One person in the wrong place can present a safety hazard and can ruin months and years of hard work for the competitors. Please take a moment to familiarize yourself with the guidelines in order to ensure the safety of you, your family and the competitors, and to ensure the fairness of the competition.
All dogs must be leashed! We love dogs, but because of transport difficulties and lack of easily obtainable water, we encourage you to leave your canine friend home. If you choose to bring your pet, it MUST be leashed at ALL times. Loose dogs will be impounded; noisy or disruptive dogs must be removed from the grounds.
Keep a close watch on small children. Children are not aware of the danger that horses present. Any children found unaccompanied by an adult will be auctioned off each day at high noon. (Or you may claim them at the “Welcome Tent.”)
Quiet Please! Spectator etiquette at equestrian competitions closely parallels that of major golf tournaments. Undue noises can cause distractions to horses and riders and can affect the outcome of the competition or cause an accident. Remember to hold your applause until after a competitor exits the dressage arena, completes a cross-country fence, or finishes the stadium course.
Observe the crowd control markers. You must stay at least 15 meters away from the dressage arenas. For your own safety and that of the riders, stay behind marked barriers and ropes and keep clear of the area around each cross-country fence. Crossing the cross-country course is permitted at designated crossing points, but always make sure that a horse is not coming and heed instructions from the crossing guards.
Be considerate of the site. Please use trash receptacles and respect the roped botanical areas.
Horses always have the right of way. Horses and riders are participating in a very demanding sport and will be moving at high speeds across the park. A rider is not responsible for avoiding collisions with spectators. It is your responsibility to stay out of the way of horse and rider. Always look both ways before moving and stay alert for directions from mounted stewards, fence stewards and fence judges.
Be still when in the line of sight of an approaching horse. Sudden movements of umbrellas, strollers or a crowd can be distracting to horses. An innocent movement can affect the outcome of the competition or result in an accident. Horses startle easily and are frightened of things they don’t recognize.
Do not assist a competitor during dressage or jumping competition. Providing assistance to a rider during competition, whether solicited or not, is FORBIDDEN under penalty of the competitor’s elimination. Shouting instructions and giving directions during a dressage or jumping test is considered unauthorized assistance.
Please ask questions of Weiherhof volunteers. If you are unsure of any of the rules or just have general questions about the competition, the Weiherhof staff will be happy to assist you.