Visionaire and I were recently discussing funny Pony Club stories and the oddball rules that usually caused them when she decided that this would make a great blog, and so Are You Smarter Than A Pony Clubber was born! Come test your wits, see if you can outsmart the USPC system! Don’t feel bad if you aren’t, and if you are, well….congratulations! You have the knowledge of an average 10-year-old Pony Clubber.
This Week:
StupidObscure Rally Rules1. Spurs – When presenting for formal inspection (a very thorough check on cleanliness of horse, rider and tack) with spurs, the Pony Clubber must:
A. present with both spurs on correctly.
B. present with one spur on correctly and the other in hand.
C. present with both spurs in hand.2. Helmets – Helmets must be worn:
A. at all times during rally.
B. only when riding.
C. whenever working around a horse.3. Medical Armbands – Armbands must be worn:
A. at all times during rally.
B. when riding, even on the flat.
C. only for show jumping and xc.4. Boots – True or False: At formal inspection Horse Management (HM) may judge the cleanliness of the bottom of riding boots.
5. Braids – When braiding at rally:
I. Braids may not be completed the night before.
II. Braids must be taken out within one hour of last ride.
III. Braiding is not allowed for Pony Club competitions.
IV. The tail, along with the mane, must be braided.A. III only B. I & II C. I & IV D. I, II, & IV
Answers
1. Spurs – B. present with one spur on and the other in hand. Officials made this rule thinking that if pony clubbers wore two spurs we’d trip ourselves. I have only witnessed this once in my entire history of rallies. It also involved my teammate attempting to moonwalk. Chances of this happening in a “normal” situation…slim at best.2. Helmets – C. Whenever working around a horse. D’s and younger kids “have” to wear helmets when grooming and whatnot, but it really depends on who you get as Chief Horse Management Official as to whether or not this gets enforced. However, it will always be enforced for riding, longing, and …jogs! That’s right, jogs! Of course we know several of our Rolex riders are Pony Club graduates so lets see them at their most fashionable….
3. Armbands – A. At all times. I was present at the Quiz rally that solidified this “amendment” into Pony Club Law. A couple of younger D’s were horsing around waiting for their turn in Classroom when one of them fell off her chair. She winded herself and was pretty scared, it probably didn’t help that she had 200+ volunteers, parents, chaperons, and EMTs standing over her checking for a head injury. It was this moment that Pony Club discovered that they really liked knowing your name and medical history with just a tug (ok, battle) of that helpful paper…and medical release…and name of chaperon. (Seriously, don’t forget the medical release.) Recently PC has even started giving out neon orange armbands as prizes. PC loves them because they can be spotted from miles away. They may be tacky, but you’ll never get shot at during hunting season.
4. Boots – True. Up until a few years ago kids would wear surgical booties or plastic bags while walking up to formals. Thankfully most HMs have banned this practice since more chaos was generally produced from the noise than what was gained in HM scores. Now most kids wear the rubber footies on the outside of their boots until formals…or their team carries them up there while the stable manager leads the horse.
5. Braiding – B. I & II. Braiding can’t be done the night before even if you have a 7am formal and barns don’t open until 6am. Good luck! Remember that all the horses need to be fed, bathed, and walked before you can start braiding….oh yeah, and all the stalls need to be mucked too. This was the case for most of the Prelim kids at championships last year. Luckily the HMs let us braid down the night before, but not pull the braids up…not very helpful if you were taught to braid by Visionaire. Keep in mind PC doesn’t let you braid while standing on buckets. A step stool or milk crate is mandatory, but BEWARE the milk crate!!! They will break and try to eat you. And everyone will make fun of you for getting a milk crate stuck on your foot. And so will the HMs when they have to come over to cut it off you. Braids also must be removed within 1 hour of your last ride even if dressage rings are 20 minutes away and your horse and tack must be re-cleaned within that same hour for turn-back inspections. Have FUN!
So, are you smarter than a pony clubber? Could you handle the time crunch? Next time you see a pony clubber, pat them on the back and say good job, it really is harder than it looks.
Read next week to see if you could survive Quiz Rally.
If you are interested in Pony Club or would like more information click on the link to take you to the United States Pony Club website — http://www.ponyclub.org
