Should warmup rules for SJ be changed?

[PaddyMonty]

Following on from another post about clashes in warmup I wondered what others thought about getting the rules changed for SJ warmup.

Now walking on inside track works fine for flat schooling but causes major issues for SJ. If the fences were on the outside track then fine but they're not so having having someone walking on inside track means you have no choice but to cut in front to approach the jumps

It would seem far more sensible to me to reverse the set up and have walking on outside track only, trot on inner track and canter inside trot. The faster pace always takes the inside track unles two horses are approaching eah other in same gait then left to left would apply.

This would avaoid a lot of the problems in SJ warmups and make life simpler to remember.

Thoughts?

 

[Haflinger]

Its already like that at most BSJA events I go to...

 

[Nats_uk]

To be honest with you the main warmup rule for SJ should be that people announce what fence they are doing and listen out for other people when they call (that was not aimed at the previous post BTW) as the couple of almost clashes I have had have been to either someone jumping without warning or blatently ignoring me when I call out a fence.

I do think the main problem comes from people not knowing/understanding the concept of left-to-left and walking on the inside track. There should be better stewarding i.e. actual knowledgeable stewards policing the warm up so they can't get overcrowded and the bullying that was mentioned in the previous post cannot happen

 

[Gamebird]

There are SJ warm-up rules???

 

[Gonetofrance]

Limiting the numbers in the collecting ring the way they do in France would be a help. I think three tracks would be impossible in small warm ups, and cause as much grief as it would avoid.
Part of the trouble is inexperienced riders not really understanding how to keep out of people's way and the riders that have a few horses to get through becoming upset as somebody drifts across their path several times.
I have occasionally shouted, but only in extreme circumstances, ie when a rider walked across the front of a fence as I approached and stopped in front of it to talk to the people at the fence.......... that is just thoughtless, but happens.
And my other bugbear is helpers not checking to see if someone is coming to the fence before they start to alter it.
Oooh, I'd forgotten how heated it could get!!!

ETA, this is not directed at anyone!

 

[stencilface]

Whilst we're at it, can we make a rule to stop chatting women blocking the warm up too? A couple at a BSJA recently were chatting away, seemingly oblivious to the fact that they were blocking the only decent line to get a good turn into the warm up fence in the small indoor warmup. One of the girls horses kept trying to kick out too

I resigned myself to having to use the sloppy outdoor warm up......

 

[Baileyhoss]

it's a sad thing that good horsemanship, manners & common sense aren't apparent in warm up's any more. However, I remember being taught these unwritten rules by my instructor & peers in preparation for our first shows and we passed that advice on to the younger girls coming after us.

If people don't have a regular instructor or any guidance how are they supposed to know?

Therefore, I think it's good stewards that are required. There should defo be a written code of conduct. People may start being a little less rude & inconsiderate if they can be ejected from the warm up area, or even disqualified for dangerous riding.

 

[flyingfeet]

I have never once seen a steward in a warm up area.

I have also never EVER seen the rule enforced that the warm up jump should should be no larger than the first round of the competition in progress or 1.05m (rule 122.6).

Seems standard for people jumping BN to jump 1.10m to 1.20m, which is breaking the rules.

So yes go ahead write rules, just don't expect them to be enforced- so its a futile exercise!!

 

[Firewell]

I didnt realise there were rules for SJ warmup!? No wonder ive got a few funny looks BSJA when ive meandered round the warm up willy nilly doing my girth up!
Im used to unaffilliated warmup though, trying to share a 20x40 with 50 crazy kids on ponies flying around left, right and center BSJA seems positively civilised in comparison. You have to have eyes in the back of your head!

I think to make the warm up safer, places should have bigger warm up arenas or two places to warm up. How you can have 60 in a class and expect everyone to warm up in one tiny arena is beyond me. If they havent got enough space then they should limit the entries in the class to something more sensible like 20 or 30.

I love summer showjumping when the warm up is in a lovely big field, I know several venues who during the summer season have several grass warm up arenas and your only ever sharing the warm up fences with 2/3 others at any one time. Pure bliss!

 

[MagicMelon]

Funny you should say that as I wondered this I was walking about in the warm up at BSJA yesterday! I couldnt decide where I should be! As you say, generally walkers stay on the inside track but a lot of the BSJA'ers seemed to be cantering right at me on the inner track so often Id move to the outer. Very confusing!

 

[BuckingHorse]

Give blokes and eventers their own warm up where they can crash into each other.

JOKING B4 anyone takes offence!

Seriously though, have a steward available to limit the amount of people in warm up, shout when you are about to jump a fence, pass left to left, look where you are going, maintain a sense of humour...

 

[chester1234]

Think that limiting numbers in warm ups would be a good idea, but to what number? Some horses require a decent amount of warm up time - for example youngsters etc. I'm lucky mine don't require too much. Certainly my big grey - warm him up too much and you won't hold him in the ring.

I think that a steward in the warm up as well as by the arena gate. This will certainly work in favour of keeping the warm up fences at the right height - I warmed up for a 95cm/1.05m handicap, and some ar*e who had already given me a mouthful had the warm up fence at 1.25m+. It's not fair on others, especially those that have travelled on their own, and have no way of altering fences.

I think that people need more ring awareness, certainly when it comes to the actual fences. The amount of times ignorant people have altered the warm up fence while I've been six strides out...! There is so much I'd like to change within the BSJA, not just their warm up rules.

 

[lucemoose]

stewards, please, someone to steward!

 

[MagicMelon]

[ QUOTE ]
I think that a steward in the warm up as well as by the arena gate. This will certainly work in favour of keeping the warm up fences at the right height - I warmed up for a 95cm/1.05m handicap, and some ar*e who had already given me a mouthful had the warm up fence at 1.25m+. It's not fair on others, especially those that have travelled on their own, and have no way of altering fences.

[/ QUOTE ]

COMPLETELY agree with this. I often go on my own to BSJA things or my boyfriend or mother who sometimes comes arent brave enough to venture into the warm up! 3 times yesterday I had to pull away from a fence even after Id yelled I was approaching due to grooms rushing out to alter the fence simply because their rider had jumped it. Sod everyone else it seems. And Im fed up not getting a good warm up because I have to wait ages for them to put the 1.25m fence back down to a reasonable starter fence for a 1.10m class. Its ridiculous and rude. Why on earth can they not have coloured tape on the wings like for BE warm up fences?

 

[Noodlejaffa]

I did my first BSJA yesterday (and survived, despite being an eventer!). I was lucky that they were limiting the warm up arena to nine horses at a time. But once in the warm up area it was madness. People who seemed oblivious about where to "wander", people walking two-abreast round the ring chatting, across in front of the fence and as for passing left-to-left - that rule didn't seem to apply at all!

Have to admit I found it quite intimidating :-(

 

[Goya]

My wish is that the Collecting rings are stewarded properly. Some years ago our horse was run into as he landed over a jump and severly damaged his shoulder. It cost us a fortune in vet bills and the horse would not jump properly ever again.also, amazingly, no one would help us out by offering to be a witness to the accident so we could not reclaim anything off the idiot. All because of a stupid numpty!

 

[kate081]

Half the problem IMHO is that you don't get allocated a time to jump so there are a lot of people in the warm up trying to keep their horses ticking over.

I also think helpers should be banned - it's bl**dy dangerous having people on foot in warm up areas & normally people don't know what they're doing either. Maybe a steward at the jumps would help...?

I loathe indoor show jumping - can u tell?!

 

[AutumnRose]

Warms up are a nightmare. have especially noticed it recently having swapped my experienced mare for a youngster who gets very worried with people cantering at him from all directions. My 2 pet hates are people who dont know the left to left rule!!!!! And those who change the warm up fence without checking who's approaching, despite me yelling 'UPRIGHT PLEASE' about 3 times on my way in.

Stewards are the answer i think but i think show centres have enough problems getting people to help out as it is. Plus you need someone who actually knows the rules and has the guts to tell people when they are doing it wrong. I find people get very irate at BSJA, i have been shouted down before for asking someone to lower a fence in a BN warm up from 1.25.

 

[stencilface]

One of the ones near me has an eight horse limit in the school, and you are not allowed in unless you are the eighth (or less!) horse to go. Having said that - the warm up is not really big enough for 2, let alone 8

But then, thats not overly helpful for actually warming the horse in is it? I do try and go for a hack around, but its not always possible.

I HATE stroppy grooms

Yes I know the 'pros' (using the term loosely

) have lots of horses to ride/owners to please but that doesn't mean they are above everyone else - they even get to go to empty comps in the week that most of us can't get to!!!

My horse seems to be getting more an more grumpy when it comes to being crowded in a warm up too, which is not helpful

 

[Jul]

Absolutely 100% agree with this.
In fact there are lots of places where people have adopted it as an informal rule already and it definitely works better that way around. Just makes more sense.
Some places everyone sticks to walking on the inner track which definitely makes them harder to avoid when you're jumping.
But then I'll go somewhere else where a couple of people aren't doing it and a couple of people are so it's mayhem!

The last couple of times I've been to Keysoe they've had 2 warmups - one with jumps and one without. Perfect!! Warm up outside and when you're ready to jump, go in to the jump warm-up where there are only a couple of people jumping. It's things like that which make me travel the extra distance to Keysoe instead of going to Patchetts.

Magic Magpie - I often go alone to shows too and I couldn't agree with you more about the jumps being 'commandeered'. I can have 3 to go in front of me and still haven't been able to get myself over a warm-up fence as they're all 20cm over the class height!

 

[sachak]

IMO stewards are the only way forward and to limit the warm up to the next 10 to jump as i have seen at many venues.

you would be amazed as to the sudden sense of order instilled at teh presence of stewards

 

[dieseldog]

If you have stewards the cost of entering will go up. Are you prepared to pay extra to have a steward?

I have seen people told off about the height of jumps in the collecting ring.

 

[Nats_uk]

Why will the costs go up? I thought stewards were volunteers normally? Or should we have paid & trained stewards?

 

[SpottedCat]

I'd like there to be a sensible minimum size for warmups, and for venues to actually restrict the number of people in it.

As that will never happen, I vote with my feet and despite having a great venue really close by, I really only go there if nowhere else has BSJA on...and yes, I will happily spend more on diesel to get to somewhere further away, so if they want to add a couple of quid to my entry fee but provide a steward and/or use the facilities they've got, then I'd gladly pay it.

My fave place is Hartpury because it uses the facilities it has and runs a very tight ship in the warm-ups (note the plural use of warm-up there!).

 

[dieseldog]

[ QUOTE ]
Why will the costs go up? I thought stewards were volunteers normally? Or should we have paid & trained stewards?

[/ QUOTE ]

Not round here, arena staff are paid as are collecting ring - unlike the judges......

If you were a volunteer would you put up with the hassle and abusive you are going to get trying to steward a warmup for nothing - you might once, but not twice.

 

[flyingfeet]

That's the great thing about Hartpury - they make the students do it as part of their courses!! I think its probably very character building to organise stroppy BSJA competitors!

I would pay extra for a decent warm up, its the one thing I dread when competing.

 

[charlotte24]

And when you have just started warming up no one put the fence up way to high when you have only jumped it once. So that both fences are alot higher then the class your going in.
This really gets on my nerves...

 

[SpottedCat]

[ QUOTE ]
And when you have just started warming up no one put the fence up way to high when you have only jumped it once. So that both fences are alot higher then the class your going in.
This really gets on my nerves...

[/ QUOTE ]

Do you not just ask people to put it down again? Unless I am miles away I always do, and the only time I am in a warm up big enough to be that far away is Hartpury, and there is usually a student who can be cajoled into putting it to a sensible height for me!

 

[cazzy]

As a show organiser, no way would you get a volunteer to do this job - they will want paying too?
Would anyone on here do it for free week in week out just to get shouted and sworn at when you tell some 'pro' the warm up fence is too high or even worse the jumped up parent when their little loved one has just jumped the practice fence the wrong way!

These days, certainly in this part of the world, volunteers don't appear. Everyone is paid - judges, first aid, collecting ring and jump stewards. Off all of these I think collecting ring stewards earn their money the most - have heard some awful abuse hurled at them!!!!

Would need a very strong willed person to be a warm up steward!!

 

[chester1234]

I'd do it - I think the "jumped up pro's" would think twice when someone at the show centre told them that the fence was too high, and then told them to leave when they gave the steward a mouthful.