On My Tackbox: Breaking it Down

ON MY TACKBOX

An FEI cross country Course Designer with many years’ experience, WAYNE COPPING was instrumental in helping to fine tune and introduce frangible devices to Australia.

For those of you reading this article who are unfamiliar with eventing, your comment will likely be: what on earth are frangibles?

Frangible devices are the end product of a long-term initiative by eventing organisations to try and make eventing safer.

This all started in the early 2000s when the FEI began keeping statistics of all cross country results, focusing principally on the amount of horse falls in the sport. This record-keeping involved officials manually recording all details of all jumps in FEI classes, such as the jumpable width, the top spread, the base spread, the shape or outline of the obstacle, and the different facets

of jumping into water, out of water, landings and approaches, and whether uphill or downhill.

Many officials grumbled about this, as it was an extra burden on the already huge workload as a Course Designer or Technical Delegate for a competition. We all knuckled down though, as we acknowledged it was in the best interests of the sport in the long run.

The end result was that some types of fences clearly showed up as regularly causing more horse falls than many other common types. The FEI had also been proactive in commissioning investigative studies into the sport and the overriding comment above all else was ‘reduce horse falls and you will improve the safety of the sport immensely’.

The first frangible device developed by British Eventing was an aluminium pin or bar about 40cms long and 30mm in diameter. This pin was inserted into the front of a post and used to support the rail. It had a predetermined weak point, which was centred under the middle of the rail and would break under a rotational force (that is downward) and

drop 40cms onto a supporting block. This then halted the rotational force and resulted in the horse not completely falling and in most instances regaining their feet. This type of pin was not universally accepted as it could fail on a number of occasions depending on the speed of approach and the siting of the fence. The result was the development of the reverse pin system. With this system the pin was placed at the back of the post and tensioned with a pulley and wire cable system to a certain tension. This pin worked on both forward and downward force resulting in a much more equal and reliable frangible device. The drawback was that it could only be used with rails up to about 70kgs and required quite a few minutes to replace the pins resulting in lengthy holdups on course.

An automobile accessory factory in Sweden took up the challenge and produced a steel hinging bracket and a clip that had a weakened point designed to break at a certain pressure. This arrangement is placed on the back of the post and works on forward, upward

and downward pressure. The red clip is the connecting point between the post and the rail. This is known as the MIM system and it has been accepted worldwide for use in eventing. Subsequently the MIM factory has gone on to develop different kits for corner (apex) jumps and table-top fences among other things.

The great advantage with this system is the fact that you only need to replace the red clip. When the clips break, it is a very quick and simple process to swing the rail up and re-attach with two new clips. The clips also have an indicator flag which hinges out if they have been stressed but not broken. When this happens you simply replace the clip so the integrity of the system is maintained for every rider. The other positive is this system can hold rails up to 250kgs and as long as 3.6m with a maximum diameter of 30cms.

Along the way, the FEI instituted an 11 point penalty for the activation of a frangible device, as long as it changed the dimensions of the jump. This penalty could be challenged if the clip was seen to break without the normal pressure required in various situations. For instance, hind leg pressure with a downward landing could trigger an activation, and other variables were also taken into account.

Frangible devices have progressed to such a stage now that the FEI, along with many other prominent eventing nations, have brought in the following rule: ‘At all levels, all open oxers, open corners, verticals or near verticals with open rails, top rail on triple bars and gates where the rail dimensions and weight fit the acceptable parameters of an FEI approved frangible device, must be fitted with frangible devices.’

What is an approved device? The FEI maintains a product register of approved devices which have undergone rigorous testing in controlled environments. Only these devices are allowed to be used.

I suppose the next question will be: how do you work out where to use these devices? It is very clear in the FEI cross country guide that a Course Designer must never use a frangible device to justify the design, siting, and materials used to construct the jump. The obstacle must be designed and built as a solid in-ground obstacle in the first instance. If it meets the parameters of the above FEI rule, and the safety of the obstacle can be enhanced by the fitting of a frangible device, then it must be fitted.

That brings us to another question: why build a fence that needs a frangible device anyway? This subject has led to a major overhaul of course design through the production of the FEI Cross Country Guide for Officials, which has resulted in a major improvement in course design worldwide. Course Designers are now working from a set of guidelines developed as a result of all the data collected and the statistics gathered by the FEI.

It is felt that some fences still need to be built from small diameter rails to encourage riders to better train their horses, and not take away the initiative required to safely jump obstacles at speed.

This has also resulted in stricter qualifying standards being applied for riders to progress up the grades and spend more time at the lower levels to better refine their own skills and their horse’s skills. The statistics have clearly shown that the higher the level, the higher the risk.

In summary, have frangibles been good for the sport?

I think an unforseen consequence of them having been made mandatory is an increase in rider ability, a change in the type of horse now required for eventing, and an acceptance of greater responsibility for the sport by the riders.

For more information, visit www.equestrian. org.au and search for ‘frangible’.

1. ARIAT Women’s Duraterrain, Distressed Brown for men and women – promotional price of $219.95 until 31 August 2021. 2. ARIAT Heritage Western R Toe, Available in Distressed Brown and Black for men and women – promotional price of $269.95 until 31 July 2021. 3. CAVALLO Top Boot, the Linus Slim is an all round riding boot with a fitted waisted shaft. Made from full soft-calf breathable leather – from $699.95. 4. DENIRO S8603 Boots, Made using the best quality Italian calfskin leather, the S8603 features rear YKK zippers and front laces. Available in red and black – $1,290.00 5. DAN POST Vintage Bluebird Western fashion boots – $439.00. 6. ARIAT Women’s Devon Nitro, Available in Black and Waxed Chocolate for men and women – $325.00. Stockist info page 104.