Home / Equestrian sports / Driving
Other FEI disciplines
Driving is competition for horse-drawn carriages: the athlete sits on the vehicle and drives the horses instead of riding. It is modelled on eventing.
| Group | Other FEI disciplines |
|---|---|
| Also called | combined driving, carriage driving, horse driving trials |
| Olympic | no |
| Governing body | FEI |
| Where it is popular | Driving is held worldwide and is especially strong in the Netherlands, Germany, Hungary and Sweden. In Hungary it is the most popular equestrian sport. |
A competition has three parts: dressage in a 100 x 40 m arena, a marathon course with sharp turns, water, hills and mazes, and cones driving between pairs of cones topped with balls. There are singles, pairs and four-in-hand teams, with separate classes for horses and ponies. Errors, extra time and dislodged balls add penalties, and the lowest total wins. A pair must carry one groom and a four-in-hand two.
Any horse or pony can compete, but warmbloods are most common at the top level. Horses in one team should match in height, build and movement.
You need a carriage (most are four-wheeled today), harness, reins and a whip. Drivers and grooms wear hats and gloves, and helmets on the marathon.
The main events are the FEI Driving World Championships (held for four-in-hands since 1972), the FEI Driving World Cup Final and CHIO Aachen.
Beginners usually start by driving a single quiet pony with a coach, with an experienced helper on the carriage. It helps to learn horse care and harnessing first; there are separate youth championships.
Driving became an FEI discipline in 1970, and its first rule book was produced under Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, who was FEI President at the time.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org, inside.fei.org, hungarytoday.hu, madbarn.com