If you were to combine hunter/jumpers and novice eventing, you would have French lower level eventing. I competed at my first French event recently and was both comforted by familiar parts, and thrown off by different ones. 

To begin, the division I will be competing in this year is the 4-year-old specific level. As a result, the entire class is designed to give young horses a chance to become familiar with the show environments while keeping them happy and confident. I think it is a fantastic concept.

Dressage and show jumping are done at the same time in a larger ring, at least 40 meters by 60 meters. While letters are used in the printed test, there are none in the ring, which gives riders more flexibility in asking for figures and transitions when the horse is prepared. Since the jumps are already in the ring, the horse has more than enough time to take a good look at every question; not only during the test but also before.

Then the show jumping course itself is always the same: a warm-up oxer (front is a crossrail, back is a vertical), which is not judged, then onto a six-stride oxer-to-vertical line down a long side, across the diagonal in a five-stride vertical-to-oxer line, then finishing down the other long side in a five-stride oxer to oxer line.

The actual warm-up for the dressage/show jumping was done in the ring that had been the older divisions’ show jumping ring. So, trainers could pick which fences their riders warmed up over, adjusting them to suit their riders without pressure to hurry up or share one fence.

The cross-country course took about 2½ minutes and had 12 fences. Very helpfully, the minute markers on French national courses (not FEI) are marked on the course itself. I find this extremely helpful, as I don’t think finding minute markers should be an additional question of the course. Plus it saves time for professionals who have several horses in several divisions and don’t have the luxury of walking all their courses multiple times.

Also, start boxes are not mandatory. At the show I competed at we had two flags we had to pass through, when we were ready—there is also no countdown. Walk to the area when your number is called, take a minute to gather yourself, and begin. No pressure of hearing a countdown two minutes out, feeling the pressure building as 15 long seconds pass, passing that nervous energy to your horse. The course is also very forward, which I find refreshing, as it allows the horses to have a good confident gallop not only between fences but over them as well, instead of riders having to nearly trot to avoid coming in too much under time.

The horse I competed, Balrine de l’Ocean, was incredible throughout the whole show. The minute she stepped into the show ring I could feel her put a game face on.  Transitions she usually rushes through were smooth and rideable, her typically distracted mind was focused; she knew what she was doing. She then continued to display this maturity into the cross-country where she warmed up in the craziest area I’ve ever experienced (10-15 riders in a roughly 20 meters by 120 meters area with three fences—and riders rarely call specific fences), and went out and breezed around the course, which included a bank out of water, a double combination, and a trakehner. Finishing the day with a happy, confident horse was my only goal for the day and that’s exactly what I got, as well as first place in our division!

Now that I’ve gotten a chance to experience what shows here are like, I can’t wait to get to the next one. Having the knowledge of what to expect not only from the event but also from the horse helps me and my trainer, Xavier, prep better beforehand. Balrine is a very naturally talented horse, so the next few weeks will be focused on continuing to develop our relationship, a very important factor when working with a mare, and smoothing out miscommunications. As excited as I am for the next event and every event to follow, I’m also enthusiastic about every ride before then where the progression will occur. After all, it’s the everyday ride that we do this for, isn’t it?

Marina Royston has left Virginia for adventures in France as a working student for French eventers Lindsay and Xaiver Traisnel. You can read all her blogs here.