Course of contest of jump of obstacles

A course of Contest of Jump of Obstacles (CSO) is built on a delimited ground of different nature (grass, sand, etc). It consists of obstacles which the riding couples horses will have to jump in a defined order, by making less faults possible.
The ground where proceeds a competition of Saut of obstacles is called track . The people in charge of handling related to the track (construction of the obstacles) are called men of track . In spite of the many women who make function of men of track, there does not exist the female one with this expression. The people charged to invent the courses (traced, obstacles) and to supervise the men of track are the chiefs of track .

Obstacles

A obstacle classically consists of bars, bases, candles and candlesticks.
It can be of variable form: vertical, oxer, of flight, river, double, triple, ground obstacle, etc

In contest, a number placed at the right-hand side of each obstacle indicates the position of this one in the layout of the course. The flags laid out on the right and on the left of each obstacle indicate the direction in which this one must be crossed. The red flag is placed on the right and the white flag on the left.
The obstacles of competition for A-grade officials a possible aspect more looked after. The colors are harmonious, the supports and the bases compete of glare and the decorative pieces (shrubs, flowers) decorate sometimes the course.

The distances standards

General information

In contest, the gallop must be carried out with an imposed minimal speed: of 350 m/min up to 400 m/min. At these speeds, the horses have treads larger than those used usually at the time of the drives at home or in its equestrian club. The distances between the obstacles must take into account this parameter.

The nature of the ground, the type of test (speed or Grand Prix), the level of the riders are also evaluated in the calculation of the distances.

To recapitulate, the distances between obstacles depend on the following factors:

the height of the obstacles,
the shape and/or contents of the obstacles (bases),
the level of competition (technicality),
imposed speed (350 m/min, 375 m/min or 400 m/min),
the participants (ponies or horses),
the scale: for example, a course speed can not contain the same distances as a Grand Prix,
the size, the slope and the nature of the ground,
the direction (back with the bed or towards the bed),
and many other factors.

Combinations

In the combinations, the obstacles are close from/to each other. The adjustment of the distance is thus finer and must privilege other factors like the height and the shape (broad or right) of the obstacles:

more a obtacle is high, more the horse has need for distance,
more the obstacle is broad, plus the horse jumps and receives themselves nearly the foot of the obstacle.

As an indication, for a height of 1 m the distance between a oxer and a right in a double to a tread would be of 7,5 m and 10,5 m in a double with two treads.

Lines of obstacles

As an indication, these distances are: 14 m for 3 treads, 17,5m for 4 treads, 21 m for 5 treads, 24,5 m for 6 treads, 28 m for 7 treads. Beyond 7 treads, the number of treads is less constraining.

Grounds

General information

The grounds of CSO are usually called tracks .

Contrary to the raising, there do not exist dimensions standards for a ground of CSO. Each contest has its own specificities in terms of dimensions and the shapes of grounds. Its circumference must however be délimitté.

All the types of ground, provided that they are practicable without danger to the health of the horses, are accepted.

Sand

The grounds in Sable have the advantage of preserving the feet horses. According to the quality of sand, these grounds can be more or less excavating or more or less rebounding. A bad ground sands some (excavating) is bad for the requested tendons too fortements.

In Europe, the grounds designed by the Toubin contractors and Clément are very famous and required. Splendid rosy sand surfaces of the world equestrian Jeux of Jerez of Frontera in Spain (2002) were of this manufacture. The fame of this type of realization out of sand is so strong and so constant in time that, in the equestrian world, the expression “ground Toubin/Clément” induces necessarily a concept of higher quality.

In order to guarantee a good quality of ground at the time of a competition, it is necessary to take care to preserve a correct rate of moisture at sand and to pass the bar (to ram sand) before each test. Certain sands, when it rained much, are heavy to work. In this case, one can improve ramming by adding weight on the bar as on the photograhie opposite.

It should be noted that to ensure the best possible ground throughout the summer, while saving the most possible water, it is advised to smooth sand the evening and to sprinkle the morning early.

Bleaches on grass

The grass grounds are of quality very variable. The grounds having much humus are particularly required because of their flexibility. The quality of this ground is very depend on the climate. Per time of dryness, it is possible to regularly sprinkle a few days before the contest, but in rainy weather this type of ground can be degraded very quickly.

Also, in order to improve quality of the ground, the organizers spread a fine layer of sand on the grass grounds. This type of ground is called “sanded grass ground” . At the time of the competition, this sand will soften the ground in the event of dryness and will make it possible to limit its degradation in the event of strong rains.

Synthetic grounds

Any type of ground sparing the feet and the legs of the horses is accepted and sought. The manufacturers compete of ingeniousness to produce good synthetic grounds, but those remain still rather expensive to realize and maintain.

There exist intermediate grounds with synthetic components mixed with sand.

The tracks indoor

In Indoor, the synthetic sand and grounds practically replaced the sawdust grounds, too slipping.

The tracks indoor have specifically a constraint of moisture more systematic than the external tracks. Indeed, the external tracks, according to the seasons, are more or less sprinkled naturally by the rain and thus do not need always artificial watering throughout the year. The sand mixed with synthetic fibers has a better coherence and thus requires a definitely less watering. For this reason, the tracks indoor more and more often consist of sand mixed with synthetic fibers. Thanks to this saving in watering, these mixed grounds constitute for the indoor a more advantageous compromise financially and logistiquement that for the external grounds.

Courses

Assembly

The organizer must provide all the necessary material to the course: bars, candlesticks, bases, flags, measuring devices (stop watch, etc). The courses are assembled by the assisted chiefs of track men of track . At the time of important contests, several chiefs of track can group their imagination to build the test.

A course, can contain many dependant technical difficulties is:

with the obstacle itself (double, triple, appearance, base, river, etc),
with the sequences of obstacles (distances, difficulties of control),
with the site of the obstacle on the ground (compared to the exit of the ground, slope, etc),
at the imposed speed,
with the taking risk to gain.

Once the assembled track, the competitors are authorized to enter on the ground (without their mounting) in order to recognize the course of their test. At this time there, the track is known as opened with the recognition .

Recognition

Once the course invented by the chief of track is assembled on the ground, the riders can recognize it with foot, possibly assisted of their trainer. The recognition must be carried out in behavior of contest.

The goal is to memorize the layout, the number of treads between brought closer obstacles (the doubles, triple, lines). In addition to the number of treads, it is even more important to determine if the distances are long or short according to the intermediate size of the tread of its horse. The rider establishes also its precise layout and in particular the curves to be taken.

In the tests speed, the rider locates the " raccourcis" (called options ) and their feasibility. It is about a way of saving time, often more profitable than pure speed, to hope well to appear in the classification of the test.

In a more minor way, the analysis of the accesses of the obstacles, their framing, their prospect, specifies the difficulty which the horse will have to accept and to pass the obstacle.

For a rider, a course is a enigma to be solved. The solutions could be different according to the horse with which it will be associated.

The jury announces that the time assigned for the recognition is finished gràce with a ringing. At this time there, the track is known as closed . One or two minutes later, the first competitor must penetrate on the ground.

Relaxation with the bed

The “relaxation” is the term usually employed in the world of the contests to describe the phase of startup and muscular heating of the couple before carrying out its course.

“Bed” is the name which one gives to the training ground. This ground is if possible of comparable nature that the track of contest, but this criterion is not an obligation. Indeed, it is not very current that an organizer can lay out on his site, of a track and a bed with the same ground. In a bed, at least two obstacles must be placed at the disposal of the riders: vertical and a oxer. In the roomy beds, a third obstacle (brace) can be added.

The organization of the drive in the bed is subject to some elementary rules:

the obstacles must be jumped in a direction determined by the provision of the flags on the candlesticks (red flag on the right, white on the left).
Nobody must jump more than 10 cm higher than the highest bar of the test. In order to facilitate the compliance with this rule, certain organizers mark the candlesticks with the greatest height (using a wire for example) before the beginning of the test.
No act of brutality with respect to a horse must be made in this place.
etc

For each contest, at least a police chief with the bed is obligatorily named to make comply with the rules.

During this phase of heating, the rider will seek has to establish a harmonious contact with its horse to put it in confidence. The horse and the rider will have to leave the bed loans musculairement and mentally without feeling of tiredness.

Unfolding of a course

The rider is presented to the track entry according to an order which was communicated to him before. When the police chiefs of track give him the authorization, the rider and its horse enter on the track by taking care not to obstruct the preceding competitor if it did not finish its course.

The rider will greet the jury and waits until this one actuates a ringing to give him the departure.

After the ringing, the rider lays out 45 seconds to cross the starting line. In the contests where too many competitors are present, the jury can decide before the beginning of the test to reduce this time to 30 seconds. The rider will use these ultimate seconds to concentrate and gather its horse before springing on its course.

Once the starting line crossed, the competitor must cross all the obstacles in the order without making faults. The rider carries out the actions which it provided at the time of the recognition. So unforeseen problems emerge (reaction of the horse, storm, etc), the rider must know to adapt. The horse trusts its rider and remains permanently with its listening, answering the least requests.

The course is finished when the rider and its horse crossed the finishing line.

Handing-over of the prices

The handing-over of the prices is generally carried out at the conclusion of the test. In jump of obstacles, the first quarter of the best competitors “are classified”. As the number of participants per test is often raised, the organizers do not call obligatorily all the competitors classified with the handing-over of the prices. Generally, only the eight first of the test profit from this honor.

The competitors must be presented in complete behavior of horsemanship and with horse. They receive, according to their place in the classification of the test, the cuts, the plates, the floods and the gifts.

The floods are rosettes to which two to three ribbons hang. Formerly out of silk and paperboard, with a metal hook, they are nowadays into synthetic and plastic. They are traditionally hung on the bridon on the level of the tétière .

The plates, as the name indicates it, are metal or wood, plastic plates to the colors of the organizer. They are parts memories where appear the year, the place, the test and the classification of the horse for the classified first. The habit wants that the owner of the Cheval guard the plate to fix it on the box and the rider the flood. However, on small level (contest club), the majority of the riders keep the plate and the flood, because the changes of box, losses or loans are numerous, and, in the case of a horse of club, if this one had suddenly left the structure, to preserve a memory of this faithful destrier who caught up with all the small errors and allowed to gain a first price…

Following the handing-over of the prices, the competitors are invited to produce a lap of honor.

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