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Finale for Balkello charity cross country

The jumps have always been a popular feature of the competition - including the sausages, pictured here in 2005
The jumps have always been a popular feature of the competition - including the sausages, pictured here in 2005

The Balkello Cancer Appeal Cross Country will run for the final time this summer.

Announcing the “sad news” of the end of the contest, organisers said the charity event will take place this year on Sunday, June 14.

The annual competition, which is run in aid of the Ninewells Cancer Campaign, has been a popular fixture on the equestrian calendar since 1999 raising tens of thousands of pounds for charity.

The event, set amidst the Balkello Woodland, at Auchterhouse, outside Dundee, by kind permission of the Forestry Commission, attracts hundreds of riders each year.

Angus farmer Bob Black, who organises the event in conjunction with the Balbeggie Pony Riding Club, said the competition will have raised more than £60,000 over its 16-year duration.

He began running the competition, alongside his wife Joyce, following the loss of a young family member to cancer.

Their idea was to run a low key event that still had a competitive edge and was fun for the competitors, while raising funds which would be donated to Ninewell’s Cancer Campaign.

The Balkello course is renowned for its characterful fences including one man and his dog, a tiger playing golf and a neeps and haggis jump with querky new additions most years.

Riders from as far afield as Edinburgh and Glasgow support the cross country each year and money is raised through entry fees, a tombola and sponsorship.

equestrian@thecourier.co.uk