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Horse Shows of Yesteryear?

Hunter/Jumper
#1

I’m currently working on an article about the rise of “C”/local horse shows in my area while the numbers at “A” shows are dwindling. Of course, my interviewing process and my knowledge of the industry points me in the direction of expense. The “A” shows are just so expensive, as are the horses that are truly competitive there.

I’ve only been showing for the past 15 years, so I don’t have much knowledge of the shows of the past. I was hoping some of you could help me fill in the blanks.

What did it used to cost to show at a USEF/AHSA rated horse show?
How competitive were the shows? How many people in classes?
How many local shows were there? More or less than there were “A” shows?

Anything else y’all can tell me about what shows used to be like prior to 2000 and how they compare to those of today would be fantastic. Thank you in advance!

#2

Cost were cheaper but still more expensive then showing local or b/c rated. Although you had more options to show at small venues with b/c rated. Also it was way more family friendly. I can remember in the early/mid 90s having my pony braided cost $20. My mom was like nope your going to learn to braid. To bad I never got good at it.

I remember stalls being around $90 to $100 for the weekend. Shaving $3 a bag. Trailering was cheap $50 to $75 for a 100 mile round trip. Day fees were like $30 a day. I think a division was around $100 for 5 classes. I’d say prices started to really rise late 90s/early 2000.😒

#3

I am also curious about this. At A shows back in the day, did they only have A rated divisions? I recall hearing once that if you were showing at the A shows in the 60s, you were showing at least 3’6", so I wonder if the B and C shows had a place for folks and horses who weren’t yet ready to show that height?

#4

In the 1970’s at least in Virginia”"maybe all of zone 3”"the Adult Amateur (maybe it is Amateur Adult?) and the Children’s divisions were born. They were and still are C-rated and jump 3’ and in the case of the Adult division you do not have to own the horse you are showing.

It was also less expensive”“maybe at the really fancy A-rated shows, your entry fees might have been close to $50””$80 and there was never any prize money and they were often treated as second-class citizens”"they showed in the “little ring” and usually went at the very end of the day”"usually the last day of the 3-4day show”"and got to go around while the ring crew was tearing down the “big ring” right next to you”"throwing polls, running tractors, etc. or it was pitch black dark and you rode in the hack class to car headlights stationed around the ring! Fun!

You did show at A shows because that’s where your trainer was going so it was a good idea to include these divisions at the A shows. The stall fees, (maybe $100) etc. were the same as if you were showing a Junior Hunter.

The year-end awards for these divisions are awarded by USEF zones.

After about twenty years TPTB finally realized that the AA/Children’s divisions were money makers and started to show them some respect. I think they now award some prize money and try to put them in a better spot on the schedule.

Actual B and C rated shows are pretty few and far between because you need to spend the same thing to satisfy the USEF requirements for the facility, vet, judges, etc. that you would for an A/AA show so you need to decide wether to have a good local show or bump it up to an A show.

IIRC, the Small Hunter Division was also C-rated at the A shows.

#5

I’m not sure when it changed, but up until the mid 1980s you were jumping at least 3’ or you weren’t going to a rated show.

That meant there were tons of way-less-expensive schooling shows where you got mileage at lower fence heights. At least in my area (Sacramento CA) these were 1 day shows put on by local stables. You tied to your trailer and didn’t braid. In the mid 80s classes were $8 and your trainer fee was $30-50. So, maybe at most $125 a show. You could show almost every weekend if you wanted to, from June to September.

It was a big deal back then to go to a multi-day AHSA rated show at Rancho Murieta, the State Fair Horse Show at Cal Expo, the Golden State Horse Show in Santa Rosa, or to the Cow Palace. I don’t know what the actual ratings on the shows were, A B or C, but between the stall ($75), braiding ($50), entry ($100 per division) and trainer fees, those shows cost $400 to $600 each. (Which, just to put in perspective, was more than my apartment rent.) The classes were usually large, at least 15 horses, and I can remember some lineups which ran from one end of the arena to the other…30 horses or more. Fence heights started at 3’ for hunters and 3’6” for jumpers. I used to do 2-4 rated shows a year. They were the exception, not the rule.

If the show was out of town, a bunch of us would sleep in the tack room or an extra stall. Of course we’d sweep down the walls for black widows first. These accommodations were not considered weird, but fairly common. A lot of us did our own braiding and grooming. As a junior in the late 70s, Thoroughbreds were the mount of choice. I vividly remember being at State Fair waiting to show under the lights. The show facility was located on the backside of the Cal Expo racetrack and the barns were split between show horses and runners. There I was, trying to warm up my former racer in a dimly-lit ring right next to the racetrack WHILE EVENING RACES WERE GOING ON. We could hear the starting gate bell, the horses racing past, the roar of the crowd…oh yes, good times!

.

9 Likes
#6

When I started showing in 1970, I had to show at 3’9" because the horse I was riding was a 2nd Year Green Hunter. That was my first class in a show ring, and I had never even seen a horse show before that (I was 15). The lowest option was 3’6", but that was First Year Green. I was not allowed to ride a “jumper” because they were “crazy”.
That said, we made sure we jumped 4’3" at home to prepare, so that the jumps would not look intimidating.
I have no idea what it cost, as I was lucky enough to have a patron, the woman who owned and bred the Connemara “ponies” (15 hands) that we rode.

2 Likes
#7

I can’t remember how much it cost to show in the 80’s( early 80’s) in FL, but I remember we did a LOT of one day shows. No stalls you just held your horse all day. ( or someone did). They were all on Sundays - and they were a lot of fun. The A rated shows were usually at the Tampa Fairgrounds.

1 Like
#8

I started showing in the 60s, and yes, the lowest height that horses jumped was 3’6". Small ponies jumped 2’6", large ponies jumped 3’ (only 2 pony divisions then.)

There were many fewer divisions in those days, and the thought was that you needed to know how to ride well before you were ready to go to a show. It was something to aspire to–not what you did as soon as you’d trotted over your first cross rail.

The B and C shows offered the same divisions as the As. They were usually smaller shows and sometimes held at less fancy locations. Sometimes they were used as schooling shows in the early spring (because there were no shows held in the winter after the Garden.) If your horse or pony wasn’t competitive at the As, you might also opt for the B or C shows, but you were still going to jump the same heights.

There were simply no “learner” classes in those days. It was assumed that if you were at a horse show, you already were a competent rider–otherwise you’d know you weren’t ready to be there.

8 Likes
#9

I went to my first rated show in the late 60’s. I rode in an equitation class on the flat. I believe it was a C show, held at the place I was taking riding lessons. My experiences in the 60s/70s were pretty much what everyone else has described. No where near the plethora of divisions you see today. First-year green, second-year green, and working hunter. And in the area I lived, almost always over an outside course at fences 3’ or higher.

Show jumping was something done only by really good and really crazy people who could jump around a 4’+ course clean and fast. Way out of my orbit.

2 Likes
#10

In my area of NY, in the 1960s, every hunter and jumper division was 3’6" or higher, whether it was an A, B, or C rated show except for ponies, which were 2’6’ and 3’. No medium or green ponies, just small and large. Some shows had maiden/novice/limit equitation classes, but many did not, just the Medal, Maclay and USET classes. It limited showing to those who had a 3’6" horse, otherwise you had to compete at schooling or unrecognized shows.

There are a lot more divisions than there were in those days, the ammy owner hunter didn’t exist until about the mid 1960s (1964 maybe?), jumpers were green and open, also junior jumpers. I think it was late in the 1960s or early 70s when they created preliminary, intermediate and open jumpers. Don’t forget the first Grand Prix in the US originated about 1965 and even after that big event many shows still didn’t hold a GP, open jumpers were still the highest level at most shows. When you aged out of junior hunters before the AO division, the amateurs competed against the pros. I don’t recall the green and working hunters, and confirmation hunters ever being referred to as “pro divisions” because even though many of the riders were professionals there were always a good number of amateurs competing in those classes as well. And even juniors rode in the green/working/confirmation classes at times.

3 Likes
#11

Like LaurieB said. 3’6 was the norm for horses, and no one thought anything about it. If you showed, that’s what you jumped. 4’ for working at recognized shows-it’s what it was. Footing could be so so-or not. Classes in Virginia could be huge! Sometimes 40 or more in all divisions. But, everyone cheered for and helped each other back then. So many good memories and friends from those days.

2 Likes
#12

I can’t think of any horse shows that used to be “A” shows that have dwindled or died out around where I grew up. But I do know of some shows which were local and were very competitive. I grew up riding in Northern Virginia, and they were:

  1. LCDS Schooling Show
  2. Philomont Horse and Pony Show
  3. Paper Chase (now called something else) had a nice schooling show series as well

There was another main show series that escape my memory, but they were named after the venue which began with an “L”… not Lexington…

What you used to see more of back then were “A” level shows that were still very friendly and affordable enough to ship in. These included:

  1. Warrenton Horse & Pony Show
  2. Loudoun Benefit Horse Show
  3. Deep Run Horse Show
  4. Bull Run Hunt had a nice annual show - was this “A” rated?
  5. Middleburg Classic Horse Show
  6. Upperville (back in the day you could ship in, and they even had a nice Locals division in the main hunter ring)
1 Like
#13

God can you IMAGINE if WEF cut out everything below 3’6" there wouldn’t even be a show! Horses aren’t part of the culture the way they once were, and I’ve only known a handful of amateur riders that would ride around a course at that height. Maybe more could, but they certainly don’t.

3 Likes
#14

Also, at most of the shows in my area the hunters showed over the outside course and some shows even had a separate outside course for ponies!

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#15

Back in the day (1960’s) there were more 1 day shows than multiple day shows. I grew up in the Bedford (NY) /Greenwich (Conn) area, and I can remember some wonderful 1 day shows that the big barns went to, so the competition was tough. “A Day In The Country”, Rombout., The Hill (now it is Old Salem) all had really nice shows. Those are 3 that come to mind, but I went to many more.

I was looking for an old picture in boxes in the attic, and I came across an article in the NY Times that wrote me up for being large pony champion at Rombout. :slight_smile: :slight_smile: :slight_smile: Can you imagine?!?!

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#16

I remember those days. That’s not so easy to do in today’s model where shows have multiple rings. I do miss the unrelated distances and large, sweeping courses of yesteryear as they were really fun to ride. I will say it is far more difficult to ride as precisely in smaller rings to the related distances of today. You are locked into pre-set strides and tight corners. It’s a lot easier to maintain that steady rhythm when you have more area for large corners and great distance between your jumps. I do love a good hunter derby in a field!

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#17

I grew up showing in the 1980s in Fairfield County (CT)/Westchester County (NY) and only went to probably less than 5 “A” shows per year. We held a couple of C shows at our barn and we traveled to Old Salem, Fairfield, Ox Ridge, Twin Lakes, Stepping Stone, Kent School, Boulder Brook and Children’s Services Charity show in Farmington CT. I did equitation so we did not need to do A shows to get points but I can count on two hands how many A shows I did in my entire junior career. I qualified for Medal and Maclay finals and showed at Devon, but again my point is that on a budget, I could ship in to one day shows all year long and only did the A shows as a special occasion. One of the things I loved about the shows we did in our area was that several of them were old shows, on grass even, and we could ship in for the day. They had great trophies and good competition. I can’t recall what they were, I know the one in Wilton is gone now as there are houses there at the showgrounds but there was one in Greenwich I think which may have been run by the pony club there and maybe still going.

Back in the day, the A shows we did were Old Salem in May, Fairfield in June, Children’s Services also in June. Most people went to Lake Placid or Vermont over the summer. The rest of the shows I did were rated B or C. We never had trouble filling the big eq divisions, at any level show, which could have been because we brought a trailer full ourselves but it was just never a concern. Going to an “A” away show was a treat, not a necessity.

I started show at A shows once I was in children’s hunters and the min-medal/mini-maclay, which was available jumping 3’. Local shows had Maiden, Novice and Limit eq as well as a variety of hunters and pleasure classes. I recall doing suitable hunters (2’6" i think) and horse pleasure hunter in the early to mid 1980s.

Now, my daughter has grown up showing in Northern Virginia and Maryland and she shows exclusively at A shows. There is a big VHSA local circuit which is GREAT for getting a start in horse showing, but once you start doing rated, you are only really going to have A rated shows to attend. There are a handful of B shows but they are often not attended well enough to fill medals or divisions. There are some amazing and historic A and AA shows here, such as Upperville, Loudoun, Middleburg Classic, Keswick and then of course the newer circuits at Lexington, the Barracks, McDonogh and PG are great shows too. It is So expensive though to show at these shows, I am actually counting the months before she ages out (as much as I will completely miss it) because as a normal middle class family, we hard pressed to keep up with spending $1500-2000 per show. We do 12 shows per year, one per month, and that is all we will ever be able to do. I wish we could do less A shows and more ship ins, but the fact is that in what she does (junior hunters), she has to do A shows to be able to have a potential for qualifying for junior hunter finals, indoors or Devon.

The net net is that you didn’t HAVE to be rich back in the day to compete. My horse cost $4500 in 1983 and i worked off my board and lessons until my last year when my parents allowed me to focus on showing more and working less. Nowadays, the amount of discretionary funds you must have is way way way more significant.

4 Likes
#18

I dunno…the cost of living in general was lower each decade you go back prior to 2000. Board was less, hay, gas, training was less, salaries were lower. It’s all relative. A shows were always at least twice what a B or C cost local unrated often far less then that.

The biggest changes have been the death of the smaller rated shows under the mileage rule and mega management companies, the urbanization reaching local showgrounds running them out of business and drastic changes in the trainers business model with no small shows filling the gap between crossrails beginners and 3’+. Kind of a chicken or egg question, did the locals disappear first forcing everybody to the rated or the rated start offering non rated heights to attract those who used to go to the locals? Both I suspect. The recession nailed some coffin lids down as well as have skyrocketing liability insurance requirements.

But it’s changed due to multiple factors and isn’t going to return. Everything has gone up from what it was back then, housing, cars, tuition etc. etc.etc. Horses were always a luxury, even when board was $65 and lessons $5.

3 Likes
#19

In those days, the Sunday edition of the NY Times had a section “Horse Show News” - so yes I can believe you were written up for being champion on your pony! Every week there was an article about a show in the tri-state area including a partial listing of the results. You were lucky, the Bedford NY/Greenwich CT area was a wonderfully horsey area.

1 Like
#20

I am quoting my own post because I don’t want to retype it and apparently that is the “fix”.

I will add that by the late ‘80’s/early 90’s the Adult/Children’s divisions at A/AA shows were charged around $100-110 a division and still usually run in one day so you didn’t need a stall, but then the shows started adding on day fees for trailering in which I guess was fair because the grounds can take some abuse from that traffic.

I would also also like to mention that these 3’ divisions were the lowest height for any non-warmup horse class probably until the ‘90’s. In the really early days all you had to do was find 6-8 jumps and not limp in the hack to be champion. You really didn’t need a particularly good jumper or fancy mover—times have changed…

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