meld aena leat alten ena stennelleneaeei ee it BRAS a so Sn ra ater ateraaTete! LETT. R. TC TH EDI TOR A protest at conerraine equestrian club Dear Sir: * It was with a mixture of shock and amazement we ) read the article in the September 12, 1979 Terrace Herald, in relation to Tammy Rinsmia’s trip to the North-West International in Vancouver, B.C. We note where Linda Timko has selected Tammy Rinsma as being the only rider ready to compete at such a caliber as seen at the North-West International Show and to this end donations are being solicited. We wonder if the people of Terrace and Kitimat who generously gave money for this venture are aware of the circumstances surrounding the decision’ that Tammy Rinsma is the only rider able to go to this Firstly, the Skeena Equestriannes was formed around the end of June , 1979 comprised of several families. Only riders who were willing to take lessons exclusively from Linda Timko were invited to join and this club was unknown to the many other riders in Terrace, such as members of the Totem Saddle Club, an organization in existance since about 1965. ‘We agree that out of the four selected riders, the one chosen is the best, however, we are amazed at the fact — that other riders in the ‘same age grouping, not belonging to the. Skeena Equestriannes, placing consistently in shows around the North-Western area and placing above the rider chosen by Linda Timko, were not considered as likely candidates. We respectiully point out no effort was made to ask any rider to compete in front ofan impartial mee. No parent of a promising rider, not belonging to this exclusive group , was contacted as to whether or not their child would ‘wish to try out for this trip. We point out that not trials were ever held to decide who was the logical choice. The Totem Saddle Club, a club which has through out the years supported riders by providing facilities and riding events for all horse owners was never contacted or alternatively given the opportunity to put forth names of top junior riders who would have been proud of the chance to go on such a trip. It strikes us as odd indeed that out of the many good riders in the area only those that belonged to this newly formed club were chosen. © We draw to the reader's attention the fact the in- dividuals mentioned in the article are the sole members of the Club known as Skeena Equestriannes. This letter is written to notlfy all would be donators that the decision made to take Tammy Rinsma to Vancouver was an arbitary one, made by one in- dividual. It is our opinion that if a trip of this nature is to be funded by donations that every junior rider have an ity to try out for the honour of going. We would also advise the people of Terrace that one, rider who has compaigned for the last three show seasons has accumulated over 300 ribbons and over 100 trophies , many of them the coveted High-Point award, was not ever notified of the proposed trip to Vancouver and was not aware the club even existed. _ Thisrider was never given the opportunity to even try- nea ost out for the trip and this rider who has consistently beat the chosen rider in open shows about the north- western area was totally over looked due solely to the fact she was not a@ member of the Skeena Equestriannes. We respectfully suggest the would be donators — question closely the decisions behind the exclusion of this rider. We would also advise that two spectators going on this trip have competited in one recognized Canadian Equestrian Federation approved show and this in Terrace, B.C: No 'C' rider, those 12 years and under, were ever invited to go as spectators and these children are our future up and coming riders and would have benefited from the trip. It has been rioted in the Alean paper “Ingot’’ the . Skeena Equestriannes had competed successfully in a number of local and regional competitions when In fact the only event eh club participated In as a whale was the local River Boat Days Parade, Shortly thereafter a number of members were excused from this club for various reasons, one reason being the taking of lessons from another instructor. This elimination of memberships gradually evolved to the point where the only legical choice had to be Tammy Rinsma. We agree the drawback to go to the Coast and compete is a financial one for most of us, however , had we known there was an opportunity for financial backing there would have been a much wider interest ‘Exclusive’ club furore centre * been _ being used as A dispute, which has brewing = for sometime, has come to a head after a story ap- peared in Wednesday's Herald dealing with the proposed trip to Van- couver being sponsored by the Skeena Equestrienne Club. A letter(which is reprinted above) was delivered to the Herald office this afternoon by a representative of a group of local instructors and parents of local riders, outlining their displeasure. with . the: p¥dtextors - information contained in the article, which ran on page 7 in the Wednesday edition of the Herald. The jetter was signed by : Jeanne Maximchuk, Bev. Scott, Birgette Bartlett, J.M. Barber, Rosemary Hickmore , Nina Kavanagh, Theresa Kirsch and Patricia Goodliffe. A real chopper old looking cargo dangling cargo ona cable beneath it hae been seen hovering over treetops in various parts of the Prince Rupert forest fegion this week and last, lore than a few passers- by must havescratched their heads and wrinkled their brows at the sight of the litie ‘copter dragging a device which looked something like a giant, mesh lemon squeezer with a hole in the centre through the treetops. The 600-pound devicé, called a ‘heli-cropped' (or sometimes just a 2 rake’) is rt of the British Columbia Forest Service's major 1878, cone collection effort, The helicopter and the device are chartered from a private firm by the forest service. The helicopter pilot drops the heli-cropper over a , then lifts his aircraft steal i up — the result Is that cones are broken off and deposited in the lip of the le ction device where they can be flown to a drop-off polnt. "Using this device, we can collect about six bushels of canes per hour,” says as + a ~