Kohatu Ride to Remember

Rory Arnold rode in the 10th (Nelson) squadron of the Canterbury Mounted Rifles; his mother Jane described the story of his leaving for the War in 1914. “Rory waved to me as he went out our gate”, she said.

“Then I watched him ride away on his horse until he came to the spot that was the last place on the road that he could see our home. Then he turned his horse, rose in the stirrups and waved to me. I knew I would never see him again”. That last wave would have been from about a kilometre away.

How many times was this story played out around New Zealand as our young men flocked to the call to arms? As a lead-up to the Tapawera Armistice Weekend event, being held on and around the site of the historic Tapawera Military Training Camp grounds, and to commemorate these young men and their horses, the NZ Mounted Rifles Charitable Trust and local group, the ANZAC Horses, are doing a Ride to Remember this Labour Weekend.

The ride will commence from the Tapawera Village Green on Sunday 21st of October at 9.45am, and follow the Motueka Valley Highway to the Kohatu War Memorial where a dedication service will be held at 11.00am to honour the memory of our Mounted troops.

Riders will leave the Memorial at 11.20 and ride back to Tapawera Village Green where people are invited to come with their picnic lunches. There will be an opportunity to meet the riders, and a display about the Mounted Rifles will be exhibited in the Bandstand.