Hello
I am an amateur eventer considering moving up to prelim next show season. What should I do to prepare over the winter and how do I know when I’m ready to move up?
Also does anyone has recommendations for softer prelims in area 6?
Thanks a lot!
Are you working with a trainer?
Galway and Fresno are generally softer Prelims, though what show makes a good move up depends on you and your horse’s particular strengths and weaknesses.
The quippy answer is when you are more than ready. But without having done it before that’s a hard one to understand.
My small sample of me and about 5 horses is probably not that far off from a lot of adult amateurs so here is what I have learned about moving up - to any level.
Dressage: sure I want to improve, but my nice low bar is “can I perform all the movements in a way that people can look at my test and understand what level I’m competing at”. If I can’t do a 15m canter circle and at least a semblance of a lengthened trot, I should not be at Training level. However, most people don’t get hurt in dressage so winning on the flat is not as large part of the equation.
Jumping. Do you feel that you and your horse are a team. that when you say “turn here, jump that” does he respond with “Alright! What’s next”.
This plays out in no stops, few rails, in making the time, in having a round that looks harmonious. Do you feel that you are in control, or if you’ve let him get rolling that you can get him back easily. Is one of you doing all the work?
Can you jump a fence “there” - the middle stripe on the pole, the bump on the log. How adjustable is your horse about terrain, is he clever and a quick thinker?
The horses who have gone prelim with me were quick thinkers The ones who did not make it (two went training, one found Novice overwhelming) were the ones who found the stuff to consider on course too much to take in within the time they had. So as the questions got harder, the time to asses them gets smaller because you are going faster, the distances get shorter.
This was my hindsight ah-ha moment this year. After having 2 horses who were slow to comprehend the stuff on XC I have a horse who so far, thinks incredibly fast and he gets it right. He can size up a combination on XC 2 strides out from the A element and I just sit back and wait for it to unfold. I don’t have to tell him how to do the b and c elements. My slow thinkers needed me to help them through, and many times they needed to take a second look. My slow thinker training level horses did not get to Prelim even though the height was not a problem. Both of them loved show jumping (no surprises).
When you ride a max Training level fence, does it feel easy for the horse? Does he sometimes say “not only is this the longer spot, but for fun I’m jumping higher and wider because I can’. Does he feel like he pings off the ground? Or do the bigger fences feel like an effort for him. Is he athletic enough get himself out of a bad spot and carry on like nothing happened (and smart enough to not make that mistake a second time). That is something I learned from a George Morris article - most horses are athletic enough to get themselves out of a bad spot/distance/situation at 3 feet. This is not true at 3’6”. So the Prelim horse does need to be a superior athlete to the Training horse.
These are some of the intangibles to consider that no one but you can really understand. It’s not just your record, but that’s a good place to start.
I made the move this season. What a move it is!
You need to be almost bored at training. Schooling Prelim questions at home with ease.
The dressage, the movements you should already be performing at home, but can be worked on over the winter. They don’t need to be pristine, but accurate is key.
Show jumping, are you jumping that height consistently. Can you get through a course at home with ease? I found the show jumping and dressage to be the easiest for me.
My biggest struggle is and always will be xc. The move from Training to Prelim does not prepare you. The questions at training are simple, they leave room for error but can still get through with a messy ride. Prelim, there is no room for error. The jumps are bigger, the skinny’s are skinnier, the questions are tighter. You definitely need to be schooling this stuff at home already.
I’ve been Schooling Prelim questions at home for years, but I’ve been sitting at training level for 5 years… because I personally never felt ready. I finally was consistently placing in the top 3, and felt that I was ready to move up at that point.
My show before my upgrade, I had a stop on xc. But I still figured I’m ready and attempted my upgrade. I got to fence 6 before I retired on course. Our dressage was decent and mid pack placing, we were 1 of 4 clear show jump rounds. Headed out to cross country, and everything fell apart. I’m not sure if it was me and my nerves or the super hot day, but by fence 4 we still weren’t having a good go. With 2 stops already, I called it a day.
Went home and schooled more to get our confidence back, and headed to another Prelim.
My dressage was ok, not as good as the last, my show jump was terrible… but our xc was phenomenal.
Just be schooling everything at home already. Don’t go for time, and just treat it as a schooling. If you’re contemplating it for next year, go out at training level, see where your season is, then upgrade at the next one you go out to. I think you just have to make the jump and upgrade if you feel you’re ready and are consistently doing well at training.
At least you have all winter to prepare 
A good thread that talks about the nuances of this move-up.
Some riders/horse combinations spend the first yr with some struggle. If they are smart they move up and down and use tough Training courses mixed with the easier Prelim ones. It helps both of their confidence levels. I agree, don’t ride for time, ride for confidence.
[QUOTE=pony grandma;8904767]
Some riders/horse combinations spend the first yr with some struggle. If they are smart they move up and down and use tough Training courses mixed with the easier Prelim ones. It helps both of their confidence levels. I agree, don’t ride for time, ride for confidence.[/QUOTE]
This.
Don’t feel like you have to stay at prelim, toggle between. I ended my season with a Training level event, because we had lost at Championships at Training level. Not sure if the prelim before Champs caused a set back, but he had been schooling great so ended it with training.
I will go out next season at Training most likely, depending on how we come out of winter and go from there. Nothing wrong with jumping up and down to keep the confidence juices flowing.
[QUOTE=pony grandma;8904767]
A good thread that talks about the nuances of this move-up.
Some riders/horse combinations spend the first yr with some struggle. If they are smart they move up and down and use tough Training courses mixed with the easier Prelim ones. It helps both of their confidence levels. I agree, don’t ride for time, ride for confidence.[/QUOTE]
This. I posted in the thread linked about my woes with moving up to Prelim this year - first event cancelled xc and turned into a CT, second even we crashed, third event I realized I’d lost my confidence due to crash at second event, and then I took the summer off competing and focused just on rebuilding confidence. We did end up doing Training at the Area Championships (so a tough Training) end of summer/beginning of fall and then bumping back up to Prelim 2 weeks after that (softer Prelim). Finished in 6th and then 3rd respectively so finally back on track.
We are done for the season now and ready for winter dressage boot camp. Then I’ll plan to come out next season at a tougher Training or two before trying out Prelim again. I imagine we will play around with the level a bit before making a full “move up” as I still need to gain some confidence with the max width tables on course, but hopefully we can work on that with schooling at some bigger venues next spring.
No advice on events in Area 6, but definitely spend the winter working on your confidence and eye if you can. Everyone kind of has something different about the move up to Prelim that gets them - find out where your holes/weaknesses are and focus on those as your preparation. Mine are the big, square maxed tables. For others, it is the speed or the technicality or the height in show jumping. Then maybe do a few CTs or T/Ps before doing a full Prelim in the spring.
Things to work on this winter…straightness (everyone always has to work on this, but at Prelim…it will start to show if you have a hole here). Jumping skinnies. Counter canter and rein-back.
Make sure you know the timing for starting to put conditioning on your horse.
I’m of course assuming the basics…that you are jumping 3’6-3’9 courses well, can do the dressage test for the level (even if not winning one) and have successfully schooled prelim xc.
Other sources for moving up–I always thought this was a good one.
http://www.equisearch.com/article/rate_your_riding_031108-19851?ctid=2
So much great advice here, especially from LadyB and Hilary! Depending on where you are in Area 6, I’d suggest Woodland as a good move up. Tends toward Prelim questions at Training height with a few Prelim height things thrown in. Good galloping and reasonable combinations. They’ve been working hard on the footing and making it a really rider-friendly event.
Go school Twin and Woodside. Repeatedly. Both of those are the harder ones in this region. If you can rock around the Woodside Prelim course you can ride anything in the region, IMO. Fresno questions are fair, but the last HT had more combinations than previously. Hard to make time there, but time should not matter your first year. Like someone else said, Galway may be a bit softer. I haven’t run Copper in a few years, so no good info there. Shepherd is a nice, fair course that’s not as tough as some of the others. Not as much long galloping opportunity, but fair questions.
Run the T3D at Galway if you can. That is a great in-between step. Like so many of the others said, you can go back and forth. Good luck!
Ask for Modified to come to the events you want? I have been competing at Prelim forever and I’d have loved to have an interim on some horses.
