Hi Everyone, I just wanted to update you on our success at the first national vaulting competition of the year on Saturday, 8th April at the Scottish National Equestrian Centre (SNEC) just outside Edinburgh. 14 Shieldbank vaulters aged between 6 and 15 participated in a wide variety of classes depending on their vaulting experience and level. We took the two horses Clippie and Glen with us together with as many parents as were able to come. The results were as follows: 1 Star Junior Individual 11th Lisa Barr Novice Individual 3rd Lucy Callaghan, 6th Tia Mooney, 9th Katie Bath Pre-Novice Individual A W/W 1st Katie Cowan 4th Hollie Curds 5th Jessica Mullen 8th Lucy Bain 9th Liam Connelly Pre-Novice Individual B W/W 1st Kari Leather Pre-Novice Individual A C/W 3rd Emma Arnold Pre-Novice Individual B C/W 6th Natalie Mullen 8th Lois Coughlin 13th Emma Duffy Congratulations to all our vaulters for trying so very hard to get their compulsories and freestyles right. Watch this space - the next competition is on the 20th April! Marianne

Hi Everyone, the Spring holidays are upon us, and the promise of better, warmer weather. We are once again offering our Pony Days for riders during the Easter holidays. Why not spend the day with your favourite horses and ponies, riding morning and afternoon, learning about their care, what they eat, and how they interact with each other. Plus, choose your lunch from the Shieldbank Coffee Shop, for example, toasties, paninis or baguettes filled with cheese, ham or bacon with fresh salad or crisps. The day starts latest at 10 a.m. and finishes at 4 p.m. Cost: £75. Some of you may like to bring your friends. Others may like to try vaulting either in the gym or on the real horses. Just call us on 01383 852 874 to book, or send us an email on info@shieldbank.co.uk .

KaisaFit

Everyone has a pot - so there can be no further excuses....

Hi Everyone, I hope the New Year has started well for you. The weather seems to want to change not just daily, but by the hour. At the moment the snow is disappearing and the ground is softening. The horses and ponies have come through Christmas and New Year well except for Freckles who decided to jump out of the big field and got caught in the fence! Luckily the cuts she sustained on her legs are superficial and will have no long term effects - but the poor fence needs some tlc. Our new cat Holly has settled in nicely. She arrived the day after Christmas after we were called by a cat charity to see if we could take her as they had not been able to find a home for her and she was due to be put to sleep. She is approx. 18 months old, white underneath and tortoiseshell over her back and frightened of humans. So we put a box, a dish of water and a plate of cat food in the old workshop together with Holly. We did not see Holly for a few days - but the food was getting eaten. Then she appeared one night when Vic was in the gym looking at him from the rafters. Now Holly is getting very brave. She is appearing everywhere, all over the farm, and integrating with our other cats. Just a wee note to all our riders and vaulters: please dress warmly when coming up to Shieldbank over the next two months or so. Don't forget your gloves - and possibly put on more than one pair of socks!

Riding Lessons for Christmas? Why not buy a voucher for a friend or family member to have a riding lesson at Shieldbank! Vouchers available for £18 for a half hour lesson, or £27 for an hour lesson valid for one year. Just give us a call on 01383 852874 or send us a message and we can get the vouchers out to you before Christmas!

Hi Everyone, Its nearly Christmas and the horses will definitely be very happy to receive their Christmas apples, carrots, turnips, etc. next Sunday, 18th December at our party from 4 - 6 pm. Come along, join in and bring your family and friends. Lots of fun in the Coffee Shop, and then your chance to give your favourite horses and ponies their Christmas treat! Tickets in advance or on the day: £5 including a drink and a wee snack! See you there!

Hi Everyone, We will be running our Pony Days again over the next 2 weeks during the school holidays. Why not book now for Wednesday, Thursday or Friday of either week? The full pony day runs from 10.00 a.m. till 4 p.m. (£75 including lunch) and the half pony day from 10 till 1 pm. (£45 including a snack). Book by phone on 01383 852874, or by email: info@shieldbank.co.uk

Yesterday, Saturday 17th September, the Shieldbank Vaulting Team competed at the Scottish Vaulting Championships 2016 held at the Scottish National Equestrian Centre near Edinburgh. The day started at 5.50 a.m. with breakfast, giving Glen and Clippie their hay and their cereal before doing one last grooming session and putting on their travel boots and tail bandages for the 50 minute journey in the trailer. Clippie was a bit of a handful in the morning for the compulsory part of the competition, but by the afternoon he had settled down and went beautifully. So Juliane (from Germany) won the Senior Individual One Star competition, and became Scottish Champion! Philip was very happy with Clippie's afternoon performance, and they came second in the Senior Individual Three Star competition. Lisa also did a much better freestyle in the afternoon and ended up in eighth place on Clippie in the Junior Individual Class, and Lucy did a lovely set of compulsories and a good freestyle to finish in fifth place in the Novice Individuals. Glen, as usual, was in good form. Many people commented on how good he is looking and moving at age 26! He carried Katie into third place in the Pre-Novice Canter/Walk (9 - 12 yrs) class, as well as Natalie into 4th, and Emma into 9th place. In the 12 yrs and over class, Tia and Glen achieved second place. For the younger walk vaulters, Glen and Lois secured second place in their section. In the youngest group (under 9 yrs old) with Glen, Emma came fourth, Holly fifth, Lucy 6th and Liam (our youngest competitor - aged just 5) 7th. Thereafter followed the "Run-In" competition which seeks to develop vaulters' creative abilities when running in to the vaulting arena. Here there was a second, third and fourth place for the different groups. I would just like to say how proud we are of all our vaulters and the effort they put in not just on the day of the competition but right throughout the year.

We are well into the Summer holidays, and the sun is shining here today (long may it last!). Throughout the holidays we are running Pony Days on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays where younger riders can spend a half day (£40) or a full day (£70) riding and learning to care for their favourite horses and ponies. The core times are 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. with a break for lunch at 1 p.m. Riders will ride in the morning and in the afternoon as well as learning about what horses and ponies eat, how to groom them, muck them out, tack up and un-tack. Lunch and snacks are included. Just give us a call on 01383 852874, a text on 07800 830 841 or an email on info@shieldbank.co.uk for more information or to book. Looking forward to seeing you over the holidays!

Early on Sunday morning Clippie and Glen set off for a vaulting competition at Rockrose near Haddington. Glen once again really enjoyed the outing and confidently carried the vaulters to achieve the following results: Class for Under 9 yrs of age: 1st Jessica Mullen (6) with a beautiful performance in her new pink catsuit. Class 9 - 12 yrs of age: 1st Tia Mooney (full of confidence and expression to her music) 2nd Kim MacArthur (very well choreographed freestyle) 3rd Emma Duffy (good body shapes and big smiles) 4th Olivia MacArthur (very expressive freestyle) 7th Lois Coughlin (first time at a vaulting competition!) Class Canter Compulsories & Walk Freestyle 2nd Natalie Mullen (her first attempt at this higher level) Clippie found the warm up areas and the stable he had been allocated very small. He did not get a chance to warm up properly and the competition arena was beside the public area where there was a lot of movement. So he did not move as smoothly in the canter as the vaulters would have liked. The results they achieved were as follows: Senior Individual 3*: 1st Philip Beasley Junior 1* Individual: 6th Lisa Barr Novice Individual: 5th Lucy Callaghan A big thank you to all the parents and grandparents for supporting the Shieldbank Team and assisting with the stewarding, score collecting and taking teas and coffees to the judges!

The weather was glorious today for our fun competition. Everyone tried really hard. The overall results were as follows: 1st Keane Pattinson 2nd Amber Glendinning 3rd Mya Petty 4th Lucy Bain 5th Alfie Glendinning Very well done to all of you!

Today, Monday 6th June, we are holding our Shieldbank Spring Bank Holiday Competition specifically for all our junior riders. It will start at 3 pm with the following classes: 1) Tack and Turn Out 2) The Maze 3) The Race 4) Over the Poles 5) In and Out of the Cones Race The Entry Fee is £20 which allows riders to take part in as many of the classes as they wish. Rosettes will be awarded! It is a beautiful sunny day here at Shieldbank. So here's hoping to see as many of you as possible this afternoon for a lot of fun!