PN riders - would you rather by a horse with or without points?

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Just trying to plan the season for one of my rides - the owner is not sure whether or not he's going to be sold during the year. He's a Danish Warmblood - not the most agile but been consistently in the 20's dressage, double clear and placed PN last season but he's a hard horse to hold together, isn't the easiest to get fit and probably wouldn't make the time novice at the moment and might not be sharp enough to get his legs out of the way quick enough for a technical novice course - he's schooled over novices courses ok but nothing too tricky. He's well hunted and has no problem at all with jumping big fences but he's very much a horse that goes with the flow and if you ease up on him xc to give him a breather he's likely to start trotting! His owner wants him to go novice asap as he will go double clear round the simpler novice courses but I'm wondering whether to suggest that he keeps a good record PN not gaining any points until it's decided whether or not to sell him. He's never going to go beyond Novice safely so should we aim him at the PN market without points or with Novice points which would then limit PN riders to OPN classes?
 
Dont get points on his record, means he has to go OPN which is obviously more competitive and may put some lower level riders off. Also restricts what they can do Unaff.
 
Points also means they are limited in RC competition. No points is much more flexible.
 
what about the pnp ( british eventing pre novice plus class) I think is novice dress and sj, with a pn xc would that be an option? I think your owner should listen to your concerns as you prob know the horse better, and therefor whats better for Him/her in the long run!
 
If he wins any money in BSJA classes other than the notional £1s for the 70/80cm starter classes he'll be out of RC novice SJ as well. There's a huge market out there for RC horses who can still compete at RC novice qualifiers.
 
i agree with everyone as well, if you are selling him and aiming him for the RC/PN market then don't do any novices/get points..
if he has a glowing PN record then that should be plenty to show his ability..
 
Yes I've got him pencilled in for PNP at Ebbesbourne, Borde Hill & Longleat.
Maybe he should go HC BSJA as I don't want a boring season of PN with him only to have negated it by winning a couple of £'s BSJA!
 
To me he sounds like a really nice RC type horse. Somebody can get on him and have fun as well as a serious chance of doing well. He sounds like he will introduce them to BSJA, BD and BE and do it well but he will not go further than this. There is no point limiting his marketability and pushing him further than needs be when he has a really good record. There are lots of mums/daughters who share, teenagers onto first horse etc who are prepare to pay good money for a decent horse who will not be a worldbeater. It would be great to run him novice if possible but without getting a double clear. Unfortunately you are in a catch 22 but if you really think he will go double clear and win that point so easily do not do it.

Just as a thought could you do a novice HC?
 
He's a lovely horse - just a bit thick and he's not got the best attitude to work - he'll do a good job but in his own time! He's 16.3hh & 9yo and gets quite strong and 'heavy' xc so might be a bit big for mother-daughter horse. His owner is very 'pushy' and has no concept of 'lack of ability' - he'd just jump higher and higher and faster and faster until something went very wrong!
I've got another of this owners horses who will move up from PN to N mid-season so it might be worth taking this one too and running N HC just to see if he can be viable - at least he'll have half a season PN to actually figure out what he's meant to be doing.
 
You can't run HC in a Novice class if you are eligible to compete in it, which you are.

Completely agree with the other posters, that his potential market is stronger without a point on his record. The same applies to wins at Pre-Novice as too many of these will also mean that he can only do OPN.
 
Sounds like a fantastic buy for a child coming off ponies, or someone wanting to go further than Intro to go confidently around PN.

Would be easier to sell as such rather than with points and not going to go any further.

Just what I'll be wanting next summer..............
 
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