THE Northern Region of Eventing Ireland held its annual general meeting last Tuesday week in Gourley’s Bar, Ballygowan, where 40 members and friends gathered, despite the best efforts of the weather to deter them.

Among those at the Co Down venue was the Region’s event coordinator Dora Beacom, who had flown in from Spain to run the very well-attended ‘Grassroots Training Event’ at The Meadows Equestrian Centre the previous evening. She flew back to her Spanish retreat on Wednesday morning.

Acting chairman, Jean Mitchell MBE, welcomed everyone and paid tribute to former regional chair, Catherine Abbott, who was in attendance, thanking her for the many years of support and dedication that she had given to the Northern Region. Catherine will continue to help out with the flexi eventing league and the annual awards ball as time allows; she will also remain on the Eventing Ireland Board.

The official business commenced with the acceptance of the 2022 minutes, after which treasurer John McBride presented the financial report for 2023. Despite several cancellations due to the wettest summer since records began, the events managed to make a small profit of just over £600. The new model of not running events every week has helped to keep entries buoyant and costs to a minimum, alongside the introduction of the new EI80 classes. Overall, the accounts made for much better reading than in 2022.

Chairman’s address

Jean Mitchell gave the chairman’s address, thanking all present for taking the time to attend the evening and welcoming some new faces to the eventing family. After a review of the 2023 fixtures, Jean paid tribute to the friends and members lost over the last 12 months, namely Christopher Pooler, David Corbett and Patricia MacKean, who were all great supporters of equestrian sport in general but, in particular, Eventing Ireland.

Jean mentioned that a new event would be held in 2024, Ash Hollow, by kind permission of the Callion family in Dromore, Co Tyrone. She congratulated all those who competed on teams and represented Ireland on the international stage in 2023 and thanked all the landowners, sponsors and volunteers, who make events possible. A huge thank you was paid to Dora Beacom for all her hard work and dedication to the Northern Region – Dora says it is a team effort, but every team needs a great leader and Dora certainly ticks that box!

Dora, along with Carole Young, Lawrence Patterson, Jonathan Steele, Stuart Stirling and John McBride were all retiring from the committee, but were eligible for re-election. They were duly re-elected, with David Lowry proposing and Fran McCormick seconding.

There were no new nominations to the committee, which comprises the following officers Georgia Stubington (chairman), Jean Mitchell (vice chair), Dora Beacom (event organiser), Catherine McDowell (honorary secretary), John McBride (treasurer) and Jonathan Steele (riders’ representative) plus Ronnie Beggs, Vina Buller, Denis Currie, Elizabeth Hamilton, Nicky Nesbitt, David Lowry, Lawrence Patterson, Stuart Stirling and Carole Young.

Social focus

When the floor was opened for Any Other Business, members took the opportunity to discuss the pros and cons of social media and Declan Cullen discussed the change in standards for body protectors in 2024. This proved a timely reminder for members to check that their hats and body protectors are up to standard for the season ahead and that hats are tagged.

The previous night’s ‘Grassroots Training Event’, where the Dora Beacom-written ‘Beginners Guide to Eventing’ was launched, was also discussed amongst the floor. Everyone agreed the evening had been a great success, imparting knowledge from the likes of Trevor Smith, Jonathan Steele, Clare Palmer and Jean Mitchell. Dora confirmed the feedback had been positive and there was another training evening in the pipeline.

The annual committee awards were presented at the conclusion of official business.

The John Martin Award (someone who contributes to the advancement and promotion of our sport) was presented by Jill Delany to Raymond Bready; Caroline Keatley presented the Pooler Trophy (for international performance) to Callie Berry representing her daughter, Susie Berry; the Turley family and the Tullymurry staff and volunteers were recipients of the Stinson Award (someone who contributes to the sport by effort, endeavour and example) which was presented by Dora Beacom who, in time, will present the Special Recognition Award (for unpaid volunteers who go above and beyond the call of duty) to Magdalena Oleszek.

When bringing the meeting to its conclusion, Jean Mitchell thanked everyone for their attendance and wished them well in 2024. She also reminded them that the Baileys Horse Feeds flexi eventing series at the Meadows was in full swing and that the annual two-phase event would take place at Tyrella on Saturday, March 9th by kind permission of John Corbett.