Fence Judging?

Brontie

Brontie

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After realising Fence Judging wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. I'm intrigued to learn more, am I right in thinking, Fence judges just monitors falls and refusals at fences? :)
Any does any body do it here? What do you think of it? :) Is there anything else which it entails?

Thank you!

Nick.
 
I've done it at hunter trials. As you say it can be very easy. The problems usually arise when you have several fences to watch, or if you have been asked to judge the timed section (but I'm sure nobody would ask you to do that the first time). The only really difficult part is if someone, or a horse, is hurt at your fence, then you need to call for 1st Aid etc but that doesn't happen often. Fortunately I never saw any-one really badly injured although we did need an ambulance on occasion.
 
You usually have a numbered sheet to fill in each time a horse clears (or not!) your fence. Having spoken to a BE Steward recently it is also much appreciated if you include any pertinent info on your sheet, like 'used whip excessively' or 'very fast to fence' because if an issue arises the steward can then piece together the information from various fences to see where things went wrong - one young rider was almost stopped at a BE event I was scoring at recently due to riding at excessive speed and having some near misses at fences, this was confirmed by the steward looking back through the xc sheets to read the comments. You also might be a hold fence - so need to be pretty nifty with a stopwatch!
 
I've not done any fence judging, but am hoping to next season as will finally have my weekends free! As far as I'm aware it involves checking off as each rider completes the fence, recording any penalties, keeping the fence + take off/landing in good condition and obviously dealing with any minor falls at that fence. Have a nose at the BE website - I'm sure you'll find any info you need on there.

It's a fun thing to get involved in - I helped at an event a couple of weeks back writing up scores and had a great view of the SJ while waiting for them to come in. I imagine fence judging it would be really interesting to see how different combinations ride your fence.
 
I am not sure about age limits. The events I have done provide a clear briefing before the competition when you are taken through sheet marking, radio (if you are issued with one), and dealing with incidents/falls etc. Kind organisers give you a simple fence to start with.

An ability to withstand whatever the weather will throw at you and an iron bladder are useful attributes for a fence judge too.
 
Brontie said:
Thanks guys! Sounds quite interesting and informative. WIll hopefully look in to it. Are there certain age limits on it? :)
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BE I believe there is a 16yo limit of being in sole charge of a fence. But tbh it's far more fun if there are two of you!

Berpisc said:
An ability to withstand whatever the weather will throw at you and an iron bladder are useful attributes for a fence judge too.
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My solution to this is to fit a loo in the back of my Landy:D
 
I've done it for several of our local BE comps.

You get a very thorough briefing before you start, usually with a breakfast as well.

There is always time to ask questions if there is anything you are not sure about and as a first timer you would probably be given a straightforward fence. You get given a set of rules and guidelines too. You get looked after pretty well, with coffee, lunch and tea brought round to you. I second the bit about having an iron bladder but there are usually bushes or wooded areas if you are desperate or you can always call for someone to take over so you can nip off to the loo!
 
Have done it a few times for our Pony Club at Area, Tet and inter branch stuff. Great fun, make sure you take a horsey friend with you, so you can cope with the loo breaks etc. We usually get a nice breakfast plus lunch and refreshments. You will always get a good briefing and people always love to come up and chat about how 'your' fence is riding, plus we always make sure our branch gets a great mention. My friend and I who usually get roped in to do it are wanting to have a go at BE fence judging next year, so if anyone is needing fence judges in the SW region, let me know.
 
AAARGHHH!!!!

I fence judge a lot (most weekends, from BE80 up to 3***) and typed out a REALLY long reply all about fence judging and a typical day. And the stupid forum lost it.

Anyway, I'm far too lazy to type it all out again, so I will just say that I'm happy to offer any advice on getting started etc, just PM me.

And there is a BE Volunteers Facebook group, should come up on a FB search. Worth joining as opportunities are posted on there, good advice, hints and tips, and sharing stories.
 
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