Lack of fitness over the BE 80 course (Pulborough)

[TarrSteps]

Trouble is though TS - if you didn't know the right answer, could you honestly say you could find it reading forums like this? Some of the stuff written on here is mind boggling regarding just the care of horses, before you've even tacked up.

You can rarely trust information on the web. I don't know half as much as some people on here, I freely admit it, but I have been around horses long enough to know what is reasonable, and what is utter tosh - most of the time anyway

I do totally get your point! It's just what do you do then? At least if people are reading and worrying about it, they're open to information. And yes, there is some insane advice but one of the advantages of the internet (vs say, friends on a yard) is you get varying points of view and start to see trends. If you track at all you can start to see how people who do talk sense don't always agree on the fine details but do at least consider the same questions.

Anyway, my comment was more towards the people saying people starting out shouldn't have to look for their own information and shouldn't be held accountable if they don't at least try to do their homework. Why? They're grown ups? If you drive your car through a red light no one is going to assume you didn't understand the question.

 

[BeckyD]

Me and another H&H member had a BRILLIANT day jump judging at ALW unaff in the summer. This was not affiliated but we judged for the 90/ 100 and then 80.

I could not believe what I was seeing. The 100 was fairly uneventful...we saw Spottedcat looking VERY professional and in general the standard was high and what u would expect- but the 90 was something else!! 2/3 of people looked fab- what you would expect, but the remaining 1/3....

We saw lots of people sitting upright the whole way round;
A fair amount just charging madly at fences;
1 girl WALKED between fences;
3 seperate people rode entirely off the coures, missed out 2 fields and came out behind the newer bank complex missing out an entire section;
Several people had over 5 stops and control requested them to be stopped and they tried their hardest not to;
Very unfit horses (and ALW is a flat track);
One girl on a nice looking but big forward going horse, completely overbitted, never let horse move out of a very collected canter, horse ended up rearing before at least 4 fences. She was eventually stopped by the TD;
Some horses that never looked like they had seen a XC fence before!!!!

The 80 on the other hand was mainly people who looked in their comfort zone or on babies. What I dont understand is why people want to do things that are so far out of their comfort zone...apart from the danger factor it really can't be nice!! I understand the need for challenge but to be so far away from comfort zone just cannot be nice!!...rant over

Eeek I did the August and Sept ALW 90 unaff - hope I wasn't amongst the awful 1/3rd! We certainly weren't charging madly at fences, nor did we walk (except through the water), but Bill did finish blowing. I have been very surprised at how much fitter he needs to be to compete than to do interval work at home. He's been fit enough (or so I thought) but competing seems to have really taken it out of him - but then he also feels like he's holding his breath a lot at spooky hedges/funny grass etc, which is going to use up energy that he can ill afford. I have had to sit up to ride him through short sections of XC courses, as I feel that I am insecure when I'm in a forward seat and he does one of his regular "180-degrees and run". However, the rest of the time I'm in a good forward seat (I hope!!).

 

[avthechav]

Eeek I did the August and Sept ALW 90 unaff - hope I wasn't amongst the awful 1/3rd! We certainly weren't charging madly at fences, nor did we walk (except through the water), but Bill did finish blowing. I have been very surprised at how much fitter he needs to be to compete than to do interval work at home. He's been fit enough (or so I thought) but competing seems to have really taken it out of him - but then he also feels like he's holding his breath a lot at spooky hedges/funny grass etc, which is going to use up energy that he can ill afford. I have had to sit up to ride him through short sections of XC courses, as I feel that I am insecure when I'm in a forward seat and he does one of his regular "180-degrees and run". However, the rest of the time I'm in a good forward seat (I hope!!).

I am COMPLETELY sure that you were in the amazing 2/3rds !!! (unless you were one of the ones who missed out 2 fields...and some of those actually looked competent when they reappeared!!)- I think that the fact that you know what your position is like and why you were doing it strikes me that you would NOT be in the 3rd that made my day 'entertaining'!!

Seriously tho- I'm sure that at times my xc position looks horrific and people think OMG, but I feel generally safe, I really enjoy it, I can maintain a 2 point position and get back into the saddle when jumping/ in times of need and I can let my horse run on inbetween jumps. The people that I was talking about were doing NONE of these things on that day!!

 

[BeckyD]

actualy what shocked me most about looking at the BE80 results from Pulborough is how many people were eliminated in the SJ. I mean, why on earth would you spend an absolute fortune entering a BE event if you cant get round an 80cm SJ course. And if you cant manage the SJ, how on earth would you expect to cope XC?

I woudn't want to walk a XC course and be so scared I wondered if I'd make it around alive but I am nervous before XC. I like to walk a course and wonder about a few fences, think out the best line etc. and feel it's a challenge technically but I wouldn't want to be wondering if I'd make it over something in one piece.

I got eliminated in the SJ at ALW because I missed a fence out. I think we would have been clear without that - although we may have rolled a pole, actually.

 

[Marydoll]

I think its very easy to be a preacher about this. I have been there as a rider with no back up and a bit clueless but luckily came from a hunting background. My horse has always been fit enough but I was clueless doing novice. I watch my videos now in horror. All I wanted to do was go up the levels. Unfortunately sometimes the best way to learn is through failure.

It would be interesting to talk to those who have had a disaster doing the BE80 and finding out more about them and what they are going to do now having had a shocker. Its very difficult to judge until you have walked in there shoes.

I think youre right, my first 80 i was nervous, not terrified of the xc or sj but dreading the dressage. We had practiced all phases.
My sj was clear but i missed 1 run in out water on xc and was eliminated we were about 11 secs under the time and i was gutted.
and the dreaded dressage was good for us at 35.
I think my mistakes are ones i hope not to make again as i am learning and lets not forget these are billed as training classes with help available.
At every level you get people who arent prepared, mabe they thought they were and got the fright of their lives when they realised they werent.
Mabe they were just really nervous so not working as well as a partnership
I really liked riding xc which is why i decided to give eventing a go, and most folks have been great, but let me reiterate .... Its not just in the lower classes we see unfit riders and horses, i watched eventing for years before i decided to participate and have seen a few famous names just manage to limp over the finish line

 

[TarrSteps]

I suspect part of the reason we're all going around and around this as, by definition, anyone reading is probably not the target market!

One glance at the level of angst, elation, despair, humiliation, and unadulterated joy at just getting the job done in here would suggest to most people it's a bit more complicated than just showing up.

 

[star]

I got eliminated in the SJ at ALW because I missed a fence out. I think we would have been clear without that - although we may have rolled a pole, actually.

There will always be the odd case like that. However, a third of the class didn't miss a fence out. If you look at the results for a normal class there's always the odd elimination in the SJ for various reasons. My comment wasn't aimed at each individual person who got eliminated in the SJ as they will all have their own special reason, but that when you look at the group as a whole, surely it should not be annihilated in the SJ phase. That makes me think either the course builder got it wrong for this level or that in general, as a group, competitors are trying to run before they can walk. It wasn't just the 80 at Pulborough though, the results for BE90 sec A are just as shocking! Barely half the section completed - that's not normal at this level.

 

[Morganlafaye]

when you look at the group as a whole, surely it should not be annihilated in the SJ phase. That makes me think either the course builder got it wrong for this level or that in general, as a group, competitors are trying to run before they can walk. It wasn't just the 80 at Pulborough though, the results for BE90 sec A are just as shocking! Barely half the section completed - that's not normal at this level.

I got a rare clear in the BE90 SJ (section B rather than A), but I was shocked by the carnage it caused. I couldn't work out what was so bad about it that it caused so many problems, or what the course builder did wrong. It wasn't that different from Mattingley (rustic to begin, and a series of brightly coloured fillers near the end). But horses were not jumping it well, so I'm not sure it was always the case of people running before they could walk.

Horse after horse struggled at the first, and then didn't seem to regain rhythm or confidence.

The XC was lovely, really flowing and galloping. Yes, I had the most frustrating stop in the world at the bank (otherwise clear inside the time despite the rider error), but I'll know to ride it differently next time. I'm surprised so many didn't complete. I didn't think it was over-big (and for me to say that, it must have been small!).

I wonder if the fact you can school at Coombelands is part of the issue? I wonder how many people on a ticket were using it as the first BE event for rider/horse or both. Just a thought.

 

[LittleTero]

I have to say that personally i would prefer it if BE went back to the way it used to be. not necessarily starting at novice as it used to but pre novice perhaps because be 80 and 90 classes have had a detrimental effect on riding clubs and pony clubs. kids no longer want to be on the pony club teams they want to be haring round be like the adults and i think this is a shame. they should be enjoying their ponies and only worrying about their dressage in flat work ralleys their parents have bullied them into. with regards to inexperienced adults competing at BE they would be better off at riding club where there are plenty of rallys and lessons at affordable prices along with teams and plenty of competitions at also affordable prices meaning you can go to more and learn more. or rather there used to be until every rider in the world decided they wanted a bit of success and started going BE. now i understand this as i will be doing the same thing due to lack of good competition at riding club events. there used to be a good unaffiliated standard which meant it wasn't neccessary to compete at BE (that could be left to people who wanted to do it as a profession) yet now its impossible to find an unaffiliated event bigger than 3ft which is such a shame. i personally wish i had a budding busy riding club near me which was running a team that i could join and rallys i could regularly attend. however due to my most recent newletter saying there was now only 35 members left in my riding club it will soon be closing. this is just my opinion anyway and i think its a shame how things have changed.
i've been watching a lot of old show jumping and eventing on youtube and am amazed at how 'professional' the sport had become, everyone looks the same and are schooled up to the eyeballs, there is a lacking of guts and excitment these days. (yes i know we have to think about health and safety but we need to bring back some pazazz)

sorry rant a little off topic! but i think the riding club stuff is relevent!