Join Juliane Barth as she “flies #NessiAirlines” over the CCI2* at the Reitersportverein St. Hubertus in Wesel-Obrighoven, Germany last weekend. Her comments to the mare during their ride are super sweet — lots of “well done!” exclamations — but the display overlaid onto her helmet cam footage is especially fascinating. You can see a speedometer with a compass in the top left, a course progress path in the top right, and on the bottom right it seems to have a graph of the progression of her speed throughout the course.
While it is uncertain whether this is the exact brand Juliane is using as it looks a little different, we have seen similar displays before from SAP Equestrian Analytics with riders such as Tim Price and brand ambassador and advisor Ingrid Klimke. SAP is partnered with the data science from EquiRatings, producing some really intriguing technology for competitive equestrians that includes live rider tracking on course, real-time virtual spectator judging in dressage, and a bunch of other features that set off my nerdy excitement meter.
One of the reasons I find this so fascinating is imagining how technology like this will progress moving into the future. We’ve already seen Tony Stark-esque smart glasses coming into reality; will we one day see eventers tackling cross country with a live version of these displays on their goggles? Will riders and spectators be able to receive live feedback on their time, speed, and progress? Am I watching too many Marvel movies? Probably, to the latter, but we’re all excited to see what the future may hold for technology in the sport.
