In comparison to other areas of horse riding, mounted games can be relatively cheaper. In order to participate not much is really needed other than a pony and tack, however there are a few rules regarding uniform and before each competition tack inspection takes place to make sure there is no problems or dangers regarding the tack.
In the Irish Pony Club it is mandatory to wear a riding hat, as it is in majority of other areas of horse riding. The hat must be of certain standard (skull cap) and have a black hat cover on top. As well as a hat, when in competition riders must wear cream jodhpurs, jodhpur boots, a white shirt, a hairnet, the pony club tie and a club jersey or bib to represent your club. Wearing your club's colours is also very important when it comes to scoring as this is how the line judges differentiates between the teams. Some people also wear "joddy clips" to hold down their jodhpurs over their boots.
Apart from personal appearance there are a few other things needed to participate. In order to play you must be on a team with at least 3 others. In the IPC there are 3 age groups: U10, Junior (10-13) and senior (13-16). The cut off date is the first of January and you are not allowed to play in a category that you are too old for, however you may play under age. Games is for all ability's so you don't have to be great to start either.
Along with the rider there is of course the pony. Most ponies used for games are rather small in height to make it easier for the rider to vault. U10 ponies tend to be around 10 - 12 hands (4 inches to every hand) however U10's are not expected to vault. Junior and Senior ponies tend to be a bit bigger, around 12 - 14 hands, with senior ponies normally bigger than Junior ponies too as the extra height can mean a faster pony.
Each pony that is ridden in games has to be trained in order to do each game. This is done slowly at first, then increasing speed steadily. Some ponies can be scared of different equipment at first as they may have never seen it before, but when they are
shown it will begin to get used to it and realise that it won't hurt them at all. Communication is very important and builds trust in the sport too. The rider can train the pony to slow down "woah" and to pick up pace by saying "go" or clicking with your tongue at the pony. Ponies can feel tension and nerves is a rider and can become more relaxed when talked to.
Games ponies tend to be very fast and have the ability to turn sharply when needed. There is no specific breed of horse for the games and the ponies don't have to be pedigree either. This is why games is very popular among younger kids as they can use their own pony and practice at home with similar equipment.
Ireland is known for it's horses and agriculture. Over recent years games have become increasingly popular in some countries. Each year in the RDS people from outside Ireland (such as Italians) come across to Ireland to watch and look out for new ponies. Some people are willing to pay large sums of money and will make offers on ponies that they feel have potential. There are many people in Ireland such as Alan Keoghan who buy ponies for small amounts of money, then train and sell them on for profit.
Mounted Games is a series of games played of horseback. The number of games in a competition can vary from anything from 10 in a session to 20. Scoring is carried out by line stewards who watch for white hat bands signalling the final rider. When it comes to this point, the line steward must watch out to see who comes first, second, third and so on. Normally there is at least 2 line stewards as some games can be very quick and hard to judge. Different points are awarded for each place and after each game has been played the points are added up to see who has won the competition. If there is a tie at the end, a tiebreaker race is played between the teams on tied points and the results from this determine their results over all.
Each game tends to last anything from 2-5 minutes, depending on the game. This can vary however as if a mistake is made it is mandatory to fix it before carrying on, for example if you drop a piece of equipment you must pick it up before moving on.There are eliminations too if you obstruct other teams or break the start line. The line judges are in charge of this also.
There is a huge selection of games played across the world by all ages. Based on difficulty level, certain games are only played by certain age groups, or at a lower level may have just been simplified.
There are two main organisations in Ireland that participate in the sport, however neither play the exact some games.
MGA, which is for all ages play about 30 games between team games, pair games and individual games.
The Irish Pony Club which is for players under 16 years of age on teams of five and pairs, play roughly 20 games for seniors (13-16 years).
However many of the games that both organisations play are very similar, with just a different name. For example, association race and pyramid are very similar.
Each game requires a different skill, whether it be to vault, jump off the pony, pick up something, turn fast, run with your pony, or place something on top of something else. Many games when played with teams, require passing of a baton or another piece of games equipment such as a mug or bottle. Different riders can find different games difficult as each person can have their own preferences. Some ponies also will challenge the rider or might spook from a piece of equipment if in doubt, so the difficulty level can be increased by the pony's temperament.
credit:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mkGyuXL5js
The following are a list of games played by the MGA
Agility Aces Association race Bang a Balloon
Bank Race Bottle Shuttle Carton race
Flag Fliers Four flag Founder's race
HiLo Hug a Mug Hula Hoop
Jousting Litter Lifters Mug Shuffle
Pony Express Pony pairs Ride and Lead
Sock &Bucket Speed weavers Sword lancers
Ball and Cone Moat and Cast Three Mug
3 pot flag race Tool box scramble Triple flag
Two flag Victoria cross Windsor castle
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mounted_games
The Irish Pony Club play a separate set of games. The games list for the IPC at senior level is as follows:
BENDING PYRAMID BOTTLE
5 MUG FISHING PONY CLUB
POSTMAN
STEPPING STONES
CARTON
ROPE
QUOTES & CONE 3 MUG
TACK SHOP
5 FLAG
3 LEG SACK
TYRE
BALLOON
SOCK & BUCKET
BIG SACK TIE BREAKER: 2 FLAG
source: http://www.irishponyclub.ie/files/Mounted-Games-to-be-played-in-2014.pdf
