The South Island championships’ Otago Show Jumping Group event began at the Otago Taieri A&P Showgrounds yesterday.
The three-day event will see more than 310 horses take part in the competitions.
A lot can go wrong when you are working with live animals, something the Hutton family were reminded of early yesterday morning.
Sarah Hutton was at the event with eight members of her family, ranging from children to their grandparents.
The oldest person competing in her family was over 70, while the youngest was 11.
On the way to the event the float carrying Mayday broke, leaving the family to manoeuvre the horse into a truck on the side of the road, she said.
They brought Mayday back home, then returned to the track, where Moose soon suffered an injury.
The horse had nicked its right back leg, but it was not a bad cut and the horse was still able to perform.
"I said to the children ‘if one more thing goes wrong we’re going home’."
It was unusual for so much to happen in one morning, but after some time they were back in to the swing of things.
They bounced back from the troubles and soon Emily Hutton was riding to success on Brewy, who only had a few more shows left in her.
Emily and Brewy secured two first place ribbons and one second place.
She would compete in five more courses over the weekend, Mrs Hutton said.
"In the horse world you’ve got to take the good with the bad."
