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So did the gamble of moving VASA out to Bendigo pay off…  well taking a look at the entries and the quality of horses and ponies that arrived up to Bendigo to compete it is very much looking like a huge success and just what the show folk needed, another high profile event that anyone can attend with the added bonus of it been very kind to the hip pocket.

The city of Bendigo got right behind the event with publicity, even the motel were I stayed had a list of things to do while in Bendigo one being  the show. As it is only early days, there is already plans under way for next seasons event with more stables, the arena is to be ripped up and re-sewn, all forging ahead for the next time the show is run.

The organizers had assembled an impressive list of judges for the 2 day event with a lot of history behind them, Shane Ackerly NSW, Sheryl Ackerly NSW, Christinne Stevenson NSW, Paul Morath VIC, Corinne Collins VIC, Maree Tomkinson VIC, Gary Le Brocq VIC and Noel Calvert Vic, and it did not take long for the first day to get well underway and by midday the deal was set …VASA had returned as a high profile event standing alone [nothing against the previous years run during the summer royal but it really got lost out there]

So the VAS - Equine Nutrition Australia Saddle Horse Championships 2010 was underway. In the First Season section Leanda Stud was again putting forth their dominance of the pony world with the Champion First Season Large Pony been Leanda Hello Dolly owned by the Leanda stud and shown to perfection by Chanele Hunter [pictured opposite]who seems to have the happy nac of getting that extra stand out performance from her charges, and runner up was Leanda Hello Darling, owned by Angela Carter. 

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Angela was having a marvelous day when the next of her team Thorwood Alice in Wonderland won the small pony First Season, with  Ashton Park Rumours as the runner up shown by Ashton Stud.

First Season Galloway class was another class that was exceptional with talent, it was L Britton’s  Murrong Skyla that stole the show and took the honours, runner up was the McEvoy Families Mirinda Monet. The first season hack section left a few people side line scratching their heads when the judge with her final field of 12 had to take it the next step and get that down to the Top 10, which saw two hacks that on the circle that showed excellent paces and a forward manner in going   ….were given the gate, now not been critical of what was left to make the top 10 but there were certainly a few that were very unsettled and because of this there was no way to see their talents when they were so uptight, perhaps the judge saw something quite different to what the majority ringside saw? just got to love showing, it certainly keeps everyone on their toes. There was a few stand out performance but the sash had to go to First Class Edition owned by G Mickan & Terry Van Heythuysen, this stunning black hack is really pleasing to the eye, the runner was N Touzel’s  Marzel Weltroon another one that produced a neat forward workout on the day.