THE NEED FOR
A FREE MARKET FOR EVENTS
Sophie Pirie
Focus is Preliminary and below
Calendaring issues are the convergence of many
changes in Eventing and society at large. These
changes have resulting issues that need to be
addressed adaption by USEA is required or the
addressed,
sport as we know it will become extinct.
WHO IS IN THE AUDIENCE?
POLITICIANS
Those directly associated with
USEA
Board/Committees/Staff
AMATUER COMPETITORS
Those amateurs riding FEI,
Advanced or Intermediate
PROFESSIONALS
SPORT FOR FUN
Those having financial interest in the
sport
• Trainers/Instructors/Pro riders
• Organizers/Secretaries
• Judges/TDs etc.
• Course Designers
Those participating or
supporting Preliminary and
lower
SOME FACTS
X
USEA has 12,000 members
X
8,000 are Competitors
X
X
72% never ride above Preliminary
X
66% never ride above Training
Average of 42,000 Recognized starters over last 5 years
X
90% of Starters are Preliminary
y and below
X
10,500 or ¼ of the starters come from 7% of the members – mostly Professionals
X
Extrapolate that roughly 5,760 Prelim and below riders do an average of 5.4
starts per year
Reported that there maybe as many Unrecognized as Recognized starters
X
< 200 Advanced horses competing in any year
X
Never more than 60 US horses at Rolex
X
NEED MORE GOOD DATA
SPORT FOR FUN GROUP
WANTS
COFFEE EXPERIENCE
Starbucks vs Caribou vs Dunkin Donuts vs 7-11
Want value and are price sensitive
Want experience to match lifestyle needs
DON’T CARE ABOUT USEA WRANGLES AND ORGANIZERS PAINS
ALREADY VOTING WITH THEIR FEET BY GOING TO UNRECOGNIZED SHOWS
3 TIERED CALENDARING
EXISTS TODAY
ƒ
At top end those with finances and/or influence are
able to buy or secure dates
ƒ
Cartel processes under todays rules
ƒ
Unrecognized can do as they choose
Calendaring at top and bottom is
already market driven
UNRECOGONIZED
SHOWS
Competitors have ‘a
a la carte
carte’ choices
Much lower costs to participate
Usually more to do in the time and can choose to
make it 1 day
Organizers can be innovative without restriction
Less volunteer burdens
Good participation rates and profitable
Primary source for new growth in the sport
DISSATISFACTION WITH
CURRENT PROCESS
Long list of problematic practices with the current system of rules and processes
Hours of arguing and positioning that produces minimal value for anybody - it’s
inefficient
Many forms of undue influence
Much offering of upper level classes to influence outcome with limited demand
Cross Area challenges
g
Possible legal exposures
Rules limit options offerable which removes organizers innovation
Cross over funding between classes leaves disgruntled lower levels
USEA SHOULD
OWN THE COMMUNITY -
VALUE
Reduce the focus on rules
Increase emphasis on enabling Organizers to satisfy Competitors
Provide technology to see, select and enter into “activities”
Own and develop the data to identify opportunities
Provide Organizers of low level courses with Design Handbook
Provide a facilities validation system
Competitors can use it to validate the quality and safety of courses
Organizers can use it to advertise their facility and advise for
improvement
Enable market forces to drive the calendar
ORGANIZERS DESIRES
Service and satisfy their customers
Differentiate their product
Stay
S
y in business – be p
profitable
Starters – Entry fees
Butts in stalls/Drive in fees
Lower costs
Repeatable over long term
Less calendaring hassles
Less USEA overhead
If Organizers can choose when they run their events, what
classes they run, recognized or not and at whatever level,
then they alone influence who their participating audience
might be and what price will need to be paid for each class
RECOGNIZED CLASSES
NOT RECOGNIZED
SHOWS
Purpose of recognized classes is to:
Qualify to compete at higher levels
Prove to self that horse and rider team have gained appropriate
skills and experience to achieve a recognized standard
standard.
Sport for Fun doesn’t require just recognized classes
Licensing would substantially change to match class level needs
Organizers could choose the experiences they
want to offer to their customers
customers, and the price
points.
RECOMMENDATION TO USEA
X
Change perceived behavior to focus on a positive experience
for Sport For Fun group as their primary membership group
X
Allow market forces to drive what and when
E
Eventing
ti A
Activities
ti iti are available
il bl tto th
their
i members
b
by lifting the “calendaring” rule restrictions.
X
Provide “tools” that promote good market behavior through
visibility and ease of action