Curiosity manly.
How far is your closest event? Furthest event you attend regularly? Average distance/time?
What area are you in?
15 min is closest (runs through 5*— FairHill) and between 30 min to 1.5-2.5 hours for most events (there are about 10-12 that fit in this (a few share venues like NJ Horse Park) and another 2-3 just under 3 hours). There is one that is around 5 hours and a few more just over 3 hours but I don’t regularly go that far as it would require stabling…when I can basically run entire seasons through Intermediate with no stabling. Area II…it is why I moved to Area II (besides also finding good work in my career).
I have 3 event venues within an hour (Tryon). River Glen is 2. Aiken is 3 hours. Everything else I go to is 4 (Virginia, Carolina, Kentucky).
5 minutes to three venues. 30 to another and 1 hr to another. But I travel 4-12 hrs for upper level events the rest of the year
20 minutes for the closest. Then 8 hours (KC MO) then 17 to Rebecca or Los Angeles or Dallas. 24 hours to the East Coast. Area IX.
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Area 2-- 30 minutes to Olney (recognized and unrecognized Modified and below). Fair Hill is 40 minutes and off the top of my head Seneca, Marlborough, MCTA, MD HT, Waredaca, Bucks County, Radnor, Morven, Flora Lea, NJHT, CDCTA, Loudoun, Hunt Club, and Full Moon are all recognized events within 1.5- 2.5 hours. (Plus most of them also run lower level unrecognized events). I am only doing unrecognized events now but when I did recognized I typically did what BFNE describes-- got up at 3 a.m. and hauled to almost all of them at some point and competed and went home. I couldn’t afford to compete if I had to pay for stabling and figure out how to get the horses and animals at home taken care of-- that’s a maybe once a year treat to go overnight.
Envious of all of you Area IIers…
I’m in Area I, and the closest recognized is an hour minimum. Furthest is probably 6 hours. I don’t do anything over two unless I can stable over night, and even then I usually opt for venues closer than add costs (and stress) of stabling. Mine are all out 24/7 and survive if they’re stalled but much prefer day trips.
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& I’m envious of you! my closest event is 4 hours away - I consider a “regular” event to be under 7 hours, but will travel up to 11 - more than that I try to combine it with training & go a week early.
So I’m technically in Area II, but I’m not actually close to anything. There is a schooling event about 3 hours from here that’s held 1x/year, but other than that, you’re looking at a 4+ hour drive to go anywhere, even just to go schooling. It’s the big reason I gave up eventing. The distance/driving/hours just go to schooling XC, let alone to compete, sucked all the fun out of it for me. I was too exhausted to enjoy it, and the distance just to school made our experiences few and far between.
Some people probably think I’m being a big wimpy baby because it’s “only four hours” to get places, but I’m sorry not sorry I just don’t want to do it.
I feel your pain. That’s why I gave up the idea of competing years ago. Minimum 4 hours to anything - event, dressage show, … and those are getting fewer and further between. Don’t even know what region I’m in at this point. The time and travel expense made it a chore not an enjoyment. So I spent the $$$ on building a very nice farm w/ indoor arena and I can have fun everyday, right out my back door.
And people (who don’t ride mostly) ask me why I don’t show. There are soooo many other ways to enjoy my horses.
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For sure. I’m very lucky we finally have our own truck and trailer, so I decided to try show jumping instead because I can do that at home vs having to haul somewhere to school like I would with XC, and I have a lot more options much closer to home. Swan Lake is 2.5 hours from me, and we have an A-rated show that runs for 2 weeks every year about 15 minutes from the barn. There are a lot of other options in the 1-2 hour range, but Covid really limited where we were able to go for this season.
I’m having a lot more fun doing the jumpers, it’s so much less stress and travel, much less to think about too. I miss eventing every single day though (just not the time/travel), hopefully someday I’ll live in an area with a lot of opportunities close by!
Who says “only four hours”?!?! People must have all the time in the world if they think that!!!
I am only just beginning to event again after 10 years and moving countries. I used to live in Christchurch NZ, and there were a lot of pony club events near by but only one event nationally recognised. I now live in NSW, Australia, and have entered my first event in a week and a half!!! There’s one event about 45 minutes from me (Sydney International Equestrian Centre) and when I say me I mean where I agist my horses (and I live about 20 minutes from them). There’s another one a little over an hour away and another one just under 2 hours. Other than that I’m not sure where the other events are yet!!! As I’m only competing very low level currently these are probably the only three venues I’ll go to. I wouldn’t want to travel much further than 2-3 hours, unless I was able to get time off work so I could use those days to travel (there are events in my area I think up to about 6 hours away).
Well, our closest event that is in our area is 500±miles away. We commonly travel 700-900 miles one way. My family is currently 2,400 miles from home for some fall events. Area 7
Area vi: closest event is 2 hours. We routinely travel 5-6 hours to other venues. Occasionally go 12 to 20 hours away for destination events.
UK, so brace yourself …
Competing at 90cm - 110cm National BE then within a 60 minute drive I have about 10 events. Within 2 hours too many to count and could compete every week, often multiple location, through the season.
FEI - at least 10 events within 2 hours.
It would have to be a very special event or an MER run that would mean I’d actively need to travel further
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Four hours drive is never an only in my world. (And I live in a world where most of the horse things I do require an hour drive for me.)
Another in area 2. I have plenty to do within 1/2 hour - 1.5 hours drive. This year I’ve been focusing on high quality XC schooling opportunities. It’s all the fun at 1/4 of the cost. I recently schooled at Seneca Valley and CDCTA.
Area VIII. Recognized, I have two events at the same location (HHP) ~1 hr (though only one ran this year), one just over 2 hrs, and the rest are an average 3-4 hrs or 7hrs+. Unrecognized there are a handful ~ 1 hr, but most in the 2-3 hr range. It is almost unheard of for recognized in Area VIII to have a one day event or not need stabling unless you are local (like those that live in Lexington and events at the KHP). Even access to schooling xc courses around here is usually a bit of a haul and a whole day affair, especially if you need to school anything more than Training level!
I am in Area II. There are a couple of recognized events that are just under an hour, but they run in the middle of the summer and i am a wimp about the heat, so I rarely compete there. There are at least 7 facilities with recognized events (and often unrecognized as well) within an hour and a half that I DO go to on a regular basis. These event may run over one or two days, but each specific division typically runs within one day. So one LONG day, but no need to stable or stay overnight.
I will occasionally go to an event that is 2-3 hour away, and thus requires stabling.
Thanks for schooling at CDCTA. We had a record turnout this year!
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