Our sport could be termed an "equestrian triathlon". It involves working with your horse both on the flat and over jumps.
Over the centuries it has developed from the tests for the ideal military charger. Today, the sport is most known for its cross-country phase where horse and rider gallop over an outside course of solid obstacles which the horse has never seen before.
At the uppermost level of competition, Olympic or World Championships, the endurance day consists of Phase A - Roads and Tracks, approximately three and a half miles of walk and trot as a warm-up; Phase B - Steeplechase approximately two one-eighth miles at a gallop over eight or so steeplechase fences; Phase C - more Roads and Tracks approximately seven miles of walk and trot as a cool down from steeplechase, and Phase D - the Cross-Country approximately five miles at a gallop over a maximum of fourty-five obstacles that can be up to four feet high and ten feet wide (at the base). WOW...The horse's speed on this phase is over twenty miles per hour.
At the novice level, the lowest level, the endurance phase consists of the cross-country only and is run at a steady canter for approximately one and a half miles, over approximately fifteen obstacles that are no larger than 2'11" high and 4'7" wide (at the base).
There are five levels from novice through advanced, each one designed to prepare horse and rider for the next level, though there is no requirement to advance any higher than is comfortable for horse or rider.
The object of the Cross Country test is to prove the speed, endurance, and jumping ability of the true cross country horse when it is well trained and in the peak of condition. At the same time, it demonstrates the rider's knowledge of pace and the use of the horse across country. The cross country test is a marathon for horse and rider who cover, at a gallop, natural terrain and encounter 12 to 25 obstacles, including water, ditches, banks, etc. It is a test of courage, stamina and complete confidence in one another.
