A One Day Event or Horse Trial is a combined test of the  three  horseriding  disciplines:- dressage, cross-country and show jumping.

The dressage is always held first, then, depending on the set-up of the site where the event is being held, the cross-country may be next, followed by

the show jumping. In some cases the last two phases are reversed because the show jumping arena has been set up before the event, is sharing space with the cross-country course, and has to be taken down before the crosscountry (XC) can commence. Some clubs hold the event over two days (a 2DE) with dressage on the first day.

There are several levels of competition at Pony Club: Introductory, pre-training, training, and open.

National Pony Club coaches do not recommend that you attend show jumping or one day events until your skills of balance and co-ordination are

well-established.  You may think that introductory level classes are suitable for you, but you still need to jump. These classes are often used by

experienced riders who are training young horses.

The New Zealand Pony Club Association has regulations for the classes of the One Day Events. These rules can be found on the NZPCA website.

These rules set the heights, spreads, distances and speeds for Introductory to Open level classes, and the dressage tests which should be used.

ORGANISATION
There is a tremendous amount of planning and organisation for a One Day Event, including decisions on date, levels of competition, dressage tests appropriate for each level, entry fee, sponsors, prize money ( if any), advertising, recording entries, preparing the dressage arena, planning and setting up the show jumping course, preparing the cross country course, finding helpers ( who often outnumber the riders at these events), printing a programme, allocating riding order to participants ( the draw), preparing recording sheets for all phases, receiving cancellations and changes, booking judges,  booking a technical delegate who inspects the arenas and cross country course and oversees the event on the day, appointing a ground jury and  an appeal committee, preparing plans for the show jumping and cross country courses, printing ribbons, buying rosettes, booking first aid attendance, preparing the canteen for food on the day, checking back numbers, checking radio telephones. It is an exhausting experience for the organiser who will welcome any support you can offer, and who will need to be thanked after the event.

THE COSTS

The  costs are considerable and include advertising, judges, technical delegate, scorer, rosettes, ribbons, possibly prize money,  portaloos, paper, preparation of courses, food for officials, medical attendance,  so an entrance fee is charged.  This varies-there is no set charge.

ENTRIES

In the advertisement you will see that you have to enter by a specified date - the sooner you get your entry in the better as some events are very popular and you may have to go on a waiting list (There is a limit of around 30 for each class, as this is as many as a dressage judge can cope with in a day). You must include all your details like full name, address, age, horse‛s name, class (e.g. training), your e-mail address.  Entries to many events are done on-line.  The event secretary needs to post or email you a programme and your draw (the time when you must present yourself at the Dressage, and the order in which you ride in the Show jumping and Cross country).  Cancelling your entry can  provide the organiser with headaches so don‛t do it lightly- rain is no excuse!  You may be able to get a refund if your horse is injured and you can

provide a vet‛s certificate to prove this- conditions of entry vary from event to  event. If you decide on the day not to attend the competition, don‛t expect a refund, and DO ring/email and advise the organiser that you are not coming.

TRANSPORT

Arrange transport to the event well before the day if you don‛t own your own float  or truck. Many Branch members are willing to share their transport, provided you have a horse which loads easily, and provided you pay your share of travelling expenses. Floats are available for hire ( Refer Yellow Pages)  or a group of you can book a truck-(Yellow Pages-Horse Transport).  Be prepared to pay before your horse gets on the truck, and if you pull out, you will still have to pay.

PREPARING THE HORSE

On  the day before the event, clean your horse and prepare mane and tail, ready for plaiting early in the morning.  Get all gear ready-have a check list of things needed and tick them off. There is nothing worse than getting to an  event and finding that you are missing a vital piece of equipment. Don‛t expect your parents to be responsible for gear. Take a water container for the horse‛s water. It‛s a good idea to take your own water too, then there is less likelihood of your horse picking up an infection.

WALKING THE CROSS-COUNTRY COURSE

Some  events have an official course walk at a designated time on the day before the event and you would be wise to attend this as an official will take you  around the cross-country course and explain where each class should ride, and the options for each obstacle. However, you can walk around the course at any time prior to the start of the cross-country event on the day of the competition. The official colour-coding for cross country numbers is: Introductory/NZPC65=white; Pre-Training/NZPC80=blue; Training/NZPC95=red; OpenNZPC105/A1=black, DC=yellow (A1=17-20 years, DC= 16 yrs and under).

THE RULES

It is very important that you know the rules of competition. As these are numerous, they are not reproduced here. Your Branch should supply all its members with the basic rules for dressage, show jumping and cross-country as part of its rally programme, and you should refer to the rules for each phase found on the Pony Club website. Here are some basic guidelines.

DRESSAGE:

When it is your turn to go into the arena, you must ride around the outside of the arena while the judge is summing up the previous test. When the judge rings the bell, you must immediately enter the arena by the shortest route. Learn to salute the judge correctly. Learn your test well. Accurate circles are important. When an error is made, the judge will ring the bell. Stop your test and ride up to the judge who will tell you what error you made and tell you where to start again. Don‛t panic. You lose marks only for that one movement. Your horse may not leave the arena during the test. As soon as  you finish the test, leave the arena, Dismount, run up your stirrups and walk, leading the horse.

CROSS-COUNTRY:

Be ready to enter the starting box when your number is called. If you have trouble with your horse entering the box, ask the starter to lead you in ( and practise this skill back at your club).
Three important things to remember:
1. You are not allowed to receive help on the course in any form ( e.g. no friends or parents yelling out telling you where to go), except when you fall off. You may then be helped back onto the horse.

2. Overtaking: If you want to overtake the rider in front of you, never do it as they approach an obstacle. As soon as they begin to make that

approach, they have right of way. If you are being overtaken, never wilfully obstruct that rider. If you have difficulty at an obstacle quickly get out of the way of other competitors who are approaching.
3. At an obstacle which has more than one part with signs A and B, for example, if you clear A but stop at B you may go back and try A again

but  you don‛t have to. You can attempt just B again. This rule is different in show jumping.

SHOW JUMPING

You may be asked by the gate marshal to enter the arena before the previous rider has left it. If not, be quick to enter as soon as the previous rider leaves.  Ride around until the bell goes for you to begin but avoid going between the flags. When the bell goes begin your ride through the course, making sure you first pass between the start flags, and finish by passing between the finish flags. If the bell goes during your round because you knocked down an obstacle, stop riding the course and ride around within the arena until the bell goes again. You should start by re-attempting that obstacle. At an obstacle which has more than one part, with signs A and B, if you clear A but not B, you MUST go back and start from A again.  As you come out of the arena, always walk your horse.

SCORING

Scoring at a One Day Event is complex and the scorer(s) should never be interrupted as the job requires total concentration.

Dressage: All the marks allocated by the judge are added together. Any penalties for errors are then subtracted (first error-2 penalties; 2nd error-

4 penalties; 3rd error=elimination.)

The  resulting mark is divided by the possible total for the test, then multiplied by 100 to give the percentage of the possible total. This percentage is now deducted from 100 and expressed as penalty points.

e.g. Judges marks 92 out of a possible 180.  92 -:- 180 X 100 = 51.11%.

100 – 51.11 = 48.89

Competitors  may obtain their copy of the dressage sheets after the completion of the dressage phase and when all dressage scores have been calculated. The sheets are usually clipped together and put beside the score

board for collection.
Cross-country: Penalties are scored for the following: First refusal, run-out

or circle of a horse at an obstacle=20 penalties; Second refusal etc at same obstacle= 40 penalties; third refusal etc. at same obstacle= elimination. Fourth stop, run-out etc. on whole cross-country course=elimination. Fall of rider at an obstacle= 65 penalties; Second fall= elimination. Any obstacle not cleared= elimination; every second over the time allowed=0.4 penalties.  All penalty points are added up to become the total score for the crosscountry.

Show Jumping: Every rail/obstacle knocked down= 4 penalties. First disobedience ( stop, run-out, circle at a jump)= 4 penalties. Second disobedience at the same obstacle= 8 penalties ( total now 12) Third  disobedience on the whole course= elimination. First fall of horse/rider= 8 penalties. Second fall= elimination. There are penalties if there is a disobedience plus knocking down an obstacle, and there are time penalties.  All penalties are added together to become the total score for the show jumping. Final score: the dressage, cross-country and show jumping scores are added together.  Rosettes are awarded to the first to fourth places in dressage only, then rosettes and possibly prize money are awarded to overall 1st to 4th. The  rider with the lowest number of penalty points is the winner. In the event of a tie, ESNZ rule 634-2, p.21 applies.  Initially the recorded crosscountry times for the riders are examined and the rider closest to the time allowed is the winner.  E.g. if rider A  has a time of 5 minutes 3 seconds, and rider B has a time of 4 minutes 20 seconds, and the time allowed was 4 minutes 50 seconds, then rider A would be the winner.  ( the moral of this is - learn to ride at the correct pace for the class- don‛t go too fast or too slow).

PRESENTATION OF PRIZES

When results from all three phases are “posted” on the notice board, you have 30 minutes to examine them before prizes are presented. If you have any objections to the results you should speak to the Technical Delegate.

You should attend the prize giving promptly. Some clubs request that you be in  your riding attire and mounted on your horse. Sometimes a computer printout of all results is available.