British Eventing Set To Increase Free Safety Equipment For Events
Following the successful free issue of Frangible Pins and sleeves for the last two years British Eventing have announced that Reverse Pinning kits will now also be free of charge for Organisers.
The kits which are FEI approved will be made available free of charge for Organisers of both BE National events as well as International (FEI) competitions held in the UK.
Over 300 Reverse Pinning kits have been purchased for BE Events since their introduction in 2011 following testing at important events such as Chatsworth, Houghton and the Mitsubishi Motors Badminton Horse Trials in 2010.
BE National Safety Officer Jonathan Clissold commented on the significance of this development: "By increasing access to Reverse Pin kits, Organisers can increase the opportunity for this important cross country risk-reduction technology to be used at extra fences at more events. Offering them for free removes the barriers of cost in these challenging financial times for Organisers and Members alike."
"British Eventing is at the very heart of research in Eventing and as such we continually strive to lead the way in safety for both our members in this country and our colleagues around the world."
Wendy McGowan, Finance Director for BE commented: "BE's financial commitment to safety has been maintained for over a decade now and this initiative further endorses our commitment."
British Eventing also offer free replacement for Frangible Pins that are activated during competition at all BE and/or FEI events in the UK. The only cost to Organisers for both new and replacement pins is for post and packaging.
About the Reverse Pin
During the Frangible pin testing at Bristol University, ADHQ (formerly Competitive Measure), found that in some situations there could be merit in having a pinned rail behind the post rather than in front as is traditional.
Following further testing it was established that in certain situations this reverse pinning could have added benefits. Testing showed that for the pin to work consistently and not to fail too easily, a method, other than that of traditional roping, needed to be developed.
ADHQ came up with a solution, which consists of a stainless steel wire which is tightened up to a set tension with a torque wrench. This ensures that the frangible pin consistently breaks when a certain force is applied.