West Waterford Hunt Branch
Home	Noticeboard	Activities	Alphabetical Index	Table of Contents

Combined Training

This page is not intended as a comprehensive account of Combined Training but only as a rough introduction for interested newcomers.

What is Combined Training?

Dressage Part

Show Jumping Part

Age Groups & Height of Jumps

What is Combined Training?

Combined Training is a two part competition consisting of a Dressage Test and a round of Show Jumping.

1. A dressage test (if you don't know what a dressage test is please consult our pure dressage page)

General: The dressage test must be ridden from memory and is available from your club secretary. There are different dressage tests for the different age groups but the same test is used for all pony club CTs during the same calendar year. They might change from one year to another so please check with your club secretary. The dressage test is always the first of the two parts of a CT. Note: You will get a dressage time from your own club a few days before the CT, which must be adhered to! There are usually many competitors and for organisational reasons if you are too late you will not be allowed to ride your dressage test!

Tests: For U12s and Juniors the CT dressage test is usually identical with the ODE dressage test for the year, however from Intermediates up the two tests are different. Please consult the Irish Pony Club Guide to Competition ages for the current dressage tests. This is a link to the current (2007) U12 test on the IPC website.

Scoring: The theoretical maximum score in a dressage test is 100%. However, this score is never reached - not even at the Olympics! You can collect your dressage scoring sheet at the end of a ODE and this is highly recommended because the judge's comments tell you what you are good at and what you might want to improve on. Your test will say something like 46.2 - these are faults and means you scored 53.8% in your dressage. Since the dressage scores will have to be combined with those from the jumping disciplines your score is deducted from 100 to give the faults so the lower your score the better!

2. A round of show-jumping

General: A regular round of show jumps is jumped in an arena in a field. The difficulty of the jumps varies for the different age groups. Please contact your club's ODE secretary for more information. The show-jumping part of all IPC Combined Training will be all equitation style jumping from now on. This means that your position and riding, e.g. approach to fences, correct aids, lines ridden, and appropriate number of canter strides count more than faults.

The Age Groups for CT are as follows:

Juniors - children who are under 15 years of age on 1st January of current calendar year. They must be C-Test standard. Ponies must be 5 years or older. Maximum height of jumps: 90cm

Intermediates - participants must be under 21 years of age on 1st January of current calendar year. They must have their C-Test. Ponies must be 5 years or older. Maximum height of jumps: 1m

Members - participants must be under 21 years of age on 1st January of competition year. They must have their C-Test. Ponies must be 5 years or older. Maximum height of jumps: 1.10m

Senior Associates - participants must be under 23 years of age on 1st January of competition year. They must have their C-Test. Ponies must be 5 years or older. Maximum height of jumps: 1.10m

For the latest age and height specifications as well as Dressage tests used please consult the Irish Pony Club Guide to Competition ages.

Back to top