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IDAHO MOUNTED ORIENTEERING
GENERAL RULES
PARTICIPATION
1. All participants are welcome, IMO Annual Members and IMO Day Members.
2. Participants 0 to 17 years old as of January 1st of the current ride year are considered juniors and must have written permission from a parent or guardian if participating with someone other than their parent or guardian.
3. Only registered participants may take part in the ride.
4. Participants may ride alone or as a team of two or more.
5. A team may not split up to find more than one marker at a time.
6. No participant may tamper with markers or landmarks.
7. Participants may not intentionally physically interfere with other participants.
8. Any inhumane treatment of a steed is grounds for disqualification from the current ride.
9. Any individual or team may be disqualified from the present ride as disciplinary action for violation of the rules.
10. The use of electronic navigational or communication devices to aid the participant in finding his/her location, or in finding the marker, during the ride is prohibited. Such devices can be carried inside a saddle bag or pouch for emergency purposes only or picture taking.
11. All motorized forms of transportation are prohibited from being used to participate in any IMO ride.
STEED
1. All breeds of horses, ponies, mules, etc., may be used for participation.
2. Minimum age is three years old.
SCORING
1. The time starts when an individual, or first member of a team, gets his/her map.
2. The time stops when an individual, or last member of a team completing the ride, comes to the start/finish line or place. After stopping the time, a ride manager will check a completed map to verify the number of markers found.
3. To figure time points, start with the individual or team who found the most markers.
4. The individual or team finishing the course in the least time gets six time points; second least time, five time points, etc., through sixth least time, one point.
5. All participants and any designated team will acquire two points for each marker they find.
6. The individual or team acquiring the highest number of total points (marker points plus time points) places first; second highest total points places second, third highest total points places third, etc., through sixth place.
7. A team member not completing the ride with the team will still be considered part of the team; however, the rider and steed will only get points for the markers they helped the team find and will not get time points, if any, earned by the team.
8. Steeds will get the same number of points for the ride as the rider. Any steed that is ridden to set up a ride, then ridden by another rider on that same ride, will earn only ride manager points toward high-point year-end awards. Any points earned on the ride will go to the steed’s lifetime accumulative points.
9. Establish a base team by filling out and submitting a Team Designation form at the first ride of the season. Additions to the Team Designation form as originally filed will establish a new base team, and that teams’ points will begin then. Team points for rides before the Team Designation form is filed will not be awarded.
10. You can be on more than one base team, but this can preclude you from certain year-end awards. You can be on only one base team per ride.
11. At least two members of a base team must be registered, receive their maps, and be timed out together at the same time for team points to count.
12. In order to be eligible for the high-point team award, a member of a designated team must participate with that team in at least one-half of the rides during the year (excluding the training ride).
13. Ride managers will receive 16 points for managing a ride. Steeds ridden during any aspect of the ride - i.e. scouting, setting plates, picking up plates, etc. will receive 16 points. (Only 1 steed per ride manager.)
14. Annual members and their mounts who take anyone who has never participated on an IMO ride before out on a ride (excluding the training ride), will be given six lifetime-accumulative points per new person, in addition to any marker points and time points earned on the ride
15. All annual members participating in any training ride will receive 10 points to count toward lifetime accumulative awards.
16. Points earned during the current season by a day member will count toward all year-end awards if their annual dues are paid by the last ride of the season.
MANAGEMENT
1. Dates for a training ride and a minimum of seven rides will be selected by the Executive Committee at their meeting held on or before the first Saturday of every November.
2. Ride dates will be assigned at the Ride Managers’ Meeting held on the day of, and immediately following, the Annual General Meeting.
3. Only IMO Annual Members who have assisted experienced Ride Managers in managing a ride may manage a ride.
4. All members of a designated team that assist in any aspect of the ride – i.e. scouting, setting plates, picking up plates, etc. are considered “ride managers”.
5. The ride managing team and all persons who help in any way in managing any ride, including scouting, may not ride the ride, or help anyone else ride the ride, for points on the day of the ride.
6. Rides must be designed to be completed in not less than two hours by median-speed participants (trotters).
7. The training ride is not timed but should not exceed four hours to complete.
8. Ride managers may make special safety or landowner rules for their ride if these rules do not contradict IMO rules.
9. Ride managers may have someone with knowledge of the rules spot check on participants in the field for violations of the rules.
10. All rides, including the training ride, must have five markers.
11. Markers must be a white or yellow water-resistant plate at least nine inches in diameter or square, marked with the marker number 1 through 5 and two or more letters in black, waterproof, durable writing.
12. The ride should start and finish near the number one marker. This marker is used as an example to show participants how to find a marker and how to mark the map. Participants are not timed on this marker, but they will get two marker points even if they need to be shown the exact location.
13. Markers must be placed where they can be read from horseback.
14. At least two compass bearing lines from or to recognizable landmarks must intersect for each marker.
15. Markers and artificial landmarks (e.g., flagging) must be removed from the ride area as soon as possible after the ride, but not before the last participants are in.
16. The ride name, ride date, magnetic north and a distance scale must be indicated on the map.
17. Each participant will receive a map that is an exact copy of the map given to other participants.
18. No participant shall have access to the ride map before the day of the ride or before their time starts.
19. No participant shall receive verbally, or otherwise, more clues than another as to the whereabouts of the markers or the letters on them after the ride has begun until the last participant is in.
20. Start and finish times must be recorded to the nearest second.
21. A start/finish line or place shall be clearly marked.
22. All participants with the same start time are considered a team for all purposes on the ride even if not on a designated team. If two or more designated teams have the same start time, and two or more members of each team are present, they will still be considered one team for the ride and must decide which designated team will get the points for the ride.
23. All participants will be timed out at intervals not less than 10 minutes apart. Start times will be chosen at completion of registration and payment of ride dues on a first-come-first-choice basis at the ride location.
24. The Ride Managers’ box should be passed on to the next ride’s managers at the end of the ride.
25. The Vice-President, or other appointed member of the Executive Committee, will meet with the Ride Manager before leaving the ride to enter points on the point record sheets and collect the ride registrations, Release of Liability forms, team designations, and score sheets.
26. The Treasurer, or other appointed member of the Executive Committee, will meet with the Ride Manager before leaving the ride to tally monies and receive any Membership Forms.
OTHER
1. Protests must be made via email to a Board of Directors member within 48 hours of a violation of the rules becoming known. Protester to get a “Read Receipt” or email response from Board of Director to ensure protest was received. A $20 filing fee must be postmarked on the same date as the email. The Board of Directors will have 7 days to discuss the validity of the protest. The Board can poll the participants to help make a decision. The consequences of the violation will be decided by the Board. The latest date to file a protest in any given year is 15 days after the last ride. If a Board Member is part of the protest either by name or Team, they will recuse themselves from the decision-making process. Filing fee will be returned if the protest is upheld.
2. The Secretary will update any club document as decreed by vote of the Annual Members present at the Annual General Meeting and will notify all members of the changes and/or additions.
3. Any public advertising or promotion for the IMO Club must be approved by the Executive Committee and must conform to the BLM Handbook’s definition of Public Advertising. All Annual Members can disperse any approved materials.
MEMBERSHIP
1. Annual membership dues are good from January 1st through December 31st, yearly.
2. Individual annual membership: $20.00
3. Family annual membership: $30.00 (includes children under 21, living in the family home)
4. Daily membership: $20.00 adults, $5 children 0-17 years old
YEAR-END AWARDS FOR ANNUAL MEMBERS
1. High-Point Awards (Yearly accumulated points)
Team, Male, Female, Junior, Steed
2. Medallions (Lifetime accumulated points, first time a level is reached)
Rider: Bronze—50, 150, 300, 450, 600 Steed: Bronze—200, 400, 600, 800
Silver—750, 900, 1050, 1200, 1350 Silver—1000, 1200, 1400, 1600
Gold—1500, 1650, 1800, 1950, 2100 Gold—1800, 2000, 2200, 2400
Platinum—2250, 2400, 2550, 2700, 2850 Platinum—2600, 2800, 3000, 3200
Crystal—3000, ad infinitum
3. Ride Manager Awards (Every person who helped to manage a ride)
4. IMO Merit Award Recipient to choose award (500 lifetime accumulated points at 500-point intervals)
5. The Executive Committee will set a base amount for the maximum IMO will pay for each year-end award at their meeting on or before the first Saturday in November. Ride Managers will earn one base amount for each ride they host. Base amounts will be combined for multiple award winners. If a member’s choice of award(s) exceeds the maximum IMO will pay, including tax, the member must reimburse IMO the difference upon receiving the award(s). No awards will be given as cash. For reimbursement of member-provided award(s), legible purchase receipts are required.
Updated February 1, 2023
Last Updated: March 01, 2023