Earnscleugh teenager Lilly Anderson says she is ''pretty honoured'' by a national award just conferred for high achievement of pony club riders.
Anderson (18) was last weekend presented with a New Zealand Pony Club Young Achiever Award at the national club's conference in Wellington. She was one of only seven riders nationally and the only rider from Otago-Southland to receive the award this year.
Anderson, who is a member of the Clyde Pony Club but was nominated by its umbrella organisation, the Central Otago Pony Club, said she was honoured to have been nominated and for her achievements to be acknowledged at a national level.
She joined pony club in 2010 and got her first pony the year after that. She now competes on three horses, including 10-year-old Victory Hawk (Darcy).
Her young achiever award tops off a brilliant season.
This year, she won the Eventing Southland Young Rider 17-21 years award, from accumulated results over the 2016-17 season with Darcy.
Anderson was also a member of the Otago-Southland eventing team that competed at the New Zealand Pony Club Horse Trials in Whangarei in April, and a member of the Otago-Southland dressage team that competed at New Zealand Pony Club dressage championships in 2016 and 2017.
Her national young achiever award recognised riding achievements alongside scholastic achievement and community involvement.
The year 13 Dunstan High School pupil last year received excellence endorsement in level 2 NCEA, and this year she is Warrant Officer at the Alexandra Air Training Cadets. She also plays the bagpipes in the Alexandra Pipe Band.
She said she was grateful for the support of the pony club and her Alexandra dressage coach Lyn Fox, and also coaches Donna and Elise Edward-Smith, from Donna Smith Eventing, near Hamilton.
Next year, Anderson is planning to spend a gap year with the Edward-Smiths with her horses Darcy and Cat-a-lac (Leo) to improve their rankings.
She is then considering studying engineering or environmental science.
The Maniototo Pony Club has also just won a national award. It won a $1000 ''Jump 4 Joy'' award for a video it made of a First Start competition. The club wins $1000 of horse jumps from the Jump 4 Joy company.
Both the Maniototo award and Anderson's award were of ''huge significance'', Maniototo club member Harriet Cameron said. The new horse jumps should be installed at the grounds in Ranfurly by this spring, she said.
