Thetford Forest Driving Camp

Just a reminder that the bookings are still open until 6th July for the driving camp at Thetford Forest.

With the Governments restrictions being lifted on 4th July regarding camp sites we can confirm that subject to sufficient numbers booking this event will go ahead.

Please see the schedule for this event and book online on our Events page

Further training event at Ashfields 4th July 2020

Hi All,
We have great news, due to the unprecedented success of the training this weekend held at Ashfields and coupled with the excellent way that all of the trainees complied with government guidelines and the terms and conditions we set to assist with the Covid-19 pandemic, we have taken the decision to run another training day in two weeks time, if numbers allow we will extend the training to run over two days.

If the Government keeps its plans to allow caravan sites to open on 4th July then you will be allowed to stay over at Ashfields if booking two days training.

Please see the schedule outlining the day and the booking protocol, we will only accept definite bookings and these must be by email to either this email address or to Lorna at sec@eacdg.co.uk

Best regards
Malcolm Brown

Possible training days 2020

We hope you are all well and coping with lock-down, we have been working hard into looking to put on 2 training days on the 20^th and 21^st  June at Ashfields, please note this is purely provisional at the moment and dependent on no further increase in lock-down or the government changing the guidelines.

On Saturday 20^th June the trainers will be Sara Howe and Anna Grayston who have both passed the covid-19 safety course on line, as Wilf and Minta are based at Ashfields they will be available both days.

There will be dressage arenas set up and a cones course, there will also be obstacles to drive.
If you wish to enter, please e-mail Lorna sec@eacdg.co.uk and say which trainer and which day you would like to come and how many 45 min lessons you would like so we can get an idea of numbers, please ensure you leave a contact number and details as we will use this to confirm whether or not this will run.

Here is a list of rules you will need to follow to comply with our risk assessment and safety guidelines

1. Only bring 1 backstepper with you if you are driving a pair or single, two backsteppers if you are driving a team, please travel to site in the same vehicle.
2. No sharing of carriages or backsteppers
3. The club house will be closed so please bring your own food and drinks.
4. There will be a toilet open but please use your own lorry one if you can, If you must use the facilities at Ashfields please sanitize your hands before and after use.
5. Please bring your own hand sanitizer.
6. Remember to park away from others and socially distance as per government guidelines.
7. Please respect the facilities at Ashfields, it is the homes and livelihoods of our major supporters.
8. Please accept that if these rules are broken you will be asked to leave the venue with no refund.

A few days before the training we will make a final assessment based on numbers and the current situation, we will then open up the on line entry system for 48 hours for you to do an on line entry, you will be sent an e-mail or telephoned to tell you when this is, if we do not receive your payment before the closure of bookings we will not process your booking, there will be no exceptions.

Keep safe and well.

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Best Regards
East Anglian Carriage Driving Group Committee.

2020 Events and Covid-19

The Committee here at EACDG have been constantly reviewing the current Covid 19 outbreak and the possible effects to our Organisers, Judges, Stewards, Ground crew, Drivers, and obviously the general public, we can assure you that safety is our utmost concern and with this in mind, coupled with both Government guidelines and BC recommendations we have taken the decision to cancel our March training day along with our one day event.

The April two day training and April two day event with NNQ will be postponed until later in the season as long as the current situation dictates.

All other events will remain on the calendar but will be reviewed regularly.

Obviously we will keep you informed as and when anything changes.

We wish you all well in these troubled times.

Best regards

Malcolm Brown EACDG Chairman

March and other event details

Welcome to the new season, we hope you've had a good winter and all is well?

We write you this email just to bring you up to date with a few notifications.

1. Our March training day and one day event still is very weather dependant, the ground is very wet but is starting to dry up nicely, we are hoping for no more rain and looking forward to the first events. We will inform you of any decisions to cancel as soon as we are aware.
2. As the March event is still under observation we are extending the closing date for entries until 21st March, get you entries in now.
3. The training day is nearly fully booked, we only have two morning slots available, one for Minta and one for Sara, please book now if you want training.
4. Due to increases and changes in our online booking system we have had to introduce a small admin charge of £2.50 for cancellations, please note this will not be charged if we cancel an event.
5. Training event in April is also filling up quickly and we currently only have a small number of slots available, please book early.
6. We will be asking for support soon for some work parties, these will be at Ashfields and will be mainly based on tidying up and possibly painting obstacles, we will send out dates as soon as we know.
7. Some of you may be aware that we have recently introduced a new East Anglian Carriage Driving Group Facebook page, this will be used to keep you informed of any club related issues only, we are still operating the old group page as normal but found that due to the amount of posts regarding other posts of driving related interest the club related information just disappeared down the list only to be seen if you trolled through everything. If you use facebook then please add us to your favourites.
8. Please note that no trade related posts are allowed on the facebook page and persistent offenders will be removed from the site. Trade related posts will be allowed if the trader is a sponsor of the club, please feel free to contact us regarding possible sponsorship packages.

We hope you have a great season, have fun and we look forward to seeing you all soon.  

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Best Regards
East Anglian Carriage Driving Group Committee.

EACDG 2020 Information

We hope you have had a wonderful winter and didn't get too wet or windswept.

We take this opportunity to bring you up to date on the fast approaching 2020 season:  

1. The memberships are now open along with schedule of events for this year, there are plenty or training events and plenty of one day events as requested. Please get your memberships and entries in early.
2. We have introduced a new class, it's called Club Class, it will be run at all one day events throughout the year, it is aimed at newcomers or seasoned drivers who find themselves driving small ponies or new ponies, carriages can be two wheelers, and the three phases will be dressage, cones (10 pairs) and obstacles (two obstacles driven twice with no distance between), full rules available by request and on the website soon. This will be a perfect opportunity for those who have been driving indoors and feel their ponies are too small for the bigger marathon stages of a standard outdoor event.
3. There is a new dressage test for Novices. It's called BC Novice test 2020, full details available on the BC website www.britishcarriagedriving.co.uk  Please take note that all novices will be using the new test this season.
4. We have added a camping/driving event in the heart of Thetford Forest, places are numbered and details are on the club website, first come first served, No exceptions.
5. We are currently putting together a stewards training day on March 7th at Ashfields, this will be fully funded, please email info@eacdg.co.uk for more details.

Please note that we try to keep you up to date at all opportunities, we use emails for those registered with us, we have the club website www.eacdg.co.uk and the club facebook page.

We hope you have a great 2020 season and look forward to seeing you all soon.