May 02, 2018

So You Want to Be a Judge, Part II: Amp Up Your Course Walk

The group at the TPEO Jumping Training Session working with Tremaine Cooper. Abby Gibbon Photo.

Many of us, when we walk courses, have a routine. Things we look for, things we know will catch certain riders off guard, things we’re careful to point out to our students. Even the way we walk, the practiced length of our strides, the lines we take between fences. We think about this stuff from the rider or trainer’s perspective, carefully honed over years of walking, thinking about, and riding courses. Time, and experience.

In my years of course experience, the course designer’s perspective is something I thought I understood. Because I’d carefully considered the course and then (some of the time, at least) survived it, I’d essentially taken the course designer’s class, and passed.

But as I mentioned in my first blog, one of the reasons I’m pursuing my “r” license is to further my education. And one of the biggest realizations I came to at our recent Jumping Training Session in Aiken, S.C. in March was that my time-honed routine was missing a crucial element: while I thought I’d grasped the concept of course design, in reality I hadn’t the slightest.

Considering the water with Tremaine Cooper. Abby Gibbon Photo.

For three days, our cohort was immersed in the nitty-gritty of design, construction, safety, and analysis, walking and considering cross-country and show jumping courses at the beautiful Full Gallop, Sporting Days, and Stable View facilities with Gretchen Butts, Tremaine Cooper, and Sally Ike as our guides. And in the company of luminaries like these, you realize too quickly the details you’ve been naively hazy on. Which types of stakes are available to hold fences in place, and how should they be safely implemented? Considering the footing and slope of a certain area, where do you optimally place a table, in terms of both rideability and competitive value? What types of frangible technology should you use, and where? How can decoration change the way a horse reads a fence? How many turns left, how many right, how much distance, etc, etc.

The more we learned, the more I realized the infinite number of decisions made before any competitor even starts out on a course walk. It starts to sound like an awful lot of responsibility, and it is. As riders and trainers, it’s not so much that we take these decisions for granted, but that it’s hard to envision the scope of this type of work without actually engaging in it. As “r” eventing judges, in addition to judging dressage, we’ll also be able to judge show jumping and serve as President of an event’s Ground Jury, essentially overseeing all of the course inspections and decisions of a given competition. The license starts to look pretty daunting.

Resetting the MIM clip on this open oxer. Abby Gibbon Photo.

At the end of three days of this type of engagement and analysis, you either throw your hands up and run away screaming, or you get determined and dig in for the duration. I knew I had a couple of students competing at the upcoming Morven and Loudoun Horse Trials in Leesburg, Va., where Tremaine Cooper was the designer, and I was determined to put what I’d learned to the test.

And the funny thing is, my routine still worked. From a rider’s perspective, I still had those years of experience on my side, still knew how to comfort my student’s qualms about a downhill approach or bending line.

But there was also this new sense of wonder, this new appreciation for the details, and the sense that I’d been missing out on this perspective for too long. See how the slight curve in the approach to this fence sets you up just so? Or how the brush on the back corner of the edge of this wide table helps define it? I’m certainly no expert yet, but I’ve got plenty of courses to walk this year, and a determined enthusiasm to explore this new idea.

My take-away advice is this: the next time you walk a course, slow down. Take a breath, look at everything. Take into account all the tiny little details of every fence you jump. There’s intention in everything, and more analysis than you can imagine. Eventing is a passion, no matter which angle you take.

Abby Gibbon is the owner, trainer, and manager of Fine Idea Farm in Mt. Airy, Md. She is currently pursuing her “r” Eventing Judge license and looks forward to writing about the process throughout the year. Stay tuned for more!

Jul 02, 2024 Educational Activities

USEA Educational Activity Highlight: Sherwood Forest Hunter Pace | Sherwood Oregon | July 13, 2024

What’s a Hunter Pace? The Sherwood Forest Equestrian Center's Hunter Pace is a cross-country-style course around Sherwood Forest over various natural obstacles/terrain. The course ends with a final treat for riders to take in stunning views of Mt. Hood with a loop through the old Far Hill Farms field. The beginning of the course will first start with a warm-up loop around show jumping obstacles in the outdoor ring at Sherwood Forest and then riders will continue directly onto the course. Sign up as a solo rider, pair, or team.

Jul 02, 2024 Profile

No Longer Dreaming: Claire Allen's Goal of Qualifying for USEF Eventing Young Rider Championship is Now Reality

Claire Allen remembers when she was 11 years old, having just made the switch from the hunter/jumper ring to three-day eventing. She told her new eventing trainer that her goal was to one day compete in the United States Equestrian Federation’s Eventing Young Rider Championships.

Jul 01, 2024 Competitions

Alliston’s Busy Weekend, Braitling’s Reuniting with Five-Star Mount, & Kalkman’s Advanced Victory Highlight Twin Rivers Summer H.T.

As he was finishing tacking up his horse in preparation to navigate the cross-country course at the 2024 Twin Rivers Summer Horse Trials, James Alliston expressed concern about navigating the 101 Freeway. That’s because as soon as he crossed the finish line aboard Intermediate level winner Addyson (Ampere x Nickerbocker) at 10:38 a.m. on Saturday—his fifth cross-country round of the morning with three at Preliminary and two at Intermediate—the West Coast-based five-star rider had to drive 185 miles on the 101 Freeway from Twin Rivers Ranch in Paso Robles, California, to San Francisco International Airport to catch a 4:35 p.m. flight to Frankfurt, Germany.

Jul 01, 2024 Education

USEA Podcast #364: All Your Grooming Questions Answered

There is so much more to proper grooming than keeping your horse picture-perfect for the horse inspection. Good grooming practices are critical to proper horse management, no matter if you are planning for your next FEI appearance or your Starter level debut. To help you maximize your knowledge of grooming practices, we opened up the opportunity for USEA members to submit any questions they might have on our Instagram and Facebook stories. In this week's episode, Host Nicole Brown sits down with three of the highest-regarded grooms in this industry, Max Corcoran, Emma Ford, and Stephanie Simpson, and asks them all of your questions and more to help you perfect the art of grooming.

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Official Joint Therapy Treatment of the USEA

Official Feed of the USEA

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Official Equine Insurance of the USEA

Official Forage of the USEA

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