How many stops, what else should happen

[OverandOnward]

Novice level, jump a bit under 2'6"
- Rider and bug-eyed horse have a refusal
- Circle and represent
- Horse "stops" but actively leaning over jump, weasling feet
- Rider holds horse right on/over the jump and begins swatting/tapping repeatedly (not very hard) while horse dances sideways back & forth, not stepping backward. This goes on for several long seconds while jj walks up from seat a slight distance away. JJ is calling to rider BUT it's very windy and very possibly wasn't heard. The call is just "hey #XX" to get attention, no instructions.
- Rider catches sight of jj, quickly brings horse around, two good swats on approach and over they go, gallop away.

# stops?

further action re whip while holding horse in front of the jump?

Result of actual discussion with TD was 3 stops and better not see any more of the same behavior on course. TD started to take further action re the whip, but gave benefit of doubt. Rider & horse did complete the course, slowly, without another stop.

EV142 - 2.a.2 says that for jumps less than 30" (= this one) horse can stop and then jump without penalties, so perhaps it was not wrong to try to get the horse over from the stop, perhaps the only issue there was how it was done and how many stops should be counted

[Highflyer]

It sounds like it was at LEAST 3 and more like 5 stops. Was it an unrecognized event? If so, I would think the TD made the right decision. If it was a recognized event, she should have been stopped on course and sent off, with an additional penalty/ talking to if she continued ignoring officials.

I would not gamble on a "not-quite 2'6 fence" being counted in the under 30" rule, personally. That is very definitely splitting hairs, since the rule is intended for banks/ ditches/ water, not every fence on a BN course.

As far as the rider's method for handling the stops, it obviously was effective in getting the horse over the fence, and it may well have been the best method from a teaching perspective. I've used it a few times myself--but not in competition! It absolutely is inappropriate there. It doesn't matter how hard you're hitting the horse, either. There is no reliable way fort he jump judge to tell that.

[Auburn]

I thought that it was three smacks, period. More than three is considered abuse?

[OverandOnward]

I thought that it was three smacks, period. More than three is considered abuse? Right, well more than 3 were delivered. The smacks weren't severe, they were not unlike what one might see in a schooling session with a horse being difficult. Seen more severe from determined trainers. The term "abuse" makes one flinch for that reason. But - that is the way the rulebook reads.

I don't know that the jj's verbal address was truly ignored. There was a high level of background noise from thrashing trees in the wind, and of course a heavily breathing, stomping horse, and a hard-breathing rider, tend to fill the ears. The jj was approaching somewhat from behind (scoring 2 jumps and this was the second one.)

[OverandOnward]

I would not gamble on a "not-quite 2'6 fence" being counted in the under 30" rule, personally. That is very definitely splitting hairs, since the rule is intended for banks/ ditches/ water, not every fence on a BN course.
I made an error! It's 30 CM, not INCHES. That's a huge difference!!!

EV 142 2 (2)
"At all other obstacles or elements (i.e., 30cm or less in height) a stop followed immediately by a standing jump is not penalized, but if the halt is sustained or in any way prolonged, this constitutes a refusal. The horse may step sideways but if it steps back, even with one foot, this is a refusal."

Hypothetically, as I read it ...
If the jump were flat (under 30 cm,) a horse dancing the Charleston side to side, without a step back, is one stop, not more. If this did not go on for more than a few seconds, however long "sustained/prolonged" is. That's not what happened here but is a comparison.


I have had a thought as to why jj & even TD decisions are sometimes not what they might have been in armchair hindsight. I have a friend who talks about the "course fog" that descends on the rider's brain when everything is happening fast, many conditions are present, there are several technical factors, and all are to be evaluated in an instant. I think the same thing can happen to officials when a situation suddenly erupts and many factors are in play. Including "... and while I'm doing something my sheets could blow away but I might have to let them go and do I have the radio in hand and oh what is that rider/horse doing now ... " Hopefully it all becomes a learning experience to make it easier next time. :)