Expect horsing around at Larwill Park site
After 75 years as a bus depot and a parking lot, Vancouver’s Larwill Park will be home to some live horsepower as the equestrian sports of show jumping and polo canter into the downtown site on Sunday.
The inaugural Vancouver Grand Prix show jumping event will showcase 30 horse and rider pairs. Free to the public, the afternoon of equine action includes a Vancouver Polo Club-sponsored three-on-three polo match. There will be free pony rides for kids, food trucks and a 500-person Strathcona Brewing beer garden. There is also VIP ticketing available. The doors open at 2 p.m. with polo at 3:30 and show jumping following at 5:30.
Located just east of Queen Elizabeth Theatre, Larwill Park — which was originally a sporting venue that dates back to the late 19th century and has more recently been proposed as a possible site for a new Vancouver Art Gallery — will be covered by around 500 tonnes of silica sand. The special footing for the 61-by-30-metre outdoor arena is coming in dump trucks from event organizer Thunderbird Show Park in Langley.
“We build arenas all the time. That’s not a problem for us, but we have never built one on a parking lot before,” said Jane Tidball, president and tournament director at Thunderbird Show Park. “That’s a good and big challenge. It’s exciting.”
While a chance to walk from your downtown apartment to see amazing equine athletes is a great outing, Tidball and company hope that the event helps to convince city dwellers to make the trip out to Langley for one of Thunderbird’s world-class show jumping events such as the June 1 $235,000 Longines Grand Prix and the June 3 Longines Nations Cup $400,000 competition. The latter has national teams from Canada, United States, Mexico, Brazil and Ireland facing off.
This year marks the 45th anniversary for Thunderbird. It’s that successful legacy and a sport-leading international reputation that encouraged the city to move forward on this type of complicated event.
“They definitely had the skill set,” said Michelle Collens, manager of sport hosting for the City of Vancouver, adding that Thunderbird received a $5,000 grant from the city.
For veteran show jumper Chris Lowe, getting to compete in the heart of the city is good for a handful of reasons.
“This is a very unique venue and it is fantastic for me because this is where I live. It is five blocks from my office,” said Lowe, a portfolio manager at Odlum Brown. “It’s been the easiest sell I have ever had to make to get my friends, my colleagues and co-workers to come watch. Hopefully I’ll have a decent cheering section of friends and colleagues.”
Clearing the dozen 1.4-metrehigh fences is just part of the test Lowe says his eight-year-old Holsteiner horse Cunningham will face when the pair enters the ring on Sunday to compete for the $10,000 prize purse.
“This is a perfect opportunity for him to get some experience in a rather unique venue,” said Lowe about the crowds and city noises. “For sure it is going to be eye-opening for him.”
For City of Vancouver senior manager of film and special events Sandi Swanigan, this event was one of the more unique challenges she has faced on the job.
“I’m finding it quite fun,” said Swanigan, who says her department curates more than 500 special events a year.
“It’s a bit out of the box and a change from your market stalls and sound stages. It has some unique moving parts.”
For information on the event, go to vancouvergrandprix.com