EVENTING IRELAND EVENTS
Every Event is required to have an official Cross-Country Controller
He/she should have assistants to monitor the radios on the event site and must be named in the programme. The controller will work with the EI Steward to determine the safe intervals between each horse on the course at any one time. This may be amended/altered during the day;ideally no more than 4 horses should be on the track at any one time.
Procedure:
a)devise with the organisers a communication plan for the cross-country test
b)confirm that all emergency services (Doctor, 2 ambulances, Vet, Course Repair, etc) are in place before the start of XC
c)know exactly where every horse is on the XC track
d)respond to fence judges with an incident at his/her fence, ask what assistance they need and deploy as required
e)deploy the required emergency services, ensuring that they understand and are responding
f)decide if horses must be held on track and if starters must be held due to a blockage on the course
g)liaise with the Steward and Assistant Steward, and advise when any situation isdeveloping
h)In consultation with the EI Steward, adjust timetables if necessary.
Communications - Minimum Provision
Links between Control and:
a)Start XC – this should be a separate dedicated link to ensure efficientand rapid communication, this may be done with radio and “traffic lights”
b)Ability of everyXC fence to communicate with Control, either directlyor via "spotters"
c)Ability of Control to communicate with stopping points (if used) or a number of fencesto be used as stopping points.
d)Emergency services, Doctor, 2 ambulances, Vet, Course Repair
e)Eventing Ireland Steward and Asst. Steward
f)Administration of event (Organiser, Secretary, Scorers, etc)
Practical running of radio network
You will need approx. 30 radios (this depends on how your event is set up – i.e. number of Fences). The radios need to be deployed to all who need them, not to those would like to have one. A basic set up would be.
1)Organiser
2)Secretary
3)EI Steward
4)EI Asst. Steward
5)Doctor
6)Ambulance 1
7)Ambulance 2
8)Vet
9)Course Repair (this may be the organiser)
10)Commentary
11)Start XC
12)One per fence judge
13)2 spare
If possible, additional Radio’s should be designated to the following as needed:
- Scorers
- SJ Arena
- Car/lorry Park
- Dressage (DR is finished before XC so this radio can got to XC)
- Call up XC (useful to inform Commentary of shortages/to many of horses)
Location of Control
The siting of the Control Centre will vary according to the layout. It is most oftenconvenient for it to be close to the XC start, but sometimes a location onXC where much of that phase can be seen is preferable.
Step By Step running of Control
- Make a radio plan, this will need to be done well before the event if first time, so that you have enough radios, traffic lights, help, etc.
- Identify stopping fences (these need to be spread out on the track and be reasonable fences to ask held competitors to jump from cold, liaise with the EI Steward about this)
- Get in place at least 30min before start of XC
- Do a radio check of all radio users, start with the non XC, then emergency, then the start, then fence judges in order. (use your radio plan and tick off as they reply, this helps to make sure you have all covered)
- When all radios report that they are in place and ready to go, ask steward if he/she is happy to run. If so give the start the “green light”
- Use an EI control sheet to tick off as each horse starts and jumps each fence clear or not.
- If a horse has been eliminated or you have been requested by the EI Steward to stop a horse, try to do so at a stopping fence. Please ask the fence judge to do so if safe to. (talk to the EI Steward about this process)
- If a fence judge or any radio holder has a problem please follow the steps below
1)Ask if they need assistance and what assistance they need, and if the track is blocked
2)Ask the required emergency services to go to the site
3)Stop the track if needed, by switching the start to “Red Light” and asking the stopping fences to hold competitors “on track” do this in reverse from the incident to the start (if the hold is at fence 15 then hold horses at stopping fences in order from 14-1)
4)Ask the fence judge if emergency services has arrived and if they need any more assistance
5)Inform the EI Steward and ask then to attend scene and update you
6)When you know how long the hold will be, inform commentary that the hold will be “xx”min
7)Keep in contact with EI Steward/Asst and when the site is clear and XC can be restarted
8)Ensure that you have adequate emergency cover to restart the XC (if your only doctor is busy with a patient or only ambulance is busy also then you cannot restart until cover is restored)
9)Ask EI Steward/Asst to restart the held on course horses in order of furthest on track first.
10)Once the track is clear again, request permission from the Steward to restart and give the start a “green light” .
- During breaks do a quick radio check, especially of the emergency services (if they are not busy they can lose concentration), after XC track changes do a quick radio check.
- Listen out for any “beeping” radios, a battery may be running low ask all user to report if it is theirs.
- At the end of the day, ask all radio users to hand back their radio.
PLEASE NOTE:
No decision should be made without first making contact with the EI Steward.