Number of classes in a day

[tohorse]

I’m new to North American show jumping / hunters and have been seeing some horses with show records of 4-5 classes in what looks like a given day? Is that the norm or am I just not reading these records properly and these are really multi-day shows?

Asking because back where I was competing we would do no more than 2 in a day in a progressive sequence - say 1.10 for warm up and then 1.20 or so for each horse. If it was a multi day international event it would be 1 class per day per horse. One or two classes was so standard I’m not even sure any more than 2 was allowed. The one exception would be a pony on the leadline that many kids cruised on through their walk-trot-crossrail class.

[trubandloki]

@bingbingbing

I was researching a trainer (mid west) and was looking up the results of horses she was the trainer of on USEF. One horse did 28 classes at one show with 24 of them being over fences. Two weeks before the horse did 20 classes with 15 of them OF. They were not huge jumps. But holy crap, it was multiple riders and this was all done in five days. It was not uncommon for other horses she trained or showed herself to do 12-15 classes with with 10-13 of those OF.

I believe that there should be some sort of limit to the number of classes a horse can do at one show.

15 over fence classes over five days equals three courses per day.
That is less than most lesson horses do each day.

I have not done a hunter show in many years, but three courses per day does not seem like something that should cause so much exasperation. (Before you pounce on me, my horse never did this much.)

[bingbingbing]

@trubandloki

15 over fence classes over five days equals three courses per day.
That is less than most lesson horses do each day.

I have not done a hunter show in many years, but three courses per day does not seem like something that should cause so much exasperation. (Before you pounce on me, my horse never did this much.)

I am not pouncing, but the horse did 24 OF classes in five days, that is almost five OF classes a day. That does not include warm up, 4 flat classes and whatever prep it had done to get to the ring and then there is always a lot of time standing down at the ring. That is an awful lot.

[vxf111]

@trubandloki

15 over fence classes over five days equals three courses per day.
That is less than most lesson horses do each day.

I have not done a hunter show in many years, but three courses per day does not seem like something that should cause so much exasperation. (Before you pounce on me, my horse never did this much.)

Yeah but lesson horses are rarely jumping full courses at 3’6 and that doesn’t account for the additional stresses causes by being at a show (warming up, trailering, waiting for your turn to go, lack of turnout, etc.) That much jumping at that level at a show is really a tremendous amount of work for a horse It’s not really the same as doing lessons at home over low fences. Which is not to say lesson horses don’t work hard, they do. It’s just not comparable. What @kenyarider is describing is a truly outrageous amount to expect a horse to do regularly and stay sound.

[Scribbler]

We’ve had many threads on here from folks complaining that they can’t find a lesson barn that lets them progress above two foot six on school horses, and that above that they need to get into leasing or owning.

I doubt there are many lesson horses out there that regularly jump 3 feet, let alone in multiple lessons on one day. Also it’s rare that a jumping lesson includes a full course.

[trubandloki]

@vxf111

Yeah but lesson horses are rarely jumping full courses at 3’6 and that doesn’t account for the additional stresses causes by being at a show (warming up, trailering, waiting for your turn to go, lack of turnout, etc.) That much jumping at that level at a show is really a tremendous amount of work for a horse It’s not really the same as doing lessons at home over low fences. Which is not to say lesson horses don’t work hard, they do. It’s just not comparable. What @kenyarider is describing is a truly outrageous amount to expect a horse to do regularly and stay sound.

The person I quoted does not ever say that the horses were doing 3’6", so I did not make that leap that every horse they found that did that many courses was doing higher jumps instead of doing some low stuff.

For the record, I too frown on over working horses. I was just pointing out that other horses do more, or at least as much, every day of their life.

[GoodTimes]

I used to ride with a trainer who had immigrated to Canada from Switzerland. Initially he was appalled at the number of classes that horses were doing until he actually went to some shows and realized it wasn’t as taxing on the horses compared to what he was imagining.

A huge part of how much a horse works at a show is dependent on their prep/warm up. Both of my geldings have been there, done that. We usually walk to the ring, flat for 10-15 minutes to warm up, trot a crossrail, jump a vertical and an oxer off each rein, go into the ring and show back to back hunter trips. The undersaddle might last 10 minutes, usually less. One gelding isn’t a great mover so we don’t always do the u/s.
At most I’m on the horse for an hour, usually it’s more like 30 minutes. They typically don’t even break a sweat. It’s less work than they do at home. Fewer jumps than an average lesson.

The green beans may require some schooling classes, a longer warm up, or a lunge in the morning to get the bucks out.

Definitely fewer classes/day in the jumper ring. Trips are rarely, if ever, back to back, which requires additional warm ups. Courses are longer. If it isn’t an immediate jump off than that’s another warm up. The speed, twists and turns are also more strenuous than a simple hunter course. Our trainer usually lets jumpers do 2-3 classes/day over a weekend show, or 1-2 classes per day for a week long show when the jumps are under 1.10m. Anything higher and they’re usually only doing 1 class/day or less.

There will always be exceptions, a bad horseman is a bad horseman (or woman). If they’ve consistently got horses showing 5+ trips/day for weeks on end, then there’s probably a whack of other issues as well.
Any trainer that I’ve worked for or ridden with is careful about the number of classes per day, and isn’t afraid to scratch if needed. They typically try to save their good horses as they get older, ie just showing in special classes or at their favourite facilities.
Current trainer actually kicked someone out last year because the owner was always pushing to do more and more classes. Trainer didn’t want to be associated with them, or the inevitable break down.

One facility in Ontario hosts A shows and over the last few years has started hosting a few B level shows as well. Sometimes they have everyone pay a flat rate, but they limit the number of classes that you can enter.

[worth_the_wait08]

Our local show association limits a horse to 7 o/f classes per day (2 day shows). People are pretty good at sticking to this, and as they’re local shows, there’s not much beyond 3’ anyway.