Horse Riding Hunters & Show Jumpers

The main difference between hunters and show jumpers is that hunters are subjective and jumpers are not. Learn about judging differences in hunters and show jumpers with help from a riding instructor in this video on riding hunters and show jum

Hello my name is Chelsey Sawtell, primary riding instructor at Black Fire Farm in Kingston Springs, Tennessee. And today we will be discussing the difference between hunters and show jumping. Often the question arises what is the difference between hunters and jumpers. The main difference is hunters are subjective, jumpers are not. In hunters the riders wear field boots, tan or cream britches, a rat catcher and a conservative colored coat with approved safety headgear. The horse and rider team are judged over a series of natural looking obstacles. Their turnout, cadence, rhythm and overall appearance is judged on a scale of 1 to 10. Where one judge may give a horse and rider combination a 10 on their form over fences, another judge may give the same exact horse and rider a 7. This subjectivity often makes the hunters frustrating for new riders. In jumpers there is no subjectivity. Horse and rider combinations do a series of fences. If they complete the series of fences in the time allotted without any rails knocked, any stops or refusals they go on to compete in the jump off. In the jump off the same horse and rider team compete in a shorter version of the same course they just jumped. The fastest time without any rails, refusals or stops results in the winner. Turnout for jumpers is often varied. Informal jumpers are allowed to wear field boots, light colored britches, polo shirt and belt. In formal jumpers the riders wear field boots, light colored or white britches, a rat catcher or stock tie, and black hunt coat. So, in conclusion, the main difference between hunters and show jumping is subjectivity. The attire is a bit different but in the end we are all just jumping fences and enjoying the ride.