The South African showjumping industry is blessed with several international standard competition venues including Kyalami Equestrian Park in Gauteng, Shongweni Club in KZN, and Stokkiesdraai Equestrian Centre and Heartland Equestrian Centre in Brits. But further afield, on the east coast, is another spectacular venue with arguably the best natural setting of any venue across the country – Sunera.
Located in a gorgeous valley with the old Italian-style villa on the hillside, the equine facilities are nestled into a valley surrounded by natural beauty. The first and last major competition to take place at Sunera was back in 2018 where it hosted the South African Championships that saw Cathryn Neill and the now-retired Clyde Z claim the victory. Since then, It’s been rather quiet on the show front, and last year, Sunera publicly announced it would be refraining from hosting further shows. That was until recently when a group of 4 very dedicated and committed individuals took on the challenge to reignite the flame that is Sunera.
Advertisement
Advertisement
The ExCo consists of Suzy Lubner – who is known as the Queen of Plett – and Ivan van der Sijde as the riders’ representative – sharing his insights from the rider’s perspective and offering up his knowledge and experience to benefit the whole operation. Sam Wright, the President of the Sunera ExCo and Kouga Riding Club Secretary, alongside Emma Platt from Kouga Riding Club, make up the remaining 2 positions of the newly formed ExCo ensuring that all show operations are smoothly handled, attendees are happy and well catered for, and relations with the Sunera team are beneficial for both parties. Alongside this inspired team, there are many other helping hands that ensure the whole operation has kicked off smoothly, from the management team at Sunera to the Chairman of the Kouga Riding Club, Frances Grobbelaar, who single-handedly ensures that the catering aspect is well organised and the food is delectable.
The revived Sunera’s debut event was the Ocean Blue Cup in 2020, after which many riders were thrilled with the event and pleaded with the team for another competition. This resulted in their Valentines show, a highly successful event that saw entries fill up in a week and sponsors jump into action to show their support. The headline sponsor for the open grades was Eccentrics Interiors with Arco 360, Onyx Equestrian, TCS WiFi, and Equine-Librium joining to provide prizes, additional goodies, and prize money. A grand sum of R5000 was awarded to the winner, Hayley Preen and Voigtskirch Dunmore, with R2500 for 2nd place, Ivan van der Sijde and Equine-Librum Filoux, of the 1.35m championship courtesy of Eccentrics Interiors. FEI 2* course designer and former native to the region, Ryan Sander, is an integral part of the competitions at Sunera with his technical tracks and various levels of difficulties which see many riders wanting to return to test themselves once again.
Alongside the motivated team, support from the riders and sponsors, and the naturally beautiful setting, the re-launch of this spectacular venue is an exciting addition to the South African showjumping circuit. We hope to see many title shows, including World Cup Qualifiers, hosted there in future, so Sunera can once again shine bright as one of the country’s premier equestrian venues.
-The JumpOff-
Advertisement
Comments are closed, but trackbacks and pingbacks are open.