Lazy Olympians

            I was always taught to respect the judge no matter what in any riding ring, whether or not style is judged. One of the top rules is to braid your horse especially for big shows. It takes less than an hour! The look is professional and it makes an impression to the spectators, judges and other riders. So why, at the tippy-top level of show jumping competitions do many riders not braid their horses?! This is just absurd! Please, somebody explain this to me because I really don't seem to understand the thinking behind it. I'm also sure most of the riders have grooms. At this level of competition I can't believe that they would even be seen in the arena without a braided mane! It just looks sloppy and unprofessional; no excuse is good enough. 

             The one (and only time) I didn't braid was at a Horse Trial last year at Pine Top Farm. A sign in the show office reads some thing along the lines of: "Attention competitors! Please do not braid but instead use the extra time to walk the XC course once more time." I had a hard time with it and was self-conscious all weekend (even though nobody braided) because I have a NEED to make as big of impression as possible on the dressage judge. It's not Loco's favorite subject.  

               I do remember when I was a child riding killer ponies we used to grab mane for stability when they burst into their bronco alter-ego. The Olympian riders don't need it to "hang on" so why? Maybe I'm just snobby and a traditionalist; maybe I'm O.C.D. Nobody knows for sure... Please enjoys there photos of riders who in my opinion misrepresent the sport and lower the professional standards.

Britain's Peter Charles on Vindicat. Found at www.france24.com

    

If somebody would tell me the name of this Canadian
 rider it would be great! Found on  www.phistars.com.
 It also looks like his mane hasn't been trimmed
 and pulled in a while. Lovely release with the hands though.
(Thanks to Bev I now know that this rider is Ian Miller. Thanks Bev!)

                       

Same rider I believe. Found at www.equinechronicle.com

Kamal Bahamdan and Noblesse Des Tess.
 Photo credit: Diana De Rosa Photos
Found at www.examiner.com

   I could go on and on and on... But I won't partly because I am too lazy to post more pictures and partly because my internet connection is a wee bit shaky at the moment. That's all for now hope you enjoyed any and all feedback is appriciated here at myhorseiscrazy@gmail.com or on twitter to @myhorseiscrazy

Silly Popular Science

     I am a reader of the monthly magazine: Popular Science. The latest issue (volume 281 No. 2) has some very interesting articles regarding the future Olympic events. On page 56, a full page picture of an animated horse and rider catches my attention.

    I think "YES! Something really interesting! Something I can relate to!" But no. As it turns out, upon further inspection, that this was obviously just placed here to annoy horse people. The article tells of a future of equestrian sports that could be safer if we made some changes. The paragraph reads as follows:

                                          

                                                 HOLOGRAPHIC OBSTACLES

       About 100 riders are injured in eventing falls every year, and when a multimillion-dollar horse goes down, even a minor injury like a twisted ankle can end its career. Computerized bases on the ground could project holographic obstacles, such as four foot fences and 15 foot wide pools, in place of dangerous physical objects. Line-of-sight infrared beams could monitor the edges of the obstacles; if the horse breaks the beam, the system would instantly alert the judges-and the crowd-to the fault.

     OK. So was I the only one that had the image in my brain of a spy sneaking into the bank by avoiding lasers? 

                              

                       

      

     Huh. Must just be me. Anyway first let's look at the positive side of this. Yes, injuries would be less frequent  Another thing I thought about way "Whoopee! Next time I knock down a rail at home I don't have to get off to replace the pole!" So hopefully at some point we would have remote control jump crews that would save us time and labor (yes I am lazy).

    So how about the negative? Difficult to read distances, horse will lose respect for the jumps, etc. Also, only a few people would have the funds for such equipment on their farm. What is the horse to think when he shows up to jump and the oxers look funky? I just can't see this going well. Sorry Popular Science... but this idea sucks. Good luck in the future!