Are Horse Shows Right For You?
posted by citizen.K on Tuesday, May 13th, 2008 / 
Print & Hang in the Barn
Too many times I have been at a horse show and witnessed the unhappy horse shower. Sometimes it’s the obvious outbursts like “Why do I do this?” or “I hate showing” or “This is a waste of money!” that tip me off to the unhappy horse competitor. There are then the more subliminal signs of horse show unhappiness; crying, nervousness, withdrawal from the others in the barn, over quietness, scratching classes, anger, timidness, and general amplified horse-person craziness.
Starting with the hunter/jumper A show circuit, these horse shows are not cheap. Whether the horse show is near by or many states away, an A horse show is a huge financial investment. Based on pure finances alone, one has to ask, are horse shows worth it?
Depending on riding goals, financial circumstances, and a horse’s ability, whether or not to compete at horse shows can be easily determined. But to start, we must figure out how you ended up showing in the first place.
Great riding can be achieved without ever stepping foot in the show ring.
If you are riding huntseat (hunter/jumper), most likely you are at a hunter/jumper barn and have a hunter/jumper trainer. If you are considering showing, or are currently showing, I’m sure many, if not most, of the other boarders or barn clients are also showing. Admittedly, a trainer doesn’t make money off of board. A trainer makes a living solely on training, teaching, and showing. This puts pressure on clients and boarders to participate in a training and showing program. If you are at a barn that requires participating in horse shows and training (and many do), you must understand you’ve been directly pressured into showing by the trainer’s need for income - consider this when you think about your showing aspirations.
But before we talk about horse show goals, lets talk about goals as a rider. Whether you want to perfect your ability to navigate a course, get all your distances to the fences, jump bigger fences, or just be a more effective rider, you must understand that showing does not get you to these goals. Horse showing also does not allow you to prove those riding goals. Any of the above listed goals can be met at home; horse show competitions are not the only way to attain. You can achieve great riding without ever stepping foot in the show ring. But, if your goal as a rider is to do any or all of those things at a horse show, that’s a different story. If your goal as a rider is to win classes, divisions, or move up from long stirrup to the adult amateur, then a horse show is your platform.
Make sure horse show goals are YOUR goal and not your trainer’s goal. Moving up in divisions, especially in the hunter ring, is subjective. First, the horse you ride is more of an indicator of what division you ride in. The long stirrup division to the adult amateur division is only dependent on your ability to pilot your horse through a bigger course confidently, or your horse’s ability to navigate you through a bigger course without you being scared. Both of those hunter objectives can be completed at home.
In the jumper ring, goals are a little different. At home, you can perfect your course navigating, distances, the size of jumps, and rider effectiveness. But, the jumper ring at a horse show will definitely press you a little harder. You are riding against the clock, without pulling any rails, all while jumping a course you have not schooled over. The jumper ring can actually push you to become a more effective rider. Competing in jumpers gives you a lot to think about outside of just you and your horse.
Make sure horse show goals are YOUR goal and not your trainer’s goal.
But, you can still reach goals at home if you like the jumpers. Your goals just can’t be jump an ‘Open Jumper’ course clean and within the time, because, no matter what, at a show, it is more difficult. Show courses will be more challenging, the time is going to be a crucial indicator of your success with that course, and of course, your horse will be a totally different ride in the show ring than at home. At home though, you can absolutely set your goal to be, say: Jump a 4’9” course clean. This is an attainable riding goal at home.
Maybe you have been jumping 3’ for a while and both you and your horse are ready to jump a little bigger. That can absolutely be done at home. You will not prove that you can jump 3’3” any better at a horse show than you will at home.
Maybe the nervousness you get at a horse show is something you want to overcome. If that is your goal, then the show ring is the only place to work on that. You have to be honest with yourself about your ability to achieve this goal. Some people never loose that nervousness. Unless you own 3-5 horses, take all 3-5 horses to every horse show, and show all of them in several divisions, you are most likely not showing enough to completely eliminate those horse show nerves!
If you completely enjoy riding your horse, jumping your horse, and improving your riding skills, why do you go to horse shows? Many amateurs end up so frustrated at the end of a long, very long horse show day, not to mention week, or weeks! If you aren’t having fun, then don’t compete at horse shows. If you just aren’t having fun because you aren’t winning, that is a completely different story. If you are ONLY showing to win, you shouldn’t be showing. Winning-Only showers are people who purchase made, push-button horses, have little to no true skill or talent, and they have gobs of money.
It is completely unrealistic to be unhappy to lose at a horse show. You are going to lose, you will lose often. In the hunter ring, most of the time, it will make no sense whether you win or lose. But, in the jumper ring, if you lose, smile! Some of the best horse shows I have been to include my all time losing rides. I learned more in each one of those losing rides than every jumper class I have won put together. Whether it was rider error, green horse brain fart, or just a bad horse day, I learned how to ride better when I lost. Any jumper class I won, as fun as it was, I didn’t take all that much out of the show ring with me. Sure, it’s an expensive way to learn, but one of the best ways to learn!
You will not prove that you can jump 3’3” any better at a horse show than you will at home.
Showing should be fun, win or lose, and if it isn’t, you shouldn’t be showing. If your trainer pressures you to show, find a new trainer; they don’t all require showing, and not all hunter/jumper trainers snub you if you don’t show.
On the financial side, if your goal is to show and you don’t have the money to show; you work hard. You figure out a budget, you figure out how much you can afford. If your goal is the A shows, see if there is anything you can work off. If you aren’t at a barn that can give you that, find another barn. There are cheaper barns out there with good trainers. Although, if you are riding hunters and you don’t have a “known” trainer, there is a good chance you won’t pin very well. For jumpers, you’re more likely to find a trainer that don’t cost a fortune. But there are a lot of bad trainers out there, and even some of those cost a fortune. If your goal is to make it to an A show, there is a way, just figure it out.
Some may find themselves at a big, show required barn (the kind that make you sell your horse because THEY say you need a new horse). Don’t get sucked into this big show barn money game. You should ONLY sell your horse, or consider a new horse, if your abilities have out-grown your current mount or if your current mount has soundness issues that don’t fit into your riding goals. Don’t get bullied into providing commission to these trainers and barns.
As an alternative, B rated horse shows, local, or open shows can provide an ample amount of classes to participate in, and the cost is substantially less. If you are looking for bigger jumper classes, I don’t think a B show would qualify. But, if you are looking to work on your nerves, B horse shows are a cheaper alternative. B shows hold a much more laid back atmosphere, and they are CHEAP. For green horses or riders, B shows are a great economical tool.
In the world of dressage, showing is a good way to gauge you and your horse’s progress. In my experience, you walk away from a dressage show with some constructive feedback (maybe not EVERY dressage show). With that feedback, you can work on area’s you and your horse are weak and keep up the good work on the area’s you and your horse are excelling. But again, horse shows aren’t the only way to prove your dressage skills. You can accomplish dressage performance at home, you can execute tests, you can add movements, and you can always, ALWAYS improve. But besides your trainer, your ability to gauge you and your horse’s performance is difficult. Again, depending on your goals, a horse show may or may not be the answer for you.
Horse shows are expensive, stressful, full of ups and downs, and most importantly, they are often times VERY political. You must really ask yourself if it is worth it. You should never show for someone else’s goals; you should always have fun and be working towards improving your riding and you and your horse’s communication. If you are showing only for the horse “community” experience, leave your show barn and go find a laid back place. Ostensibly, there will always be horse show snobs that just don’t feel “cool” unless they can hang out in their barn’s decorated area, but don’t get sucked in on “being the non-showing outsider”.
Horse shows should be fun, win or lose, and if they aren’t, don’t show! If you can experience and reach your riding goals outside of showing, then why show?
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SEE RELATED CITIZEN HORSE ARTICLES:
- Hunters, Not a Sport
- Dressage Queens
- Sport Horse Breeding Chapter 1: The Mare
3 Responses to “Are Horse Shows Right For You?”
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May 15th, 2008 at 5:19 pm
I agree with most of this, but I am definitely a person who shows to WIN. If I don’t win, I’m not devastated–but winning is always my ultimate goal. Usually, I don’t even go to a show unless I think I can win. Once I get to the show–if there’s time–I scope out my competition to see what I’m up against. But I won’t scratch a class if I don’t think I can win. If I knock down the first fence, then I use the course to school and slow down a bit and take my turns easier. For me, winning is what it’s all about because I wouldn’t go to a show if I didn’t think I had a chance to win. Also, I am going to the Olympics someday so I need to get used to it. I have seen people with super-fance horses that go to shows to win, but I prefer to win on horses that are not so fancy or that have been overlooked by other people. I think there is no challenge in sitting on a grand prix horse over a adult amateur hunter class. But piloting a short-strided, little mixed-breed horse with a dirty stop over a 3′6″ jumper course DOES provide some real challenge. I have never owned a made horse and I don’t think I ever will because they provide no challenge to me.
I definitely ride like I’ve got something to prove. I like to pilot horses that I think feel the same way. I don’t gain pride from showing an easy horse that could do the show without me because that is no proof of my skill as a rider. I gain a lot of pride from doing well where others have failed–and doing that at a horse show in front of the world is what it’s all about for me. If I try my best and I don’t win, it’s not really a failure because I did all I could. If I try my best and succeed, then I am on cloud nine for weeks.
May 25th, 2008 at 9:08 pm
The article raises some very good points, and I’d like to hear some people from non-H/J disciplines comment. We all comment from our own experiences, and I’m curious if horse shows for, say, combined driving or APHA Halter or Morgan Saddleseat run much the same way. I’m assuming they do, but I’d love to hear feedback.
Why did horse shows start? Racing has been around forever and makes perfect, objective sense: the fastest horse wins. Ridden, jumped, or driven, racing horses is a quantifiable way to compete.
Horse shows, by thier nature are subjective. Cynics might even call them arbitrary, particularly certain disciplines. The idea of a judge who is certified — the same way trial judges are certified by the state Bar Association — is on the hope that they will be as unbiased as possible.
Just like “real” judges in the “real” world, horse show judges can make mistakes or just generally be miserable, uberpolitical scumbags.
People who show for the wrong reasons want to impress thier freinds and/or family and are only disappointed when they fail to win.
It’s a good rule of life not to let people pressure you into doing things you are not comfortable with, but the delicate irony with horses is that the activity is inherently dangerous, and the relative danger is hard to predict from, say, showing 2′3″ to 2′9.” There are some people who are just scared of flying through the air at speed and it’s really up to them to decide how important it is to overcome that fear.
I’m not an advocate of people who “don’t want to jump,” turning to non-jumping sports like dressage. Dressage is not safer than jumping and the illusion that dressage (or saddleseat, or only Hunter Under Saddle, etc) is “easier” to do well is often to blame for peple ending up unhappy at horse shows — they really don’t want the danger/pressure and should probably enjoy thier horses without needing to show.
What’s a shame is when riders who belong in schooling shows are paying high-dollar fees to finish last in an A show because The Trainer is going to that show.
Positive reinforcement should be the goal. Just as we try to set up our horses to succeed every time we challenge them, a good instructor will apply only enough pressure on thier clients to show at a level where they are pushing through thier limits, but not terrified or asked to do a level of performance at which they will fail. Someone who struggles at 2′6″ courses at home shouldn’t show at 2′6″ and expect not to struggle under the extra pressure.
Showing creates totally unique challenges to both horse and rider. The audience, the flashbulbs, the PA system, the chaos of the warmup ring, the stain on your new breeches, the girth that suddenly doesn’t fit, and horse who completely says “no, thanks,” at the in-gate… None of these things are a problem if you are a trail rider, lesson-only rider, or, my personal favorite hobby, foxhunting. (Alright, foxhunting is not without its unique obstacles, but the lack of audience is my point.)
For amateurs, horses are a hobby, and showing (and bringing home ribbons) is a way of gaining notoreity. For professionals, it’s a crucial part of thier resume. If you aren’t out there winning, it becomes challenging to get new clients and keep the ones you have. It’s also hard to sell a nice horse with no show experience, as he may be very reactive to the stimuli mentioned above.
I think we all share a little bit in the fantasy that we will miraculously shine in the spotlight of an audience when we don’t shine at home. This is due a bit to human nature and a bit to coaches profiting from people showing when they aren’t ready.
June 9th, 2008 at 2:37 pm
Showing is so over-rated. I say I don’t show anymore, but I have a jumper that I still show. I just don’t participate with the barn at the shows nor do I get involved with the drama surrounding the shows.
I have in my time been pressured even forced to show and that was never fun. I have pushed my horses too hard because the trainer wanted “us” to jump bigger and I have also scared myself by doing more than I was comfortable with.
There are definitely too many people that show for the wrong reasons. I hate to see people so stressed out at horse shows when they are always having so much fun at home.
Getting out of the hunter ring was a huge relief for me. The jumpers are more straightforward and although when I’m in the ring I’m more nervous, before and after the class I’m calm, cool, and relaxed.
Finding a barn that shows, but doesn’t pressure to show is difficult, especially if you want to go to the bigger shows. It’s all on setting your boundaries early.
Try eventing, I have not shown at an event, but from the eventing barn I’m at, the old hunter jumper people swear its a totally different environment.