Former professional upper level eventer here! I have a wonderful horse I now do the 1.30s on and I have another mare who I think would be great in the eq. I am applying to reinstate my ammie status on Jan 1 and I would love to learn all I need to learn about adult eq.
1.) explain all the different class options…. Ariat, etc
2.) what are the year end goals for these classes? (I am in VA if that makes a difference)
3.) tell me about tack and attire
4.) tell me about what they are looking for? Things you particularly work on etc?
Thanks in advance!
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The judges are looking for a good and effective rider with a correct position.
Someone who can consistently meet all the jumps smoothly and make it look like it’s a coincidence every time. Easier said than done. Lol.
Past the very basic level, most equitation courses are likely to have a few more twists and turns than a standard hunter course, so you might see some rollback turns, bending lines, jumps set at different angles, yada, yada.
It seems like there are getting to be more and more equitation finals for adults, so obviously there are a fair number of people who are interested in it.
The USEF rulebook has all the specs for the different equitation classes, and also the list of tests that judges may use in classes that have a testing phase for the top four or however many riders at the end of the class.
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Watch me and do the opposite.
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Lol.
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NOOOOOOOO! Come back!!! NOT equitation! Anything but equitation!!! Do Reining if you have to!
reed
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Well I will always do the jumpers, but thought it would be an interesting challenge! My homebred is also showing signs that she might like to be a hunter so maybe Hunter derbies for her?
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Although she (the homebred) did show a reining spin when the basset hound jumped out at her 
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I do the adult eq on my jumper from time-to-time and find it quite enjoyable. The biggest classes are the Ariat Adult Medal and the NHS Adult Medal. The former has finals held at Capital Challenge while the latter is held at the National Horse Show in Kentucky. Ariat is more challenging to qualify for than the NHS, where you only need 10 points.
In the NHS, much like the Maclay, riders return for a flat phase. In the Ariat, riders return for a test — or at smaller shows, the test is built into the course.
Tack and attire is identical to hunter turnout, except horses can wear boots and you’ll see Pelhams.
There’s also the USHJA 3’3" Adult Jump Seat Medal, which is essentially a mini-USET. Super fun class, and even better finals, with a horse inspection, gymnastics phase, and so on.
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I also do mostly jumpers, and dabble in the adult eq with our sales horses. USEF and USHJA have added a bunch of championships in the last few years:
Adult Gladstone: held at HITS Saugerties. This is fairly easy to qualify. You need to finish in the top three of any USHJA medal class or adult eq division. Considering a lot of these at smaller shows only have three entries, you should be able to get this done pretty easily. I will be the first to admit that I was naysaying this final because it was going to be at HITS instead of one of the big championship venues, but I have to say that the organizers did an amazing job. There was a lot of pomp and circumstance, and they made it feel very special. Note that only the competitor may warm up their horse in the 24 hours before the class, so no pro rides or lunges beforehand.
USHJA Jump Seat: Also at HITS. This one is also pretty easy to qualify for. You either need 10 points or to have competed in it 3 times during the qualifying period. Points are based on how many people do it, so usually it’s easiest to qualify for by doing it multiple times. This one is held over two days. There’s a jog, flat phase, and gymnastics on day one. Then day two is the final round and work off. This is the only adult final where you’ll see liverpools.
NHS/THIS Final: This one is cool. It’s held at the NHS in week one (same week as the Hammel). You don’t get the crowds you get the following week, but the atmosphere is still great. Also pretty easy to qualify for, you just need 10 points and they don’t adjust points based on how many people are in it. In my area, there are a bunch of small one day shows that just do medals, and you can get your qualifications done early at those shows.
Ariat Final: This is by far the hardest to qualify for. Points are awarded based on how many are in it, and a lot of the competitors are fresh out of their junior years. They do these classes at WEF and GLEF where there are massive amounts of competitors, so getting the points if you’re not showing every week can be a challenge. And the competition is stiff.
Depending on where you are, there are also regional championships like New England Finals that can be fun.
My heart is very much in the jumper ring, but the adult eq finals are fun. Just be aware that they all seem to reward a more huntery style of ride. At the Gladstone this year for instance, they really rewarded riders in the first round (which to be fair was denoted as a hunter classic style) who stayed out, did one more stride in the bending lines, etc. That also carried through to the Jump Seat the following day, even though it’s supposed to be a more jumper style course. They want smoothness, they don’t necessarily want you making slick rollbacks if they end up looking rushed or compromising the flow of the course. As a primarily jumper rider, I have to remind myself of that at different times.
Have fun, the finals can be a blast!
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I have thought about doing some eq. with one of my jumpers, but I can’t ride either of them in the sort of halfseat position that seems to be the norm. If I did we’d be on the forehand and I’d be jumped out of the tack over every fence! I have good equitation and I’m generally dead accurate to the jumps but to get the best balance with both horses I have to sit to everything. 
Eh. If you’re dead accurate and you always find all the jumps, you would probably do reasonably well in the adult equitation.
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Whassa matter with the equitation? You come do it too, once you’re recovered from getting pancaked.
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Getting pancaked is part of the thrill!! Although, I’d prefer to get just pancakes. 
I did equitation all the way through my junior years and sucked/lost to my sister, who went on to win at the national level in adult equitation. I know I can never compete in that crowd.
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Half of us are just out here trying to get the class to fill and then find 8 jumps without terrifying the judge.
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And tell me about attire and tack dos and donts?
You can’t go wrong with conservative attire. Navy jacket, white shirt, solid black helmet, tan breeches, black boots.
Lots of equitation horses go in a pelham, but it’s certainly not a requirement. Whatever conventional bit that works for the horse is the best choice.
The USEF rules for tack are slightly different between hunter seat equitation and jumping seat equitation classes, so you would want to look at those rules, depending on what classes you plan to do.
One big difference is that the jumping seat equitation classes do not allow standing martingales. Only running martingales.
Also, there is a free live stream of the USEF Medal final tomorrow from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. If you want to watch some of that, you would certainly get an idea of what the horses and riders are wearing for the equitation these days. They are junior riders, but the look would be quite similar for the adults.
There’s a separate thread about it with more information.
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In seriousness OP- you are in a great place for the adult eq. Depending where in VA you are, there are multiple state and regional medal classes as well as the national ones mentioned above, and if you’re near a college with a riding program they may actually fill without too much effort. In MD there’s the MHSA Adult Medal (please come do it, the finals used to be 20+ and now they are… not.) In VA you have the VHSA but if you’re in commuting distance to SWVHJA shows there’s the Oak Ridge Medal, a jumping seat medal structured like the USET at the 3’3” height with a flat, gymnastic, and jumping phase.
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You may want to look at any specific class directives, but it’s not wrong to sit the canter, unless something like a hand gallop is requested as part of the test.
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If you rode as an upper-level professional, you will clean up in the amateur eq.
Granted, there are amateurs who never rode as pros but who ride as well as the pros, but the former pros are going to find the distance 100% (okay, 99%!) of the time, whereas for the ammies there will often be a fence that was a little deep or a little long…
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