With eventing numbers multiplying in WA over the past few years, it was a special treat to see the states best young eventing horses compete in the search for WA’s 2012 Champion Young Event Horse. Initiated by Horseland, the competition continues to be driven by Horseland Midland’s owner Cheryl Campbell – herself a former eventing rider. Held this year at the State Equestrian Centre, Cheryl, Horseland and Equestrian WA staff beautifully organised and hosted this year’s Young Event Horse and the Eventing Grand Prix that directly followed the young horse competition. Prospective Young Event Horse champions were divided into age and open categories and scored in three categories: a young horse dressage test, competition over a combined showjumping/cross country course and a conformation assessment. Designed by eventing coach and former advanced competitor, Alan Campbell, the jumping course contained both showjumping and cross country fences in the outdoor C-Quest sand arena and adjacent grassed area. Oxers, a treble combination with a liverpool and triple bar jumps mingled with rolltops, natural brush arrowheads and apexes. Spectators treated to free barbequed sausages, watched keenly from marquees placed on top of one of the two grassed banks surrounding the outdoor arena, with informative commentating from Roxie Taylor and Dave Permezel – who took liberties in naming several fences, such as the large wing-shaped wooden transportable, which they called the ‘Warren W’, after Mark Warren, who instigated building it for Eventing Promotions. The event attracted solid entries, and while there were plenty of Thoroughbreds, international breeding lines dominated the final results – pointing to where eventing Kate Jankowski on Brookleigh Cascading Colours seems to be moving generally. Seventeen 4-5 year old horses exhibited their talents, with Emma King’s dark grey DvZ Chevalier (Chico’s Boy x a Dutchman mare – classic European showjumping lines) selected as winner of that group. Runnerup was Lindsay Honey’s Rusty R, a full brother to his 3*** horse, Bindaboo. Another 20 horses contested the 6-7 Year Old class, with top score going to another grey gelding, Katelyn Prindiville’s Irish Sporthorse, ESB Irish Leprechaun, and runner-up to Samantha Bain’s Barrabadeen Woodstock – another horse bred from showjumping lines. With the two top horses selected, it was up to the dressage and jumping judges to confer and decide the overall champion after a final ‘workout’ that consisted of a figure eight with change of leads before the judges. And the 2012 Champion Horseland Young Event Horse, by a small margin.... ESB Irish Leprechaun, with DvZ Chevalier this year’s Reserve. The event quickly moved onto the Eventing Grand Prix, which has become an annual fixture in WA. Dave Permezel joined Roxy Taylor in front of the commentary box, and again the pair kept the crowd entertained, liberally sprinkling information with local colour and ‘renaming’ individual fences. Although this year’s Grand Prix was dominated by eventers, four hardy showjumpers competed both individually and as a team versing two teams of eventing competitors. The showjumpers sizable cheer squad lent significant support to the small number of jumping riders, who had to conquer odd-looking cross country fences that included a brush-topped ‘ute’, two roll-tops, a jump down a small bank and brush-covered apex. It wasn’t easy for the eventers, either, who had to contend with related showjumping lines and obstacles that included a large Swedish oxer and a one stride/two stride treble, with a wide Liverpool under the ‘B’ element. The few options on offer added considerable time. In addition, riders had the choice of jumping a 1.25m upright plank ‘Joker’, which deducted four penalties if jumped successfully.... but added eight if knocked to the ground – particularly costly in the Anna Muffert and Ganz Bruno pick up the pace in the 4-5yo Young Event Horse class.