xPonies - Honestly, I think the main reason you're so ticked off is because you wear one of the little hair holders (whatever they're called.... the scrotum sack ones), and you are either angry or embarrassed because you feel that HP is targeting you. She isn't. She is giving you the perspective based on HER experiences. If you do not agree, or if you are showing at a different level than she does and you know the standards are different, then just say "thanks for the advice" and move on.

You show Trillium, right? I showed Trillium a bit, and I've gone to tons of the shows. No one ever told me how I was supposed to do my hair... I never had a hair net, but I copied the other girls and tucked my hair up into my helmet. I've done my share of scrotum sack wearing at schooling shows, though. No one ever laughed at me... I suspect that HP is either exaggerating, or people are a lot crueller at the higher levels. But, if you take note... the girls who are winning, the girls with the expensive ponies, the girls who are shooting for the A level... they all have hunter hair (hair over the ears). You dress for the job you want, not the job you have.


Numnah - I'll admit that I don't know a whole lot about our hunter levels... my own personal experience is limited to schooling shows and Trillium shows (two levels above schooling shows).

Schooling shows are held by various barns and organizations. Anyone can enter, they tend to be fairly casual. They range from cross rails classes up to 4' jumpers, usually. But really, the classes are whatever the show organizers want to put together. Command classes, obstacle courses, other games... and so on. The various divisions will have rider experience restrictions... rules like you can't show in a division if you were champion in it last year (unless you're showing open, of course). You get anywhere from kids on small ponies to professional instructors riding. It's all for fun, and for experience.

I'm not so sure about the status of the division that is the next level up. They used to be called Future shows... then the name changed... I haven't heard of them for a while, so they may have been stopped all together. I never showed at one, but I was told that they targeted green horses.

Then there is Trillium. It's a provincial circuit, and I'm pretty sure that's what xPonies was referring to. The pony divisions are split up by height. Smalls jump 2'3" (rider must be 14 or under), mediums jump 2'6" (rider must be 14 or under), larges jump 2'9" (rider must be under 18). Horses jump 3'0" if rider is under 18... higher if the rider is an adult (I don't recall the heights, I was nowhere near adulthood when I showed this division lol). If you show the novice division (which was added on when I was younger, to include more people), you show 3 inches lower than whatever your pony's size would be jumping in the normal divisions. I was not aware that there was a crossrail division at all. I don't think there was when I showed, but I've been out of the loop for a while now. (I think the jumpers start at 3'3" at this level of showing). I don't know if this circuit is technically called B, or what.... but it is below our A shows.

I don't know anything about the A... I don't even know if the jumps are any higher. I do know the standards are much higher, and it is very political. And expensive.

Hope that helps a bit... Oh, I don't know if I mentioned, this is just for Ontario (in Canada). I have zero knowledge of anything outside of that.

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