United States Eventing Association

The U.S. Equestrian Federation (USEF) Board of Directors met in mid-April and approved proposed extraordinary rule changes which apply to the sport of eventing. These rule changes went into effect on May 1, 2023, and the official USEF Rules for Eventing has also been updated. In order to best help competitors prepare for these new updates, we have provided outlines below, specifically to the most highly-discussed rule change proposal surrounding falls on cross-country outlined in rule EV122.

Picture this: you've had a great competition weekend. You and your horse have put in three wonderful phases, only to find out that you and another horse and rider pair have finished on the same exact score! Now what? The rules on tie breaking are outlined very clearly in the USEF Rules for Eventing to help you better understand what processes will help break a tie should you ever encounter one. You can review the excerpt from the rulebook below.

It’s a new year and a new eventing season—time to go out and meet your eventing goals for the season! For some eventers, that goal is a move up to a new level. As you plan your season out around meeting the Minimum Eligibility Requirements (MER) to qualify for a move up, it's important that you are up to date on the most recent rules in the USEF Rules for Eventing.

Please always remain vigilant when it comes to sending any personal communications via email or text. Every year we receive reports of members and leaders of our sport receiving phishing attempts both online and by phone. These are often communications disguised as being sent from USEA staff or other leaders. As the years go on, the phishing attempts appear to be more directed and tailored.

It has been brought to the attention of the United States Eventing Association (USEA) that there have been issues with mail delivery by the United States Postal Service (USPS) to the USEA office associated with the busy holiday season. There have been numerous reports by members of letters being sent to the USEA office which have not been received dating back to before the Thanksgiving holiday. We are working with the USPS to attempt to address and resolve this situation. If you have sent in physical mail to the USEA office with no response, we encourage you to contact the office at (703) 779-0440 or via email at [email protected] to verify its arrival.

There are several rule change proposals being presented to the USEF that would go into effect on December 1, 2023 for the 2024 eventing season and it is now time for the membership to weigh in on these rule change proposals.

The meeting room was full of eventing enthusiasts for the Rule Change Open Forum that took place on Saturday, December 10 during the 2022 Annual Meeting & Convention in Savannah, Georgia. Moderator Malcolm Hook outlined the 12 eventing-specific proposed rule changes and clarifications and 15 general rule changes which would impact eventing competitors which have not yet been approved by the United States Equestrian Federation (USEF). Throughout the session, Hook welcomed questions and feedback from forum attendees and encouraged USEA members to continue to send in their feedback via the rules feedback portal which will go live on Wednesday, December 14th on the USEA website.

The USEA Board of Governors (BOG) concluded a productive two days of the August BOG meeting on Wednesday, August 9th in Dulles, Virginia led by USEA President Max Corcoran. All but four BOG members were able to attend in person this year. Many key items related to eventing in the U.S. were discussed at great length including safety, membership strategies, competition procedures, visibility of the sport, and more over the course of the two-day gathering.

Preparing for your first horse trial and not sure what is expected of you at each level? In the last few editions of Rule Refresher we will be diving into each level and the performance expectations of each phase and in this final edition we outline the Preliminary, Intermediate, and Advanced levels.

Preparing for your first horse trial and not sure what is expected of you at each level? Over the course of the next few Rule Refreshers, we will be diving into each level and the performance expectations of each phase. Want to better prepare yourself or your students for their first competition or a move-up? The USEA Eventing Handbook by the Levels is a free resource to all USEA members that outlines clear and consistent guidelines for riders and trainers to refer to when navigating their way through the competition levels.