Cambridge University Riding Team consists of four members, who compete in both the BUSA league and the Varsity Match. The team captain chooses the team, within the first week or two of the Michaelmas term.

The Team Captain for 2007-8 is Sam Cutts from Emmanuel College.

WHAT THE TEAM DO

To trial for the team, you should be happy riding a variety of horses, and able to jump a course of about 3’6”, as well as ride at elementary level dressage. Don’t be put off if you haven’t competed at a great level, as many good riders cannot afford good horses!

The team is in a league with 3 other local Universities, and so competes in 4 competitions throughout the first 2 terms – one hosted by each university. The competitions are usually held on weekdays, so you would have to miss a lecture or two! The team captain is responsible for getting the team to the matches and to any training throughout the year.

The competitions consist of dressage and show jumping, on horses provided by the host university, so you are at an advantage at your home match. At each BUSA competition, each rider has 7 minutes warm up before the dressage test, and only 2 practice fences before the jumping. In the initial league, the dressage test and jumping are pretty simple, but get harder and bigger if the team progresses to the Regionals and Finals. One person from each of the four unis rides the same horse, so it is up to the team captain to sort out which member of their team rides which horse.

We try to train a bit before each match, especially before our home match, so that we are used to the horses we are going to ride, but the training is arranged when it is convenient for the whole team. The training is really for a brush-up and to run through the test; so all the riders should be quite established both on the flat and over fences.

Costs are kept to a minimum, and the club pays the entry fees. The team has a pay for its own training, and petrol costs are shared. We also buy a small amount of team kit, which the team is expected to pay for.

Being on the riding team does not take up a lot of time, but the members must be committed and ready to compete whenever the competitions come up.