FEI jumper schooling rules require FEI-approved safety cups to support the back rails of spread obstacles. These can be made from PVC or landscaping timber, but the latter is preferred as PVC shatters when hit and could hurt your horse. Communicate how improving safety can positively impact productivity—not with humanitarian platitudes, but in terms that line management understands and can use.
Cups
One of the most important aspects of a horse jump is the cups holding the poles. They need to be shallow enough to allow the rails to dislodge easily in the event of a fall, preventing injury to the horse. For safety, look for horse jump cups with smooth and soft edges. Also, choose a flat cup design, allowing gates and planks to rest evenly. You may use a drill guide for your first hole to ensure that you make a straight hole. After drilling holes, lightly sand the area around them and wipe off dust. Then, paint your cups with any color or primer coat you prefer. If you build many jumps, having multiple people on your team to help with the painting is a good idea.
Pipes
A jump cup holds the bar at the height you want your horse to jump. It is usually shallow enough so that if your horse hits it with hooves or knees, the bar will fall out of the cup without harming the horse. Shallow cups are preferred for beginners, children, and green horses, as they are less likely to injure a horse if the pole slips out of the jump cup. More bottomless. On the other hand, more bottomless cups require more force to dislodge a pole and are generally used for more advanced riding and jumping.
When drilling the holes for the jump cups, be sure to use a drill bit that is wide enough, so the hole will be large enough for the D-ring you will attach later. Also, be sure to mark the location of each hole on the PVC, as it is difficult to align them perfectly if you are not using an exacto knife or power drill.
Posts
The vertical poles that are the base of your jump are essential to the safety of your equine student. Using the right size poles and keeping them in line with each other will prevent them from tipping and creating dangerous sharp edges that could pierce the horse’s feet. Choose long-lasting, professional-quality high-grade steel and rubber posts coated to resist corrosion. Ensure they have a broad base to ensure stability and versatility of height adjustment to suit any training program. Conventional jump cup mounts three may not release from post 2 when impacted by horizontal forces because of their design. The narrowed section 23 bridging the lower end of the header 22 and the upper end of the interlocking tab 24 creates an obstacle to the horizontal displacement of the jump cup 11 from the support coupling 13. It can result in the pole being locked in the jump cup mount 3. It is recommended that opening 19 be narrower to increase the required force needed to dislodge the jump cup 11. Then, begin by marking nine lines around both posts at equal heights.
Paint
Paint protects wood from the weather and makes the jump look better. If you paint your jumps, ensure it’s exterior paint (not indoor). If you don’t want to paint the wood, use a stain instead of a paint. Make sure the paint is safe for horses to be around. Paint can irritate sensitive skin.
Find people in your organization who are natural leaders and help them to become safety champions. Please give them the training and support they need to spread the message about safety first.
Meet with line management and share your observation that many employees believe they are rewarded for production, quality, or cost rather than for their commitment to safety. Ask them to establish a list of their business’s top two to four objectives and explain that safety is just as crucial for those goals to be met as other business concerns. Then, please encourage them to prioritize safety and reward employees who prioritize safety.