USEA - Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse

Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse

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2010 YEH Calendar

2010 YEH Results

2010 YEH INFORMATION

In order to maintain complete records on Young Event Horses in our database, the USEA requires that all horses be registered to participate in YEH classes.  Registration will insure that the horses' full pedigree and competition results will be maintained. Please provide a completed Horse Life Registration form to the USEA. If you have breed registry papers on your horse, send a photocopy along with the USEA HLR form. Thank you for your cooperation!

OVERVIEW

The USEA Spalding Labs Young Event Horse Series may be best described as an equine talent search. The Series gives owners and breeders the opportunity to showcase the potential of their four- and five-year-old horses while encouraging them to produce top-level event horses for the future.

Young Event Horse classes focus on education and preparation of the event horse in a correct and progressive manner. Youngsters are asked to complete three sections: Conformation and Type; Dressage; Jumping Test/Gallop/General Impression. The ultimate goal of the Young Event Horse Series is to choose the youngster that possesses the talent and mind set, and who with proper training, will excel in the uppermost levels of the eventing world.

While the ultimate goal is to identify the future four-star horses it is also hoped that many fine event horses who will excel at the lower levels will also be showcased.

REQUIREMENTS 

  1. Age: Horses are considered to be one year older on January 1 each year regardless of birth month. 
    4 year-old classes are for horses attaining four years of age in the current calendar year.
    5 year-old classes are for horses attaining five years of age in the current calendar year.
    Mares that have had term or near-term foals will be allowed a “bye” year if a certificate of verification, signed by a veterinarian, is submitted to the USEA office. The intent of this rule is to allow mares who have taken time off to be bred to compete in four year old classes as five year olds and five-year-old classes as six-year-olds.
  2. Membership:  Membership in the USEA is required; horses must be registered with the USEA (see above).
  3. Saddlery:  Only snaffle bridles may be used in dressage and boots and martingales are optional for jumping. No boots to be worn in Sections I or II.
  4. Dress (relaxed):  ASTM/SEI approved helmets mandatory for jumping.
    Dressage phase:  Collared shirt with sleeves, breeches, and boots.
    Jumping phase:  Cross-country attire with safety vests and armbands.
  5. Foreign Horses: Foreign horses must attend and achieve a qualifying score at a sanctioned YEH competition in the United States in order to participate in the championships. 
  6. Championships: Qualified horses will be allowed to participation in one championship only.

STRUCTURE 

Section I

Conformation and Type

15%

Section II

Dressage Test

35%

Section III

Jumping Test/Gallop/General Impression

50%


While the judges look for horses with strong abilities in dressage and show jumping, they also look for a horse with correct, elastic gaits, scope and athleticism over fences, and those that with the correct training will have the speed, soundness, and stamina necessary at the top levels of the sport.

Section 1 – Conformation and Type
Each horse is stripped of tack and shown in hand to the judge. Handlers are to stand their horse up for inspection by the judge who will assess conformation and type. The horse is judged on potential for soundness, speed and stamina. Handlers will be asked to walk and trot them in a straight line for soundness and correctness. Color, size and gender should not be a factor in a horse's score.

Section II - Dressage - DRESSAGE TEST
This is a modified dressage test judged on overall collective impressions (not by each individual movement). There are two dressage tests for each level, one for qualifying competitions and one for the championships. The 2010 Dressage Test will be available on the YEH page of the USEA website.

Section III – Jumping Test/Gallop/General Impression
The jumping phase, ideally, should incorporate a small course of four or five show jumping fences immediately followed by six to eight cross-country jumps. This model allows for a smooth transition from a show jumping pace to the more forward cross-country pace. The fence parameters at the qualifying competitions may be up to 2'11" (Novice specifications) for the four-year-old classes and up to 3'3" (Training specifications) for the five-year-old classes. Smaller courses are also advisable at qualifying competitions that take place in the early months of the year, building to Novice and Training specifications as the year progresses. Please note the specifications to be used at the championships below.  An event horse must be able to jump a bank, ditch, water, or solid fence. All events must incorporate at least one of these obstacles in their jumping section. The obstacles should be straight forward, inviting, and age-appropriate for the youngsters. Please note that schooling through the water obstacle prior to competition is encouraged.

YOUNG EVENT HORSE CHAMPIONSHIPS

The YEH Championships will require horses to negotiate a small water obstacle and a ditch. Fence parameters for the YEH Championships will be set up to Training level for four-year-olds and Preliminary level for five-year-olds.

Please note that the heights of the fences for the YEH Championships are as follows:

Four-year-old Championships – 30 percent of the jumps must be at the maximum height of 3'3" to mirror the specifications for the Training level.
Five-year-old Championships – 30 percent of the jumps must be at the maximum height of 3'7" to mirror the specifications for the Preliminary level.

The judge must be able to easily see all fences on the jumping course. Again an ideal design for the jumping section would be a relatively open space with several show jumps at the beginning of the course. This allows the horse to jump the more technical fences then move on to a more forward stride to the cross-country course. There should be a total of 10-12 fences.

There must be enough room for the horse to gallop away from the last fence for long enough that the judge can assess the quality of the gait.

Also included in the Jumping Section – Gallop and General Impression
Horses are required to show their gallop immediately following the last jump.

Guidelines for Judging
The aim of these classes is to encourage breeders and trainers to produce and present the correct type of young horse which is considered to be the best material to make a top international event horse. The judges must be chosen from the YEH Judges list.

Method of Judging
The Judges should bear in mind they are looking for potential for the future. Unfortunately, all too often, the horse with the most potential may not be the one which is presented in the best manner. Judges are looking for an athletic, elastic moving horse with a promising jumping technique that, with correct training, will develop physically and mentally into a strong upper level mount.

His conformation and movement should enable him to withstand the demands of the sport in terms of soundness, speed and stamina. Lack of quality and other defects which may prevent him being fast enough should be penalized, even though he may make a nice dressage or show jumping horse. However, a lack of size or color of the horse should not be held against him. Equally one should not allow a possible prejudice against mares to affect any judgment. It is essential to encourage riders to give mares more of a chance if we are to establish a better breeding policy using proven mares.

In the dressage phase, unlike a normal dressage test, marks are not given for individual movements. Three correct, elastic and regular gaits through a swinging back are the qualities that judges will be seeking. Young horses should not be marked down for displaying a little exuberance.  The judge will have to weigh the influence of the rider; a good rider may present a well balanced, smooth test from perhaps a moderate, unscopey horse while a novice rider may even hinder a good horse from showing its true worth. It is the horse's, and not the rider's, real potential we are looking for. Likewise in the jumping we are looking for a bold, athletic horse with good technique and a horse with these qualities should not necessarily be penalized for knocking down a fence providing he learns from his mistake. Four-year-old horses will not be penalized for jumping out of the trot.

Scoring and Use of Marks
Careful thought must be given to how the marks are used. In order to have enough of a gap between the lower and higher quality horses it is necessary to use the full range of marks. Similar to dressage judging, the first horse in sets the standard and therefore one must leave enough room to put better horses above and weaker horses below. If the first horse is marked low then all scores will likely be low and worthy horses will not achieve qualifying scores.

In conclusion we could sum up by asking the question "Which horse would I buy to make the best international eventer?" We are not buying the rider.... only the horse.

Each section will be scored on a 1-10 mark basis.

1 = very bad
2 =bad
3= fairly bad
4= insufficient
5 = sufficient
6= satisfactory
7= fairly good
8= good
9= very good
10 = excellent

Conformation and Type is worth 15% of your score.
Dressage total average score is worth 35% of your score.
Jumping Test/Gallop/General Impression is worth 50% of your score.

YEH CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFIERS

Horses must earn a score of 70 percent or higher at two qualifiers or a score of 75 percent or higher at one qualifier. The site for the 2010 YEH East Coast Championships will be held at the Fair Hill International CCI**/*** event. Depending on the number of entries for the championships, the conformation and dressage will be held on the first day and the jumping may be held on the following day. There will be a West Coast Championships in 2010, the venue is TBD. Please note that competitors will only be allowed to participate in one championship.

2010 ENTRY FORM  

The 2010 YEH Entry Form is available on the website or in the back of the Omnibus with the Horse Trials and Three-Day Events entry forms.

CONTACT FOR HOSTING A YOUNG EVENT HORSE SERIES COMPETITION

If you are interested in hosting a USEA Young Event Horse Series competition, please contact Wendy Weinstein at 703.779.0440 ext. 3006 or email wendy@useventing.com.

Forms revised annually have a year revision date (2006). Forms revised periodically have a 2 digit month and 2 digit year revision date (0106).

Title File
Type
File
Size
Revision
Date
Young Event Horse 2010 Score Sheets PDF 377K 2010
Young Event Horse 2010 Test Entry Form PDF 178K 2010
Young Event Horse 4-Year-Old Championship Dressage Test PDF 145K 2010
Young Event Horse 4-Year-Old Qualifying Dressage Test PDF 143K 2010
Young Event Horse 5-Year-Old Championship Dressage Test PDF 147K 2010
Young Event Horse 5-Year-Old Qualifying Dressage Test PDF 147K 2010
Young Event Horse Judges List PDF 93K 2010
YEH What's New
Busy Weekend For Spalding Labs/USEA YEH Competitions
Next weekend will be a busy time for the Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse program with four competitions taking place over two days. (August 25, 2010)
West Coast Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse Update
YEH Calendar Update – Lone Tree Farm has added a Spalding Labs/USEA YEH competition plus Event Derby to run in conjunction with their FEH competition on Sunday September 5th. The Derby class is a perfect chance for all the horses that are looking to chan (August 18, 2010)
YEH and FEH Updates
The Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse competition taking place at Stony Brook Farm on September 4th is adding a New Event Horse Division. This class is open to horses of all ages and will be using the 4-year-old YEH tes. This division is perfect for an (July 27, 2010)
Twin Rivers To Host YEH and FEH Competitions This Sunday
Twin Rivers Ranch in Paso Robles, California will be hosting both Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse and USEA Future Event Horse Classes this Sunday, July 11. In addition an "Event Horse Prospect" Class will be offered for horses who have aged out of th (July 8, 2010)
Catalpa Corner Horse Trials Adds YEH and FEH Classes To Their Summer Event
Catalpa Corner, in Iowa City, Iowa, has just added Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse and USEA Future Event Horse competitions to their Horse Trials, July 31- August 2, 2010. (June 24, 2010)
Caspar And Zeizos Take The Top Spots At Waredaca's Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse Competition
Boys ruled at the Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse competition at Waredaca Horse Trials in Unity, Maryland with two geldings and their male riders rising to the top of the four 4-year-olds and eight 5-year-olds who contested the event. (June 3, 2010)
FEH and YEH Openings Still Available at Waredaca
Be sure to get your entry into Waredaca for the Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse and the USEA Future Event Horse competitions coming up on May 28th. Waredaca has extended its closing date to May 22nd, which is this Saturday; they still have room for m (May 19, 2010)
The Young Event Horse Competition At Galway Downs Canceled
The Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse Competition scheduled to be held May 14-16 in Temecula, California was forced to cancel due to low entries. For a complete listing on YEH events consult the YEH Calendar. More information about the YEH Prog (May 7, 2010)
Twin Rivers Kicks Off The West Coast Spalding Labs/USEA YEH Series
The first West-Coast Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse Competition of the year was held last Thursday at the Twin Rivers Spring Three-day Event and Horse Trials in Paso Robles, CA. Although there were only two entries in the four-year-old divi (April 20, 2010)
The Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse Series is Under Way!
The Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse Series kicked off its season on February 3rd with a competition in combination with the YEH Judging Symposium held in Ocala, FL. Thanks to newcomers to the organizing side of the series, Timothy and Cheryl Holekamp (March 31, 2010)
Upcoming Young Event Horse and Future Event Horse Competitions
February 27th is a big day for the Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse Series with competitions taking place at Rocking Horse Stables and The Ark. Both venues are still accepting entries, but be sure to send them in as soon as possible to guarantee a spo (February 18, 2010)
Date Changes for YEH and FEH Calendars
The March 1st Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse and USEA Future Event Horse competitions at Cedar Ridge Farm have been rescheduled for September 5th. Be sure to mark your calendars so that you don’t miss this wonderful event. If you have any further qu (February 17, 2010)
YEH for Late-Bloomers? Ocala March YEH Offers Class for Every Age
Would you like to try out the YEH format, but worry about getting your horse ready by age four? The Florida Horse Park March YEH is offering a YEH competition for horses of any age. (January 25, 2010)
Upcoming YEH Competitions To Be Held in Florida
The first Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse competition of the year is being held February 3rd in sunny Ocala, FL. The competition will run in conjunction with the YEH judging seminar at the beautiful Longwood Farm. This is the first in a series of thr (January 11, 2010)
Golden Prospects shine from East to West
The eventing champions of tomorrow gathered to show their potential in conformation, dressage, and jumping in their own Championship divisions on both sides of the country this year. (January 4, 2010)
Kim Keeton and Accolade Draw Rave Reviews At The Spalding Labs USEA Young Event Horse East Coast Championship
While their senior counterparts strut their stuff down the centerlines in the CCI2* and CCI3* divisions at the Fair Hill International Horse Trials, four- and five-year-old stars to be were flashing their talents in the Spalding Labs USEA Young Event Hors (October 16, 2009)
Spalding Labs/USEA YEH East Coast Championships Update
Due to the volume of entries to the Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse Championships will take place over two days, October 15-16, 2009. The conformation and dressage will take place on Thursday and the jumping along with the pinning of winners on Frida (October 14, 2009)
West Coast Spalding Labs/USEA YEH Championships Information
The Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse West Coast Championships will be held at Galway Downs in Temecula, California on Thursday, October 29. The YEH championships will be running in conjunction with the Galway Downs Three-Day Event and Horse Trials. So (October 14, 2009)
Cedar Ridge Farm YEH/FEH Competition: A Wet But Triumphant Day
Though the mantra of the day seemed to be "rain, rain, go away," eventers proved once again that they were more than fair-weather fans. The horses were beautifully turned out, rid of the manure stains they incurred over night, and the crowd was bubbly in (October 8, 2009)
Young Event Horse Championships at the Fair Hill International CCI**/***
This year, the Spalding Labs/USEA Young Event Horse Championships will be held Thursday, October 15 in conjunction with the Fair Hill International CCI and are gearing up to provide an exciting competition. Young horses are coming from all over the Easter (September 25, 2009)
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