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Prospective team competitors are subject to British Riding Clubs' rules some of which may be found on this page. The 2012 BRC Rulebook is now available online and should be consulted before entering competitions.
Please note: team members must be REGISTERED as SDRC members at least 21 days before the preliminary entry of a team competition. If you are in any doubt, please check with the team co-ordinator for your discipline.
Visit www.britishridingclubs.org.uk for BHS British Riding Clubs website for details of eligibility for competitions, BRC tests and visit BRC News to keep up with all the latest news.
It is ultimately your responsibility to CHECK you are eligible to compete in BRC area qualifiers etc.
Rules that may affect you include:
Hat Tagging
Vaccinations
Downgrading
BRC Drug Testing
Other rules to note
Be aware of arena etiquette if you are new to riding at competitions or in a group
HAT TAGGING
Team members must have their hats tagged by BRC before riding at an area qualifier. You may get it done on the day, but to avoid unecessary stress or waiting, you will be able to get your hat tagged by Shelagh Fishlock at:
- Billow Farm on 4th February (10-1)
Check that your hat is up to standard - download pdf 2012 BRC Hat Standards info (811KB)
VACCINATIONS
First and foremost, ALL horses and ponies must be fully vaccinated in accordance with the the BRC rules which may be read below. BRC operate VERY, VERY STRICT RULES, so please check your vaccination certificate very carefully. If you are not sure, do ask one of the team administrators to check it for you. Download the FLU VAC CHECKER here (excel spreadsheet) or check the table provided by BRC.
Flu Vaccination rule amendments (copied from the BRC Rule Book as at 15 January 2012)
G7: EQUINE INFLUENZA Our equine influenza rules are based on the British Horseracing Authority Rules (formerly
The Jockey Club Rules).
G7.1: Vaccinations against Equine Influenza
This rule applies in respect of any horse or pony which competes in a BRC Area Qualifier,
Championship and for Royal Windsor competitions.
The horse or pony must have been vaccinated against equine influenza by a veterinary
surgeon who is not the owner of the animal, in accordance with the following rules:
The horse or pony must have received:
• two primary injections which are given not less than 21 days and not more than
92 days apart
• a first booster injection which is given not less than 150 days and not more than
215 days after the 2nd
primary injection
• further annual booster injections at intervals of not more than a year apart
None of the vaccinations must have been given on the day of a competition or entry to
championship stables (which may be prior to the day of the competition).
If the current vaccination programme started BEFORE 1 January 2007:
• the first two primary injections must be correct i.e. the second given
between 21 and 92 days after the first
• any errors with first booster (which should be given 150 – 215 days after the
second primary injection) or annual booster given BEFORE 1 January 2007
may be ignored
• all annual boosters given AFTER 1 January 2007 must be correct
If the current vaccination programme started AFTER 1 January 2007:
• the first two primary injections must be correct i.e. the second given
between 21 and 92 days after the first
• the first booster must be given between 150 and 215 days after the second
primary injection
• all annual boosters must be correct
Horses may compete at BRC Competitions providing that they have had the first two
primary injections none of which should have been given on any of the 6 days
before a competition or entry to championship stables.
In the event of failure to comply with any of the requirements of this rule, the horse or pony
will be disqualified and not permitted to take part in any competition to which these rules
apply.
G7.2 Checking of Passports and Equine Influenza Records
For the purposes of determining whether the requirements of these rules have been met,
the following documents must be available for inspection in respect of a horse or pony
which is taking part in a BRC Area Qualifier or Championship.
• any passport issued for the horse. or
• the full vaccination records for the horse if this is not contained in the passport
The identification of the horse or pony must be checked against that contained in the
passport or on the flu vaccination record. This may be done from the diagram and
description of the animal or by microchip providing that the microchip number has been
recorded in the passport.
The vaccination section of the horse’s passport must have been completed by a Veterinary
Surgeon who is not the owner of the horse or pony.
The dates on which the vaccinations were given must comply with the requirements as
stated in G7.1.
Any alterations to any entries on the vaccination record must have been made, signed and
stamped by a veterinary surgeon.
G7.3 Disqualification
Any horse or pony failing the requirements described in these rules will not be permitted to
compete.
Any pony/horse that is in a team competition and has been disqualified at an Area Qualifier
will be reported to the BRC Office and cannot be replaced with a reserve; the team will
have to continue as a team of three, or if already a team of three, will have to compete as
individuals only, if there is an individual competition.
No refund will be awarded for any disqualified horse/pony.
Every effort will be made to ensure that the checking at Area Qualifiers is carried out
correctly. BRC accepts no responsibility whatsoever for any losses suffered, whether
directly or indirectly, due to incorrect checking at any BRC Area Qualifier or
Championships. It is the sole responsibility of the competitor to ensure that their certificate
is valid and it should not be assumed that because a certificate has been accepted at one
competition in good faith it would be accepted at another competition.
G7.4: Flu Vaccination Checklist
A copy of the flu vaccination checklist is in Appendix 23 and should be used as follows:
• take the date of the first injection and look this up in the column headed
INJECTION DATE
• compare the dates in 21 DAYS and 92 DAYS columns with the date in the flu vac
record for second injection, if the date is within range it is fine, if not it is an invalid
record
• Take the date of the second injection and look this up in the column headed
INJECTION DATE
• compare the dates in 150 DAYS and 215 DAYS columns with the date in the flu
vac record for third injection (first booster), if the date is within range it is fine, if
not it is an invalid record (unless the two primary injections were before 1
January 2007)
G7.5: Dual Names
The name shown on the passport/flu vaccination record must be the one that is used on
all official competition entry forms. If a stable name is also shown on the passport/flu
vaccination record this must be signed and stamped by a veterinary surgeon.
G7.6: Allergic ponies/horses & homeopathic vaccines
Ponies and horses that, for nay reason, are unable to be vaccinated against equine
influenza will not be given dispensation to compete. Homeopathic vaccines are not
acceptable.
Trading Standards Officers can check your horse's passport. Here is a simple checklist of the sections that they check:
* Name of horse is shown together with colour and sex
* name, address and signature of current owner
* completed certificate in Medicinal Treatment concerning "slaughter for human consumption or not", plus if any treatments have been given that the vet has completed the section fully
* drawing and description of horse signed by a competent authority or vet plus vets stamp
plus, of course, we want to be able to see the full flu vac history in either the passport or old style flu vac card or a combination of both.
DOWNGRADING
The 2012 Downgrading form can be found here. Please note if people wish to downgrade for a particular qualifier then the form must be with Jennie at j.pallett@bhs.org.uk no less than twenty one days before the qualifier to allow time for the form to be processed.
Downgrading requests may only be made at certain times of the year.
BRC Drug Testing – Please be aware
Anyone hoping to compete at a Riding Clubs competition – National Championships or Area Qualifier, needs to be aware that their horse could be subject to a random drugs test. The points set out below are taken from a talk by Hannah Jones, a B&W vet. It is not intended to be a complete or foolproof guide, but a way to approach your horse’s welfare prior to a competition in a way which hopefully avoids you falling foul of the rules and potentially getting a 2 year ban from competions.
• Complete lists of banned and controlled substances can be found at www.horsesport.org (it uses chemical names, not brand names, so not easy)
• If in doubt, don’t use it or check with your vet
• Banned substances are mainly human medicines not licensed for horses. You might think this couldn’t happen to you, but have you ever given your horse Benilyn for a cough? It contains codeine, a banned substance.
• Controlled substances are drugs/medicines which might enhance performance or mask a health problem. The main ones are anti inflammatories like bute, sedatives like ACP, Sedolin, steroids, anaesthetics, steroids and penicillin-based antibiotics \9other antibiotics are OK)
• Most of these controlled drugs take around 7-8 days to leave the system, but penicillin stays for 4-6 weeks. However this can be very variable – size, metabolism, fitness, illness, combination of drugs, length of time it has been given…. So if your horse has been treated for something you really need to get advice and allow plenty of time.
• If your horse has an ongoing condition requiring medication to keep him/her in good health, it can be possible to get a vet’s letter for dispensation – eg inhalers, ventipulmin, Regumate, Gastrogard. You would normally have to withdraw the drug for the required period, but a vet letter could cover to chance of traces still being found in the system. The crucial thing is to inform the organisers well in advance to be sure of the situation for your horse and the specific medication.
• Don’t get caught out by “everyday” mistakes. Here are some examples:
- does your horse need sedating for clipping or shoeing?
- What creams and ointments are in your first aid box – eye drops, wound ointment, sweetitch remedies, leg cooling gel? Check them out, and don’t use them if you aren’t sure
- If your horse has been on a medicine, remember it will be excreted on to bedding, so could be re-ingested – clean bedding needed for the withdrawal period
- Could other horses in your stable block be on meds and in contact with your horse? Do you share feed bowls, or is someone else responsible for feeds and could mistakenly give your horse a medicated feed?
I hope this is a pretty accurate record of what we were told at the talk, but please don’t rely just on this – it’s not exhaustive, and I could have misunderstood some aspects. A lot of it is common sense, so enjoy competing!
One other small point – the rules also apply for riders “under the influence”, so leave the hip flask at home!
A few BRC rules to note:
This list is by no means exhaustive, but may apply to you! Iif you are not sure about anything check with your team co-ordinator and they will either check their rule book or check with BRC.
G5: ELIGIBILITY OF RIDERS
G5.1: Representation of Clubs
A Rider may only compete in official competitions for one riding club at a time. A rider may
change clubs between competition seasons (see G1.3, G3.2 and G3.3) but they must
remain with their new club for a minimum of 12 months from that change date. Horses
may be used by more than one club in the same competition year, for example if the horse
is sold or loaned to a different person, or is shared by members of two different clubs,
provided the horse doesn’t compete more than once in the same class. G6.3 supersedes
these rules where relevant.
G5.2: Riders Age
All riders in Senior competitions must be 18 or over on 1 January in the current year. All
riders in Junior competitions must be under 18 on 1 January in the current year. Any
Juniors who qualify for the winter competitions (Novice Indoor Show Jumping and the
FOTH) in the year prior to the championships (i.e. qualifiers held in the Autumn of 2012 for
the 2013 Championships) must compete as Juniors at the Championships.
G5.3: Membership
All riders must be a member of an affiliated Riding Club or an individual member of BRC
and must have paid their subscription by the closing date of preliminary entries for the
competition they wish to compete in. Their names, addresses etc must appear on the
current Membership Database held by the BRC Office at the close of preliminary entries. If
the qualifying individual/s or any member of a winning/qualifying team is not on the
database when the results arrive with BRC to be processed, then that person will be
disqualified and the results will be re-calculated accordingly.
G17: FORBIDDEN SUBSTANCES
G17.1: Acceptable Levels
Ponies or horses taking part in a competition must be healthy and compete on their
inherent merits. The use of Prohibited Substances might influence a pony’s/horse’s
performance or mask an underlying health problem and could falsely affect the outcome of
a competition. BRC follows FEI rules regarding substances, and a full list of forbidden
substances can be found on the FEI website.
G17.2: Use of Drugs during a competition
If, during a competition, it is necessary to treat a pony/horse with a drug, a Veterinary
Surgeon, appointed by the organiser or Championship Director, must be informed
immediately. They will investigate the reason for the treatment given and make a report to
the Official Steward who shall decide whether the pony/horse is allowed to continue or
shall be eliminated.
G17.3: Random Tests
The BRC Committee reserves the right to initiate at any time at any official competition,
random tests in accordance with the standard operating procedure prescribed in the FEI
Veterinary Rules. A refusal to allow a random test shall constitute a breach of this rule.
Please refer to Appendix 24 for the full procedure.
G17.4: Riders
It is forbidden for any rider to compete whilst under the influence of any stimulating,
calming or other drug or substance as detailed in the British Equestrian Federation Rules.
The BEF and member bodies are signatories to the World Anti Doping Code.
ARENA ETIQUETTE
Show Jumping
Always pass left hand to left hand when meeting riders coming the other way.
Don’t walk or halt on the outside track, or walk two or three abreast anywhere in the arena.
Don’t crowd around the entrance to the arena. If it is busy always make it clear that you are about to jump by shouting ‘Jumping’ or ‘jumping spread’ etc. This way, people will know to get out of your way.
Jump wings are marked with red and white flags (or red and white paint). You should jump them in one direction only – with the red flag on your right and the white flag on your left. If you jump in the wrong direction you could be eliminated from your class.
The practice jump should not be bigger than the maximum height of the jumps in the first round of the competition. So make sure your helper doesn’t put them up too high. Spreads must always be jumped so that the front element is lower than the back one.
No pole or obstacle of any kind can be held by hand for the horse to jump.
If you knock a jump, put it back up again.
If one arena is being used for both flatwork and jumping, be careful not to upset the horses being worked on the flat.
Don’t use the warm up arena as a place to sit on (or hold) your horse to watch the rest of the action.
Dressage
Always pass left hand to left hand when meeting a rider coming the other way, unless she’s in counter-canter – in which case you should give way by circling.
Don’t halt or walk on the outside track.
Sort out your tack and girth, etc outside the arena or near the middle – not on the centre or diagonal line.
Make it clear, by announcing, that you are about to enter an indoor warm-up arena as you don’t want to get mown down.
Your whip shouldn’t be so long that it could upset a passing horse.
Ask your trainer or any other helpers to stay clear, as they shouldn’t stand in the warm-up arena.
Riders with impaired vision can wear a white armband to indicate to others to be careful. |
SWINDON & DISTRICT
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