great horse Bruce Almighty.

How did you find Bruce?

I purchased Bruce from Warwick and Annette Smith, his breeders, as an early yearling. He was sent to Tim French to sell for them and he fell in love with the horse as soon as he met him, so he rang and told me to come and look at him. I snapped him up straight away. Tim has trained him from the start and very successfully shown him as a two year old last year. He was runner up in the 2011 $20,000 Jayes Park 2YO Western Pleasure Futurity and a very creditable fourth in this year's $10,000 Di Candilo 3YO Western Pleasure Futurity, in addition to my wins.

What are your future plans for Bruce?

I will keep him and show him for some years yet. He is the horse I have been looking for all my life, so I intend to show and enjoy him. He is such a pleasure to handle and have around and a very talented horse.

With working and NPHA, you're very busy, if you do manage to get spare time - what do you like to do?

I am also an AQHA Accredited judge so I spend a lot of weekends away judging horse shows as well. This keeps me very busy indeed. Bruce lives with my trainer in Victoria so I also take trips down there to ride him, when I have a spare weekend or when there is a big show coming up, so I can practice.

Thank you so much for your time Joanne! We all look forward to attending another great NPHA in 2013.

Quick Links

• Read more about the NPHA and follow links to watch videos of classes
• See more photos from the the NPHA
• Visit the NPHA website