In the case of this tip – We make all the expensive mistakes so you don’t have to!
Check where the finish line is for the Cross Country and the Showjumping.
At Bicton the finish line was in a ridiculous place with string in 3 areas so it was not terribly clear and I jumped the last fence and blythely carried up the hill unaware that the finish line in fact required a 90 degree turn after the last fence. I missed elimination by the skin of my teeth and gained 18 time faults. I was not the only person to do this and I hope this does not become a new trend with course designers as frankly finish lines should be obvious and in straight lines after the last fence unless unavoidable (which this one was not).
We spotted this when walking the course, purely by chance. Very devious in my opinion.
Also always count the fence numbers!!!
A few years ago at Nutwell a large number of the first riders in the Novice got eliminated for missing a fence. You jumped into a field and you could see the next fence in the distance. WRONG! The next fence was a right hand turn, down the other hedge line, under some tress then back to what people thought was the next fence!