Riders from several Central Ontario Region Pony Clubs have entered the 2005 Central Ontario Tetrathlon, being held on Saturday, June 25 and Sunday, June 26, split between the Aurora and Oro Medonte areas.

Tetrathlon is a very demanding competition with four parts: swimming, target 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, at 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 the national level. This year's National Tetrathlon will be hosted by the Alberta South Region in the Cochrane area, from August 7th to 12th.

The shooting and swimming phases of this Regional competition will be held on Saturday, shooting in the morning at the Target Sports Center near Gormley, and swimming in the afternoon at St. Andrews College in Aurora. The riding and running competitions will take place on Sunday at Woodwind Farm near Hawkestone in the Oro Medonte area. Spectators are welcome at all phases of competition, without admission charge.

For more details e-mail Bob Inglis, Central Ontario Regional Communications Chair, or call him at 416-493-1223 (office) or 416-491-4230 (home).