Collecting Ring etiquette

People who walk around in groups chatting, seems to happen in especially small collecting rings.

As well as people who stand themselves or they're horses right in front of gates and enterance to the arena then wonder why they're getting pushed into
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My pet hate is collecting rings! They make me really nervous! I am mostly refering to BSJA shows, eventing collecting rings are generally bigger and more chilled out. There is such room for accidents I never feel safe!
People standing to chat or just holding their horse in a busy collecting ring is never a good idea.
'Helpers' putting fences up huge and not putting them down after. I never have a helper and have to make do so it makes it hard to get a jump.
And my number 1 worst experience: A few weeks ago at a JAS we were taking off over a fence and as I looked up someone had turned a circle behind the jump, I could do nothing and luckily she passed just as I landed, but it made me feel physically sick and shakey. She never said anything and I should probably have, but was just too shocked. We then went and had about 4 down, affecting my pony too. So, everyone needs to Always look where they are going.
If I could, I would skip out the collecting ring bit entirely!
 
Why is it in this country that no one calls what they are going to jump - OXER or JUMMMMPING - and if you DO call, no one darn well pays attention, STILL canters a circle in front of you or looks at you as though you have 2 heads!

The *entourage* - ARGHHH - hog the jumps, walk away without sorting them back out even if you ask very politely....and those that stand around in the middle and watch you get on and off your horse but don't even THINK to lend a hand - it is pure rudeness.

The complete lack of apology when you get barged/cut up - usually by the people who stare down their noses at everyone else and make you feel as though you are complete rubbish and shouldn't even taint the venue with you presence.

There should be drawn order, and you should not be permitted in the warm up arena more than 10 horses before your go.

Oh, oh, oh, and those that know the organiers being permitted to put their numbers down before anyone else, or get themselves bumped up, but if the lowlife amoeba that the happy amateur asks you are ridiculed....

I never EVER felt threatened, intimidated, rushed or put off competing in Spain, and sadly I mostly feel all of those things everytime I compete in the UK.
 
I went to a competition this weekend which was an interschool competition resulting in loads of children! Which inevitably meant lots of parents! Every time I tried to approach a fence I had shout at the parents to stop changing the fence the minute that their child has jumped it! It gets quite annoying when you end up having to circle every time and then GET TOLD OFF by that parent's child for circling in front of the fence!

Another pet hate.... the class is for 2ft 9 not 3ft9 so don't warm up that high.

Collecting rings are my worst nightmare, I feel genuinely like I'm going to die everytime I go in there. More so than what I feel on the xc course or SJ course itself!
 
Bubblegum,

All horses have to start somewhere, and that usually means taking them to a few small shows and not compete. I have done this many many times over the last 25 years and we have never had a problem!

However I would suggest a little common sence and if you see somebody with a youngster please give it a little room
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Okay how long you got.....

1) Why can't people call out which fence they are going to jump????? Are we supposed to be psychic?!?!?!
2) People who ignore it when you call out to jump a fence and just turn in front of it
3) People who circle in front of a fence as you jump it - I don't need to practise my emergency stop on landing thank you!!!
4) People who run into my horses backend to stop as they are just incompetent riders who shouldn't be allowed to jump
5) Dressage riders who have ridicously long schooling whips and ride with them pointing out into the arena
6) People who gather at the edge of the warmup on horseback for a chat with their bums sticking into the arena then moan if you get too close
7) People who think the warm-up fence for a BN class needs to be a 1.20 fence with a 1.10 spread on it
8) 20 people in a warm up that really only holds 6 safely
 
people riding round 2 ( or more!) abreast on the track, chatting. as a rule of thumb, the smaller the warm up area, the more this happens.
people riding across the back of a fence as you are about to jump it. I suffered a fractured pelvis some years ago due to this happening as my horse took off.
1.20 practice fences for british novice classes. why? what is the point?
 
Standard warm up rules just dont work for SJ.

Walking on an inside track just means people are in the way when you want to turn in to a fence. Passing left to left also causes problems when turning in.

Would make more sense to me when SJ warmup for poeple to walk on outside track, trot slightly further in and canter on innner track. Left to left rule should only apply if a collision is on the cards, otherwise common sense should prevail.
 
I hate the towerlands tunnel, I always feel like it should be safe, waiting quietly as asked when next to go, away from the hectic warm up but the number of people that come out not in control and crash into you/ ride ridiculously close when you have left plenty of room is ridiculous- normally because they are not looking what they are doing and yelling to someone else in the gallery "what a bitch their horse is". So polite! Why can't people walk calmly out, not stopping until outside. My horse can kick if barged into, she is fine passing and I am ultra careful about where I put her but despite best efforts there will always be some idiot!
 
Dressage warm ups always seem to much bigger than sj in my experience so no complaints there

SJ - people who cut in front when you are clearly going to do the jump as you have been looking at it on the turn and are now riding towards it in a strsight line only to have to pull up short not to land on them, but..... I also find those people who shout "COMING THROUGH" or "JUMPING" equally obnoxious, and why do those "shouters" always seem to be going at 100 mph.

"JUMP JUGGLERS" who are on the jump cups like vultures as soon as you have done one X, your oblivious still cantering round to attempt it again only to see it's now a 4ft oxer!!!

a little off topic but another pet hate are the "APRES XC WELL DONE ME'S" those riders who come thorugh the finish line and then proceed to sit on their exhausted horse waffling to entourage about how well they did, and then they proceed to walk on it back to the lorry, bigging themselves up all the way. When you finish xc, GET OFF!!!! loosen the girth, run up your stirrups, undo any fl;ash or tight nose band and walk back to the lorry on foot!!!!

rant over
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[ QUOTE ]
Oh, oh, oh, and those that know the organiers being permitted to put their numbers down before anyone else, or get themselves bumped up, but if the lowlife amoeba that the happy amateur asks you are ridiculed....


[/ QUOTE ]

Sort of in the same vein....there is a particular venue near me (now I've moved back home) which has fabulous facilities and runs both unaffil and affil SJ. It's changed hands now and haven't been since the new owners, but it always used to be the case that the liveries were all BSJA people. You would go to the unaffil competition to be faced (when you were warming up for a 2ft6 class!) by several of the liveries coming into the practise arena on their 17hh+ SJers, putting the fences up to 1m20 at least and then haring around for a hour on them. The organisers would refuse to put the fences back down or speak with said liveries (because they were liveries...), so those of us doing the little unaffil classes wouldn't have a chance to warm up. Either that or the liveries would come in and proceed to have a flatwork lesson with their chain smoking trainer, taking up half of the school and shouting at people for trying to warm up for a SJing class....

Needless to say I only went there a couple of times!
 
All of the above but have to reiterate my worst ones....

1. too many people in the warm up arena

2. people not warming in or even moving their horses about - just stood in one corner/along one side making it impossible to pass or use the whole space safely.

Why o why cannot the organisers see that this is a hazard?
 
Ditto people just parking their horses in the warm up area whilst they have a gossip and people on foot standing and have long chats with their friends and paying no attention whatsoever to where they are and when coming out of a showing class people who stop right outside the ring for a chat then blocking the exit for anyone else. Grrrrrr.......
 
Dressage:
1) people on the ground giving lessons within the arena - so dangerous
2) people receiving the lessons hogging an area for themselves
3) riding too close to other horses - I got crashed into once & my mare hasn't forgotten 2 years on

Jumping:
1) people jumping the wrong way
2) helpers hogging the jump & not knowing how to put them up correctly

should I go on..?!
 
For me, it's people with schooling whips (that about 10 feet long) who try and wake their donkeys up by slapping them down the side over and over and over (you get the idea) again, each and every time I'm riding past. Thereby giving my horse a wake-up call that she doesn't particularly need. If it's not going forward, get some spurs and use them properly.
 
1) warm up fence way over height
2) obnoxious parents........ see above
3) ineffectual stewarding when 1) and 2) pointed out
4) we do, as a matter of course, shout "upright!" or "oxer!" - then get glared at as if we have two heads and are being bolshy, instead of trying to prewarn,and keep safe, "other road users"
I think half the problem is lack of education at lower levels - I cannot recall ever hearing PC riders being given collecting ringcraft/skills/etiquette input. Team competitions were usually nightmares, and the ring would be full of instructors! At unaffiliated shows most ring stewards are inexperienced volunteers (couldn't do it without them), but they need some sort of pre trial briefing so they are more aware of what is acceptable behaviour from riders, and parents, and then be supported fully by the organisers if they make a decision to evict someone from the ring. Sometimes stewards will get it wrong but they should NEVER be undermined in front of competitors or everything has been a waste of time and effort.
 
Children collecting in groups by the gate 'having a chat'.
People turning in front of you when you have SAID you are jumping, AND which fence!
People who habitually seem to circle in front of both fences so no-one can jump.
Out-of-control people bombing round.
Fences being changed as you are going to jump them.
Parents who glare at you for daring to jump a practice fence when their child has just gone over.
 
havent read other posts as in a rush but my pet hate is people TAKING over the practice jump!!! and then whacking it up to 4ft when the 2ft3 is on!!! drives me nuts!!!
 
i think there should be a rule that the next say 6 people to compete are only allowed in the warm up arena, it really bugs me when people who arent in the ring for another 2hrs go in!!

and people that walk around in groups hogging the whole arena gossiping really annoy me!!
helen x
 
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