New Idea from the USDF - Schooling Show Regional Rankings/Awards

[Guyot]

So this is something I’ve been curious about. In Eventing,beginner novice thru prelim is only governed by USEA until you enter prelim CCI and up, you don’t need a membership to USEF. So everything is kept completely within USEA, which keep costs down.

Why does USDF allow the USEF so much control and influence to its lower level members…?? Quite honestly it appear to (perhaps uninformed) me that USDF let’s USEF do all the work and they collect $$.

USDF offers some benefits that help a small handful of people and requires those said people to jump thru hoops and pay more for those benefits. Sort of like a think tank that needs funding.

What exactly does USDF do? Quite honestly I can’t figure it out. And it’s not like my students and I are not showing at all levels, because we are, but it seems that everything USDF offers, we the competitors have to summit and pay again…like awards. I mean they don’t even keep all the competitions located in one place! Recognized shows don’t HAVE to have their show listed in the online omnibus. WTH!

So badly run for a sport. And when I ask others who have been doing Dressage for a long time… I get “but it’s So Much Better then it was…” like that’s a reason to accept mediocrity!

[Belowthesalt]

USDF Year end awards, etc. I just LMAO when I realized that while I had scores for “Masters’ Challenge” awards at TL, 1st Level and 2nd Level, if I wanted the “award” I had to PAY for it. Really? I spend tons showing, get the scores (all the scores on two different horsesk, i.e., complete scores through those levels for each horse), but to get a piece of paper and maybe a thumbnail pic in the yearbook, I have to pay? No thanks. It isn’t an award if I have to PAY to get it.

[kcmel]

As an option it might be fun. Our GMO only lets you win EOY champ once per division, so if you are maxed out at a level it would give you an opportunity to try for another award.

For me, it would depend on the cost and location of regionals. Although since I am primarily an eventer by trade, I rarely do 5 schooling shows a year anyway.

[Mardi]

Always thought the purpose of a schooling show was to be able to practice in a low key, casual competition environment. To be able to make mistakes and try new things in a safe environment. Bring in year end awards, and the purpose disappears. Why aspire to ride better and compete in rated horse shows when you can be Schooling Show Champion of 2019 ?

[Cowgirl]

@Guyot

So this is something I’ve been curious about. In Eventing,beginner novice thru prelim is only governed by USEA until you enter prelim CCI and up, you don’t need a membership to USEF. So everything is kept completely within USEA, which keep costs down.

Why does USDF allow the USEF so much control and influence to its lower level members…?? Quite honestly it appear to (perhaps uninformed) me that USDF let’s USEF do all the work and they collect $$.

USDF offers some benefits that help a small handful of people and requires those said people to jump thru hoops and pay more for those benefits. Sort of like a think tank that needs funding.

What exactly does USDF do? Quite honestly I can’t figure it out. And it’s not like my students and I are not showing at all levels, because we are, but it seems that everything USDF offers, we the competitors have to summit and pay again…like awards. I mean they don’t even keep all the competitions located in one place! Recognized shows don’t HAVE to have their show listed in the online omnibus. WTH!

So badly run for a sport. And when I ask others who have been doing Dressage for a long time… I get “but it’s So Much Better then it was…” like that’s a reason to accept mediocrity!

Well said and they can’t pick my pockets if I just enjoy riding dressage in my own back yard.

[kcmel]

@Mardi

Always thought the purpose of a schooling show was to be able to practice in a low key, casual competition environment. To be able to make mistakes and try new things in a safe environment. Bring in year end awards, and the purpose disappears. Why aspire to ride better and compete in rated horse shows when you can be Schooling Show Champion of 2019 ?

Not necessarily. A lot of people can’t afford to do a lot of rated shows. I can do about 3 schooling shows for the cost of 1 rated show at the same local venue. So if you show just for fun at the lower levels, and have good local schooling show series with competent judges, many don’t have the desire to do rated shows, or maybe only do one every year or 2.

I think this is especially true for those of us who have less fancy (i.e., affordable) horses–those 6 movers we were discussing in the other thread.

[ThreeFigs]

I just skimmed the responses to this thread, so maybe someone has already covered this. I can imagine some people opting for the “schooling show circuit” as a way to win “major awards” in the kiddie pool. (NOT dissing the folks who do schooling shows – I’ve done plenty prepping my youngsters for the bigger shows.) I fear some people will decide to stay in the schooling shows rather than move on. That would ruin the idea for the good folks who are showing their backyard horses on limited budgets. Sorta like Carl Hester turning up at the local club show…

[ladyj79]

Carl Hester does go to local club shows :lol::lol: he talked about it in an interview relatively recently.

[MsM]

Kind of a no-win for USDF. People complain that they don’t do anything for the riders with limited horses and budgets. Many complain about the recognized show fees and costs. So USDF suggests a program to help schooling show riders gain some recognition. “No! Don’t touch our schooling shows!”

[Manni01]

@MsM

Kind of a no-win for USDF. People complain that they don’t do anything for the riders with limited horses and budgets. Many complain about the recognized show fees and costs. So USDF suggests a program to help schooling show riders gain some recognition. “No! Don’t touch our schooling shows!”

I hope you are kidding… USDF raised show fees in a way to make it prohibitive for average people… that’s ok… they obviously only want to serve rich people…
Average people have the only option to get a show experience in schooling shows of course without recognized scores… and now USDF wants to get their share of the money of those people again who they knocked out from recognized shows??

Wouldn’t it be easier to get the money from average people by not excluding them from rated shows first and then taking it from them again? For me it’s ridiculous already that USDF gets most of the membership fee I pay to my GMO already and then requiring me to pay a second fee to them…
Sorry I don’t have any Empathy for USDF

[js]

@ThreeFigs

I just skimmed the responses to this thread, so maybe someone has already covered this. I can imagine some people opting for the “schooling show circuit” as a way to win “major awards” in the kiddie pool. (NOT dissing the folks who do schooling shows – I’ve done plenty prepping my youngsters for the bigger shows.) I fear some people will decide to stay in the schooling shows rather than move on. That would ruin the idea for the good folks who are showing their backyard horses on limited budgets. Sorta like Carl Hester turning up at the local club show…

This ^^^ exactly.

[pluvinel]

@MsM

Kind of a no-win for USDF. People complain that they don’t do anything for the riders with limited horses and budgets. Many complain about the recognized show fees and costs. So USDF suggests a program to help schooling show riders gain some recognition. “No! Don’t touch our schooling shows!”

Help the schooling show riders???..surely you jest.

Schooling shows are growing. Recognized shows are shrinking…

'Splain to me again what “help” do schooling shows need?

This is strictly a money grab by USDF.

The USDF built their bed…let them lay in it.

[Manni01]

@ladyj79

Carl Hester does go to local club shows :lol::lol: he talked about it in an interview relatively recently.

But he is for sure not doing it because he cannot afford rated shows… I think it’s weird how the original idea of schooling shows is abused in the US because of greed…
I have no idea how people can justify to tell people show only in schooling shows because they cannot afford rated shows… sure having horses is expensive but what in the hell justifies that the cost of showing are more expensive then keeping horses… something is seriously going wrong there…

[ladyj79]

I don’t think schooling shows are abused in the US. I think our national federation shows are completely out of whack pricewise with those of other nations and for no good reason whatsoever, unless the good reason is to exclude people based on socioeconomics, ie the desire to be perceived as more elite. I said before the USEF likes to think it’s the FEI, rather than simply a national federation.

[Manni01]

@ladyj79

I don’t think schooling shows are abused in the US. I think our national federation shows are completely out of whack pricewise with those of other nations and for no good reason whatsoever, unless the good reason is to exclude people based on socioeconomics, ie the desire to be perceived as more elite. I said before the USEF likes to think it’s the FEI, rather than simply a national federation.

Sorry, maybe I wasn’t able to express correctly what I think to be abuse… I like some others here always looked at schooling shows as a chance to either get experience as a rider or getting experience for my horse… I think they are great to gain experience and confidence.
And if people decide to ride schooling shows forever that’s fine. I love our schooling shows! We always have a nice venue and great judges!

But what I consider an abuse of this idea is when people tell you “if you cannot afford to show rated just show in schooling shows. There you can also compete for end of year awards!” (And they do that a lot of times here at this board).

I am pretty sure that the idea of schooling shows originally was not to be a dump for riders who are not rich… I looked into the USDF magazine today which celebrated the 45 anniversary of USDF. And out of curiousity I looked up the nice original sources of the beginnings of USDF. And somehow I could not find the idea that rated shows are for the rich and schooling shows are for the poor…

[ladyj79]

Manni, I’m agreeing with you I really don’t want USDF screwing up anything else because they’re running off membership seemingly by design…and yet we should all still pay for memberships and volunteer at their shows :lol:

[pluvinel]

@Manni01

…
I have no idea how people can justify to tell people show only in schooling shows because they cannot afford rated shows… …

Manni…No one is saying to show in schooling shows because they can’t afford rated. Rated and schooling have two different objectives.

I have shown both rated and schooling. My “rated show” cost me about $2k for a weekend with stalls for 2 horses, tack stall, groom, fuel, and hotel fees.

The reason I show “schooling shows” is that they are nearby, I don’t have to submit a ream of paperwork (this is most important), I can do it on spur of the moment, and it is a much simpler effort to get a horse to get exposure to the excitement of a show environment.

So, don’t conflate the two.

This effort by USDF is a land grab by USDF.

If the USDF want to record a rider’s achievement at a schooling show…then they (USDF) can just simply record the achievement…paid for by the person who wants the record.

But don’t put that on the general membership.

[Manni01]

@pluvinel

Manni…No one is saying to show in schooling shows because they can’t afford rated. Rated and schooling have two different objectives.

I have shown both rated and schooling. My “rated show” cost me about $2k for a weekend with stalls for 2 horses, tack stall, groom, fuel, and hotel fees.

The reason I show “schooling shows” is that they are nearby, I don’t have to submit a ream of paperwork (this is most important), I can do it on spur of the moment, and it is a much simpler effort to get a horse to get exposure to the excitement of a show environment.

So, don’t conflate the two.

This effort by USDF is a land grab by USDF.

If the USDF want to record a rider’s achievement at a schooling show…then they (USDF) can just simply record the achievement…paid for by the person who wants the record.

But don’t put that on the general membership.

Sure? I know there are user here who tell you that nobody has a right to be able to show rated and that they can always show in schooling shows… I have seen it several times that schooling shows are praised as an affordable alternative to show…

[lorilu]

@Mardi

Always thought the purpose of a schooling show was to be able to practice in a low key, casual competition environment. To be able to make mistakes and try new things in a safe environment. Bring in year end awards, and the purpose disappears. Why aspire to ride better and compete in rated horse shows when you can be Schooling Show Champion of 2019 ?

Our GMO offers year end awards. The program is very popular with our members and the requirements are not easy. Most of the Champions do not show recognized shows for various reasons. It’s nice to be rewarded for your efforts even if you are not a player at the recognized show levels.

[lorilu]

@pluvinel

…paid for by the person who wants the record.

But don’t put that on the general membership.

None of the cost will be put on the general membership.