Express Eventing will return!

Oh dear. I wasn't there last year, but have heard far too much about it from people whose opinions I value, to even consider going...
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Hmmm, i remember watching this thinking i bet it was a good idea on paper... but from what i can remember of the comp, there was sooo many run outs and refusals (not to mention the awful accident )
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Making the riders rush a course in such a set up was asking for trouble imo.
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Having read through the thread on the competition riders page, and re-watched the footage on youtube, to be honest it looked like a tragic accident. I know there were doubts about the ground being slippery etc, but to me it just looked like the horse took off early, and as a result landed short.

There have been lots of human and equine fatalities at horse events throughout the world, but they continue to run. Two horses were PTS at Badminton a few years ago, and I saw a horse killed at Hickstead, yet these events still continue to run.
 
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I was there last year and I enjoyed it (apart from the obvious).

Express Eventing was a victim of internet mass hysteria.

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Couldn't agree more. I expect lessons will have been learnt & I would envisage the format being changed slightly to allow more time for course walking. I would also anticipate the course (as in the route not the actual fences) itself to be less complex.
 
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asking for another disaster?

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This. Big solid fences against the clock in an arena, of course its asking for disasters. Why else did they bother to invent showjumps which fall down?
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Cross country simulation, like knock-downable corners etc would be OK, but fixed cross country fences belong out on cross country courses.
 
I have spoken to Mary King personally about Cavalier and she says it was just one of those accidents that happen, and nothing whatsoever to do with the venue or format of the competition. She had reservations about some minor aspects of the event, but the cause of Call Again Cavalier's accident was not one of them.
 
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I was there last year and I enjoyed it (apart from the obvious).

Express Eventing was a victim of internet mass hysteria.

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Same here. I was having an enjoyable day up til that point. I think the idea works well, just there are details that need adjusting.
 
I think it will work, minus the rain and if the riders have more time to study the course. Also, not to time the changeover between XC and SJ, or run it all in one outfit...
 
why do they need a changover anyway can they not just wear xc gear for sj? i didnt even hear about poor call again cavalier until today which i think was just a tragic accident, altho mayb they should look at not having solid jumps or perhaps having a optimum (sp?) time instead of against the clock, mistakes are bound to be made when racing with solid obstacles!
 
Undoubtedly there are changes that need to be made but poor Cavvy's accident was a tragic one-off made so high profile due to his reputation and the stadium location
 
I think its great, as most have said, the idea on paper was fabulous but there needs to be changes to the format and it needs to be in an arena that hasn't had an international rugby match played on it the day before.

I was going to go before but I had a uni assignment, so i'll be following this closely!
 
I was there and felt uneasy from the moment the first horse jumped, in fact it was bad enough watching the 'celebrities' skidding and sliding around. I think it was too much of an ask considering the space available and the ground.
 
I was there last year and also enjoyed it (apart from the obvious falls). All eventing has falls and they were competing for a lot of money so they couldnt make the course easy! Just wish the dressage "judges" who were commentating on it actually knew a thing about horses rather than the music!
 
I am totally with RobinHood. I held my breath from the start because it was clear that there was an accident waiting to happen...though Cavvy's tragic demise was not it, because it seemed to come from a stride error rather than the lethal going. LOTS of horses slipped on turns and LOTS of horses completely lost their bottle jumping because they felt unsafe. I would like to know how many riders who ran their horses last time would be prepared to go into that arena again? I wonder if it finished the careers of any of those horses..confidence shattered. It was NOT a pretty sight and did nothing for Eventing's reputation except to make some of us question motivation. Big money, big risks...
 
Furthermore: It is one thing to jump in sticky/slippy conditions outside. The horse recognises the issues and deals with them...but it is unfair to expect him to perform in an indoor environment which he, with some justification, expects to be safer and consistent. I suspect that one or two horses will have not only been rattled about jumping but will also be mistrustful in the arena...
 
Well, a quick glance back at the horses entered in 2008 would suggest that many of them have gone on to have a successful season in 2009. so I'm not convinced that it has ended careers (apart from the obvious). I think that the riders have to make a judgement for themselves about the course and conditions - but they do this each time they run a top horse.

If you are a professional rider then the motivation is to earn a crust doing it whether that's at normal ODE/3DE or something like eventers grand prix, or EE. Yes, the horse's welfare is important but if they don't earn the cash, they can't keep going.
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Also, I'm not sure that my horse is intelligent enough to equate being indoors with perfect going - there are plenty of indoor schools with duff surfaces, anyway.
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I agree with DD. I was there and apart from the obvious I really enjoyed it and would like to participate as I think the format could filter down to grassroots level.
There's a big arena near me that stands empty for most of the year.
 
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