New Tack Inspection Rule

[Jump314]

This COTH article contains this information:

"At the Competition Open Forum, the committee discussed the newly implemented USEF rule DR.126, which went into effect on Dec. 1. It requires a competition’s technical delegates to visually check bits and bridles of 50% of the horses entered in competition by walking through the stables and examining equipment. At Level 1-3 shows, this new procedure will eliminate the need for equipment checkers to use their fingers to assess the legality of the bit in the horse’s mouth. At Levels 4-5, officials will go into the mouths of horses to check equipment.

Lisa Gorretta, co-chair of the U.S. Equestrian Federation Dressage Sport Committee, explained that the difficulty of finding enough licensed officials to check equipment and concern for the safety of checkers who have to use fingers to check bits inside the horse’s mouth as the impetus for the rule change. A show’s individual competition management and technical delegates will be provided with procedure sheets to decide how they will manage the equipment checks, and they are expected to send out that information to competitors."

The actual rule doesn’t mention anything about the TD going into the stabling so I wonder how this will work. Couldn’t someone just switch the bit from whatever they had on their tack hook to something else…?

[Bogey2]

Well this should go well…LOL

[outerbanks77]

Lots of us show out of our trailers around here.

[Jump314]

I show out of my trailer a lot too. There is a one-day recognized show that I go to, Meadow Lake in Kentucky, where almost everyone shows from trailers instead of stabling.

[fivestrideline]

So… hide your illegal mouthpiece in your truck and do a sneaky swap at tack up time?

I’m sympathetic to the difficulty in getting officials. That pinch is being felt everywhere. This solution seems… naive.

[rogueknits]

Yeah I don’t see how this is going to work. My last show we literally trailered in an hour before my test, got my number, and were warming up 30 minutes later. Without having someone permanently stationed in the trailer parking to catch people as they enter I don’t know how they can do tack checks. And only checking people who stable at the show wouldn’t be fair.

[K_VanOlst]

@fivestrideline

So… hide your illegal mouthpiece in your truck and do a sneaky swap at tack up time?

Easier than that, just have a cheap bridle with the dressage legal bit and another bridle with something else hanging in your trailer TD shows up, hand them the dressage legal bridle. Tack up to go show, use the other one. I doubt the TD will remember specifics of each competitors bridles.

Disclaimer: I would never do this, I don’t even ride in non-dressage legal bits because I don’t want to hassle with changing things up to show.

This just seems… Idiotic to me. But then many of the rules do also not thrilled to get hit with another fee increase.

[beowulf]

At the risk of total naivete – why not just require the horse’s bridle to be pulled after the test, when the rider dismounts?

[lorilu]

1. safety 2. I dont know about you, but I prefer to RIDE back to the barn, not walk…

[Mouse_amp_Bay]

Temp stall, pull bridle and put on halter. If everything is ok, you are free to go.

Quicker than a drug check; no need to touch anything. Horse can’t escape as in temporary stall??

[beowulf]

I hear you on the concern for safety. If you can’t safely bridle and unbridle your horse, does it belong at a show putting others at risk?

I like the idea of a temp set-up adjacent to the ring. I could see this being done very easily with panels, even.

[netg]

@K_VanOlst

Easier than that, just have a cheap bridle with the dressage legal bit and another bridle with something else hanging in your trailer TD shows up, hand them the dressage legal bridle. Tack up to go show, use the other one. I doubt the TD will remember specifics of each competitors bridles.

Disclaimer: I would never do this, I don’t even ride in non-dressage legal bits because I don’t want to hassle with changing things up to show.

This just seems… Idiotic to me. But then many of the rules do also not thrilled to get hit with another fee increase.

It’s as if they doubled down on the horribly written rules around tack and make it even worse.

[NWreader]

Would everyone be required to leave their tack out all day? I store mine in my locked truck or trailer and only bring it out to ride…

[tarheelmd07]

Am I then only allowed to bring dressage legal tack to shows? What if my horse’s jump bridle is also in the trailer/trunk? What if I keep an assortment of bits in the trailer for jumping/hunting?

[Bogey2]

What is the purpose of the rule? Why the need to check 50%? How often have they found illegal bits? Sounds like they are reacting to the minority at the risk of the majority being inconvenienced

[JenEM]

I think there are a couple shows here that are trailer-in only, no stabling at all. Not sure how on earth a TD is supposed to stay on top of checking tack in that circumstance, and do anything else.

It also does raise the question others have asked–what if I have other tack in the trailer? I generally have a spare everything, including a couple spare bits that may or may not be dressage legal but are perfectly normal bits (ie, a French link). But how does the person that probably hasn’t seen the horse showing because they’ve been stuck inspecting the trailers all day, KNOW that the sewn-in flat pelham bridle that’s also living in the trailer really is just for sidesaddle appointments at hunter shows, and not something I illegally schooled/showed in? I don’t want to have to clean out my dressing room every time I go to a show! (Though maybe it is overdue for a clean out…)

[SillyHorse]

LOL Anyone want to start a pool to guess how long before they backpedal on this one?

[Montanas_Girl]

@beowulf

At the risk of total naivete – why not just require the horse’s bridle to be pulled after the test, when the rider dismounts?

The Western world does this all the time. Either in the ring (in rail classes) or at the out gate (in individual classes) most commonly. Exhibitors drop the bit for inspection, rebridle, and continue on. About half the riders don’t even bother to dismount - the perks of well broke horses. But even with young/green horses, as long as the reins are still around the horse’s neck, it should be obedient enough to stay put for the less than 30 seconds that this procedure takes. Otherwise, I, too, question what that horse is doing out and about…But, a stall close to the show ring is also an easy option. Arabian SHN provided that for people who needed to swap bridles quickly between their SHIH goes (hunter vs dressage type) this year. As far as I know, it worked well.

Checking tack stalls sounds like a logistical nightmare to me for all the reasons already discussed.

[sascha]

@beowulf

If you can’t safely bridle and unbridle your horse, does it belong at a show putting others at risk?

I own one of the most trustworthy little nutjobs who loves to teach her younger friends the ropes about manners and going places. I 100% would not bridle or unbridle her in the open at a show. Absolutely not. Very nearly learnt that lesson the hard way.

There are some triggers (for mine it’s the excitement of being amidst so many new friends) that not all horses can get over.

Imo, the risk would land squarely on the show if they didn’t provide a safe enclosed space (like a drug testing stall) or were not willing to send the tack checker back to the horse’s stall or trailer.

Expecting all horses to be perfect in all aspects would be naive and ridiculous.

[Bogey2]

I agree…as calm as my horse is if another horse acts up he may get distracted. I personally don’t want a “dead broke horse” for dressage.