Campdrafting

Campdrafting is a unique Australian sport involving a horse and rider working cattle. The riding style is , somewhat akin to American Western riding and the event is similar to the American events such as cutting, working cow horse, team penning, and ranch sorting.

In a campdrafting competition, a rider on horseback must "cut out" one beast from the mob of cattle in the yard or the "camp" and block and turn the beast at least two or three times to prove to the judge that they have the beast under control; then take it out of the yard and through a course around pegs involving right and left hand turns in a figure eight, before guiding it through two pegs known as "the gate". The outside course must be completed in less than 40 seconds. Events for juniors 8 years and under 13 years have one sound beast in the camp or yard at all times. In other events it is recommended that there shall be a minimum of six head of sound stock in the camp at any time.

Up to a total of 100 points are scored by horse and rider: "Cut out" is worth a total of 26 points; horse work up to a further 70 points; and 4 points for the course. Most disqualifications (signalled by a crack of the judge's ) occur when a competitor loses his beast more than twice on the camp; losing control of the beast in the arena or running a beast onto the arena fence. A “tail turn” executed by a horse in the opposite direction of the beast's line of travel also incurs disqualification at any stage of the draft.

The sport requires consummate skill and horsemanship, and the skill in selecting a beast from the mob that will run well, but is not too fast for that particular horse. Great prestige is bestowed on the winning horse and rider of the competition.

It is thought the sport developed in outback Queensland among the and drovers in informal competitions to prove horse skills. The first formal campdrafting competition occurred in Tenterfield at the Tenterfield Show Society's 1885 show. Competing at this event was Clarence Smith, a cattleman and horse breeder near Tenterfield, on the Northern Tablelands, New South Wales. He went on to create the rules and judging procedures that remain similar to the rules of today.

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