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Abingdon RDA - HistoryOn a cold day in January 1975 a small group of people, none of whom knew each other, watched in utter amazement as a solid 13.2 hh pony was asked to give a ride to Michael, a man in his 30s, completely wheelchair bound, but with a lot of guts. From this introduction to Riding for the Disabled the Abingdon Group has gone from strength to strength. Several of that original group are still with the us. We started off with 4 adults who were followed by 4 small children, two of whom are now large adults and still ride with us. Unfortunately as time went by the available ponies became larger and larger horses until yours truly was on the verge of a nervous breakdown.Riding stopped, and the children moved to my house once a week where they did stable management in our hall with a rescue pony we had living in our garden – how we laughed and how Marmalade loved it. The search was then on for an alternative yard, which we eventually found. The Group started to grow, and we got itchy feet and started to look for our own yard. It wasn’t long before we found ourselves being offered horses for our riders that had come over from Ireland and were completely unknown – panic once again. As luck would have it we found a yard with a small indoor school, stabling and fields – we were there like a shot, and then started our debut into the search for ideal RDA ponies. Over 25 years we have learned a very great deal, the most important of which is always to have your ponies on trial for as long as you possibly can. We had some wonderful ponies in those early days, some of whom stayed with us for many years. We also had some horrors, and it never ceases to amaze us how people can even try pulling the wool over the eyes of the RDA. After several years at Wadley we decided that the time had come to try and find land and build our own centre – easier said than done, as it would appear that councils didn’t like horses, and every piece of land was turned down. However in 1988 we found what we were looking for, and started a huge appeal. The public were wonderful and we raised £60,000 in a very short time. Plans were drawn and redrawn, a huge second hand building was found for an indoor school, and we were away. In May 1989 we moved in, and the joy at seeing all our ponies walking down the drive to their new home was just amazing. In October that year the Princess Royal came to officially open the centre, and it was a wonderful day to be remembered by all. Every rider took part, and received a rosette from the Princess, who then stayed for a quick lunch and met many of our sponsors. Since then there have been many improvements – a large outdoor arena, a viewing gallery, a hoist, and as our Silver Jubilee project, a classroom. Fund raising is something that none of us like to talk about, but has to be done, and it now costs us about £30,000 a year just to run the yard, without any capital expenditure. We have several big fund raising events every year, which include a sponsored ride, a concert at Radley College, and a Christmas Fair. The public is incredibly generous for which we so very grateful. Our riders come from both within and outside the County. Although we have one school of slow learners, we have concentrated more on the physically handicapped, as it is much harder for them to find Groups with facilities such as ours, where we offer suitable evening and weekend classes. Our age range at the moment is 18 months to 75 years, and we pride ourselves with being able to cope with many different disabilities. Besides working within the indoor and outdoor school complex, the riders are able to go for hacks, and in the summer, thoroughly enjoy picnic rides. We also have an Annual Fun Day at our stables for many of our riders to take part in, finishing with a barbecue for everyone. For a week every summer we take a selection of ponies up onto the Ridgeway – the children and four of the ponies stay at a local Youth Hostel and the rest of the ponies go to a nearby farm. It is a wonderful week and thoroughly enjoyed by all. Many of our riders enjoy dressage and on several occasions we have held in house dressage days, with Mrs. Waveney Luke judging. She is marvelous and after each class talks to the riders giving them tips and general encouragement. Our top riders annually compete at the South Region Show and the National Dressage Championships, coming home with numerous rosettes and trophies. If my memory serves me right Paul Scaysbrook won the very first Dressage Championship on a borrowed pony, which he had never set eyes on until the class. Since those early days other riders have also done extremely well at both shows. We have had some truly wonderful ponies over the years, including Rondo who was known by many people all over the Country. Another two thoroughly trustworthy ponies, Trilly and Tufty, paraded at a Cheltenham Evening Race Meeting, promoting our Group most successfully. Our ponies’ patience and apparent understanding of what they are doing is a wonder to behold, and we will always be very grateful to them. They may prove very difficult to find, but once found they are with us forever, and are loved by every member of the Group. This is a wonderful opportunity for me to thank all the many helpers who have been members of the Group over the years and to say that we would love to see you if you are in our area, do come and see us. Ann Barlow Chairman.
(A Group Member of the Riding for the Disabled Association incorporating Carriage Driving, Registered Company No.5010395, Registered Charity No. 244108)
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