Sam in Canada wrote:5. Also I would obviously have to give up my ammy status, how bad would that hurt me in the Hunter/ Jumper world? My presonal horse is a 5y/o Mare that I hoped to show pre green this summer, will it interfere?


Giving up your amateur status SUCKS in H/J land. You can still ride the Pre-Greens, 1st and 2nd Year Greens and any of the other non-Amateur specific divisions. You are stuck out of the Equitation, the Medals, and any classes for AA's. This can be a huge pain in the ass if you are trying to sell a Hunter to the Childrens/AA or Junior/AO Market. A lot of those riders tend to buy within their own divisions. With a Jumper it isn't quite so bad because the non-pro riders often compete in open classes at their division height as well. It takes a bunch of stupid paperwork and two years to get your Amateur status back with USEF.
Also, as your username would imply that you are in Canada, be aware that the Amateur requirements in Canada are slightly different from the US. There is talk of creating sort of a "Junior Pro" level, where certified instructors can still compete as non-pros. However you have to go through some certification process that costs a bunch of money and will probably be so badly abused that it never really comes to fruition. There was a discussion about it on COTH the other day, I only gave it a quick glance because we don't have anything in our barn that is worth taking up to Spruce this year.

Spooksandbolts wrote:
blah, blah, blah, blah and the dog ate your homework and I can smell bovine excrement