ShowConnect, Connecting The Equestrian Community To The Future
The United States Eventing Association (USEA) is pleased to announce that ShowConnect will be “the official event management system of the USEA” and will be a game-changer for the equestrian community.
ShowConnect is a new event management system that serves as a hub for all professionals involved in running equestrian-related shows and events. It is a community-owned system, created by equestrians, for equestrians. The USEA has been the caretaker of the project and has been partnering with various professionals in the equestrian community, as well as different organizations to help build a new innovative system that is much needed in today’s marketplace. The system provides the critical features you need to register, schedule, and score an event, and highlights real-time communications, registration changes, purchases, etc. to and from participants via smartphones or other devices. ShowConnect was designed to elevate the event experience for organizers and riders.
“I’ve been eventing for decades now and as an IT professional, I have always felt that the sport deserved a more helpful and powerful solution for connection between riders and the show organizers,” said Adult Amateur rider and USEA Board of Governor member, Dawn Robbins. “ShowConnect will provide a direct link between the updated show database, the show secretaries, and the rider/owner/groom team. Our mobile phones and tablets provide us with so much information, and most of us text, instant message and take quick photos and videos as we document and conduct our daily lives. I have felt that we need to apply this technology to our sport so we can all stay more up to date and connected, basically bringing the sport into the information age. In my opinion, this system is the missing link between a great tradition and a modern event experience.”
This non-profit endeavor aims to drive the advancement of equestrian sports, and reduce costs for organizers, managers, and competitors alike. “I think the new system is a less expensive option to organizers, that also provides a better service,” said Jonathan Elliott, organizer of Aspen Farms Horse Trials in Yelm, Washington. The system was created to be a high-tech advancement for equestrian sports and help control costs of the events – the platform was designed to have no direct cost to the organizers or events themselves. The platform will be free for any events registered with the USEA for at least the first two years, and for any of the testers. “I think this is going to do a lot more than the existing systems that are out there, so it’s a big upgrade of what’s on the market, and should be mutually beneficial to the organizing side, and the competitor and rider side,” added Elliott.
ShowConnect provides an open platform for connecting shows to its partners and participants. Robbins stated that “while ShowConnect will be important to organizing teams because it provides a new information base that can be used to promote the show, organize data in a standard manner, connect with officials and quickly check qualifications of horses and riders, but also, spectators can now be informed quickly of developments throughout the day. Ideally, this will be done with efficiency, making the system of great value in connecting to all involved in an event, from start to finish,” said Robbins.
Mary Fike, who manages numerous USEA events, and is on the organizing team for the USEA American Eventing Championships said “with all the requirements now put on competition management for reports, quick results, competitor services and more, this will now allow all of the functions required in the managing of the events to be handled within one application. It will make it much easier for organizers to communicate with their customers, provide almost immediate information as to changes and updates, and this information will be as easily accessed on the other side of the country as it is in the barns at the event.”
While Robbins, Elliott, and Fike are just a few of the testers and partners the USEA has been working with, ShowConnect has been designed by professionals in all facets of the event management community to provide a complete system with features not currently available in today’s marketplace. With a continued commitment to its community engagement, ShowConnect will continue to grow the platform around its users and larger equestrian community.
The platform has already been tested at various USEA events and will be launched publicly this summer. The USEA aims to feature ShowConnect at the upcoming USEA American Eventing Championships presented by Nutrena Feeds August 31 – September 5, 2021, in partnership with the organizing team of Equestrian Events, Inc. and Mary Fike.
“This is a big investment for the USEA in launching this product,” stated Fike. “While there are good alternatives out that are being used, I feel that the USEA needs to take the lead in supporting the sport in other ways that help all of the competitions, not just the high-profile events. By providing the organizers with a good tool to do their job well, it will benefit the competitors and other parties, which will ultimately help our sport survive on a level that most riders can participate - not just the most elite in the sport.”
ShowConnect will offer 24/7 support, with a community of users, each helping each other as well as professional I.T. support through The Jockey Club Technology Services. With a commitment to user engagement, ShowConnect will continue to grow the platform around its larger equestrian community. ShowConnect will connect equestrians, connect shows, and connect the future to our equestrian community.
We want to hear from you! For more information about ShowConnect and opportunities to get involved, please visit https://showconnect.org or email contact@showconnect.org. To schedule a demo, click here.
The USEA would like to thank the testers and partners who have helped develop ShowConnect thus far. The current ShowConnect partners who have been working to integrate the technology are: Competitor Tent, CrossCountry App, Jockey Club Technology Services, My Course Walk App, Stable Secretary, US Pony Club, Blue Horse Entries, the United States Eventing Association, and the USEA Volunteer Incentive Program.
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