1/30/2013

2013 Judges Information Sheet Judges Etiquette

Judges should be dressed appropriately with no advertisement on clothing or excessive bling. It should be obvious to others who the judge is in the ring. Hunt Seat Eq. Over Fences

There will not be 2 qualifying jumps. Athlete will be considered on course as soon as they enter the arena, or after they pass the safety inspection, whichever is later. Judges may stop and eliminate any rider they feel is unsafe at any point on the course. Dressage

Geometry of the test and straight lines are very important. Consider entire maneuver when scoring. Athlete should not have whip in saluting hand during salute, and horse should be immobile. Pay attention to horse’s bend in circles. Circles should not be counter bent, they should be balanced and round. A stretch should have elastic movement.

Gaits are very important; they should have rhythm and regularity. Reward riders for riding with harmony. Horse might not be built to be a dressage horse, but reward the horse and rider when they are performing correctly. Whip does not need to change sides.

USEF is now using decimals with dressage scoring. Errors of course: 2points for 1st, 4 for 2nd. Examples of Error of course- wrong direction, off course- ring bell Error of test, don’t have to ring bell. Examples of Error of Test: Sitting instead of posting, verbal command. Working Pairs

First maneuver is called a waterfall. 1/30/2013

Pattern shows two circles, only one is performed, pattern drawn to show that any size of circle is allowed. These circles can be a quick haunch turn, spin or any size circle. Goal is to be side by side when headed to C. Circles should match each other.

Can stop, balance or take a step when changing directions for two- track, same at end of maneuver. Two track all the way to E

Riders should have mirror image. Degree of difficulty- refers to equipment i.e. 2 hands on curb.

Riders should be shoulder to shoulder or knee to knee. Timing is crucial

During two track riders should be shoulder to shoulder Trail

Look for finesse, not just obstacle completion.

Horse should have continuous forward motion with no hesitation and expression thru obstacles.

360 turn needs to be complete and smooth. It should NOT be forehand turn or haunch turn. Come out of box in soft smooth transition and immediately into 180 fan.

Riders should lope through chute before halting. Once they begin the back there should be no hesitation. When repositioning between side- passing, there is not a specified turn.

In Hand Trail

Horse and handler should be exactly in starting position and ready when judge nods. There should be no repositioning after the judge nods. Athlete can be inside or outside of obstacle when maneuvering #2,3 &4.

Hash mark on pattern indicates where to switch to on side. Look for finesse, not just obstacle completion.

Horse should have continuous forward motion with no hesitation and expression thru obstacles.

360 turn needs to be complete and smooth. It should NOT be forehand turn or haunch turn. Come out of box in soft smooth transition and immediately into 180 fan. 1/30/2013

Once they begin the back there should be no hesitation.

When repositioning between side-passing, there is not a specified turn.

Driving

Dimensions of course will accommodate all horses and cart sizes. The goal of driver should be to hit the center mark. Pattern does not state which hand to hold reins in when putting in one hand. Most likely riders would hold reins in left hand and whip in right. Either hand is acceptable. The riser for the back thru needs to be flat, not notched, pole should be able to fall off.

Hunt Seat Over Fences

Athlete will be allowed to make one circle before starting 1st jump.

IHOR

Athlete can be outside L and Box when maneuvering these elements. If athlete is outside the L and/or box, they should remain so during the whole maneuver. The same applies if they are inside. Athletes should not be switching in and out of obstacles.

Athlete should go over poles with horse. A jump or trot is acceptable for the jump.

Two gaming poles will mark the start/finish line at either end of the 30’ line, there will be no chalk line. Even though there will not be a visible chalk line, the line between the poles will still be used for scratch penalties, and starting/stopping time. Tops of pole for jump need to be between 12-14 inches from ground when on risers.

Teams will be excused after 7 minutes. Points accrued before being excused will count. Teams should be given a 30 second warning before being excused.

REINING

Must trot to center, not judged, but if do not trot will be reflected in horsemanship score. 1/30/2013

SADDLE SEAT

Athlete should stay off the wall during pattern.

WESTERN HORSEMANSHIP All lines should be on center. Hit center if possible. Judge will look for how athlete lays out the pattern and plans space Circles around cones 1 and 4 should be the same size.

Arch (#7) should be balanced, does not need to come thru center of pattern.

WORKING RANCHER Be sure to read expectations

Maneuver 4 needs to be done quickly and efficiently Will not be penalized if gate does not swing the correct way when opening /closing. If athlete cannot open/close gate arena crew will do so. Do not have to drag log back to original position.

Maneuver #8&9 to be done from right side (right handed). #3 may be done with either hand. #9 needs to be walked-not backed thru.

Two bales of straw should be touching- end to end on both sides.

Rule Questions that have been asked and clarified:

 Expectations at the bottom of the score sheets are not rules. They are however judging and performance guidelines that should be followed.

 Gaited horses should not attempt to trot. They should instead perform their intermediate gait. Tennessee walking horses can physically perform flying lead changes, and therefore should be scored the same as any other breed of horse on the lead change maneuvers. Although breed standard for Tennessee walking horses is to be shown with ribbon and glitter, this is NOT acceptable in OHSET. Tennessee walking horses that do working pairs will still be expected to perform the two-track maneuver. Regardless of breeds, working pairs are still expected to match pace and stay shoulder to shoulder, knee to knee.

 In regards to driving with one hand: This is done in Carriage driving reinsmanship and obstacle driving classes. In fact, it is often done doing a turn or through cones. 1/30/2013

The distance through the first chute is only 8 feet, and the presence of the rails will actually help keep the equine straight for that very short distance - maybe 3 strides (and less for very large horses). The challenge will be in smoothly handling the reins without yanking on one or the other which would be the only reason for a control problem. If a driver cannot recover control in such a short distance, should control become a problem one might question how much control a driver truly has, and how safe the horse is to drive at all. A driver can develop this skill through practice, by slipping the reins momentarily into one hand and quickly going back to two hands. Gradually increase the time spent one handed until a good feel can be established with the horse. Done properly, the equine should feel no change in contact and would not react at all. Granted, this will be a challenge, but only to those who do not work to develop this skill. The size of the horse has no bearing on the safety of this element. I would suggest that drivers who are concerned about control practice as much as they can, and maybe only hold one handed for a step or two at the first meet. This should be no reason to refuse to drive the whole pattern.  In regards to working pairs: Mirror image is very important in working pairs. Even though the circles are offset, they should be the same size. Element 8 is a canter/lope, X-E-K-A. Element 9 both riders jog or sit trot, as described on the score sheet, and two track starting at A. Element 8 is a lope/canter, element 9 is jog/trot, so even though it doesn't say "drop to a trot", obviously that has to happen. This is a good example of where the score sheet description clarifies the drawn pattern.  In regards to working pairs: Element #1 can take the entire length of the arena, as long as the riders are together at the end of the arena. Different size horses, size of circles etc. may impact exact exactly where in the arena these circles happen. Remember the drawn pattern is as close to perfect as we can get, but read the description to be sure you understand the elements. The two-track should be straight, not bent. The salute is in element #9.Please read the element description on the score sheets as you look at the drawn patterns. Anything that may not be clear on the pattern is usually pretty straight forward in the description.  In regards to an English rider trotting over poles in trail: A posting trot is usually more suitable for an English rider, space permitting. Obviously a rider cannot post gracefully on a trot that is too slow to allow it. The size and gait of the horse may determine the strength of the trot in the space available, and therefore the suitability of posting.  In regards to working pairs: Element 6 is a 15 meter circle at the lope/canter to the right. Element 7 marks, with the x's, lead changes that occur before the riders do their 15 meter circle at the lope/canter to the left. Basically this is a 15 meter figure 8 at the lope/canter with lead changes in the middle.  In regards to working pairs: #1 - As long as both riders are in the trot or jog, posting (English only) is optional. Because the challenge of this element is to come together on the center line after the roll outs, the actually speed of the gait may vary as necessary between the riders - just no walking or canter/lope. #2. Element #4 is on the center line with no turns at the canter/lope. There is no lead change asked for in this element.  In regards to saddle seat: Shades of brown, black tack do not have to match. Colored, fancy brow bands are allowed, as is acceptable in saddle seat events in USEF. 1/30/2013

See 26.1.1 re bits, reins. Only gaited breeds that traditionally, use single reins in Saddle seat events may use a single rein in our event. Quarter horses, and all other breeds must use a full bridle or Pelham with curb and snaffle reins.  In regards to piercings: If the judge deems that the piercing can cause a safety hazard to the rider during the class they can eliminate the rider based on safety. There is no specific rules regarding piercings in OHSET or USEF