G.S.P.V. Parafrid - English

September is arguably the busiest month of the year, and we definitely felt that again this year. It was an incredibly enjoyable month filled with lots of activities for returning, new, and prospective members. Read along!

Welcoming New Members

Every year, to welcome new members to the association and to give prospective members a better idea of what our lesson evenings look like, Parafrid organizes a trial lesson evening. This year it took place on Tuesday, 2 September, and it was a huge success. We met many new riders and were able to find a suitable lesson spot for many of them. In addition to the trial lesson evening, several other activities were organized to help new members feel at home within the association. We also hosted a very successful information evening, which doubled as our first social of the year as well. During this evening, we were able to explain a lot to both new and existing members about our committees, SOs, and other annual events such as the club weekend. Prior to the information evening on 4 September, we also enjoyed the first dinner of the year at Mikky’s place. We built our own hamburgers and ate lots of fries, so clearly a big success. Most importantly, it was just super fun to catch up with each other again after the summer break!

SO Hippeia

SO Hippeia, held on 14 & 15 September, was our first SO of the year, and what an SO it was. We travelled to Utrecht with seven enthusiastic (and some slightly nervous) Parafridders to compete in this SO, which had the theme “Roaring Twenties."  SO Hippeia served as a pilot for a new competition system in both show jumping and dressage, with animal wellbeing at the centre. To ensure fairness towards the riding school horses we ride, the KNHS-VNS experimented with more rider-focused tests instead of the usual KNHS-style tests. For example, from level La onwards, significantly more sitting trot was required, while exercises such as leg-yielding were not asked until higher levels (Lb & M). Some less common figures (for us), such as serpentine loops and reverses (rechts- & linksomkeert). In short, the dressage tests were challenging but very enjoyable. For show jumping, the focus lied on skills-based tests, which are also used within the FNRS system. In the finals, full courses were ridden. The Parafridders who participated were also invited to provide feedback, which was taken into consideration by the VNS. Returning to our competitors: besides the great atmosphere and the fun social gathering afterwards (perhaps a bit too fun), our Parafridders also delivered excellent performances. Mikky placed first in level 1 (Ba), Emma placed first in level 2 (Bb), and Karlijn placed first in level 3 (La)! We are incredibly proud of them and of everyone who competed, ParafridPowerrr! Curious to see what this SO was like? The photos are available on the website!

Spring de Deux

September truly was a competition month, because in addition to our first SO, our mutual Spring de Deux competition, organised by the SOPcie, also took place. This competition was originally planned for the previous association year but had to be postponed due to some issues with the weather. Parafridders were able to compete in the Bixie, 50–60 cm, and 70–80 cm categories, and could also sign up for the pas de deux to music. We saw some fantastic performances, with a few bloopers here and there, and overall it was a very successful evening. In the 50–60 cm category, Meike on Sol took first place; in the 70–80 cm category, Melati on Marci won; and in the musical pas de deux, board Nonius on Kwibus, Balthazar, Ayla, and Nala won!

Club Champion

Each year, the Parafridder with the highest average score across the mutual dressage and show jumping competitions is crowned club champion. This year, that title goes to Karlijn! Karlijn competed in the dressage competition at level Lb on Balthazar and jumped 70–80 cm on Asterix during the show jumping competition. Well done, Karlijn!  You can be very proud of this achievement <3