How many horses at an IHSA show?

[541hunter]

Hey current and past IHSA members! I’m helping my old team put on a show in February and I’m curious - how many horses total do/did you get together for your shows? What is your breakdown between flat-only and O/F horses? I can’t for the life of me remember how many we used to get.

I want to try to find enough so that we can use them fairly lightly - say, 2 or 3 over fences rounds depending on height and 2 flats if they’re jumping, 3 if not. Obviously it’s very dependent on how many riders there are in the region this year, class breakdowns, etc., but I thought I’d see how you all do it!

[Toaster]

Always have more than you need planning to come, someone is guaranteed go lame or lose their marbles and get dismissed. We had 30 horses for about 180 rides, most went 6 times with a couple doing more and a couple doing less. Would loved to have more horses but it is very difficult to find that many IHSA suitable horses, the horses got a well deserved few day break after the ordeal of hosting.

[To_the_MAX]

I seem to remember having somewhere in the vicinity of 30-35 horses.

[brooksbaby]

It completely depends how many schools are in your region and how many riders each from those schools. Are you going to limit entries? My region was on the smaller side and would usually allow between 9-12 over fence entries and 12-16 flat entries (we usually limited entries per class too so no more than 3 or 4 per class). It would usually be 6-8 per over fences division (plus alternates) and then 6-10 on the flat. Obviously best case scenario is no need to limit rides and have enough horses for all the riders that want to show. If you don’t know how many riders from each, I would contact the other schools and see how many they anticipate bringing

[Tackpud]

Just did 103 rides using 22 horses. Entries were very limited so it was small. I try for no more than 4 over fences per horse or 5-6 flat per horse. Usually keep flat and fences horses separate. If they have to do both the. It’s no more than 2 jump and 3 flat total. Always err on the side of too many horses and fewer rides.

[spade]

I always preferred to have a minimum of 35. It’s better for the horses and helps run classes quicker, especially on the flat.

[comeoutandplay]

Ask captains from other schools in your region how many rides they had and how many horses they used. They are definitely your best resource. I would take the number of rides you’re expecting, divide by 4, and add 3-5 to that number ideally.

[541hunter]

Thanks for all the help guys! It sounds like the numbers you all are putting out are pretty close to what I’m planning - we’re a smaller region but we have way fewer shows than most areas, so it’s hard to get points. I’m hoping to not have to limit entries if possible, but I guess we’ll have to see how things shake out with the horses.