There are rallies for dressage (“flatwork”) and jumping, for all ages and stages, throughout the year.  We try to have as many as possible under cover during the winter months.  See the Booking Page for details.

If you would like to be on a team over the summer, have a look at the information on teams, eligibility etc on the website Teams & Competitions.  Look to make the most of the training on offer and have a talk to the Lead Coach or Team Manager to understand how best to prepare.

Introduction to Eventing

Eventing gives Pony Club Members a competition which needs courage, determination and all-round riding ability.

Its main aim is to encourage a higher standard of riding throughout the Pony Club and to give the young a greater interest in riding as both a sport and as a recreational activity.

The sport could be termed an “equestrian triathlon”. It involves working with your pony/horse both on the flat and over jumps. Today, the sport is most known for its cross-country phase where horse and rider gallop over an outside course of solid obstacles which the horse has never seen before.

Eventing is split into three phases:

Dressage

Dressage is a French word meaning training. Precision, smoothness, suppleness and complete obedience show off the horse’s gymnastic development.

Ideally it should look as if the horse is performing of its own accord, carrying its rider in complete harmony. The test is scored on each movement, rather like the scoring in figure skating, and the overall harmony and precision of the whole exercise is taken into consideration.

Show Jumping

The second phase takes place in the show jumping arena.  The courses are made up of coloured fences which can be easily knocked down if they are hit and so tests the pony’s agility and willingness and the rider’s skill.

Competitors will get faults if they knock a fence down, stop at a fence (refuse) or run around a fence (run out).

Cross Country (XC)

Finally, the cross country phase is designed to test the horse and rider’s ability over a variety of fixed fences and undulating ground, it should also demonstrate the rider’s knowledge of pace and control of their horse across country.

Scoring

At the end of the competition the dressage, show jumping and cross country scores are added together for the final result. The lowest score wins.

Team Events – Teams are comprised of three or four members.  Each member’s scores are totalled as for the individual competition.  The three best (ie lowest) totals are taken and combined to give the total penalty score for each team.

Levels

Pony Club Eventing uses the following maximum heights for the show jumping and cross country phases –

Level          Max show jump height      Max XC jump height

70                               0.70m                                   0.60m

80                               0.85m                                   0.80m

90                               0.95m                                   0.90m

100                             1.05m                                   1.00m

Open                           1.15m                                   1.10m