Hopefully i will be riding in my first hunter derby in two weeks, still have to get my trainer on board with the idea :lol: I already bought my shadbelly!! Should be coming in tomorrow, fingers crossed. I have been watching many of the big hunter derbies on YouTube and just looking at what kind of jumps I should be preparing for at home. So far I’ve noticed: in and outs (one and two strides), trot jumps, hand gallops to fences, lots of brush and natural jumps. If I’m missing anything else please tell me and any other first time advice will be helpful!! Thanks.
It would probably be more useful to search youtube for the past derbies at the show you are attending. If it’s a lower height, some won’t have in and outs. Or gallop. Well, they might not have anything you asked about. 
Practice beforehand wearing your shad!
Or something similar! I stuck a towel to the back of my saddle and learned that my horse definitely needed more practice with something flapping on his back. Is it a (inter)national derby? If so, look up the specs. Make some jumps with an obscene amount of filler, and if you can, practice riding in and out of the ring and maybe jumping out. Some horses get confused when told to canter out of a ring they’re used to walking out of.
[QUOTE=hunterrider23;7966906]
Some horses get confused when told to canter out of a ring they’re used to walking out of.[/QUOTE]
Canter out of the ring as in canter through the in/out gate? Can’t say as I’ve heard of that.
Logs, brush; rollbacks for the higher scores. Have fun!!!
[QUOTE=gumshoe;7967606]
Canter out of the ring as in canter through the in/out gate? Can’t say as I’ve heard of that.[/QUOTE]
It’s against the rules at all USEF horse shows in all hunter and equitation classes.
Have fun!!
I may be wrong, but hunterrider23 could be referring to some of the derbies, like in Vermont, where 2 rings are connected and the horses canter back and forth between the rings. It really throws some horses for a loop to do that.
[QUOTE=MHM;7968067]
It’s against the rules at all USEF horse shows in all hunter and equitation classes.[/QUOTE]
I think she is referring to cantering/jumping between rings, which I guess could be through an in/out gate if set up that way. For example (this is the timed class, but whatever) at 1:10 in this video the rider canters through the exit to another ring, and then back. But that is a very rare derby trick and I certainly would not train my horse to canter in/out of rings in preparation for it!
[QUOTE=iEquitate;7968122]
I think she is referring to cantering/jumping between rings, which I guess could be through an in/out gate if set up that way. For example (this is the timed class, but whatever) at 1:10 in this video the rider canters through the exit to another ring, and then back. But that is a very rare derby trick and I certainly would not train my horse to canter in/out of rings in preparation for it![/QUOTE] so fare I’ve seen it in about 5/7 derbies I’ve watched.
[QUOTE=hunterrider23;7968145]
so fare I’ve seen it in about 5/7 derbies I’ve watched.[/QUOTE]
I have done several of the national derbies, and we did have to trot out the ring in one and right to start the handy in another, but that was only once and definitely the exception to the rule. In a handy round most people will canter right up to the gate to demonstrate handiness, but they must walk out. In the Hunter ring you are disqualified for trotting or cantering into/out of the ring. I am sure they are exceptions in some derby formats, but 99% will be the ones where you walk out. I would encourage you googling Liza Boyd, Peter Pletcher, or Kelly Farmer to watch their classic and handy rounds.
[QUOTE=hunterrider23;7968145]
so fare I’ve seen it in about 5/7 derbies I’ve watched.[/QUOTE]
What facilities are you watching derbies at? I watch a lot of derbies and the only time I’ve seen the ring switch is at Vermont, simply because most places cannot accommodate it. It looks like some of the west coast facilities are set up to allow it, but I didn’t think there were many places holding two ring derbies outside of those few/Vermont.
Brownland almost always had you canter between the two rings, we even built as jump into our outdoor’s fence because of it. Also always done in the memphis derbies. Saw it in VT videos and at HITs. Conyers has you canter over the hill and through a gate, same in Gulfport. Often it’s between a warmup ring and the show ring if they’re connected, there’s one or two jumps in the other ring, then canter back into the main ring. Though at Bland, there’s space between the rings, and at HITs there was definitely space. I’ve seen it enough that I would make sure your horse is comfortable cantering though a gate, especially since I’ve seen it cause trouble. I’m not talking about teaching the horse to canter in and out of rings, just making sure that if you ask, they’ll canter between them.
[QUOTE=hunterrider23;7968770]
Brownland almost always had you canter between the two rings, we even built as jump into our outdoor’s fence because of it. Also always done in the memphis derbies. Saw it in VT videos and at HITs. Conyers has you canter over the hill and through a gate, same in Gulfport. Often it’s between a warmup ring and the show ring if they’re connected, there’s one or two jumps in the other ring, then canter back into the main ring. Though at Bland, there’s space between the rings, and at HITs there was definitely space. I’ve seen it enough that I would make sure your horse is comfortable cantering though a gate, especially since I’ve seen it cause trouble. I’m not talking about teaching the horse to canter in and out of rings, just making sure that if you ask, they’ll canter between them.[/QUOTE]
I did it in the derby at Brownland.
I did a derby at Swan Lake eons ago and we jumped out of the ring and into another ring where there were a couple jumps or maybe it was jumps in a field-I can’t recall. A more recent video I saw they had the exhibitors not jump out of the ring, but instead just canter out of an opening (not the ingate) and jump two jumps in the field then canter back into the ring.
[QUOTE=iEquitate;7968122]
I think she is referring to cantering/jumping between rings, which I guess could be through an in/out gate if set up that way. For example (this is the timed class, but whatever) at 1:10 in this video the rider canters through the exit to another ring, and then back. But that is a very rare derby trick and I certainly would not train my horse to canter in/out of rings in preparation for it![/QUOTE]
Even our little local derby has done jumping out of the ring. They set the derby jumps up in one ring and then set a jump in a gap between that area and what is normally an attached schooling area and as part of the course you jump from the main ring into the schooling area, usually at the end or close to the end of the course.
Don’t trot too soon for the trot jump and keep it a trot.
Its still a Hunter class so turns should be smooth and the horse keep their form vs cutting the turn and having a bad jump.
Typically to make the cut off for the Handy you need to take some of the higher options. In the National Derby anyway.
Have fun!
OP–what division is the derby (height wise)?
It is a $500 2’6" hunter derby 
