Related distances in a 20 × 40 school
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Most club nights happen in a 20 × 40, not a championship 60 × 80. The related-distance tables in the rule books still assume you have room to land, canter, and take off without clipping the long side. You often do not.
This is about building one fair related line in a small school. Not a full BS track. Open the designer, set the arena to 20 × 40, and follow along. Use the stride calculator before you commit poles.
This is a planning aid. Check your class rules before you build.
What still fits
A horse stride is about 3.5 to 3.7 m. Allow roughly 6 m across two fences for take-off and landing. In a 40 m long side, after you leave the short-side turn, you have enough for:
- a single fence off the corner, then a five or six stride related on the long side
- or a four stride, if the first fence sits later than you first drew it
You rarely have a clean seven or eight without the second fence sitting in the next corner. If the line ends in the corner, it is not a related distance any more. It is a turn.
Ponies need shorter internals. If the same split runs horses and ponies, draw two versions or you will cook the ponies.
What to drop
- A two-stride combination plus another related on the same long side
- An oxer off a short turn into a related that already uses the whole wall
- Anything that points the last fence at the gate
If you want a combination in a 20 × 40, make that the question and keep the rest of the course simple. Do not stack two hard questions on one wall.
How to check it
- Set British Showjumping or Unaffiliated in the designer first. The live checks change with the standard. See FEI vs British Showjumping if you are unsure.
- Place fence 1 after the horse has straightened. Not still bent from the corner.
- Place fence 2, then read the stride number. If it sits on a half, move a fence. Do not hope riders "make it fit".
- Walk it. The walking guide is the same in a small school: pace the landing, then the strides, then the take-off.
A line that looks generous from above can ride short once you have a wing, a filler and a crowd on the track.
A simple club line
For a 70 or 80 cm unaffiliated class in a 20 × 40:
- Cross-pole or small upright off the short side to get them in
- Upright on the long side
- Five strides to a second upright or a modest oxer
- Leave the far short side empty so they can rebalance
That is enough question for a weekday evening. Save the triple bar and the skinny for a 40 × 60.
Build it in the designer. No card. Export a builder PDF if someone else is putting the poles up.
Related: Show jumping distances explained · Bending lines · How to design a course
