100% frangible obstacles - is this the future for Eventing fence design?

I don't get out to many events these days, but the sombre thought hit me this morning that of the 5 events I've attended most recently there has been a horse euthanised at 60% of them. Obviously each tragic death is different and is/will be investigated thoroughly; such accidents can leave riders with life changing injuries; and I think we can all agree that they need to be completely eradicated.

But how can that be achieved?

Badminton Fence 19B - the frangible future?
©Harveywetdog

'The Olympic Games of Horse Welfare' and Recommendation #37 

By coincidence, in the past week I've been made aware of The Alliance for Horse Welfare and their campaign to make Paris 2024 "The Olympic Games of Horse Welfare". Yes it is their campaign although the original idea came from the French Lower House (the French National Assembly) together with 46 recommendations on how the increased focus on Horse Welfare would be achieved. It appears that the IOC/FEI have said they don't have time to implement the changes (or, I suspect, the money) so the thrust of the The Alliance for Horse Welfare's campaign is to motivate public opinion to get the IOC/FEI to change their minds and are pushing this via a public petition.

I'm not an experienced enough horseman to understand the significance, effectiveness or feasibility of the 46 recommendations. I noted that Julie Taylor (remember, the author of the open letter to the IOC) is a member of the Alliance via her Epona TV and they commented "I’m in favour of them because they will make things easier on horses. But I’d rather they didn’t use horses at all for this level of sport."

But there is one recommendation that is particular relevant to this blog and that is recommendation #37 calling for all cross country obstacles to be 100% frangible. 

Recommendation 37 wording and commentary by the Alliance for Horse Welfare
Screenshot of their Campaign Magazine 

Badminton Fences 19AB Mars M Tables

When it comes to the art of the possible with cross country fence design, it is worth mentioning this years Badminton Fences 19AB, a couple of "big tables on a four-stride right hand turn". Although of conventional looking, robust, table design, these fences were in fact designed to be frangible as demonstrated by Oliver Townend at the beginning of the competition. I don't know if the webbing/netting sides were part of this design (to allow access to the frangible elements to reset them once triggered) but this concept would appear to make it possible for a whole new tranche of fence types to now be designed as frangible.

The Fences in Question

Going back to the three equine fatalities at events I have attended recently then in all three cases the fences were not frangible. One was a house, one was a brush fence and one was a roll top. One was toward the beginning of the course, one was toward the end and one near the middle. Of the one incident I witnessed I can say that the jump was in full sunlight and had been jumped by ~40 competitors at the time of the accident. Located on a long downhill section, and as a 'let up' before the next combination of fences at a turn in the course, you could argue that the layout did not "encourage the rider to slow down the pace" on their approach to the jump.

Bicton 3* Fence 7 - a non-frangible roll top
©Harveywetdog

 Alternatively you could argue that the narrow size of the fence, the downhill terrain and the 60 degree turn required to approach the jump correctly gave the rider all the encouragement they needed to slow down the pace. How might knowing it was frangible affect this decision making process? Ultimately it doesn't matter; if "inviting" jumps such as a roll top can result in a rotational fall, horse fatality and rider injury, then surely it is better to put safety first and redesign the fence to be frangible?

What does your critical friend say?

Horse welfare is rightly in the public spotlight currently and as I've said before we need to "challenge and welcome challenge" in all we do in our interactions with our horses. I recognise and welcome the concept of an independent 'critical friend' as defined in the 24 recommendations produced by the FEI Equine Ethics and Wellbeing Committee.

So where will you stand on this issue, do you believe we should move to a position where all cross country fences are 100% frangible, and if not how will you justify this to your critical friend? 

"Roll top: A jump with a rounded, half-barrel top. The curve often makes the jump more inviting to the horse, so it is not considered a “scary” fence. The height and width of the fence can be adjusted for difficulty." H&C Website 

"Recommendation 24 Establish a permanent FEI Equine Ethics and Wellbeing Independent Advisory Committee to act as a ‘critical friend’ and provide an external perspective and independent advice related to the welfare of horses in sport" FEI Equine Ethics and Wellbeing Committee draft recommendations to the 2023 Sports Forum

 

Links to The Alliance for Horse Welfare Material

Easy Read Blog Text

Petition

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Author - David Robinson CEng FIET  

David spent approaching 50 years in Her Majesty's Electricity Supply Industry before retiring

He was part of the highly successful design team on the Sizewell B Nuclear Power Station Project before spending 25 years producing safety cases to keep our aging AGR fleet generating for the good of the nation

He is responsible for the Harveywetdog YouTube Channel which he maintains as an outlet for his creative talents

David is currently recovering from blood cancer but refuses to be a victim

All views are his own but might be influenced by the drugs he's currently having to take