Emotional victory for Rebecca as amateurs go Flat out for charity

But the 12 amateurs who rode before the crowds at the recent Macmillan Charity Race Day will never forget the thrill of it all.

The day itself raised over £300,000 in total for the charity and attracted a crowd of more than 26,000 in spite of the weather.

The 12 riders in the inaugural Macmillan Charity Race raised £57,000 of this with further contributions still to come.

The race was open to keen amateurs who in order to enter, had to prove they were capable of riding in the nine-furlong Flat race.

In a close finish, first place went to Rebecca Jones, 29, from Bedale, riding the Philip Kirby-trained Jawaab.

Sophia Monkman, from Norton, was second and Scarborough vet and noted point-to-point rider Chris Cundall was third.

It was an emotional win for Rebecca, whose father died from bone marrow cancer when she was 16.

Like many of the riders, she had ridden from childhood and she then worked in racing firstly for Bryan Smart and then for Alan Swinbank. She now works in the accounts team at the Black Sheep Brewery at Masham.

Sophia Monkman, 23, came very close to winning the race and said: “It was the most amazing experience. I loved every minute of it.”

We featured Sophia’s search for a horse to ride in this column and her godmother, Jenny Rooke, stepped in to help. She is part of a syndicate called The Trendy Ladies who own a horse called Horatio Carter, trained by David O’Meara near Helmsley.

They agreed to back her and Sophia says she could not have picked a better horse to ride. She had planned to stay back in third or fourth place to start with but Horatio had other ideas and made all the running until very close to the finish.

“The others were really strung out and coming into the final furlong I thought I had won it,” said Sophia. “But coming in to the last, he tired a bit and I was beaten by a neck on the line, if that.”

Sophia, who is the sales and marketing manager at Thirsk racecourse, is going to keep up her new-found interest by riding out for David O’Meara on her way into work.

The Macmillan Race Day also proved to be a lucky one for Jacqueline Coward, who won her weight in Pol Roger champagne when she won the Queen Mother’s Cup riding Crackentorp for the second year running. It was the first time that the same horse and jockey have won this race for two years in succession.

Young show-jumper Joe Clayton, 22, from Huddersfield is having a very successful season with several top placings with main rides, Mr Darcy and Campino II.

Clayton is a cousin of the Whitaker family and is based at Michael Whitaker’s yard in Nottingham. His most recent win was at the Royal Highland Show where he took first and third places in the International Stairway competition. He was also third in the Young Riders on Emelia Van Het Scheefkasteel owned by Michael Whitaker.

He was also leading rider at Bolesworth Classic Show in Cheshire after several top placings, including fourth and fifth in the Grand Prix and second in the small Grand Prix.

Competing on the international circuit, he was third in the Grand Prix at the Eschweiler Festival in Germany and was part of the senior Nations’ Cup team in Copenhagen where he had just four faults.

Other successes have included winning the area trial at the Suffolk Show.

“I’m really pleased with how things are going,” said Clayton. “The horses have all been performing really well and I couldn’t ask for more. It’s now a case of maintaining this form as we continue to compete on the international circuit.”

Anne reaps her royal reward after 40 years of dedicated service

THE first time Anne Dorsey went along to watch a Riding for the Disabled session she ended up getting roped in to be the instructor.

That was nearly 40 years ago and now Anne has been awarded an MBE for her work with the RDA.

“I have loved it ever since,” said Anne. “Each session is very rewarding because you see the progress the children make and how they develop in so many ways.”

Her first experience with the RDA was with the Stockeld Park group, which now meets at Sicklinghall and where she has continued to be the instructor for the weekly sessions.

She has also been running an RDA group at her own stables at North Rigton for around 11 years.

Children whose everyday behaviour can tax their teachers to the limit seem to be transformed once they sit on a pony.

“Within minutes, we have them calmed and listening and learning. It’s wonderful,” says Anne. “Riding improves their deportment, their communication skills, their confidence and their desire to achieve. It’s brilliant therapy and an all-round magic because of the calming, rhythmic movement of the horses.”

Her MBE, which was a complete surprise, was announced in the recent Queen’s Birthday Honours list.

“I’m delighted for the group. I belong to a team, I feel that very strongly. I feel very privileged to belong to the association and to be able to give something.”

A record attendance of over 650 gathered at Toulston polo ground near Tadcaster for an annual charity tournament which raised £2,600 for The Children’s Society.

Teams from all over the country took part in the finals of the three day event, competing for the Ogden of Harrogate Armada Dish and Silver Jubilee Plate.

The White Rose PC Summit team won the Armada Dish, just beating Beverley PC and the Silver Jubilee competition was won by Ogden-sponsored Leolene Lions who beat Windsor-based Mad Dogs.