So what has British Eventing done wrong?

ycbm

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Clearly sites aren't very happy with increased oversight from BE or being told to when to run unaffiliated as another site has decided to quit BE in favour of their own events.

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I think BE is probably now waking up to what they did when they chased after the fees from the lower levels to use the money to finance the higher levels, and then failed to give people who never aspire to more than the lower levels (called "the majority") what they need.
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LEC

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Pontispool is a strange one as mostly PC/RC unaff odes so there must be other things on the new contracts.
It’s good for Monmouth though which is a lovely grassroots event and always suffers with the PP clash.
The horse I sold recently won the 2* at Cornbury and won £1200. That’s unbelievable money as normally £200 if you are lucky.
 
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ester

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Pontispool is a strange one as mostly PC/RC unaff odes so there must be other things on the new contracts.
It’s good for Monmouth though which is a lovely grassroots event and always suffers with the PP clash.
The horse I sold recently won the 2* at Cornbury and won £1200. That’s unbelievable money as normally £200 if you are lucky.

yes it did make me think re previous discussion that it wasn’t restrictive as organisers/centred could run unaff under an rc/pc umbrella but that’s what pontispool mostly do anyway.
 

millitiger

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yes it did make me think re previous discussion that it wasn’t restrictive as organisers/centred could run unaff under an rc/pc umbrella but that’s what pontispool mostly do anyway.


I've been thinking about this too and wonder if people haven't grasped venues can run with RC or PC umbrella?
Reading a lot of comments on the Facebook posts, a lot of people are assuming NO unaffiliated events at all can be run. ?‍♀️
 

ycbm

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If you run an RC or PC competition, then unless you have some wierd arrangement where all you are doing is using their name, then the RC/PC want to hire the course and organise their own event, so they will get the entry fees.

Of course venues want to run their own competitions to take all the revenues.
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LEC

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If you run an RC or PC competition, then unless you have some wierd arrangement where all you are doing is using their name, then the RC/PC want to hire the course and organise their own event, so they will get the entry fees.

Of course venues want to run their own competitions to take all the revenues.
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Pontispool has only ever run the BE as its own. It doesn’t run its own events until now, where they will pick up the Cotswold Cup
 

ester

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I think my comment has been misunderstood. Certainly in my memory pontispool haven't run their own unaffiliated events (though I've obv not been local recently but Lec would know ;) ), they hire out to other bodies to run them, but they have still stepped away from BE - which would suggest the new no unaffiliated rule isn't the reason from them stepping away.
 

LEC

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Our RC qualifier was going to be annoyingly early to run after the BE at PP this year. Normally they had an end of May date so we would run first week of June. I have asked if other dates available now.
 

TheMule

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Ponstipool has seen a big decline in entries at Novice/ Intermeidate, mostly since it got a reputation for being very up to height and technical xc (which they have tried to resolve with a new course designer)
 
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ycbm

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Pontispool has only ever run the BE as its own. It doesn’t run its own events until now, where they will pick up the Cotswold Cup

I wasn't talking about Pontispool, but about the "venues can always run lower classes RC/PC" comment.
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mini_b

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Ponstipool has seen a big decline in entries at Novice/ Intermeidate, mostly since it got a reputation for being very up to height and technical xc (which they have tried to resolve with a new course designer)
I won’t event there again until they sort out the surface in the SJ warm up. I heard there were lots of complaints after the BE. I guess grassroots riders are less fussy/ less inclined to notice such things.

I do not event at intermediate or novice (novice is in my future somewhere, intermediate absolutely not) but surely fences SHOULD be up to height?
 

TheMule

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I do not event at intermediate or novice (novice is in my future somewhere, intermediate absolutely not) but surely fences SHOULD be up to height?

There's a fine line between big/ technical enough and having enough breathing space for the horse to have an enjoyable round. I think it probably just got the balance slightly wrong a couple of times which put people off. Of course some courses have a reputation for being harder/ better for a horse due to upgrade next run, but they tend to be the big pro-heavy ones at feature events and that’s just not Ponstipool's market.
 

mini_b

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There's a fine line between big/ technical enough and having enough breathing space for the horse to have an enjoyable round. I think it probably just got the balance slightly wrong a couple of times which put people off. Of course some courses have a reputation for being harder/ better for a horse due to upgrade next run, but they tend to be the big pro-heavy ones at feature events and that’s just not Ponstipool's market.

thank you for clearing that up :)
 

LEC

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In the past BE used to pay for scorers etc and now wants events to pay them. Plus add in the abandonment. So what is the event now getting for their affiliation to BE? This is why a lot of marginal events are pulling the plug.
 

Ambers Echo

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I wonder if the Frickley International will disappear too. The Brigante Cup organisers had a nightmare trying to find a venue for their Championship Final, for the same reason - BE said no, not if they wanted to keep the international. But BC have recently announced it is at Frickley after all. So did BE relent, or has Frickley decided to throw the dice and see if BE end their association with them, too? This is so, so shortsighted.
 

Ambers Echo

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The main isue is the fact that this was sprung on organisers. BC and CC were in the advanced planning stages with 10 qualifiers and a championship venue to sort out, when BE announced no-one running an international could host the qualifiers or the Champs. It appeared to be a direct attempt to sabotage two popular series that BE perceive as a threat. But is seems both Barbury and Frickley have decided they were just not prepared to let down a series that they had already committed to and so have faced BE down. BE had the choice to back down but clearly have decided to cancel the international instead. Really not sure who they are going to please with that attitude. Especially as they continue to allow other venues to combine UA with BE events within one season.
 

Michen

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So that’s the rational re the international and UA? Surely that’s small fish to fry given there’s tons of other events where the two will be combined. Those that run internationals can’t be the biggest threat?
 

Michen

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So that’s the rational re the international and UA? Surely that’s small fish to fry given there’s tons of other events where the two will be combined. Those that run internationals can’t be the biggest threat?
 

Ambers Echo

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I have no idea what the thinking at BE HQ is. But both Barbury and Brigante Cup have clearly stated that BE have decreed that events running internationals are not allowed to run any UA events. And this was with immediate effect, not to be brought in from 2024, allowing venues to plan. Strikes me as madness, and if BE really does diappear into a vaccuum of irrelevance, they only have themselves to blame. UA will be blamed, but there was no need for this.

Collaboration/ co-operation was always, always the only way to move forward. Not BE throwing it's weight around with venues, while blaming competitors for making the 'wrong' choices about where to compete.
 

Ambers Echo

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BE's statement.

"As the National Governing Body for eventing in the UK, BE is committed to delivering a consistently regulated, safe, clean sport. BE has no jurisdiction over unregulated competitions, and cannot vouch for their compliance with FEI and BE requirements for sport; which have horse and rider welfare at their heart"

It makes no sense, as if they fundamentally disapprove of 'unregulated' events with their associated risks, then why are they fine to continue allowing all the non international venues to run both Arguably, the focus on risk is MORE important for grassroots events. And it sounds very much like Frickley will be stripped of their international too.

No commenrs allowed on the post, unsurprisingly! I imagine it will go down pretty badly, with pretty much everyone.

 
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Matafleur

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BE's statement.

"As the National Governing Body for eventing in the UK, BE is committed to delivering a consistently regulated, safe, clean sport. BE has no jurisdiction over unregulated competitions, and cannot vouch for their compliance with FEI and BE requirements for sport; which have horse and rider welfare at their heart"

It makes no sense, as if they fundamentally disapprove of 'unregulated' events with their associated risks, then why are they fine to continue allowing all the non international venues to run both Arguably, the focus on risk is MORE important for grassroots events. And it sounds very much like Frickley will be stripped of their international too.


I read that Frickley have gotten around it by also using it as a riding club event so technically still under affiliation...
 
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