USEF shows continuing despite statewide shutdowns?

[BlackTieOptional]

Hi all. I am in PA and our whole state has been put back in “pause” for COVID numbers being out of control - until Jan 4th there are to be no gatherings more than 10 people inside and 50 people outside, per the Gov and the DOH. Yet, I have heard some rumors of USEF rated shows in the state apparently just forging ahead the next couple of weekends despite the order- how does this work? I thought according to the COVID action plan that shows had to follow state/local restrictions - whatever is more strict. Just curious if there’s been an instance of this happening in other locations and if USEF actually intervened.

Edited to add that the show is to take place inside so surely the 10 people rule will not be able to be followed earnestly.

[clanter]

Maximum Occupancy Calculator for indoor events:
if at at an indoor arena the limits could be fairly high,even a small event center with a capitcity of 200 could have 200 people attending

Maximum Occupancy	Allowable Indoor Rate
0 – 2,000 people	10% of Maximum Occupancy
2,001 – 10,000 people	5% of Maximum Occupancy
Over 10,000 people	No events over 500 people

As COVID-19 Cases Reach Critical Levels, Wolf Admin Announces New Mitigation...

[BlackTieOptional]

Those are not the newest orders - he released new ones as of December 10th - link here.

[ghst13]

Maybe they are operating under the professional sports provision? A whole industry has developed in interpreting how these orders apply to different types of businesses. You could always ask the show organizer what provision they are operating under.

[Trekkie]

I think sporting events are exempted from the gathering rule for participants in most places

[BlackTieOptional]

I certainly could, you’re right, though I have no intention of going to the competition in question, was more just curious if other states that have begun shutting back down had experienced resistance from shows and if USEF had intervened. Funnily enough, several local unrated shows immediately cancelled due to the order when it came out. It seems pretty disingenuous to have a full rated show with many amateur divisions and operate under the “professional sports” provision but that’s just my opinion. The PA order also pretty clearly states that all K-12 sports, school or recreational, are not to be permitted at this time which again runs counter to having a show.

[ghst13]

It seems pretty hit or miss how shows are reacting. Some have cancelled as new restrictions went into effect and others don’t even seem to acknowledge that there are any changes. I haven’t seen much communication from USEF other than extending some of the rule modifications into the new competition year.

[MHM]

Didn’t all the shows shut down in New Jersey? That was my impression from the Zone 2 committee Zoom a week or two ago.

[BlackTieOptional]

Yeah that is my experience too, though I find it funny that local shows in my area seem to be much more sensitive to the regulations and those with the oversight of USEF/USHJA do not seem to be shutting down (at least nothing on their website or social media and no mention of regulations changing, etc.). Given the changed restrictions, I would at least hope/expect to see an announcement from show facilities/management indicating to their participants that they are aware of the new guidelines and that they have permission to hold the event if that is the case. Not even saying anything at all makes me feel like they may not even know somehow about the restrictions? What do I know. I have been to a couple small local shows since this all began over the summer but I was showing early in the day and could show off of the trailer and go without needing to be inside anywhere on a show ground, and it was also not explicitly against the state guidelines at the time so I felt comfortable enough. I will not be going to any until the restrictions are lifted and the numbers go down, things are crazy in PA right now.

[Tha_Ridge]

@MHM

Didn’t all the shows shut down in New Jersey? That was my impression from the Zone 2 committee Zoom a week or two ago.

There have definitely been a few shows running within the past few weeks.

[MHM]

Interesting. Were they USEF shows? Or unrecognized?

[LSBC]

I’ve been thinking about this a lot - if K-12 sports are not to compete, how is it legal to have a horse show? It makes no sense to me.

[trubandloki]

@LSBC

I’ve been thinking about this a lot - if K-12 sports are not to compete, how is it legal to have a horse show? It makes no sense to me.

Are all K-12 sports not competing where you are?
I understand (from friend’s Facebook posts) that many of the individual type sports are happening here. Like cross country running.

In theory riding is not a contact sport like most of the k-12 sports are.

(For the record, I do not agree with the whole holding horse shows while everything else is shut down. I am just discussing the comparison to k-12 sports.)

[BlackTieOptional]

I can only speak to PA, but in the order that started December 13th and expires January 4th (see link upthread) all K-12 sports whether they are school related or recreational are suspended yes. The idea is to prevent these group activities from happening during a time when many people are gathering with families for the holidays…it’s not like they have said no horse shows for an indefinite period of time. To me this is more than reasonable given how many people are traveling and having gatherings regardless of the risk. Of course I am not sure how much enforcement is actually happening but it’s for 3 weeks!! My husband and I are both from out of state (though within driving distance) and stayed put for Thanksgiving and now Christmas…it sucks but we both have parents over 60 and pre-existing conditions.

Edited to add that yes NFL and college teams under the “professional sports” provision are still playing but in the case of the NFL are also extensively testing all members of the organization each day (and paying for it)…pretty sure given how backed up testing is in my area few are getting tested before or after attending a horse show. I do not think an event with many amateur athletes also participating should be in the exception same class given the testing constraints, but that’s just my opinion.

[MHM]

@trubandloki

@LSBC

I’ve been thinking about this a lot - if K-12 sports are not to compete, how is it legal to have a horse show? It makes no sense to me.

Are all K-12 sports not competing where you are?
I understand (from friend’s Facebook posts) that many of the individual type sports are happening here. Like cross country running.

In theory riding is not a contact sport like most of the k-12 sports are.

While riding is not a contact sport in theory, anyone who has seen a bunch of kids piled in a golf cart or on a tack trunk knows that they are often in close quarters when they are not actually on a horse.

It’s a tough situation for everybody, for sure.

[LSBC]

All sports are canceled where I am.

Riding outside was fine, but now that it’s cold we have to work hard to not overload our indoor. I wonder about the shows being held indoors, what they are doing to limit the amount of people in the ring/barn/entire area…

[furlong47]

A big part of the problem is that there is no enforcement of the shutdown - I know of many restaurants operating indoor dining in blatant violation. I happened to drive by one of them the other day and the parking lot was PACKED. If nobody with any authority is doing anything about that, it’s likely that nobody is going to notice a horse show out in the country somewhere. There are other private sports organizations still continuing that should not be - I see a FB friend whose kid is attending large group practices and traveling all over the place to wrestling tournaments. The difference between what is shutting down and what isn’t relies almost entirely on the personal attitudes of the business owner.

[BlackTieOptional]

I absolutely agree which is part of the reason I made this thread in the first place, out of curiosity to see if other areas of the country were similar. At least near me, several local shows that are not USEF rated have cancelled/postponed citing the change in restrictions even though enforcement is limited. Yet shows that are sanctioned by a National Governing Body of sport are continuing despite the fact that their own COVID action plan explicitly states state/local restrictions should be followed seemed pretty backwards to me and disappointing that it is allowed to happen.

[touchstone]

I can’t speak to the particulars of the PA order and whether/how it applies to horse shows.

But I will say that I do not think USEF has done a great job of uniformly enforcing its Covid polices, based on the few shows I have attended this year. Some of them seem to be following all the rules, and others have been much more lax.

It was actually an area of focus for me in the recent competition survey. I think there need to be uniform minimum safety standards so that people know what to expect when they enter a show. The current standards are very strict on paper, but if there is no enforcement, it’s very hard to know what shows will do what unless you already know the management well.

[skydy]

@BlackTieOptional

I absolutely agree which is part of the reason I made this thread in the first place, out of curiosity to see if other areas of the country were similar. At least near me, several local shows that are not USEF rated have cancelled/postponed citing the change in restrictions even though enforcement is limited. Yet shows that are sanctioned by a National Governing Body of sport are continuing despite the fact that their own COVID action plan explicitly states state/local restrictions should be followed seemed pretty backwards to me and disappointing that it is allowed to happen.

email vlowell@usef.org and ask her. I did ask about Pony Finals and if the USHJA and USEF were aware of the quarantine recommendations of the Kentucky Health Authority (they weren’t.) I sent them the link.The recommendations were then put up on the USEF site. They finally cancelled, albeit at the last minute.