This week teaching the Cert. II class has been focused on the rules of jumping and different types of jumps and it got me thinking about the knowledge behind those that design such courses for competitive events.

If you have a love of jumping and an interest in how courses are built, put together and the specifications, then perhaps course design is for you.

Before designing a course, it would be expected that one is familiar with riding courses themselves, after all, how difficult would it be to make something that you’ve never been through before?  The same person would also need to be familiar with different types of jumps.

The Wikipedia Show Jumping page takes a look at this equestrian sport and lists a number of different jumps.

The Equestrian Federation of Australia website has a .pdf file stipulating rules for FEI jumping and requirements for being an accredited jumping course designer.  These can be found from page 6 and state:

Level 1 Course Designers must have:
– Competed at 6 shows / year for at least 4 years or acted as assistant on 4 occasions over past 2 years with Level 2 or higher Course Designer and
– Must have passed open book theory exam at seminar or been nominated by 2 Course Designers of Level 2 or higher level

Level 2 Course Designers must have:
– Acted as a Level 1 Course Designer on at least 6 occasions over the past 2 years and
– Worked as an assistant at a minimum of 2 separate shows (one at least 2 days in length) in the past 2 years with a Level 3 or higher Course Designer and
– Attended an Official Seminar endorsed by the EFA within the previous 2 years and
– Satisfactorily completed a theory exam at said seminar

Applicants will be listed as a Level 3 Course Designer if they have:
– Acted as a Level 2 Course Designer on at least 6 occasions in the past 2 years and
– Worked as an assistant, on a minimum of 2 occasions in the past 2 years with a Candidate International or International Course Designer and
– Attended an official seminar, both for judging and course design endorsed by the EFA within previous 2 years and
– Satisfactorily completed a theory examination at said seminar

If you’re interested in course design, becoming a member of the Equestrian Federation of Australia or Internationally and working with other course designers would be the way to go.

“A basketball game can change a mood for the week, but a horse can change the course of a lifetime.”

tag: job, shows, show jumping, course, course design, horseriding, training, eventing, career

I first came across this sport when I did my Certificate II in Horse Studies in high school – a couple of the students played and brought their polocrosse sticks (like a lacrosse racket) and cantered around the large indoor arena, throwing and catching a ball with their rackets. Looked like fun! But way too much coordination required for me!

While in South Africa I came to be on a five day trail with a woman who played on the Australian team for awhile and she could only sing praises of the sport.

Polocrosse is truly Australian made and is a combination of polo, lacrosse and netball. As stated on the Australian Association’s Website, “It is played on horseback, each rider using a cane stick, made up of a polo stick shaft to which is attached a squash racquet type head with a loose twisted-thread net, in which the ball is carried.” Despite being Australian made, it has gained interest around the world.

The game:
Consists of two teams, each with six players. These six players are divided into two lots of three who play alternate chukkas that last up to eight minutes in length. A full game is six or eight chukkas meaning that players get to play three or four chukkas each.

Each player has a different role – attack, centre or defense. The goals that are scored by each lot of three are added up to make the team’s total score at the end of the game.

Horses needed – number:
Unlike polo, polocrosse only allows the use of one horse per match/tournament except in the case of injury.

Potential costs involved:
Horse, tack, polocrosse equipment – helmut, boots, kneeguards and mallets, shoeing regularly, vet bills, rugs, feeding and stabling. Game entries, tuition.

Links to associations:
http://www.polocrosse.org.au/ – The Polocrosse Association of Australia Inc.
http://www.polocrosse-deutschland.de/ – Germany’s Official Polocrosse Club.
http://www.polocrosse.net/ – Polocrosse Worldwide.
http://polocrossecanada.com/ – Canada’s Polocrosse Organisation.
http://www.polocrosse.ie/ – Irish Polocrosse Association.
http://www.ridesenter.net/polocrosse/ – Norsk Polocrosse Klubb
http://www.polocrosse.co.za/ – Polocrosse South Africa.

“If you don’t fall, you aren’t riding hard enough.”

tag: polocrosse, horseriding, australia

Think gymnastics and horses are the best things since sliced bread? Perhaps vaulting is for you. Summed up, the equestrian sport of vaulting is described as “gymnastics performed on a moving horse going on a circle line, in full harmony.”

A sport that can be done as an individual or in a team, it is amazing to watch and a sport that is seen in many countries and is a part of the International Equestrian Federation.

Visiting http://www.efanational.com/ and clicking on Accreditation and Certificates >> Coaching >> For the Public, will take you to a page that lists the three levels of Vaulting Coaches available through the Equestrian Federation of Australia. It is also listed on the Fédération Equestre Internationale website
(http://www.fei.org/Disciplines/Vaulting/Pages/Default.aspx).

If you are interested in this sport, there are a few websites worth checking out:
– http://www.vaultingclub.com/ – the International Vaulting Club website which lists 35 countries that participate in vaulting.
– http://www.equestrian.org.au/db/eq/instructor_list.asp – you can do a search on Vaulting coaches throughout Australia.
– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1aZTj-MDAYw – Freestyle Vaulting at the World Equestrian Games, 2006.
– http://www.valleyviewranch.com/ – Valley View Ranch offers riding programs in English and Hunt Seat, Western Stock Seat and Barrels and Vaulting.

“Lungeing: Popular training method in which a horse exercises his owner by spinning him in circles until dizzy.”

tag: horseriding, EFA, coaching, vaulting