For those of us with slightly less grandiose ambitions, it’s a good time of year to start planning your season and identifying new goals. Many of us balance our horses with working, family and other commitments, and it’s so important that we find a way of continuing to enjoy our horses and the sport we love.

At BE HQ, the focus for the start of the year is very much on the delivery of our Entries, Admin, Results and Scoring system (EARS).  With the first event entries opening tomorrow (18th January), the team have been working hard to finalise the development, and work with our entries secretaries and scorers to ensure that we are ready to go. 

Making an Entry

All BE entries from 2020 will be made via the BE website, which is a hugely positive step for the sport. We know that change can often be challenging but we hope that you like the new system. If you are planning to make an entry this weekend, before you start make sure that you check all these boxes:

• You are logged in to your account
• You have an active and valid membership (Full, Day Pass or Supporter)
• The owner (if different from the rider) of the horse has an active valid membership (Full, Owner, Joint, Corporate, Syndicate)
• If you are a Day Pass Member, you have an active Rider Day Pass (not required if you are entering an BE80(T))
• You have an active Horse Season Ticket or Horse Day Pass

Updates to the Entry Process

There are also some things you can do to maximise the benefit of the BE entry system:

• If you complete your emergency contact and lorry details within My Account, this will pre-populate each entry you make once you are logged in.
• We have developed functionality which will show waitlisted entries based on date and time of entry – a request from members previously to further improve transparency.  
• Where available at the event, you will also be able to add ‘extras’, such as stabling, shavings hook up as part of the entry process, rather than having to contact the entries secretary directly. 

Embracing Change

We know that there are members who would have preferred to remain with the entries systems they have known and used for years, however, as those who have followed our updates will appreciate, this was not an option, and a large part of the IT project is the development of back end functionality to enable BE to deliver the sport from start to finish. 

We are all very excited about the new possibilities for future development the new system will bring, and we will continue to work on ways of improving our offering for the membership and other stakeholders.

Troubleshooting

We have carried out a huge amount of testing on the new system, and we hope that it will be a smooth and trouble free launch – however, if you do experience any issues or have any problems, please let us know. As with the majority of IT launches, it is probable that there will be the odd glitch, and we will all be working to resolve these as quickly as possible.

The team have worked extremely hard and are justifiably proud of the work they have done – it has been a sizeable investment for the sport, and I hope that you will all find that it justifies the time, cost and effort it has taken. 

The other positive about the delivery of the EARS project is that it will give the head office team time back to focus on other initiatives. There is another strategy day planned for the Board and senior management team shortly, which will focus on the key deliverables for 2020.  We are all looking forward to being able to work on new initiatives.

Help with Making an Entry

To support members, we are extending our phone lines until 7pm on Monday evenings for the duration of the season, starting on Monday 20th January.

Support will be available, should you need it, by calling the office on 02476 698856.

2020 Plans

The other focus for us all in 2020 is the promotion of the BE brand, all of us competing at BE affiliated events know the benefits of doing so. We have an excellent team of field staff – Technical Advisers, Stewards and Scorers – ensuring the events run to a good standard, within the rules, and fairly. Our medical and veterinary cover is guaranteed, hopefully it will not be necessary, but it’s so important that it is there, and appropriate, when you do.  BE also provides the opportunity for championships to aim for, at some iconic venues, and we will continue to work on the eligibility and range of these championships so that all of our members have an aspirational goal to aim for, if they wish.

On a personal note, I actually have sound horses currently – and have been making cautious plans for the season ahead.  Whilst they have repeatedly shown me that you cannot take anything for granted with horses, I am at least getting the opportunity to believe I may get some eventing done this year!  I’m not telling them that though…  just in case…..

Wishing you a brilliant season with BE!

Jude