XC Question question

[LadySam]

Please forgive my ignorance! I hope this isn't a dumb question.

In all my many horsey years I've never had anything to do with XC, so I don't understand some of the terminology. I've been following a bit of it recently with the Olympics and Burghley and have heard commentators talk about certain fences as "questions". What do they mean? What makes a "question" fence different to other fences?

 

[ihatework]

On a xc course, especially up the levels, you obviously have a variety of types of fences. The course will be carefully designed to ask 'questions' at specific parts of the course and in between there will be straightforward fences, sometimes referred to as 'let ups' that give the horse time to settle back into rhythm and boost confidence if needed.
Questions really do mean just that. They are fences, or a series of fences, that test the horses accuracy, straightness, boldness, ability to think for itself etc

 

[be positive]

At top level none of the fences will be easy but a few will be more straightforward, known as let up fences where the horse and rider should be able to jump out if their stride with very little need to do any more than present at the correct pace and angle.
A "question" fence is the other end of the scale and will usually require a more accurate measured approach, these are normally combinations, often offset so they need a very well planned and ridden approach in order to remain on the line that is going to give the horse the best chance to see and answer the "question", if the rider gets off line or misses in some way the horse may not see the next element until too late to be in a position to jump it, hence the term question it it testing both the rider and horse more than a more simple fence even if the simple fence appears far bigger it will not be so testing for horse or rider.
That said different horse and rider combinations will find some fences less of a question than others will, very clear at the Olympics at times when some made parts of the course look easy while others struggled.

 

[LadySam]

Brilliant, thank you both.