Club vandalism

By Tania Martin
MT EVELYN Pony Club wants to stop access to the club’s arena from the Lilydale to Warburton Rail Trail, fearing vandalism of the arena by ‘irresponsible motorists’ was affecting the horses.
Club officials say that four wheeled drive vehicles gain access to the pony club grounds from Bailey Road and have smashed their way into the arena ripping up the grounds and creating an uneven surface for the horses.
President Sharon McDonald said in the past 12-months the club grounds have been damaged several times by irresponsible four wheel drivers who have smashed through metal gates to gain access to the horse arena at the Graeme Collings Reserve in Mt Evelyn.
She said a week after the club vice-president, Stewart Cornwall, fixed one of the gates that the drivers had rammed through, they returned and stole the gate from the other side of the arena.
“It was like a form of revenge because we fixed the other gate,” Mr Cornwall said.
Ms McDonald said four wheel drives have ripped up the arena grounds by driving around and treating the area as a four wheel driving circuit.
She said every time the grounds get ripped up large stones that are sitting beneath the surface are exposed and can cause severe damage to a horse if a stone get lodged in their shoe.
“The stones can make a horse lame, or a horse can break a leg and will have to be put down,” she said.
Ms McDonald said the pony club provides a good service for the children and it was very disheartening for the them when they see the damage that is continually being done to their arena.
Ms McDonald said the vandalism has been reported to the police but they can’t watch the grounds 24-hours a day.
Shire of Yarra Ranges manger of community relations James Martin said the pony club needs to contact the Lilydale to Warburton Rail Trail Committee because they have jurisdiction over the land.
The pony club has also called for the shire to connect them to drinking water because at the moment they only have tank water, which they say is not fit for human consumption.
Mr Martin said the shire has written to the pony club advising them they will be connected to drinking water.