What To Wear: Men's Edition

My previous posts about show ring attire have been very much focused on the female rider, so this post will aim to focus more on the men's side. There are many similarities, therefore I won't necessarily go too in-depth about every common detail because those can be read in the general hunter and jumper rider editions.

Hunters/Equitation

The Equine Canada rule for dress is as follows:

ARTICLE G109 DRESS
1. All competitors must be properly dressed in the confines of the arena. This includes the inspection of the course and at the presentation of prizes.
2. Competitors should be neatly and suitably dressed in coat, shirt and tie, choker or stock, breeches or jodhpurs and boots. Black or brown smooth leather half chaps are permissible providing they match the boot colour.
... Only approved helmets (see Article G102) of a conservative color are allowed.
3. If competitors are not suitably dressed, the judge may refuse to allow them to compete.
4. In hunter competitions, in extremely hot weather, coats are optional at the discretion of the Competition Committee.
...
6. At all EC-sanctioned competitions, anyone mounted on a horse must wear the required headgear (see Article G102.1) as well as safe, appropriate footwear.

The key for hunters is to dress conservatively and neatly.

Helmet 

The helmets for men are the same as those for women.

Hair 

Men are lucky that they don't have to worry about doing "hunter hair". Try to keep your hair cut short enough that it doesn't hang too far out of your helmet and that's about it!

Show shirt 

Show shirts for men are the same as regular dress shirts, although a select few companies do market show shirts to men with special features for riding. Ideally, opt for a shirt with long sleeves as the lack of a cuff on short-sleeved shirts can give you an unfinished look. You can choose whatever colour you want for your shirt but make sure that it doesn't clash with your jacket. The most common colours are white and pastels. When you want a formal look, go with a white shirt.

You will need to wear a tie, and for a regular hunter class, the colour of tie is up to you. Conservative is again the key word. For a hunter classic or derby, full formal attire calls for a white shirt with a white tie. Make sure that your tie won't escape your jacket and distract the judge during your round.

Show jacket 

There are show jackets made specifically for men, and these should be worn rather than a men's suit jacket because they are designed to be ridden in and are cut appropriately to accommodate sitting in the saddle. The colour is up to you, provided it is conservative, but navy is a very safe classic choice and the buttons should match the jacket colour for the hunter and equitation rings. For a hunter classic or derby, the colour should be dark, ideally navy or black.

Number

Your number is to be worn around your waist the same as for women.

Breeches 

There are breeches sold specifically for men, usually designed with more of a relaxed fit than you see in women's breeches. Breeches should be light in colour. Beige (or greenish beige) is appropriate for showing in the hunter ring. White breeches can be worn by men in hunter classics or derbies when full formal attire is called for, but are not appropriate at other times.

Boots

Male hunter riders should wear men's field boots. These are the boots with laces in front, as shown in this photo. There is no way to go wrong with black leather. Be sure to polish your boots to a shine before you show.

Leather half chaps worn with matching paddock boots are allowed but field boots are the better choice.

Spurs

Spurs may be worn but they are not mandatory. Spur straps should be clean and match your boots. There are spurs made for men that are wider to accommodate the width of men's boots.

Gloves

Gloves are not mandatory, either, but they do look much better than bare hands. Black gloves are ideal, but brown gloves can be appropriate if they match the rest of your outfit. White gloves are never appropriate in the hunter ring since the rider is not meant to stand out. Again, there are gloves made specifically for men's hands.


Jumpers

Here are the EC attire rules relating to jumpers that were not mentioned earlier:

ARTICLE G109 DRESS
2. [...] Note that breeches and boots (not half chaps or paddock boots) are mandatory in FEI Children's Jumping classes. Only approved helmets (see Article G102) of a conservative color are allowed.
5. In jumper competitions, in extremely hot weather, riders may, at the discretion of the Competition Committee, be permitted to wear dress or riding shirts with or without chokers and ties or open-neck polo shirts without jackets; no sweatshirts, t-shirts, tank tops or other similar dress will be permitted. Shirts must be neatly tucked into riding breeches.

Richard Spooner demonstrating correct
formal attire for the jumper ring

Formal attire

How often you will have to wear formal attire will depend on the individual horse show. Generally speaking, polo shirts are acceptable on weekdays and formal attire (jackets and dress shirts/ties) is required on weekends. It is up to each show to set their own standards for formal attire, however, so some shows will only require jackets on Sundays while others require jackets beginning on Fridays, for example. If you're not sure what to do, ask either the in-gate person or someone at the show office.

Also keep in mind that some classes will require a jacket even when the rest of the classes in the day do not. This usually applies to big-money welcome classes early in the week and jumper equitation classes.

If you wish to look your best at all times, you are free to wear a jacket on informal days even if the other competitors choose not to.

Helmet

Again, helmets are unisex and anything ASTM-approved (check your federation's rules for country-specific requirements) will do.

Steve Guerdat looking very neat and tidy

Hair

While ideally your hair will be kept short enough not to look messy outside of your helmet, you may do whatever you want with it.

Jacket

You can choose any colour or style for your show jacket and again, there are show jackets made for men.

Show shirt

Once again, any colour goes and you can just wear a regular dress shirt. You are free to stand out as much as you would like from your competitors with your shirt and tie, but try to choose a colour that doesn't clash with the rest of your outfit. For formal classes, white is the most appropriate choice, along with a white tie. Ensure that your tie is secured in such a way that it won't fly up during your round.

Polo shirt

If you are allowed to wear a regular polo shirt, it must be tucked into your breeches and it should be one solid colour. No other shirt, apart from a dress shirt, is appropriate as a substitute.

Breeches

Breeches may technically be of any colour, but 99.9% of riders in regular jumper classes will wear beige (or greenish-beige) breeches. Grey breeches are sometimes seen in weekday classes and white breeches are seen in formal classes.

White breeches are generally considered to be "earned" by competing at a certain level. Wearing them before that time can be a bit of a faux-pas. White breeches generally only begin to be worn by the majority of riders at around the 1.20m level and above. If you are competing below that level, beige breeches are the more appropriate choice unless the trend is different in your area.

Boots

Men's field boots are again best choice for the jumper ring, but you are allowed to wear other tall boots such as dress boots instead. You may also wear leather half chaps with paddock boots, but this is not the dressiest choice.

Boots should be cleaned and polished before you enter the ring.

Spurs

Spurs are optional and should be humane in nature, and are again available in men's sizes (make sure that the straps you choose are also in a men's or long size).

Gloves

Gloves are optional as well. If you choose to wear them, a dark colour looks best.

FAQ, Part 10

What is the proper attire for grooming at a hunter/jumper show?

Normal attire for grooms for the hunter and jumper rings is just jeans and a t-shirt or polo, basically something that can get dirty without being ruined! You should wear whatever shoes you find comfortable, as long as they cover your feet for safety around hooves. Since the groom doesn't usually enter the ring with the horse (unless you're at the Olympics or in a big grand prix where the horse needs to be led in while the rider collects a prize, in which case team clothing might be provided), comfortable clothing is just fine!

What is the best thing to do with a long, thick mane for the schooling level hunter ring?

If you don't want to pull the mane because the horse doesn't show regularly, I would do a neat, tight running braid right up under the crest where from a distance it would look like a mane that's been braided like any other.

If you would like to shorten it, you could cut it to slightly longer than the length you would like it to finish at and then pull it the rest of the way. If you think it could still be hunter-like at its current thickness, you could just cut it, angling your scissors upwards rather than cutting straight across so that the mane will taper slightly and look pulled. Some people have luck using clippers instead of scissors. I've never had much success with any of the so-called humane alternatives to pulling so I either cut with scissors or pull only as often as I need to if the horse is clearly bothered by having its mane pulled. Be very careful if you choose to cut the mane as it needs to remain braidable!

Is it acceptable to put a crystal charm on a hunter braid?

Personally, I would rather just see a nice, uninterrupted line of braids, but if it's a very subtle charm that won't be distracting during a round then it can be acceptable. Use your own judgement to decide if it's something that can be done subtly with your horse and the charms that are available to you.

Can a hunter compete without a noseband?

While the rules do not seem to explicitly state that a noseband must be used, it is the conventional tack and it is expected, with no part of the rules suggesting that a noseband is optional. There are no rules, however, about how tightly the noseband must be done up, so a horse that prefers not to have any pressure there can compete with a loose cavesson.

Can hair bows be used for young pony riders?

Colourful hair bows that attach to the ends of the braids in some young riders' hair are quite popular at the moment. Due to the prevalence of these bows in the pony ring, it would seem that they are being accepted by the judges.

I have found, however, that the bows have gotten bigger and bigger each year, and I think that many are now over-the-top and distracting. Subtle bows in neutral or conservative barn colours are one thing, but layer upon layer of different-coloured ribbon flowing out behind the rider is another. If decorative bows are used, they should really only be used in the short stirrup or small pony classes, or for a small rider on a medium pony. Once a rider graduates to tall boots, they should also graduate to the classic hunter hair because it's no longer time to be "cute".

Tried, It's True! #1

This is the first post of a new series, "Tried, It's True!", in which I will recount events that I have really witnessed at horse shows that you should aim never to emulate! I hope that you will agree with me that these situations are not something that you should try yourself, but the stress of showing can lead our brains to shut down on occasion and these bad examples could help to set off alarm bells in your mind on those hectic days before anything gets to this point!

A very narrow aisle between tents

This past week I was at a horse show in which the tents were placed so close together that the aisle between them was literally four to five feet wide between the straps/anchors. I was walking down this aisle one day and I came across a horse being bathed in the cluttered space between the tents. When I got closer, I realized that the horse was tied to one of the D-rings on an end stall! I couldn't believe that the person bathing the horse was not aware of what a dangerous situation she had put this horse in.

There were a few others who I had seen attempting to shower horses between the two tents, but these horses were not tied and in many instances they were still getting legs on or under the straps or metal anchors. Many shows have designated showering areas; these areas are not only safer for the horses, but they also keep the ground from getting muddy where the horses and vehicles need to pass between the tents, and they avoid water spraying onto tack, hay, etc. This particular show did not have a designated showering area, but there were still hoses located in more open spaces and at the ends of the tents where there were fewer obstacles to contend with.

Many horses, especially at a busy horse show with cold water and no cross-ties, will move around during a bath. Even if your horse tends to stand still, plan the location of the bath as though your horse will move. Horses are unpredictable and you don't want the one time out of a hundred that your horse moves to happen when you're in a cluttered, confined area. It only takes a second for a serious laceration, knock, or more to occur.

I don't recommend tying a horse for bathing at a show unless there is a safe place to tie to, designed to be used as a location for tying. If your horse is used to being cross-tied for bathing, a stressful horse show is probably not the best place to attempt to tie with a single lead for the first time. Ideally, you'll have one person to hold the horse while the other wields the hose. You can also hold the horse and the hose at the same time, but you'll have to give yourself extra space because the horse will be able to circle around you.

Great for hanging buckets, not great for tying horses

Those little D-rings about halfway up the wall of a vinyl temporary stall are there for hanging buckets. They were not put there as a place to tie a horse. Temporary stalls are usually only fastened together by a couple of metal pins on each corner. This means that the wall can be lifted up easily without too much force, which would make it easy for a horse to lift it up when panicking, especially if the force is being exerted near the corner, where those D-rings are located. The last thing that you want for a panicking horse is something large and loose attached to it that will cause even more panic. Even when I'm putting up cross-ties in an aisle of temporary stalls, I like to wrap the baling twine (which the cross-tie is then attached to) around both vertical bars at the junction of two stalls so that if the horse manages to exert a lot of force on one cross-tie, it's not acting on a single stall front that can be lifted up and out of place to further panic the horse. If anything happens, it will lift both stall fronts as well as the pins so that the stalls don't lose their integrity. 

Sometimes you have no choice but to tie to part of a single stall wall, for instance if you need to tie a horse inside of its stall for braiding or to discourage rolling (although in that case the horse is contained and will feel less of a desire to pull back on the tie), but you just have to be as careful as you can be in your choice of location and in using something like baling twine to act as a breakable safety mechanism.

This is not a wash stall!

All of this put together makes the situation that I witnessed very dangerous. Not only was the horse tied directly to a weak part of a stall with nothing behind it to discourage it from pulling back, but it was in an area where stepping to either side could get a leg caught on part of the tent, and the act of showering the horse would make it much more likely to dance around or fight the restraint. The tents being so unusually close together in this situation made things even more dangerous, adding in more tent straps and anchors for the horse to get caught up in, as well as more traffic and objects in close proximity.

Luckily, in this case, I didn't see or hear about any big accidents, but the risk was so unnecessary and things could easily have gone either way.

Estimating the Wait Time Before You Will Compete

One of the most difficult parts of the show day to plan can be the timing of your classes. The phrase "hurry up and wait" is used often, especially in hunterland, to describe the rush to get to the ring on time followed by a long wait because the ring has run more slowly than expected! While it's very difficult to get the timing perfectly right for something with so many variables, it is possible to calculate an estimate of how many minutes you have before your round.

Hunters

For a regular hunter or hunt seat equitation round, you're looking at about two minutes per round from the moment the horse steps through the in-gate through to it leaving the ring. Because horses can enter the ring one after another with no delay, the waits for these classes can simply be calculated by multiplying the number of rounds by two minutes.

You can ask the in-gate person how many horses or trips there will be before yours. It's very important to find out whether the in-gate is using horses or trips, because "horses" includes every round that a horse will be doing as a single set, while "trips" counts every round separately. If the in-gate person gives you the number in horses, you'll need to figure out how many trips each horse will be doing (an open-card schooling, if it is being offered, as well as two or three over fences courses for the division is quite standard).

If the number is in horses: # horses x # trips/horse x 2 minutes/trip = # minutes

If the number is in trips: # trips x 2 minutes/trip = # minutes

To calculate the estimated time if there are multiple divisions running prior to yours, you'll need to also factor in the time for any flat classes, jogs and course changes. Flat or under saddle classes usually take about ten to fifteen minutes each. Course changes can be done very quickly if they're completed while the under saddle class is waiting to be called to order or during the jog. Jogs can usually be done quickly, in the range of five to ten minutes.

For derbies or classics, each horse will probably take slightly longer to complete the course, so the time might increase to two and a half or three minutes per horse.

Jumpers

Jumpers are more complicated because each class can take more or less time depending on how it's being judged (Table A with jump-off vs. speed vs. power and speed) as well as the length of the course, size of the ring, etc.

I usually estimate a regular jumper class with immediate jump-off to take about three minutes per horse. That takes into account the initial 45 second tour of the ring, the 70 to 80 second initial round and then a partial jump-off (because not every horse will move on to the jump-off).

A regular speed class (either Table A or Table C) might take closer to two or two and a half minutes per horse because there is no jump-off and the rounds themselves take less time.

Derbies will take longer, say three or four minutes per horse depending on the length of the course. Classes in which the jump-off is delayed, such as a grand prix, will run around the two to two and a half minute mark for the initial rounds, with another couple of minutes per jump-off after that.

The easiest part of estimating jumper times is that the number of horses and number of trips is the same, so there can be no confusion there! It's simply a matter of multiplying the estimated time per horse by the number of horses.

When estimating a time over multiple jumper classes, you'll have to take into account any course changes and walks. You'll be able to tell based on the course diagrams whether any jumps need to be moved, which will take much longer than a simple change of height and/or numbers. A quick course change can take about five to ten minutes, while a long one can drag on for half an hour or more! Course walks are usually kept to no more than fifteen minutes after the course has been set and opened.

In both rings, you should get an idea of how the day will run as the show goes on. Some shows will take longer because they have bigger rings, have slow course changes or because they allow the ring to sit empty, while others will pre-load the ring (have the next horse enter while the current horse is just finishing its course) and not allow competitors to hold the ring up for ages. It's always better to err on the side of being early because you can be eliminated for being more than a few minutes late, so "hurry up and wait" will unfortunately still apply for those shows that tend to drag on.

Have a Question or Turnout Photos?

As the show season gets started in many regions, remember that you can send in photos of your horse and yourself in horse show attire for a turnout critique to find out what changes you could effect to your turnout to make your first impression on the judge even better.  Photos can be sent to showringreadyblog@gmail.com

Also, you can always ask questions either by commenting on the blog, sending an e-mail to showringreadyblog@gmail.com or by commenting on or messaging our Facebook page (while you're there, you can "like" it to be informed of new posts, interesting horse show news, useful shared photos/videos/links, etc.) and I will try to give you at least a brief answer within 24 hours.

A Heads Up for US Equitation Riders, Stirrup Rule Change

Royal Rider stirrups

If you compete or are planning to compete in equitation classes in the United States, this rule change could affect you. Beginning December 1st, 2013, black stirrup irons will no longer be allowed for equitation classes.

My understanding of the reasoning is that a black iron against a black field boot, especially on a dark horse, can hide minor flaws in the leg position and make it difficult to tell if the rider has their foot in the stirrup.

If you are in the market for a new pair of stirrup irons and think that you might enter any equitation classes in the future, you should consider either a stainless steel-type iron or a newer-style polymer iron that is coloured silver/grey rather than black.

As far as I am aware, jointed stirrups with black joint coverings are most likely still acceptable because the top and bottom of the iron are still visible as stainless steel. If you are worried about potential elimination for those black coverings, the stirrups are made with grey coverings as well.

The colour of the stirrup pad should not matter because it is hidden by the rider's boot and the branch of the stirrup, anyway.

If you already own black stirrup irons and cannot purchase a new pair, there are metallic silver spray paints available that can be used on plastic.

I have not heard anything yet about this rule being adopted in Canada, but I would not be surprised if it happens in the next few years if this is a common complaint with judges, given how often American judges are brought up to Canada. For that reason, it might be wise for any equitation riders who plan on purchasing new stirrup irons in the near future to stick to stainless steel-looking options.

This is the new USEF rule:

EQ110 Appointments [Chapter EQ - Equitation Division, Subchapter EQ-2 Hunter Seat Equitation Section] add new:
4.  The use of black stirrups is not permitted in any Equitation class. The use of black stirrups will automatically result in elimination.

The full wording of the rule change can be seen here (on page 169):
http://www.usef.org/documents/rules/ruleChanges/2013/RCApprovedBOD1_17_13.pdf

Tape on Jumper Warm-Up Standards

Have you ever wondered what those two lines of tape are doing on the jumper ring schooling standards at some horse shows?

Those lines are measured and taped by the show steward to make it easier for both riders and stewards to ensure that the height-related rules are being followed.

The lower line is put at 1.30m (4'3") and the higher line is at 1.60m (5'3"). For many, these heights will never be jumped in the warm-up ring anyway, but certain tape-related rules might still apply and the tape can help you keep track of how high you're jumping.

While the Canadian and American jumper warm-up rules do differ slightly, they are the same with regard to the tape with one exception. The Canadian rules do not allow riders to jump more than 10cm higher than the height of the competition currently taking place in the show ring. This means that if the class is running at 1.20m, the warm-up jump is only allowed to be adjusted up to the point where the top of the highest rail is even with the lower tape. Even for lower classes, knowing that the tape is at 1.30m can make it easier to estimate the height of any jump that is set.

The role of the higher tape is to set a limit for how high the horses are permitted to jump in the warm-up ring. Rails may not exceed the height of that top tape (1.60m) for any competition.

The lower tape helps to enforce the rule stating that a minimum of two rails must be used on the take-off side for any jump at 1.30m or higher, with the lower rail always staying below 1.30m. This is a way to avoid overly airy fences that would be unfair to the horse.

In addition, trot/canter/placement poles can only be used when the jump is set at 1.30m or lower (therefore the top of the highest rail mustn't be higher than the bottom tape when using any rails on the ground except for ground lines within 1.0m of the fence).

The tape-related rule most likely to affect those jumping the lower heights is that the cups used to build a cross-rail may not exceed 1.30m. Because the middle of a cross-rail where it is jumped is much lower than the height of the cups, it's quite easy to approach the height of the tape when raising an X to anything more than a relatively low height.

For full warm-up rules, you can check the individual rule books:

EC rules

USEF rules