Dear Rita,
I have a friend and show organizer from the United States visiting me this week. Our horse search has taken us to a few small horse shows to view some of the prospects in action, and through my friend’s many and varied questions, I began to realize that many of the things I take for granted in the German show system are not common in the United States.
The entire entry system for horse shows in Germany is accessible online. There is no such thing as an unrecognized show in this country. All shows, including schooling shows, are run under German Federation rules and can be entered through the German Federation website.
Placings and earnings are also registered online after the horse show. Depending on the amount of prize money and the level of each dressage class, a certain level of ranking points is assigned to the rider. For instance, I can earn 1500 ranking points for winning a Grand Prix at national level that pays up to 2500 euro in prize money. If the Grand Prix pays out more than 2500 for the whole class, I would earn 2500 ranking points. (Don’t quote me on the points. I am guessing, as these details normally escape me!)
These ranking points are accrued from the introductory classes at the lowest level all the way to international Grand Prix. But it is the actual number of placings that allows a rider to advance from level to level, as ranking points are only used to distinguish between riders who compete at the same level.
If I have the lowest level of recognized riding license (which is obtainable by passing a test at a local riding school), I am allowed to start at training level in the horse shows. Until I have placed at least four times, 1st-5th, I am not allowed to advance to the next level as a rider. This advancement is tied to the horse you are riding.
Each show organizer will determine stipulations for each class before publishing a schedule on the German FN’s website. Classes are often limited to riders with a certain license class (1-5) and may be further restricted by the ranking points of that rider.
For instance, riders with license class 3 (Intermediaire I is the highest level one can ride with this license) may not be allowed to compete with other riders of the same license class if the class overbooked. In this case, the Intermediaire I may be split into riders with license class 1-2 and license class 3. Or it could be split with ranking points below 2000, and ranking points above 2000.
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Horse experience may also be restricted by the organizer. There are Prix St. Georges classes published in the show schedules that allow only horses with less than three placings at that level to compete. Or only horses between the ages of 7-10 who have never started in Grand Prix. Or only horses that have never placed at PSG and above.
These restrictions are placed on classes in order to attract riders without much experience, horses with very good quality, or horses that are green at a certain level, etc., depending on the type of show the organizer wants to run.
For instance, I might see a show offering an Intermediaire II class with high prize money for:
-8-10 year old horses that have never shown in the FEI Grand Prix
-horses must have at least three placings in Prix St. George or above
-riders with license classes 1-2 (the highest)
-start order with letter H
Then I know that I will be competing against the best up-and-coming Grand Prix horses that Germany has to offer, and that they will probably be piloted by riders like Isabell Werth, Hubertus Schmidt and Ulla Salzgeber.
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The best part about this system is that all riding licenses and horse registrations can be completed online. Every horse and rider are issued a number. All of the horses that a rider might show are added to his “horselist.” To enter, a rider simply enters his number and password at the website, finds a show with suitable classes, enters the number of starts he wants in the class, adds the list of horses he might possibly show on that day and then pushes “send.” A registration fee per start is charged directly to his bank account.
Entries through the German FN website are sent to the show organizers who in turn publish a list of entered riders and their potential horses a few weeks before the show. They also publish a list of starting times and starting letters (explained below) for each class.
Riders then notify the show at least one hour before the start of the class to announce their start and with which horse(s). An additional start fee (usually 10-20 euros) is charged and collected at the show for each start. Starting lists for the class are issued one hour before the show.
Starting time can be estimated well before the show begins, however, as the German FN issues a starting letter for each class when the show schedule is published. If I see that the Intermediaire II begins at 11 a.m. with the start letter “H,” I know that I will be one of the first competitors in the test because my name is Haddad. If I take two horses, I will be given a start at the beginning and end of the test.
One advantage to this system is that everything is recorded. You can find out from the German FN exactly how many wins and placings a horse or rider has in their entire career. Lifetime earnings are also recorded.
But perhaps the greatest advantage of all is…NO PAPERWORK!
I’m Catherine Haddad, and I’m sayin it like it is from Vechta, Germany.
Training Tip of the Day: When bringing your horse back into full work after a competition pause (this means he was not injured, just resting and staying fit), increase the work to his previous level two times a week for one week, three times a week for one week, four times a week for one week, and then go for it!
