Teams from nine Central Ontario Pony Clubs - Durham, Huronia, Kawartha, Pause Awhile, Pickering, Pine Ridge, Simcoe, Timberline and Toronto & North York - will compete in the Regional Tetrathlon, being held on Saturday, June 17 and Sunday, June 18.

Tetrathlon is a very demanding competition with four parts: swimming, shooting (with air pistols), running and riding. Scoring varies with the phase. In swimming, points are given for the time taken to complete a fixed distance (50-200m, depending on level). In shooting, the points are given for the number of shots in the target and their position in the target (similar to darts). Running is scored by time taken to complete a cross-country course. Riding is scored like the cross-country phase of eventing, with penalty points for refusals, falls, and taking longer than the optimum time to complete the course.

Boys and girls compete in separate divisions in Tetrathlon, and there are five levels for each: Junior A, Junior B, Senior A, Senior B and Novice. The "A" and "B" splits are determined by the competitors' levels of riding skills, as measured by the Canadian Pony Club testing system.

The winners of Regional competitions at the Senior and Junior "A" levels have a chance of being chosen to represent the region at national and international competitions. This year's National Tetrathlon takes place in Nova Scotia, from July 16th to 21st.

The shooting and swimming competitions will take place at St Andrew's College in Aurora, both on Saturday morning. The running phase will be held Saturday afternoon at the Toronto & North York Hunt Club on Dufferin Street north of Highway 9. The riding phase will be held on Sunday, also at the Toronto & North York Hunt. Spectators are welcome at all phases of competition, without admission charge.

For details please call Liz or Bob Inglis, Regional Communications Co-Chairs, at 416-493-1223 (office) or 416-491-4230 (home), or Tetrathlon Chair Carmen Cotter at 416-690-0177 (home), or via e-mail at bobinglis@technalysis.on.ca or cottercg@earthlink.net.