The course at Tonimbuk continues to improve. Since the events creation in 2000 the committee have worked particularly hard to improve the quality of the going and the fences while still working hard to raise the bar in terms of technical and performance elements to the course. We don't just aim to be another event on the Australian calendar but an event where everyone wants to ride at - and our course reflects this. Course designer Wayne Copping (you can view his website here) worked hard in 2003 to upgrade us to Advanced level for the State Championships, a level which we will strive to maintain in future years.

The course is truly diverse in that it caters for the widest range of competitors in Australia by offering classes from Preliminary to Advanced. Tonimbuk is a course that brings together the current stars, the future stars and the emerging stars. The course itself begins by taking you into the bush with beautiful old trees and soft ground. Depending on which course you are riding you will then come out of the bush on a downhill slope and into the open plains to tackle another selection of fences, culminating in the water complex before making your way home.

The committee also works incredibly hard for two weeks prior to the event on presenting each fence to the best of their ability - to produce professionals in our sport we, the event organisers, need to be professional in the courses that we produce. We are confident that we are achieving this aim and look forward to improving the presentation further in 2004.

The course for all classes is run over undulating ground and is an excellent warm-up to Wandin the following week. Many riders also bring their horses to Tonimbuk to gauge their fitness level before deciding whether to run them hard at Wandin. Tonimbuk plays an important part in the preparation of many of Australia's horses who have the long term goals of Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide written into their calendar. One of the new combination of fences at Tonimbuk 2003 was the Grass Bank, a difficult combination that challenged horse and rider but rode well if ridden positively. It also rewards the thinking rider who is able to work out the best way for his horse and our courses are always built with options to allow the thinking rider to acheive his or her aims, whether they be a clear round, a confidence boosting round or a clear and fast round. Whatever you are looking for in a course, we have it right here at Tonimbuk. Because of the winding nature of the course through the wooded areas it is essential that riders understand the direction of the course they are riding and we recommend you walk the course several times to be completely assured. There have been instances in the past where some riders have missed a fence they were not aware of because they walked the course incorrectly. We are always there to advise you if you have any problems at all.