Most numpty thing you have done in competition

having my 13.2 coblet take off with me on a clear round sj course of just 2ft3 after going perfectly all the way till the last jump resulting in myself with my leg through the jump wing, on the floor covered in wet sand ans rubber... we then did the same course at 3ft perfectly
 
last year there was going before the bell in the SJ and going wrong twice in a dressage test i had already done 3 times in the previous 2 months..
in years gone by there has been riding straight past a jump in the SJ..
forgetting to jump the last jump in the SJ (big E!)..
getting E'd in the dressage for getting horrendously lost 3 times..
being dumped in the ditch of a trackener 3 fences from home (was a super clear up til then..)

oh the list is endless!! :o :)
 
I did my dressage test witih my horses over reach boots still on.... even had a helper but she didn't notice either. Obviously got eliminated but otherwise would have won the class.


When i was a teenager i got halfway up the road and realised i had left the saddle behind...my mum was furious ;-)
 
>Falling off at a tiddly xc jump competing. One of my 'lovely' long rubber boots was still in the stirrup. Luckily the pony didn't run off as I would have had to follow him minus one boot. At the same event, my sister fell off and almost got pooed on by the horse!
>Falling off in a hedge showjumping. The pony had just done a quick jump off and whipped over the last and round towards the gate cue me falling off out the side door into a hawthorne hedge.
>Jumping the wrong fence in a jump off= elimination
>Falling off in a family pony class after the pony infront bucked and the girl fell off, my pony whipped around and I fell out the side door...again. We landed right next to each other.
>Jumping the wrong xc fence on a very rare clear round
 
I was doing the pc open area SJ a few years ago on Willough, was totally terrified about the height of the 2nd round-it was massive!. Had learnt the course really well, walked it twice, went in and jumped 1st and 2nd fences then totally forgot where to go and went the wrong way, had to do a circle put then proceeded to jump the rest fine, need'nt have been worried about the height!.

Also, was doing a hunter trial once on the same pony, was coming into 2 big steps up when my rein fell off the bit, wondered why my steering didn't work, luckily W stopped by me pulling on the martingale hard and some lovely person who was standing next to the fence came and put it back on again! :)
 
To stand in the collecting ring, nattering with a stack of friends and watch my class all go in and start being judged.......without realising IT WAS MY CLASS! Therefore completely missing it and being disqualified when trying to enter the ring by grumpy humourless steward ;-0 (can't because they are trotting round now....oooooeeeee!) Tail between legs and ponders back to said friends, saying thanks for coming, but i won't be competing.....ha ha! Mortified at the time, but learnt not to natter and concentrate on the ring!
 
Oh I love these - hotTotrot you made me chuckle out loud, I'm so glad I'm not the only one who has days like those :D

I've got too many to recall all but here's a few:

1) In the dim and distant past (like 25 years ago :eek: ) my Mum was driving the lorry which she wasn't very used to in to a big event, I THINK it was Wilton but can't be sure, she managed to hook the stately home wrought iron gate up on the side ramp somehow, drove into the lorry park with gate attached to lorry :p Caused a bit of a stir - far too heavy to lift so had to get tractor people to come and unhook it before we could unload :o

2) Got dumped between start and first fence in a PN. Green horse, not his first event, could be a bit nappy at the start but he'd got going about 20 strides so I was up out of the saddle thinking "We're on our way!", then suddenly he just whipped round and disappeared from under me :mad: SO embarrassing!

3) At Isleham on the N track about 7 years ago, fell off twice at the same fence: you came up a slope, over an into space hanging log, then down the slope to a step down into the water. Thought when I walked it "Must just pop the log" to give him a chance to see, as they couldn't see the water as they took off. Horse (inexperienced) bounded up slope, launched into huge, bold leap over log, saw water halfway over, landed beautifully but completely stationary in shock - momentum saw to it that I kept going :D Got back on, attempted part B, horse still in shock and rather green, launched again but had realised that if he was very clever he could launch across the corner of the water and land in the reeds on the righthand side rather than get wet - I took the more conventional route :D Caused much merriment to my fellow riders :mad:

4) At Windsor 3 Day one year, attempting to jump the slow route of a double of corners late on the course, in fact second last fence - slow route as I had realised I had little/no brakes or steering by then. Slow route involved jumping across the 2 skinny corners with a 180 degree turn in between, rather than doing them straight IYSWIM. Managed the manoevre to clear them, God knows how, buit failed to make the turn after the second one before the ropes - horse locked on to the advertising hoarding (H&H as it goes :D ) and leapt it into the crowd. I yelled profanities, hauled him round, jumped back over the rope (yes, sorry, thought police, I really did - blame it on too much adrenaline) galloped off shouting apologies for the profanities, and popped the last fence :cool: We have it all on video - think SpottedCat has seen it?!
 
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My best two are my first Eventer Trial (when I was young) on my loan horse. I crashed through the second part of a double and when as they rebuilt it the steward at the side said I could just jump part B (not part A) so off I went when the bell rang - can you guess, I got eliminated!!!
My other numpty moment - coming down centre line in dressage, Mum calling test says "at C turn right", off I merryly go ..... left :confused:
 
I do a good line in forgetting my bib, then wondering why people are staring at me, and for many years when I was younger I used to go 'bell deaf' and go before it had buzzed so my mum STILL says before I sj 'don't go before the bell'
 
My daughter the first time she did a round not on the lead rein /assisted was so excited she had gone clear, jumped off her pony and gave him a huge hug. Unfortunately she wasn't passed the timer and was eliminated (and of course she would have been 1st :) )
She was only about 7 at the time.
 
Going wrong in my dressage tests, not matter how much I learn them till I'm blue in the face and can walk it out, tell someone word for word, know in the warm up, know it at home in the school, soon as I do it in those white boards....all goes wrong half way through, its shameful. :o

Jumping the wrong course when jumping someone elses horse, thats worse than doing it on your own. :p

Once had a collission in the warm up when the horse decided to avoid the one coming on my left (had a big wussy moment) and all 17.2 of him bumbed into a lady that was stood chatting next to her friend on her horse with both their horses backsides parked in way in the warm up ring on the bend after I can over the jump, agreed partly my fault for not seeing her sooner, but the most dangerous place to stop and chat :mad: however still I appologised but she was moaning to every Tom Dick and Harry and proceeded to give me evils all day long, however I felt really bad, I'm quite sensitive and didnt want to go back into warm up again just in case she was about :D
 
Erm falling off in pretty much every BE practice ring last year :o, managing to jump the Open wall at a Tetrathlon rather than the Novice as I was then stuck the wrong side of the wall with no way back, how I could forget which colour course I was jumping at fence 13 is a mystery to all :o!
 
Fell off in a dressage test score sheet is something like 8 8 8 7 X !, also fell of in warm up for a dressage test. Wonder what will be the third?
 
First ever hunter trials - warming up, came to pop over tiny little x-pole, horse decided it was the most offensive thing ever and promptly did a 180 degree turn right ontop of the jump and left me in the dirt. Got back on, warmed up... got over the 1st fence, refused the 2nd nearly taking out the (pregnant) fence judge at the same time, got over 2nd fence.... refused 3rd fence, then jumped it... refused 4th fence, then jumped it.... allowed to continue anyway, jumped everything else clear - including the hedge that I was so certain she wouldn't jump, I forgot totally that we had to take a sharp right turn afterwards and ended up halfway across the field before I could persuade her to turn :o

2nd ever hunter trials, same place, this time on Danny. Had a refusal at the 2nd fence (we have issues with 2nd fences!) and came at it again.... he went to refuse again but I really got after him, so he dived to the right and jumped the 3'6 Open class jump instead of the 2'6 one we were aiming for :o We ended up pulling up anyway (despite yet again being allowed to continue) as it was all a bit too much for him :p

I don't think we'll do any more hunter trials ;)

Dressage once at Beaver Hall, felt very very rubbish anyway even though it was only unaffiliated, horse was being a sod in the warm up and kept bucking, wouldn't relax. Some guy kept doing walk/trot-canter transitions right infront/alongside us which was doing my head in. Got into the arena and the woman who was waiting to go in after us commented that we ought to have got a prize just for staying in the arena! We cantered most of the test except the fwlr where I just dropped the reins & prayed! Were still cantering when we were half way down the centre line to salute xD
However, said rider did also say how well horse was turned out - I had spent about 10hrs scrubbing her to perfection so at least we were a nice clean blur ;)
 
I got absolutely poleaxed getting on before the dressage,and then when very sore and dizzy,couldnt catch the crazy ba****d for quite some time.Posted one of the only fast clears xc all day.ggrrr. My young horse went from prelim to intermediaire at a combined training in december when a dog that looked like a polarbear woofed at him-working trot into piaffe,exiting in extended canter with airs above ground and snorting to punctuate...but my best was due to attending rugby match the day before,I forgot half my kit for the first time EVER,mixed up my dressage time so had no time to work in and got lost in the showjumping.Never happened before or since...
 
entered a PN when we werent qualified for it (and didnt realise!) oops!

got to the secutaries tent to get number, and they said, umm sorry we cant let you run.. we were very lucky however and they stuck me in an intro section.. ran round the xc course, learnt new DR test, and were 3rd in the end!! clever pony :p ive always said were better under pressure! :p
 
bigboyrocky said:
entered a PN when we werent qualified for it (and didnt realise!) oops!

got to the secutaries tent to get number, and they said, umm sorry we cant let you run.. we were very lucky however and they stuck me in an intro section.. ran round the xc course, learnt new DR test, and were 3rd in the end!! clever pony :p ive always said were better under pressure! :p
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How mortifying this must have been for you?



Falling off in the water at Gatcombe was awful. Especially when my jods turned see through and i was wearing a pair of knickers with pictures of Bagpuss on :o Oh and demolishing a whole double at a BSJA event. Horse tripped on take off from first, we crashed through that, pecked in the middle, propelled me forwards and i fell onto the second jump and it all came tumbling down around me.
 
Well I have gone wrong in a dressage test when it was being read. I have also had to say to a reader "What happened to the walk on a long rein?" They missed the line out ......

I think the worst when I was all dressed up for working hunter at a small show (look a bit of a ponce) and my pony stopped at the first fence, put her head over and I rollled down her neck to the otherside of the jump!
 
I was last to go in the final jump off in the 75cm trailblazers final many moons ago. Jumped and amazingly fast clear.............until the last fence! Horse decided she wanted to have a second look at it, chipped a stride in, then jumped the fence. I was already ahead of her expecting her to take off earlier, so when she actually jumped the fence I went flying straight over her head. I tried to cling on, but fell off about 1m from the finish!!! We would have won, as we were 3 seconds faster then our nearest rivals, but just couldn't quite stick on through the finish!!!! I was so cross!!!!!!!!!!!
 
I've managed to avoid seriously embarrasing moments: there was the most ridiculous fall ever, where I decided to jump a stride early so launched over my poor horse's head and cleared the fence alone...

My sister managed to turn left instead of right in her first novice dressage on the diddy pony she rode depsite a caller, then when he produced the most stunning medium tort ever across the diagonal was so taken with it forgot to steer at the end and rocketed out of the arena! Managed to win despite this...
 
Ignition said:
How mortifying this must have been for you?



Falling off in the water at Gatcombe was awful. Especially when my jods turned see through and i was wearing a pair of knickers with pictures of Bagpuss on :o Oh and demolishing a whole double at a BSJA event. Horse tripped on take off from first, we crashed through that, pecked in the middle, propelled me forwards and i fell onto the second jump and it all came tumbling down around me.
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Yup, although it was our best result together so not to gutting :p

You must have been pretty embaressed on both occasions.. get them on video for youve been framed? :p
 
Scoutie said:
I can't begin to tell you how many times I have forgotten a course in all disciplines! Perhaps more excusable (if that is possible?) in SJ and CX but sadly I have also argued with the reader of my dressage test when I thought they were telling me to go the wrong way. Duh, they were reading the test! To make it worse it was my dressage instructor.

In an ODE I was on the floor before the dressage when my horse decided he had had enough and bucked me off in the warm up. I did get back on and complete the day but it didn't help my confidence.
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ditto!! i accused someone of making me go the wrong way, embarrassing! and many sj courses gone the wrong way ;)
 
Have done a few
1 - forgot dressage test at Salperton one year and pulled myself up as i was facing the wrong way. For the judge to then get out of her car and be like "oh yes dear you have gone wrong but it was such a nice test i didnt notice!!" We then found out where i had gone wrong and we started again and the nice person she was didnt gove me an error of course!!

2 - Missed out the MASSIVE bank after the water at Aston le Walls after doing a good test and a clear SJ would have made it inside the time as well and have come 2nd!! It was a long drive home!!
 
I was eliminated at the first fence on a client's horse at a Boomerang qualifier at Millstreet (young horse class at a big national show in Ireland). I knew that the horse came out feeling a bit strange. It had warmed up badly and had demolished a few fences in the warmup. I said to owner, let's withdraw, horse not right. Owner said, don't be silly, get in there and jump. I was 18. I presented, pony club kicked it towards the first fence but it was having none of it. Tried again, same thing. Third time (old rules), it said eff you, reared straight up, put me on the floor and galloped back to the stables. Total humiliation.

Next day poor horse was on three legs, awful abscess in a front foot that must have been brewing. Ouch. Poor thing. :( I lost the ride. This was probably the main reason I realised I could never ride horses for a living.
 
At a 1* trot up, horse gets very excited at trot up.

Squeals, kicks me in arse (luckily lots of padding!) and gets loose. Proceeds to get stuck on stringed area. We thought ah ha, got you!

Nope.

Horse jumps over string and pulls out proper fence post (was a hell of a jump!!) gets loose into lorry park and makes merriment.

The joys!!

Oh, and friend loading her horse at big county show, who then gets loose in the park. A country park.
Wearing bright pink bandages!! :p
he was caught "playing" with the donkeys :o

and another - old pony's first time away we were in Scotland representing norn iron tetrathlon. Got on him, walked 3 strides around edge of lorry, he bucked/leapt/spun in excitement ( he never bucks!!) and proceeded to dump me into friends tent, bringing the whole lot down with me sitting in the middle of it :o
pony, meanwhile had bogged off to far end of field - which was at least 30acres.

:p
 
Oh, and managing to rack up 470 cross country penalties on my old pony at our first 3f3 ode.

Thank got he came good - we jumped clear at sansaw at pc champs a year later :D
 
Noodlejaffa said:
In my first BE, was jumping the double in the show jumping and didn't have enough oomph but horse still attempted to jump second part of the double and stopped - with front legs on one side of the jump and hind legs no the other side. I was MORTIFIED! They had to come and diassemble the jump....!
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That's brilliant!! Are there any photos? :D
 
Hot To Trot, that really was the Day From Hell, made me laugh a lot, thanks!
Umm, almost too many to remember for me...
trying to change whip hand when riding with double reins xc, fluffing it, approaching tight turning problem with a big ball of mixed up reins and whip in both hands. subsequent run-out cost me a win, argh.
coming off straight over good mare's head in sj warm up at a tiny x-pole, more than once actually, at least twice were when warming up for an OI, then going in and jumping a good clear (fired by utter mortification probably.)
Forgetting dressage girth when went to Germany for 3* CCI. Couldn't buy one short enough in any of the tradestands (had to deal with many rude comments in German along the lines of "are you riding a very small pony?") and having to borrow a horribly hard non-elasticated one from someone, which she utterly hated. (Reasonable excuse for a rather dreadful test?)
Missing a sj out, going wrong twice in an Advanced test because mare suddenly decided she'd never seen a dressage board before and I got so stressy my brain stopped working, missing out a xc fence because i'd walked it in the fog and didn't even see the flipping fence, missing out part D of a combination at Weston Park because I hadn't even seen it on walking (have now learnt to take Programme with me for coursewalk!), getting lost in the woods at Batsford Park, and at Catton Park, I could go on and on and on...
 
only_me said:
and another - old pony's first time away we were in Scotland representing norn iron tetrathlon. Got on him, walked 3 strides around edge of lorry, he bucked/leapt/spun in excitement ( he never bucks!!) and proceeded to dump me into friends tent, bringing the whole lot down with me sitting in the middle of it :o
pony, meanwhile had bogged off to far end of field - which was at least 30acres.

:p
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Must be something to do with Tetrathlon in a different country - my experience in Ireland for regionals was horse and rider enter the start box horse leaves box rider is left on the floor ;)



We have some corkers in this thread :D amazing to think that some of us have survived this long me included ;) :p
 
My mum drove straight past west wilts ec entrance 2 times! with trailer on the back, had to turn round in tiny little areas.
Was actually going 'theres the entrance, theres the entrance!' the second time we went by but did my mum listen.....
suffice to say the people on the gate were in fits of histerics by the time we actually pulled in, after watching us keep passing by.
 
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