Hubertus
As every year, in autumn, at the Jaszkowo HRC, Hubertus, the hunting race, is held. Hubertus is first of all riding together in the wild, which ends with a fox hunt. For the less proficient riders and children – a game of finding a ‘fox’, which is a bag of sweets with a surprise, hidden under the roots or branches of a tree.
Since ancient times, the favourite pastime of nobility was hunting. One of its forms was horseback hunting, with a pack of hounds. To this day, such fox hunts are held in England. There exist horseback hunting clubs and people who make their livelihood keeping packs of hounds especially for this purpose. In France, people hunted deer in this manner. These hunts are cruel and, it needs to be stressed, utterly senseless.
The fox is torn to pieces by the pack of hounds and that is all the hunters get. A deer is chased until it drops dead of exhaustion. The trophies are taken by the hunters, in the form of antlers or skin, and the rest is given to the hounds to eat. The hounds eat the deer to the last scrap, accompanied by hunting horns and watched by the audience.
In Germany, there are horseback hunting clubs, too, but they have for a long time been mock hunts. One of the riders has an artificial scent marker and is followed by the hounds, then the riders. At the finish, the hounds are rewarded with a large portion of meat. The hunt is won by those riders who reach the finish before the hounds finish eating the meat.
In Poland, a reflection of the horseback hunting tradition is Saint Hubert’s Hunting Race, which event also commemorates the patron of hunters (also foresters, sportspeople, mathematicians and metalworkers, even, in the rural tradition, sleepwalkers and epileptics).
It falls on 3rd November and the main races are held on this day, during the closest weekend, and nowadays, due to the high interest in the races, or ‘Hubertuses’ in brief, last from mid-October to mid-November. It is a wholly symbolic ‘hunt’, without hounds, the ‘fox’ being one of the riders with a fox tail attached to the left arm.
Those who wish to participate in the Hubertus need to remember, first of all, that it is a HOLIDAY! Therefore, proper dress is mandatory. The classical hunting outfit is a red tail coat, white breeches, black riding boots with brown turn-ups and chamois gloves. A toque on the head.
There is also permitted such dress which is used in racing competitions. The third variant is the so-called gentleman’s attire: a shepherd’s plaid jacket, breeches, black boots, a white shirt and a black tie. But whatever outfit is worn, it must be one’s best and elegant!
One’s horse’s appearance needs more attention than usually. The horse and its tack should be spick-and-span. It is also nice to get some additional, festive ornaments: ribbons, braids, etc. Good atmosphere at the event should also be maintained, the participants’ deportment is paramount. One ought to be a gentleman while riding as well. We must not leave our assigned place in the host, until the final fox hunt. One may not cut in on others, nor run into the rider in front of us. The heaviest sin is overtaking the leading master. And during the final fox hunt, one should keep their emotions at bay, so as not to put themselves and their horse at risk, as well as other riders and horses.
Hubertus is primarily a group ride in the field, ending with a fox hunt.
For the less proficient riders and children – a game of finding a ‘fox’ which is a bag of sweets with a surprise, hidden under the roots or branches of a tree. The fox hunt is the single moment anticipated for the entire year and recollected for the next one.
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