Britain's best go in search of the double

Brothers John and Michael Whitaker were among the squad selected by Rob Hoekstra, World Class Showjumping performance manager, to compete in the second leg of the 2010 Meydan FEI Nations Cup which began in Rome yesterday, along with Nick Skelton, Ben Maher and Peter Charles.

Also representing their country and competing as Team Champion at the Portuguese Nations Cup in Lisbon tomorrow, will be Tim Stockdale, Robert Bevis, William Funnell and Charlotte Platt. Stockdale will ride Fresh Direct Kalico Bay, Bevis rides Courtney 6, Funnell, making his first British team appearance since 2008, rides Billy Congo and Platt, making a return to the squad, will ride Paulien II.

WILLIAM Fox-Pitt and his wife, Alice Plunkett, are offering prizes on the Team GBR website to raise funds to send the British team to the FEI World Equestrian Games in Kentucky.

How would you like to spend a day as a member of William's support team at an event and learn more about the preparation and hard work that goes into competing at this level? Or spend a day with Alice while she films for the Channel Four Racing programme?

For more details go to http://auction.equestrianteamgbr.co.uk.

Another online auction is also being held to help raise money for the care of former racehorses at the Thoroughbred Rehabilitation Centre at Halton in Lancashire. The centre costs around 1,500 per day to run and much of this is raised by the charity itself.

Some of the latest additions to the auction include breakfast with trainer Philip Hobbs at Sandhill Racing Stables in Somerset following a morning on the gallops, plus tickets for a local race meeting; an oil painting of your horse or dog by equestrian artist Sarah Colley; a print signed by Michael and Louise Owen, a TRC patron, of their horse Speciali and a day's golf followed by lunch and drinks at Archerfield Links, North Berwick, hosted by former England football captain David Platt.

The auction, which began on May 26, will be on eBay for two weeks. More details also online at www.thorough bredrehabilittioncentre.co.uk.

EQUINE artist Jane Lazenby will be demonstrating her work at her studio near Barnsley as part of Open Up Sheffield 2010, an artists' open studio event from June 12-13 and June 19-20. One of Jane's paintings is in the collection of Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid in Dubai.

Sharing the open studio event is mixed media artist Yvonne North Moorhouse, a fellow member of Pennine Artists. Their studio is on the outskirts of Kexborough, Cawthorne Lane, S75 5DY.

Getting back in saddle to boost the Yorkshire economy

'Ride Yorkshire' is the idea of John Yeomans and Janet Cochrane.

Both keen riders, they want to encourage others to enjoy the Yorkshire landscapes from horseback.

"I only took up riding in my late 50s," said John Yeomans, chairman of Visit York. "It's been a fantastic experience to learn about horses and explore new parts of the region."

An inaugural meeting drew support from a range of land management and tourism agencies. 'Ride Yorkshire' will promote and develop leisure riding across Yorkshire for people at all levels of ability.

"Having recently returned to riding after a long break, I'm typical of all the 'dormant' riders out there," said Janet Cochrane, of the International Centre for Responsible Tourism at Leeds Metropolitan University.

"Since getting back in the saddle, I've had some fabulous times on the Moors and the Wolds – and after a week in the office, it's a brilliant way of getting out in the fresh air."

The association will promote safe and scenic trail-rides, encourage accommodation owners to provide facilities for horses as well as riders, and support entrepreneurs to reach fresh markets and set up new equestrian holidays and activities.

The team points out that many opportunities already exist but they are rarely promoted as packages.

In the next few weeks, 'Ride Yorkshire' will hold focus group sessions with riding centres to discuss the best ways of supporting them.

Other ideas will be to gather data on Yorkshire's equestrian assets and on the market: a lot is known about the economic impacts of racing, for example, but much less about leisure riding.

Yet riding centres are often located in rural areas, and money spent there can boost the local economy, while there are also diversification opportunities for farmers.

Meanwhile, for riders – beginners or experienced – riding has tremendous health benefits.

There is no reason Yorkshire should not become the premier equestrian tourism destination in the UK, say Janet and John. Anybody interested should email rideyorkshire@

gmail.com or contact Janet on 01759 368303/07773 422413, or John on 01653 648549/07776 167120.

CW 29/5/10