How many local shows have folded near you?

[maisie06]

I no longer ride or show but I was chatting with a friend I hadn't seen for ages and we were recounting the days when we did both, in the southeast we have lost a dozen or so annual local shows put on by riding clubs or showing societies. I think more insurance red tape has led to the loss of some as well as rising costs of horse ownership leading to some people to give up entirely or just stick to enjoying their horse at home rather than competing. A day out at a show including fuel and entries used to cost me almost £100 - glad I don't do it anymore!

 

[conniegirl]

None, infact new shows pop up regularly round here

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

A couple but that was more because the committee members retired and no one took over. But then they have been replaced with others so it balances out.

I can see why people don't want to be on the committee! I am running a show myself in July specifically for retired racehorses (tb's and standardbreds and they don't actually have to have raced either!) And it is bloomin hard work! I need my head examined ...

 

[ElleSkywalker]

Where I used to live there was only one local show still going but where I live now there are loads! Quite literally there is one a weekend till September, with some weekends having two on the same day. I think it could be a regional thing?

 

[be positive]

All of the local village shows have gone from my area, there are very few new ones at starter level and nothing really for RC/ PC people who want to do a few classes but are not ready for agri or county level or are not a native breed which is slightly better catered for, there is dressage/ SJ or eventing every weekend at various venues/ levels.
I think it is a regional thing as this has always been an area where eventing has dominated.

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

there are very few new ones at starter level and nothing really for RC/ PC people who want to do a few classes but are not ready for agri or county level or are not a native breed which is slightly better catered for

This how a lot of racehorse people feel. They don't feel they are up to ROR standard because they don't have the right kit and they don't want to be looked down upon by other showing people for having the crazy one going sideways because the horse is still learning it's new trade. This is why the show I am putting on is 90% laid back and unaffiliated. There are 4 affiliated classes. The rest so long as your clean, smart and your tack fits your good to go!

 

[skint1]

Around here it's mostly equestrian centres that hold shows, though there are still quite a few village shows left. I volunteer at one of them which is always a fun (but tiring) day

 

[MagicMelon]

Most of the once-popular shows round me have gone. There doesn't seem to be as many RC / PC annual shows on grass anymore - they'll all moved to holding events on surfaces at local centres these days. I think there's so much on in my area though that you can usually pick from several things every weekend so I guess entries are too spread out to warrant the effort for the old fashioned shows anymore. Most people don't seem to jump on grass anymore...

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

Most of the once-popular shows round me have gone. There doesn't seem to be as many RC / PC annual shows on grass anymore - they'll all moved to holding events on surfaces at local centres these days. I think there's so much on in my area though that you can usually pick from several things every weekend so I guess entries are too spread out to warrant the effort for the old fashioned shows anymore. Most people don't seem to jump on grass anymore...

People don't want to do anything on grass these days! Everyone wants 4 walls and a surface!

 

[Britestar]

On the flip side, you organise things on grass, and hardly anyone enters!
Arena event, on grass - 10 entries, not worth running for that few Hope I get better take up for Combined training on grass!

 

[Snowfilly]

Most of the village shows near me have gone. You can jump or dressage on a surface three times over every weekend, and the big town shows are still going but the village 2 showing rings, 1 jumping ring and a gymkhana are all vanished.

Main reason seems to be lack of entries - I hear kids being told they can't do more than 2 classes at a show, no-one wants to jump on grass any more, and a lot of people feel there's no point entering unless they've got exactly the right gear.

Also, I think some of the shows don't help themselves. I've emailed / face booked loads this year to ask if I could steward or help as I no longer have a horse, and only four replied. Two said yes, the other two said they only wanted people who'd stewarded before so they didn't have anything I could do. These were local unaffiliated ones so not sure where else I could have started!

 

[Leo Walker]

I dont know about the older more traditional ones but theres lots of people earning money running shows in their spare time round here

 

[Nudibranch]

This year's Cumbrian Fell and Dales Show is the last.

 

[honetpot]

Our local shows are well attended but the big cost is hire of the venue and insurance. If you have your own venue even on grass you will get entries becuase you can make them cheaper to enter. If you are paying £500 for a field and perhaps £300 for insurance its a lot of money to lose if no one turns up.

 

[meleeka]

Most shows near me are at the large equestrian centre. I can remember a couple of years ago when most of the other shows were cancelled last minute due to the weather. A couple of those haven’t been put on since. Dressage seems to be more popular these days and there’s plenty to do there if you have a weekday free. Showing shows are not so many.

 

[swilliam]

I'm chair of a local riding club, and we are really struggling. I hope we'll get into next year, but it seems unlikely. In the summer we run showing and working hunter on grass, and in the winter show jumping on a surface indoors. We are short of help and members. A shame, because we have been going for decades, and many of our members have gone on to be successful at higher levels - we're a good starting point, but if people don't want us....

 

[Ddraig_wen]

Lots of the local shows round here are struggling. Entry fees are going up each year and competitors are going down, so entry fees go up and competitors go down again. Up to £15 for a local association show (m&m) on the day or £10 a class prior when you know who will win by who's in the carpark...
. One of the local agri shows is now just a horse and dog show. Another riding club stopped running their shows completely last year and have started running them again this year. A different club have bought in lots of qualifiers and unusual rosettes and their entries have skyrocketed compared to having 1 or 2 in a class last year.
Even though they're all supposed to be club/ grassroots shows you tend to find lots of produced and county level ponies at them around here

 

[scats]

None of the shows/clubs that I competed at as a teenager/early twenties still exist around here, although we have a few new ones now.

 

[Sussexbythesea]

I was only having this conversation the other day with friends. There are definitely not many of the mixed showing type shows on much around here anymore or ones that have classes like handy pony, chase me Charlie and other gymkhana games. Our local RC struggles to get entries.

When I was young many were within hackable distance and accessible but now because of so much development it would be unsafe and many old showgrounds have been built on. We used to hire a large box for 6-8 ponies to go to shows together now many have their own transport and so those who can’t afford it don’t have many options to get to places.

I used to go to lots of shows that had showing and or jumping in the morning followed by gymkhana in the afternoon seem like halcyon days now ☹️.

 

[Chippers1]

There's still a few local shows around me, I can think of 5 off the top of my head that do your showing/WH/SJ/handy pony and the ones I have been to always seem busy (4 hour wait and 5 hour wait for classes by the last two counts!). I think the issue I have with them is the knowing who is going to win by seeing who is in the car park rather than the surface or cost!

 

[baran]

I dont know about the older more traditional ones but theres lots of people earning money running shows in their spare time round here

How do people earn money from running a show in their spare time?

 

[Spiritedly]

The local shows that were in hacking distance to me have all gone, although there are a couple of places within an hours hack where you can do either jumping or dressage but neither venue runs both and neither does showing or 'fun' classes.
There are also a few venues a bit further afield....within 30-60 minutes drive....that hold shows all year round either in indoor schools over the winter or outdoors on grass over the summer and a couple of places hold just summer shows on grass.
I miss the days when we used to hack to a show as a yard, spend the day competing and supporting each other and then hacking home :-(

 

[SpotsandBays]

It’s seems the family shows done by local villages are non existent here. It’s either RC/PC shows or competition centres, but almost all for me are minimum 30 min drive away, (I don’t tow so my dad has to take me, so Although it’s doesn’t seem like a long drive I still feel bad as most are too far for him to leave me there and come back later as I’d only be there for a couple of hours anyway)

 

[Spiritedly]

How do people earn money from running a show in their spare time?

A couple of people in my area both started running shows in their spare time and one now has a yard where they hold all types of shows all year round....affiliated and unaffiliated...and the other has shows running at various venues all over the county throughout the year!
They both started as doing it as a added income but have made a lucrative business out of it.

 

[Tarragon]

This year's Cumbrian Fell and Dales Show is the last.

That is sad :-(

 

[J&S]

I am part of a team that have run a local show, mainly for novices as it is all unaffiliated classes, for 47 years! Things have changed over those years and our entries peaked about 5 years ago, we still make a profit but it goes to local charities. Yes, the expenses have risen and we still try to keep the entry fees down to £7.00 on the day with fun classes at £2.50. Its coming up next week end so keep your fingers crossed for us!
I don't actually go to shows any more so I am not really aware of how many have folded locally but I know there are atleast a couple of clubs that hold them on a regular basis, I think you would have to be brave to start a fresh one up.

 

[humblepie]

Practically all the village run shows have gone round by us including one that was a fairly decent one day show with agricultural element to it as well - I was show secretary for a few years. The ones that are left are show centres, riding club ones and the very rare village one. We had a group of ladies who ran a lot of shows around the area for years - the shows I cut my teeth on doing the 12.2, 13.2. 14.2 jumping, the barrelt jumping, the chase me charlie type classes. We did have one village run one last weekend but that is now at a riding centre rather than in a farmer's field. That said, most of the little local farms I kept my ponies and horses at are now housing developments and the villages are commuter houses so it is all change. When I was very young the local conservative association used to run a show in a playing field at the back of our house - we lived in a street in a town not even a village, so things have changed very much.

 

[humblepie]

I was only having this conversation the other day with friends. There are definitely not many of the mixed showing type shows on much around here anymore or ones that have classes like handy pony, chase me Charlie and other gymkhana games. Our local RC struggles to get entries.

When I was young many were within hackable distance and accessible but now because of so much development it would be unsafe and many old showgrounds have been built on. We used to hire a large box for 6-8 ponies to go to shows together now many have their own transport and so those who can’t afford it don’t have many options to get to places.

I used to go to lots of shows that had showing and or jumping in the morning followed by gymkhana in the afternoon seem like halcyon days now ☹️.

That sounds exactly like around by us.