subject: Show Jumps Are Given An Alloted Time To Finish Or Beat [print this page] Show Jumps Are Given An Alloted Time To Finish Or Beat
If you are not sure what exactly show jumps are, then this will help explain them for you. They are generally affiliated with the English style of horse shows or events. The event is generally called show jumping or stadium jumping, these are instruments that the horses are trained to jump over in. Show jumping can be an event on its own or it can be combined with other events such as dressing, hunters and several other events. This type of event is done in horse shows all over the world, you can even find it in the Olympics.You will find several different classes competing in these English style events, the hunter and jumper classes being the most common. A horse in the hunter class will be judged on appearance, style and the type of manners that it exhibits. On the other hand, the horse in the jumper class will be judged by a number system that includes the different types of jumps the horse completes with as few faults as possible and in the shortest amount of time. Hunters require calm and a special kind of style. The jumper class must be bold, strong, speedy, accurate and have a lot of control.There are a variety of different things that will create faults that will be given to the horse which will lower its score. Those would be knockdown or refusals as well as time violations. Note that there is no fault given to the horse if the knockdown did not result in making the jump shorter. That means it is alright for the horse to knock down a bar that is in the middle or the bottom.If a horse refuses to do a jump he can receive four faults for that jump. If the refusal by the horse happens to actually interfere with the event itself, is when they will receive a penalty for the refusal.There are time penalties during show jumps as well and that is based upon the average time it should take to run a certain course and if they go over the average time then they will receive one fault for ever second that they go over the allotted time.There is what is called the combination fault and this is when the horse in involved with a course that must go over the same area of the course more than once. Should the horse refuse to do a certain part of the course every time he gets there, then it is four faults for each time. If the horse refused twice, the horse will receive 8 faults not 4 faults.The type of tack or saddle and accessories that a horse wears is important to the horse and rider. The saddle is an English saddle that allows the rider to have close contact with the horse. This kind of saddle gives both the horse and rider a lot more freedom when it comes to their show jumps. The saddle pads are generally white, they can attach the bridle to any kind of noseband and can be equipped with a bit or not. A lot do not use bits. If used, they must get approval of the official vet before they can use the bit on the horse.There are several different competitions available around the world. Grand Prix is one where the horses are made to jump ten to sixteen different types of jumps. Some of which reach as high as six and a half feet. This particular course can be seen in the Olympics.Others you might find would be the Speed Derby, Puissance a course where horses must clear seven foot jumps, the Six Bar which is six different jumps going from shortest to highest, Gamblers Choice would be one that the rider picks out and not the judges, Maiden or Novice for inexperienced horses and many more.There are also a variety of show jumps that the horse and rider will need to jump. These would be Vertical, poles placed on top of each other with no width to jump, Oxer, this is when two verticals are put together to make the jump wider, Triple Bar, a fence using three bars with graduating heights, Wall, fence made to look like bricks, Combination, two or three jumps in a row, Open Water, ditch filled with water.The types of horses used in show jumps are generally Warmbloods or Thoroughbreds that can measure as tall as 16 hands in height, although there have been some good show jumpers that have competed that did not come from such breeds.