when to go BE?

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hannah87

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hi guys, am considering joining BE next season... mainly to enjoy the better courses etc than unafil comps and to have fun - im not overly competetive..
however im not really sure if my horse and i are up to standard an dont want to get laughed at lol or more importantly overface either of us
In SJ we are getting double clears at 2'9 and 3 foot, but are jumping well over 1 metre at home easily with bags of room
our "dressage" leaves alot to be desired lol last comp back in july getting over 60% prelim but have improved vastly since then
XC jumping round 2"6 courses v easily but havnt had the oppurtunity to try any bigger but aim to do that over winter
and im sure with practice will be ok
am i mad to try abit of intro?!
 
ok had a look thanks, looks great altho there are none anywhere near me unfortunetely...
just back to my op, would we be ok u reckon?
 
There are more next year!

I would want to be confidently jumping 90cm SJ and XC.

I think a SJ and XC lesson with a good BE trainer to see what they think is worth doing IMO. Then pick a nice easy intro!
 
personally i dont agree with daisychainn as they have so much better courses than some of the unaff ones and also are more organised and it is a good experience. but i think you should be jumping bigger xc courses before you go.
 
I also don't agree with daisychain. With have cruddy dressage but have been doing novice level all year. Yeah, we're never going to win because of it but are often in the top 6. I do it for the XC thrill etc. - if my horse goes well for me then I'm very happy.

I couldn't decide when to take my Welsh D round his first intro. He'd only done about 4 XC competitions spread out over an entire year so was still very green XC. He'd only done 2 XC's at 75cm...! SJ-wise he'd jumped the odd 1m class so that wasn't an issue. In September there was a very good first intro on so I did it just to see how he coped. He went clear XC! Yes, obviously he was very green but I only did it to see how he coped with it. If your horse is a really genuine honest type then you should be fine, but obviously try to get in as much XC practice at unaff. intermediate before if you can.

Just make sure you choose your first intro wisely - courses DO vary! Ask around / look at course photo's if available etc. If you're able to practice round any actual intro courses then definately do that.
 
I too disagree - our dressage isn't good enough to get us placed Novice level, but it is all experience and we are now qualified for CCI* in 5 outings. Equally, you can practice dressage all you like but it is so different at an event when the horses know they are going XC that really, you need to get them out there asap.
 
I'm a bit more reserved and wanted to be competitive at BE due to the cost of doing it. So I didn't join until I was getting placed at Unaff Opens (3ft3"-3ft 6") as I wanted to move onto PN quite quickly.

We have quite a few good Unaff Open events round here to practice on first, and my pony had issues with ditches for many years so it would've been pointless doing BE and then getting eliminated at every one.

So, I guess it depends on many factors such as how much money you have, what the Unaff courses are like round your way and whether your horses is bold at the level you do at the mo.
 
there are hardly any unafil near me, or decent ones at that..
no im not that competetive altho obv enjoy winning, its not why i do it and much rather have a great round for my horse than get placed.
his dreassage is getting better and better and will be worked on this winter as will jumping , i think im gunna go for it next season BE why not, he loves to jump and we mite as well get out and get on with it!!!
 
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