bigger. You won’t get bonus points for taking the more difficult option, so if your horse is better over smaller fences or is not prepared for the questions asked on the cross country option, don’t take the option! Choose which best show- cases your horse’s talent,” she continues. There is still a subjective
Kristen Bond and her Dutch Warmblood mare Bea Ready were high point champions in the 4-Year- Old YEH in 2017.
Marilyn explains that feedback from a number of riders
prompted the changes. “The riders did want a change to the score system to make it more objective,” she says. “People used to complain that if a horse knocked a fence down but still placed well, it wasn’t fair. So now if a rail is down it is heavily penalized: if a fence is jumped poorly or knocked down it’s a 1; if it’s average it’s a 2; if it’s a good jump—if you see it and go, ‘wow, that’s a good jumper’—it scores a 3. A horse will also be eliminated for a fall or three refusals, which is new too. [At qualifiers, a horse may finish the course for schooling purposes at the judge’s discretion.] If a horse has a refusal at one fence it will get a zero on that fence, but if it gets 3s on the rest of the jumps it could still be competitive.” “You will see if they’re quick on their feet and
how they adjust and handle the complex/combi- nation of fences—that way there will be more fences in the championship course, which will help the judges evaluate their true potential,” Marilyn continues.
MORE OPTIONS “We will also have an option fence at champion- ships; on show jumping, this will consist of an inviting fence and will be set higher, a maximum of four inches,” she says. “On cross country, the option fence will be a more difficult combination to show off your horse’s ability and talent.” “Some riders feel like they can’t show off their horse’s scope and talent until the jumps get
aspect to the jumping, with marks given for rideability, gallop and general impres- sion. The horse should jump the fences in stride and maintain a rhythm, and there is a 100-meter stretch after the last fence to “gallop” so the judge evalu- ates how the horse moves across the ground. This is still scored 1–10. Marilyn notes riders
often ask how fast they should go on course, and she suggests that a forward canter in a steady rhythm, jump- ing out of stride, is advisable as opposed to running a horse off his feet. “On the course, there usually isn’t room to go faster than a forward canter,” she notes.
About the YEH
According to the US Eventing Association’s website, “the USEA Young Event Horse Series is best described as an eventing talent search.” The goal is to identify talented young horses who, with proper, careful training, can demonstrate their ability to excel in the uppermost levels of eventing. The YEH gives owners and breeders the opportunity to showcase the potential and quality of their four- and five-year-old horses. Each year, the YEH has qualifying competitions across
the country and all finalists come together at the champion- ship events in the fall, one held in the east and the other in the west. In October 2017, the east coast championship was held at Fair Hill International in Maryland, while in the west the championship was held at Woodside International in California. Overall, last year’s four-year-old champion out of 24
horses was Bea Ready, a Dutch Warmblood mare owned and ridden by Kristen Bond. Out of 42 horses, the five-year-old champion was Exclusively Cooley, an Irish Sport Horse geld- ing, owned and ridden by Kim Severson.
Warmbloods Today 45
Leslie Threlkeld for Shannon Brinkman Photo
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