Lots of show questions from a novice any help is appreciated

[bulletandlacy]

I sent off for a rule book over a year ago and several calls and emails later still haven't received one from AMHR, so I am full of questions. What is the difference in hunter and jumper, what clothes do you wear for each classes ( adult female). What is expected of the horse and handler in showmanship, what all should the horse be trained to do, what do you wear in this class? What all should your horse comfortably encounter in obstacle course also? Thanks for any help in advance, I really appreciate it. Heather

 

[Tammy]

Showmanship

Showmanship is explained fairly well in the AMHR rulebook. You can view it online at www.shetlandminiature.com (the AMHR website) or contact the office to send you one. In showmanship, you are judged on your ability to handle your horse. There are three patterns for showmanship that consist of walking, trotting, pivoting, and showing to the judge. I will explain the three patterns below.

Basically, you will be lined up side by side with the other exhibitors. Then when it is your turn, you will walk to the judge and set up your horse. After showing to the judge, you will pivot 180 degrees and trot back past the lineup. Look back at your judge several times so as to be sure that you are still in a straight line with them. Then you will pivot 180 degrees again and set up once more. That is pattern one. Pattern two is the same shell but includes one pivot half way between the lineup and the judge on your walk way up. Pattern three is like pattern one but includes one pivot one the way back to the lineup during your trot.

Several pointers - 1) Always keep the horse between you and the judge. The AMHR system is set up in the half system. You will never be on the same side of the horse as the judge. When the judge crosses behind the tail and in front of the head, you will switch sides. Make the transition smooth. 2) Eye contact is important. Avoid watching your horse the whole time. Look at your judge. At shows with more than one judge, one judge will be the call judge, and you will show to them only. 3) As a rule, stop and acknowledge the judge before you do your next task. 4) Never touch your horse. All commands should be by lead, voice, and body placement.

As far as dress, you will wear gloves, boots, belt, and a hat. I recommend a jacket, but a nice blouse is adequate for local shows.

Hunter/Jumper

Hunter is based upon ease of going/smoothness and faults. You want to maintain a single gait throughout the entire course as well as clear all the jumps. There will never be a jump-off for a hunter class. You will trot for soundness before the class is pinned. A hunter course is often trickier to navigate as the judges want to see how smooth you can clear it. You are allowed to carry a whip in hunter (not in jumper). It also may be appropriate to braid your horse’s mane and/or tail. You can for jumper, but not as important.

Jumper is based upon accuracy and speed. Time is only kept in a jump-off. Your first round will determine those that qualify for a jump-off. Those without any faults (or do not knock any jumps) will all jump-off. Sometimes, if there are less than the number of horses that they place that make it into the jump-off for first and others tie for the next rank, they will also jump-off. It kind of depends on the show management.

I typically wear slacks and a nice slinky or blouse. Some people jump in their tennis shoes, but I do not like the picture that it portrays for the judges and thus jump in my boots.

Obstacle

I recommend the basics – backing, side-passing, trot/walk-over obstacles [tarps, bridges, flowers, see-saws (sp?) etc.], pivots, ground-tying, serpentines (trot through poles), and cavalettis (trot over poles). I would then add anything funky you can come up with. I have seen walking under ribbons, walking by goats, pigs, and other farm animals, walking through kiddie pools, loading into a trailer, etc. Once you have mastered the basics, try any variation of them and combination you can imagine. The rules say that a course cannot include jumps, stair-steps, or tires. They also specify that there must be at least 5 obstacles but no more than 8.

You can wear similar attire to what I described for jumper/hunter.

 

[mininik]

Heather - Where are you located? There should be some schooling shows and/or a trainer nearby. You'll also want to see about attending some rated shows before you give it a try for the first time and GET THAT RULEBOOK. There is so much to learn! In short:

In AMHR Hunter is judged on performance (way of going, style, grace, soundness, etc.) - Jumper is judged on speed.

Showmanship judges the handler but the horse needs to be a quiet, willing and well-presented prop. A "cowboy hat" is required attire unless, I suppose, if you are showing in English style clothing and then you would wear a helmet. *A Belt, Boots and Gloves are also mandatory for this class.

Driving & Halter Obstacle can include "almost anything" including tarps, streamers, mail boxes, cavaletti, small jumps, side passes, pivots, keyholes, back thrus, pilons, bridges, planks, teeter totters, ETC.

You are not to touch your horse in any of the above classes.

As for what to wear, I've found Ariat Ropers, slacks and tops from either Cripple Creek or Hobby Horse Clothing Co. to work very well for most classes (*I prefer to wear a dress for driving). There are also many smaller companies out there who specialize in making show tops from blouses to blazers.

 

[Ashley]

For showmanship you must have a hat, gloves, boots and a belt.

 

[mininik]

Thanks for that, Ashley.

: You're very right... hat, gloves, belt and boots for showmanship.

:

 

[Mercysmom]

I sent off for a rule book over a year ago and several calls and emails later still haven't received one from AMHR, so I am full of questions. What is the difference in hunter and jumper:

Hello! My experience is with the hunters, jumpers and halter obstacle horses so here's my 2 cents worth. This is my experience over the past 10 years and others may do it differently... you need to know your horse well and work with him and he should understand you and what you want from him before you get started. I do not have my rule book in front of me but I think I remember that the halter obstacle horse can be over a year of age - hunters and jumpers cannot enter the ring until they are 3 and should not be doing strenuous training due to their young bones. You can do trot poles and practice your turns and your horse's manners but even this should not be practiced a lot as you want your horse to like doing this...it is like math problems. Some kids like doing them and others loathe them.

In hunter classes you should see a change of direction on the course as well and the fences should be subdued in color (grey, white, brown, rust or natural colors, stone or brick walls, simple gates- no wacky panels or stripes). The horse moves at a trot or a canter - whatever gait you choose to start with is the gait your horse should hold for the course... trotting horses should not break into a canter for even one step - although it is easier for them to land that way. Cantering horses should get proper lead changes and be consistent without dragging the handler all over the place. Courses I have seen and shown in are generally side, diagonal and side, long run diagonal (single fence, side, two fence diagonal line and side... positioned to show the horse moving in two directions. If you are right handed, turns to the right can be harder, especially if your horse gets ahead of you... he should stay with you at your pace, regardless of size. A hunter horse should not be "hot" in movement and personality.

My son wears a blazer and khaki pants and shoes comfortable enough to run in... I wear items from Hobby Horse and they are worth it for hunter classes. I have to wear sneakers and a knee brace due to a serious knee injury in 2003 and more surgery in 2005 - I have seen handlers in both white and black sneakers - staying consistent in color with one's outfit creates a better picture.

For jumpers, wacky jumps, roll back turns and the like are common. First round you go clear and at any style over the fence and at any gait (you can knock a rail and as long as it does not fall out of the cups, it is NOT a fault. In hunters, knocks and rubs SHOULD BE penalized even if the horse does not take the fence down). If entries are clear there is a timed jump off for first place - fences are raised. Time can be cut back by skillfully negotiating rollbacks and other turns - or if done sloppily, can take a rail down and blow the course for you.

In jumpers, you need to be able to run and move for speed so I switch to a vest. This allows me more freedom of movement as your arms are important in doing the turns. Your horse should be controlled at speed - remember those tough turns. Ben usually wears a shirt and tie.

Our hunters and jumpers show in their thin show halters...but they know their job in the ring. Others show their horses in clean nylon halters with matching leads or leather stable type halters with matching leads. I would have to check my rule book but if you have a chain lead, it can only go under the chin, not over the nose. I prefer no chain as that signals to me that a horse can be a handful and is like a red flag.

Halter obstacle attire is similar to hunters but I wear my boots in the ring here. Horses have 60 seconds to complete an obstacle - wait for the judge to wave you on to the next obstacle. You cannot touch, bribe, shove or push your horse through an obstacle. I like a horse that knows his job...watching handlers with flailing arms and snapping fingers to cajole a horse through a sidepass is not attractive when another horse may just "do it" like he is on autopilot. Your horse should back well, sidepass in both directions and be able to pivot on the hindquarters and forehand for starters.

Schooling for these classes can be done in short bursts. We might sidepass out to the paddock or jump a fence or two during the day (always in a line so you can practice a turn and your horse doesn't run out on the second fence of a line) or practice setting up for halter but grilling horses in long sessions is not what I like to do...and they can get bored or shut down if faced with too much. Horses don't need to jump high fences all the time - if you warm up and school over some low fences you can raise the height to keep him sharp but again, don't pound him.

: Lots of praise and rewards are important, too.

Best of luck - these are my favorite classes and my son's, too.

Denise

Silversong Farm

home to Haligonian Mercy Bo Cool

AMHR Performance Hall of Fame recipient in Halter Obstacle (2002), Hunter (2004) and Jumper (2004)