BUSA comps & teams

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teapot

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For those of you who have done BUSA - what do you think makes up a good team? 4 jumpers that can do dressage if pushed? 4 dressage riders that jump coz they have to? 2 of each? 4 individual qualities so you can cater for the sharp horse, typical RS horse, young horse, pony?

Have been having a nosey at various uni club websites (noticed that my new uni doens't have one
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) and looks like they all have differing requirements for their own teams. Be interested to hear your views and experiences
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Depends what horses there are at each comp. In our experience it was the dressage which decided things and as long as you were capable of getting round a course of jumps you'd be fine.

I think having some variation in the team as good to allow for different types. As long as the team rides the horse most suitable for them. In my view, a lot of the time captains picked the horse they thought they'd have the easiest ride on rather than considering which horse was most likely to go well for which rider.

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as a veteran of the irish equivalent and of international student comps i think its important to have good showjumpers who ride well on the flt but ultimately must be stylish as that is what gets you through the preliminary rounds.i am a pure jumper but ride well on the flat and have got through to ride in the dressage final at our nationals! adaption to a variety of horses is also crucial
 
in ours we have a tendancy to focus on the dressage as this seemed the main decider and just get 4 riders who can stay on round a 3ft course but are good at the dressage.
 
I think that the dressage is the most important - the sj hardly ever alters the results in my experience. I remember before my first comp i was worring about the sj - though really didnt need to!

For my uni we dont really have requirments i dont think. I think its good to have a good mix of riders - thats not taken into account my uni though (i dont think)
 
Dressage was most important , a range of heights of riders helps too. My team had 2 6 foot girls so me being the lightest and 5'4" meant i always had to ride the ponies (13.2hh JA pony once!!)
 
Yes dressage riders are more important. last year I had a girl who would ride anything SJ and go clear but as her dressage wasn't great she was still ending up last. I really think they should change the rules and make it less dressage focused.
 
Dressage really rules the day in most competitions, except one where a girl fell off and broke her arm
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, 2 others fell and there were only 2 clear rounds lol!

Though I only used to showjump and ocasionally XC and only did 2 dressage tests in the 8 years I've competed
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I still manage to win a a comp and come 3rd in two others...it's hardly a difficult dressage test, just basic flatwork really.

More the knack of being able to get on strange horses and get a tune out of them quickly benefits..My auntie runs a livery yard and breaks in youngsters and brings them on so always had plenty to mess around on
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Definitely dressage orientated teams are preferable but we've had a few incidents over the years where the dressage rider *has* to have the easy sj pony or else they'll fall off.. I seem to always put the eventers over anyone else (biased, no?!) and quite simply those that have had the most hours in the saddle in their lifetime! They often have their own horses at home and demonstrate the ability to get a decent tune out of all sorts of horses. I always try to put people on the horse that I think they will do best on, often the captain tends to pick the 'nicest' horse for themselves but there's definitely something to be said for picking the 30 year old, one eyed giraffe.. It got me to nationals last year.
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Definitly not
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Sometimes the easist horses are the hardest to do well on because everyone can make them go properly and therefore every mark counts and it's really close.

If u get the difficult one you have more chance of hoping you are able to make it go better and therefore sometimes it's easier.

All about getting the right rider on the right horse-it's quite tactical haha!
 
I agree that dressage rules - this was my downfall this year, I'm an SJer at heart and wasn't of the same standard of some of the dressage riders we competed against although I did come 1st at our home comp riding a 13.2hh pony with an upside down neck that couldn't work in a nice outline with anyone!

One comp we rode at (Plymouth) had their showjumps at about 2'3, and I think every single person went clear - hardly worth it!! I like the format of judging a riders style over fences in the later stages of competition - that would make a big difference in the first stages, I saw some appalling jumping this year but the horses are pretty much all honest enough to get people out of trouble.

Definitely a range of riders is needed - heights and strengths. Always good to have a pony rider, and someone with good long legs who is good at riding massive cobs, you get a lot of those! Although I was quite surprised to find out I was the first rider in my uni to compete in BUSA without ever owning my own horse... I'd have hoped it would have been more open than that.
 
Oo this gets more and more interesting! Duckling - that's really bad about being the only one who's not owned their own horse!
 
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Could that be to do with your B Team captain?! haha

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Ahem.. Yes, that captaincy decision can, unfortunately, only be blamed upon myself!!
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Blimmin' show pony riders..
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Teapot, in my experience the RS riders do often feel a bit discriminated against because they don't have their own horses, but I know that I genuinely try and pick the best teams, regardless as to whether people have their own horses or not. However, it does often seem that people that have had their own horses are relatively more experienced but not always.. As you rightly say you have the benefit of being able to ride a variety of horses, but then (as with one of the RH girls) a rider with a string of horses is also pretty adept at getting a decent tune out of many different horses plus has a lot of competition experience. You'd be amazed how many people's nerves seem to overwhelm them at BUSA comps too.
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As you rightly say you have the benefit of being able to ride a variety of horses, but then (as with one of the RH girls) a rider with a string of horses is also pretty adept at getting a decent tune out of many different horses plus has a lot of competition experience. You'd be amazed how many people's nerves seem to overwhelm them at BUSA comps too.
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Oh god yeah - come up against people who have their own string at home and you've got no chance, especially if they've got years of competition experience or they're eventers! That's what's putting me off
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Teapot - Don't let it put you off - if I can do it anyone can
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Shaab - Don't worry, it gave us all a good giggle
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I think she regretted her jumping horse decision at ours, found him a tad strong!!
 
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Oh god yeah - come up against people who have their own string at home and you've got no chance, especially if they've got years of competition experience or they're eventers! That's what's putting me off

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Oh no, please don't be put off!! You never have 4 people in a team like that, plus as someone else said it's best to have a variety of riders. Just because you event/sj/dr your own, one horse well doesn't mean you can ride lots of different horses well either. Go for it Teapot!!
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You should def have a go at team trials, I didnt in my first year and so glad i did in my second year, for one i have made some good friends, its really enjoyable, gives you the oppournitity to ride loads of horses and meet other unis. Personally apart from the cost there arent many negs!
 
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