Penrose Pleasure Drive May 2010

By Sharon Beattie:

Early in May a few drivers gathered at the Southern Highland Club Grounds at Bundanoon for a pleasure drive into Penrose State forest. The purpose was to drive some of the tracks planned for next year's Endurance Competition through Penrose forest, as part of the 2011 ACDS 40th Birthday Celebrations.
We had a handful of ponies and horses with varying fitness and length of hair. Most were ready at 10 am for the start, but we waited until all were right to go, with a high vis vest and hard hats as part of our safety gear. Only Bill Gardener requested a map because everyone else had small ponies and did not have a groom. I drove my ute ahead to lead the way. The track along Ferndale road was tree lined and gently sloping down to meet Old Argyle Road, which had recently been graded, and the larger rocks covered by sandstone road base, which made it good enough for a car to drive on.
Gum trees over hung the track most of the way, which would give cooling shade on a hot day, and protect from strong winds.
At the entrance of Penrose State Forest is a large cleared area we used for a rest and to let the slower ponies catch up.
Jan Murray and her little pinto shetland turned back with Elva McPherson who was riding a young horse, they would have covered 16 kms on their return to the club grounds.
After a short rest we went on as a group across the bridge into the forest, we quickly turned off the main road through the forest onto a beautiful part lined with old pine trees, it was cool and quiet, other than the hoof beats of the ponies and the call of native birds. We turned up another track, similar to the first, with a smooth surface with moss growing in places.
At the end of this track we had the choice of left into the main cleared area, or right to go home. It was getting close to lunch time, so we headed back down the main Penrose Way, across the bridge and on to the Club Grounds for a Barbeque lunch.
Our round trip was 24 kms, the ponies did the distance quite well, the less fit ponies took their own time to get back, but Warren Rickets driving Maxie and Bill Gardener driving Rocky, could have easily done another 24 kms.

September Endurance Drive from Bundanoon.
This September on the 11th and 12th I have booked Penrose Forest to run an Endurance Drive. It will be up to 140 kms. Each day will have two sections with an hour break between each section. The first section will leave from the Club House at Bundanoon and travel 8 kms to the edge of the forest, with a water break here, then on to the forest, to complete the remaining 25 to 30 kms, returning to the rest stop for a vet check and rest. Here will be a campfire and billy boiled for competitors, and water warmed for horses if needed.
The second part is back into the forest, and returning to the rest stop for water before completing the last 8kms back to the Club Grounds. I anticipate some pony drivers would prefer not to do all of both sections to they can choose to only do the 8 kms return for the second section.
Sharon Beattie
NSW Convenor for Pleasure and Endurance.