Warm-up prior to equestrian competition is considered an essential element of preparation. Little work has been previously published regarding warm-up practices within equine competition in relation to either reducing risk of injury and/or improved performance. This pilot study undertook a comparative investigation into the differences in warm-up practices at two distinctly different levels of show jumping competition. The study indicates that significant differences (P < 0.001) are apparent between the total time spent warming up between the levels of competition. Additionally, differences between various specific elements of warm-up were observed between the two levels.