Showing classes, how many can you do?

[Ragwort drama]

Hello

I've been riding my friends horse for her for a little while, she's been injured and she's asked me if I want to take him out to do some showing over the summer. So was looking at it and wondered how many classes you'd normally do in a day? a mix of ridden an in-hand? I've never really done anything like this before, only show jumping on my old mare.
So feel like I need to do quite a few before I start getting placed anywhere, so would it be okay to do about 3 ridden and 2 in-hand in 1 day?

The horse is fairly fit,(I've been hacking and schooling him 3 days a week and another girl has been hacking 2 days a week) so think he could handle it, but not sure if people will think I'm crazy for doing so many in a day?

 

[Shay]

It depends on the type of show and which classes. 5 classes is quite a lot time wise - you may well find the classes over lap and you won't do yourself any favours asking permission to leave early or join late. I suspect you could squeeze in 5 classes if this is only a small amateur type show with only a go around or possibly a short individual show so that each class is only 30 - 45 mins. If it is a more competitive show or if there are a lot of entries each class will last far longer with the go around, the conformation stage and the ride judge stage. If there are a lot of competitors classes can go on over 2 hours. (The in hand classes will be shorter.) If you are doing working hunter you can to consider you are in effect doing 2 classes - the jumping phase and the show phase. And of course working hunter classes go on longer for the same reason. 5 classes at a well attended competitive show given time for warm up, refresh etc you could be on the go for 8 - 10 hours. Or skipping in and out for part of each class which - even if they allow it - will not do anything for you placing or your experience.

It might be better to be a bit more conservative for the first few?

 

[Ragwort drama]

ah okay, maybe that might be too many then!! so maybe ill just try for one ridden and one in-hand the first time!! don't think I'm quite ready for working hunter on this horse, so that won't be so bad!! I didn't think about all of the overlap of times etc!! so thanks for your advice

 

[adsthelad]

Generally when I show I'll only do 2 classes and that takes up most of my day! Also, not sure about shows where you are but over here you're limited to a maximum number of classes per day which is usually 2 or 3 - so 5 is just not possible.

 

[swilliam]

I help run a local riding club, which is only small. We let people do what they want except in workers which is limited to two. Many do 5; a mixture of ridden and in-hand. If it looks like classes will clash, we do our best to be accommodating because we are a beginners/improvers club and want people to have as much fun as possible. Having said that, I would say if I thought a horse was being asked to do too much.

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

I never do more than 3. Either 3 in-hand, 2 ridden and one inhand or 1 ridden and 2 inhand. I never do more than 2 ridden classes.

It also depends on what type of horse youvery got as not many would fit in that many classes type wise.

 

[SallyBatty]

Most I have done is 3 classes at local shows (all ridden) where you just do the go round and then an individual show in each class. It depends on the type of horse you have though and what classes the show is holding anyway as to how many you might find suitable in either ridden or inhand. You do need to be be careful re timing of the classes though to try give yourself time for a break in between each. It does help if they state start times or what time they are stopping for lunch.

 

[Dynamo]

Three is plenty. At bigger shows a horse will normally only do one class in a day, but then at busy shows the go-round can take a long time, and the horse can be standing in the ring for more than an hour.

I think for a young, inexperienced or just plain naughty horse two ridden classes are sufficient, one to get in to the swing and get all the misbehaviour out of the way, and one to do better and make some improvement when the horse is more settled about it all. I'd leave it that, knowing that things have improved. A third class risks the horse getting fractious or fed up and then you are back to square one again, but that will vary between horses. Definitely no more than three.

With an older or more experienced horse I'd still only do one or two classes, but for slightly different reasons, one to get going, one to get a great result, and if he wins or goes as well as I think he can on that day, I don't put him back in again even if that means losing my entry money for the second class. I save him for the championship and I don't ask him to repeat things if he's already done a perfect job - that is a sure way to sour a horse.

As a judge I really dislike it at local shows when the same ponies come in to class after class all day long. After three classes they look bored rigid, I am bored rigid myself, and what might have been an attractive pony at 9am becomes by 4pm a sour dullard, and then the parents want to know why their pony hasn't won the championship when it has won more rosettes over the day than any other, and the one that got champion had only won one class. Go figure... I also don't like it when someone wins a couple of classes because they have the best horse on the showground and then keeps coming back in to win more and it's hard not to give them first place because the horse is so much better than the others; one win is great; two wins are plenty for anyone; more is just plain greedy.

 

[Sussexbythesea]

I think it depends on the types of class, what you have to do and how long they are. I did 4 the other day - condition and turnout, in-hand veteran, ridden veteran and a fun class of in-hand best bay as they were short on entries.

The only one that needed a show really was the ridden veteran which was the last class in which he was quite "lively" and won it. The other 3 classes weren't exactly strenuous. If he'd felt tired I would have forfeited the later classes.

 

[Bubblewrap]

I usually do 2 or possibly 3 but have in the past withdrawn if I feel they have done enough for one day. I always see how we go and nothing is set in stone.
Remember that if you do well and win, or get a 2nd sometimes, you may go into a Championship class!
The last show we did we qualified for the morning and the afternoon Championship but I withdrew from the afternoon one as we had been there hours and had had an enjoyable day and done much better than we expected. Have fun x

 

[AmyMay]

Two tops.

 

[abbijay]

Depends on the horse and the classes. Most in hand classes aren't very demanding on the horse so I wouldn't think twice about doing multiple ones of those (but then again I think in hand is dull)
I have previously hacked to the show (50 minutes) done a flat class, a workers class and qualified for the championship before riding home. It was only a small-ish local show and we ended up being out for 4 hours with most of it being ridden but he was very fit at the time and doing 3 - 4 hour hacks most weekends anyway and more than fit enough to event. If you think an eventer will be asked to "compete" 3 times in a day at a high level there is no reason a showing horse can't do 3 or more classes but it does depend on how fit your pony is.