Prince Philip likely never imagined when he started promoting the combined driving event it result in a Gladys Ridge woman sitting in the back of a carriage trying to keep balance while giving the driver direction on the Labour Day weekend.
Lynn Jupp of Gladys Ridge will be the navigator for Ann Moody when they compete in the marathon portion of the High Country International Combined Driving Event on Sept. 3-5 at the Calgary Polo Club.
The competition will consists of teams from one to four horses.
“It’s kind of like car rallying but with a horse and carriage,” Jupp said. “You are given a specific distance to cover in a specific time frame…. Depending on the level of the competition, there are three to seven obstacles you have to go through.”
The obstacles can range from going over bridges, under bridges, over hills, through water and others.
“The point is to go as fast as you can and in the proper order,” Jupp explained. “I am a navigator. I keep track of the time; I have to make sure we are following the right course. When we get to an obstacle, I have to let them know where we are going… In the marathon, the navigator is not sitting. They are moving from side to side to help keep the carriage balanced.”
There is an element of danger in carriage driving.
“If there is any speed and the carriage is doing any corners it’s like being at the end of the tail of the game of crack the whip,” she explained. “Within the obstacles you do want speed. The clock is running the whole time you are in there.”
The combined driving event also consists of the dressage and the cones competition.
The dressage is when horse and rider go through some compulsory steps – it’s kind of like the compulsories in figure skating.
“The word ‘dressage’ means training,” Jupp explained. “The horse is showing off its different gaits. It’s like the cowboys and the reining patterns. They train to get the horse to comfortably – and beautifully – do what they want them to do…. You are looking for the right movements and the least amount of cueing.”
The cones competition has the carriages going through a set of cones. Each cone has a ball placed on them.
“At the lowest level the cones are set 40 centimetres wider (than the wheel span),” Jupp, said. “At the higher levels it’s only 20 centimetres. That isn’t a lot because once again time is a factor. If you knock a ball of the cone, you are penalized.”
Jupp got involved because it was another option to be involved in horse.
“I felt I wasn’t a good enough rider and this was an option,” she said. “There is the pleasure of training your horse.
“Also you are pushing yourself. In this competition we are competing for ribbons, there are no money prizes.”
The carriages and the team of horses are worth viewing while they just are standing still.
Ted Swenson from the Priddis area owns carriages, which were once owned by the DuPont families – yep, those DuPonts.
“He has some beautiful carriages,” Jupp said. “We also dress to the nines. Not on marathon day, though. Then you have your helmet and blue jeans on.”
There is a reason why they are dressed like royalty.
“The sport was actually developed by Prince Philip – the Prince Philip, the Queen’s husband,” Jupp said.
However, both a prince and a pauper can afford to watch the event. There is no cost.
The Calgary Polo Club is located approximately 10 kilometers northwest of Kooks along Secondary Highway 552 It neighbours Strathcona-Tweedsmuir School.
The dressage competition is on Sept 3, the marathon on Sept. 4 and the cones on Sept. 5.
For more information about the event go to www.highcountrycarriagedriving.org
