4yo BE intro/ pavo question

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georgiegirl2

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My main aim for twig this season is to get her to bishop burtons intro class held in the middle of october if all things go to plan. She will still be 4 then so under BE rules will I still be allowed to enter this? I have read about 4yo competing over intro courses in pavo classes but unfortunatley there isnt one of these near me.

I'd much rather her first event be a BE intro rather than having to go unaffiliated as i think the courses arew so straightforward and 'baby friendly' than many of the unaffiliated classes held around here
 
day of birth doesn't actually matter.. only year, so what year was she born in??

not sure, but i think it's only PAVO intros that 4yr olds are aloud to do... if you're not able to do it, what's the rush, just wait till next year.
 
I think my suspicions are right then and that its only PAVO intros that 4yo's are allowed to do rather than a plain old intro class. Theres no rush what so ever with her but we thought bishop at the back end of te season might be appropriate then give her a bit of a break over the winter. gutted really, means i'll have to get my act together over next winter/ spring during the yucky weather!

I do know there is a byeh class held end of july time (i think) which is fairly local to me. Maybe this is a more realistic aim? Her flatwork is really coming on, her trot is amazing and we are working on the canter
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trying to teach her we dont go round the school like we are back on the gallops! We have introduced jumping last week and although everything is being kept very small (say 2ft or so) so is still going forward evenb when the scary tyres were put in front of the fence) this is twigs condition now after being ridden the other night, i'd love to know what people think, PAVO / BYEH material for the future?

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Have a go at the BYEH - the 4yo classes tend not to be as competitive. It's also very relaxed. Bramham has huge classes though, and I guess that would be a local one for you. Maybe go along there to watch the 4yo's and decide whether to go for the July one?
 
There is Hambleton show and Yorkshire Sport Horse Society and Ryedale Show all near you with BYEH classes.
 
I must admit we went to watch the bramham classes last year and thought that there was so much going on that it really takes a pro and a horse with its head really screwed on to be able to perform well in that sort of atmosphere! I'm popping up to bramham next month to watch the four year olds again and see what I think. Last year I thought the sj was very nice, baby friendly and was glad to see horses who had to trot into soem fences were not marked down against those who cantered. I think bramham is more a 5yo aim to be honest! I'm going to go to hambletom district show end of next month to see what a more 'local' show atmosphere is compared to bramham as from what i've been told by people bramham is really considered to be one of the biggies compared to the rest. The one im aiming for is ryedale show which is end of july time and is very local to me. Having never done byeh before i'm at a bit of a loss as to know what standard she should be at etc so im going to try and get to as many local classes (im lucky there are quite a few in yorkshire) before ryedale to see how I feel about it. We only introduced jumping last week but she is so trusting and brave (even if what we have done is only 2ft so far) and her trot work is now floating......is it unreasonable to have these classes as an aim? I'd be interested to know what 'average' byeh 4yo contenders are at at this stage in the year
 
I did BYEH a few years ago on a 4yo not long off the track. She didn't get into the final 10, but she didn't disgrace herself, and a stop at the 1st wasn't marked too harshley. Yours sounds and looks classier than the one I was on. Lately people have been complaining that they are glorified WH competitions, but just go and do it for the experience I think!
 
Thankyou! its reassuring to know it is possible to do with something not long off the track (we got twig in dec she never raced but was in training). My touble is, I dont have my own transport so preparing her for ryedale at the end of july is going to be tricky competion wise, we havent been to any competitions yet although i going to take the plunge and ask my instructor if she will take us to rc dressage next saturday as our first trip out (no doubt we will spook at all the boards etc as i dont have my own to practice with but what the hell). I probably will only be able to get her out to 2 dressage comps and a clear round and novice sj class before rydale so i guess we shall have to wait and see how she reacts to her trips aout to decide wether or not to enter ryedale. is this enough competition experience?She is ever so brave and is now hacking through woodland out in front and on the roads (with nanny in tow just in case he is required!) i think it is only a matter of time before we get our jumping sorted. Im currentl having to pop these little fences in my dr saddle as we dont have a gp to fit her though the saddle fitter is coming out next week so once that comes we can really begin some education! Its not the be all and end all if she sisnt ready.....she is so chilled compared to my last youngster (who is now 12!) it is all very easy to forget soemtimes that she has only just turned four
 
That sounds fine, many go with less experience than that! One thing you can practice at home that makes a difference is teaching them to stand up and trot up in hand properly - very difficult for the judge to give a horse the marks it might deserve if it's standing like a 3-legged mule! And if you can time it that she's recently been shod that won't hurt either...
 
We did the Yorkshire set of BYEH classes last year and I would certainly recommend Hambleton & Yorks Sports Horse shows - both are really friendly shows and the class were held in a fairly quiet area of the show.
We took a 4 & 5 year old to Bramham and found that it really phased the 5 year old (who qas quite novice). The 4 year old loved it and will hopefully go back this year as a 5 year old.

Last year was the first time we had done these classes and found that most people were friendly and if you asked questions they were happy to chat & give sensible answers.
 
I did the 4yr old class at Bramham last year as my boy's first one (but only because he had banged himself and missed the one at Rutland Show!) and he found it a bit of an eyeful. I do remember someone saying that Hambleton was a nice quiet one for a real baby.

I'm going to Bramham for the 5yr olds this year so hopefully mine will be less of a hooligan than last year.
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