ASPCA Maclay Finals

[vxf111]

@SweetestDownfall

Ok this is awesome!!

RE: Isabella DeSousa

She is a talented rider AND a talented writer. I find her COTH blogs to be some of the best ones by non-professional writers.

[Midge]

@MHM

I love that view of the sloping shoulders! :lol:

Has anyone seen videos posted of the second round anywhere? So far I’ve caught up with a few first rounds and tests, but no second rounds yet.

I posted a link to Sam’s round a couple posts above.

[Renn_aissance]

@MHM

I love that view of the sloping shoulders! :lol:

Yeah, it’s unsightly, but in Sam’s case he gives with his arm and drops his shoulder on the stride before take-off to encourage the horse to use itself over the fence. I much prefer that to the over-mannered rigid arm that restricts the horse’s neck, which I saw in at least one rider in the top 10 and which creates a stiff and inverted horse. His posture appears to have a positive effect on the horse’s quality of performance, even though it’s noticeable (a fault in the equitation ring,) and that effect is why it doesn’t bother me.

[MHM]

@Midge

Wow. You realize you are trashing a child, right? A skilled, talented kid who probably rides way, way better than you, me, and 90% of the people on this thread.

I’ve seen him ride a bit in person in the last few years. I would guess 90% is a conservative estimate.

Congrats to Sam and the rest of the ribbon winners. I didn’t get to watch today, but they are a talented group of kids, for sure.

[harrisburgrules]

@SnicklefritzG

I took the training and this is not that.

Lighten up.

A lot of people are not happy with the results and how things played out with a number of the riders.

People always complain about the results. Every year. It’s a subjective sport. What does that have to do with being unkind?

[harrisburgrules]

Happy for Sam! I know a lot of people didn’t see him on top after the second round but I thought it was pretty clear that the judges loved him all day. Sometimes we don’t know exactly what they see or what they are looking for. I think all of those top riders deserve to win depending on the day! I just really wish Emma would have finished the year a bit higher, especially after everything with Mike. So tragic. I was still happy to see her in the test!

[SweetestDownfall]

@vxf111

RE: Isabella DeSousa

She is a talented rider AND a talented writer. I find her COTH blogs to be some of the best ones by non-professional writers.

Wonderful, will check them out! I didn’t know she blogs.

[vxf111]

@SweetestDownfall

Wonderful, will check them out! I didn’t know she blogs.

She didn’t have tons but she blogged all about bringing along her RRP horse and they were very well done, IMHO. I find few of the blogs hugely readable and hers were eminently so.

[MHM]

@Renn/aissance

Yeah, it’s unsightly, but in Sam’s case he gives with his arm and drops his shoulder on the stride before take-off to encourage the horse to use itself over the fence. I much prefer that to the over-mannered rigid arm that restricts the horse’s neck, which I saw in at least one rider in the top 10 and which creates a stiff and inverted horse. His posture appears to have a positive effect on the horse’s quality of performance, even though it’s noticeable (a fault in the equitation ring,) and that effect is why it doesn’t bother me.

Yes, I think sometimes in the equitation, some of the kids think about riding the position more than the horse. Obviously it’s best to do both, but the ones who ride the horse well usually do better in the long run.

[SweetestDownfall]

@MHM

Yes, I think sometimes in the equitation, some of the kids think about riding the position more than the horse. Obviously it’s best to do both, but the ones who ride the horse well usually do better in the long run.

Great explanation! We saw some great riders with maybe slightly surprising rounds today. Sometimes the horse isn’t right where they need to be for whatever reason. They have off or green days too. The adaptability and skill to ride the horse they’re sitting on any given day is critical to success.

[adhock]

I am disgusted by this thread. #1, this kid rode consistently and was soft, focused, and with his horse in every round. How many of you have a judge’s card or have ridden in a Final? You demand a straight back for perfection? Well, not everyone can be a McLain or Beezie, great riders can still have balance, judgment, and a great position. This young man’s feel was fantastic.

[edit] I don’t know this guy but I had a daughter, way back when, that won the USET Finals. She was a working student, too. Not a perfect rider, but an effective one. She was (and is) a real horse-person, not a micro-focused idiot robot who always rode break-the-budget horses that were perfectly set-up by others before she got to the ring. Words hurt. Many people who commented on this thread have no idea what real equitation means.

You wonder about the hand-gallop? Get your friggin judge’s card–he was probably so far ahead with points that it was a smart decision to get the right distance, not ride hell for leather. Just go back to the basics, learn from the way this guy rode, stop talking P points (I’m sure that neither of Timmy nor Chance [cared]), and figure out how to find great distances, stay balanced, and keep sane. Gahhhhhh. [edit]

[soloudinhere]

@SnicklefritzG

This is in line with what else has been said by others about the boys missing the mark on several other aspects of the rides.

At this level one would expect their trainers to work on this with them.

You didn’t get enough attention for it the first time, so you had to post it TWICE how you “cannot stand Sam.” When you didn’t get the pile on you wanted telling you how SO VERY RIGHT you are, you called all the people not personally insulting a child uptight losers.

Let me take a guess. You don’t know him, have never met him, and are posting this from the comfort of your couch.

Gross, really.

[MHM]

@harrisburgrules

I just really wish Emma would have finished the year a bit higher, especially after everything with Mike. So tragic. I was still happy to see her in the test!

She has had a tremendous junior career on a million different horses and ponies. She had nothing at all to prove today.

Plus she gets triple bonus brownie points from any sort of horseman for riding a completely strange horse at the Maclay Finals to a solid ribbon. Good for her!

[hannahfm22]

Anyone know where to watch now that the stream has ended- im so sad I missed! Checked EQ sports network but can’t find anything…

[MHM]

@hannahfm22

Anyone know where to watch now that the stream has ended- im so sad I missed! Checked EQ sports network but can’t find anything…

There are just a few trips posted on their Facebook page. Hopefully they will add a few more, and maybe the Chronicle will do the same.

[harrisburgrules]

@MHM

She has had a tremendous junior career on a million different horses and ponies. She had nothing at all to prove today.

Plus she gets triple bonus brownie points from any sort of horseman for riding a completely strange horse at the Maclay Finals to a solid ribbon. Good for her!

Oh I definitely agree! She has SO much to be proud of!!!

[Cascades]

Why I hate the hand gallop as a test: It’s the only test you can get away with not performing.

Canter the trot fence? Fail to counter canter? Forget to halt?

Totally screwed.

Decide that actually hand galloping is too “risky”? Meh.

Either it’s part of the test or it isn’t. You shouldn’t get to opt out based on risk assessment, anymore than you can opt out of any of the other parts of the test.

Lovely rides all around. But really. You shouldn’t be able to skip part of the test without penalty.

[Peggy]

@Cascades

Why I hate the hand gallop as a test: It’s the only test you can get away with not performing.

Canter the trot fence? Fail to counter canter? Forget to halt?

Totally screwed.

Decide that actually hand galloping is too “risky”? Meh.

Either it’s part of the test or it isn’t. You shouldn’t get to opt out based on risk assessment, anymore than you can opt out of any of the other parts of the test.

Lovely rides all around. But really. You shouldn’t be able to skip part of the test without penalty.

The thing about your first three examples is that they are pretty much pretty black and white. Either you halt or you don’t, aside from those piaffey not-quite halts that are occasionally seen in dressage tests. But a hand gallop has more shades of gray. You can increase the step a bit or a lot. You can increase a tiny amount and get in two point to make it look more impressive. You can move up gradually or more dramatically. Thus, it’s harder to decide where to draw the line and thus you can get away with doing less. At least, IMHO.

But maybe that’s why you hate it? Because it does present the dilemma of how much you have to not do it to be counted down?

[skydy]

Now, having seen Sam’s test I congratulate him once again. I am neither a judge nor an ignoramus.

What a sympathetic and effective rider. Well done Sam ! :yes:

[supershorty628]

@adhock

I am disgusted by this thread. #1, this kid rode consistently and was soft, focused, and with his horse in every round. How many of you have a judge’s card or have ridden in a Final? You demand a straight back for perfection? Well, not everyone can be a McLain or Beezie, great riders can still have balance, judgment, and a great position. This young man’s feel was fantastic.

[edit]. I don’t know this guy but I had a daughter, way back when, that won the USET Finals. She was a working student, too. Not a perfect rider, but an effective one. She was (and is) a real horse-person, not a micro-focused idiot robot who always rode break-the-budget horses that were perfectly set-up by others before she got to the ring. Words hurt. Many people who commented on this thread have no idea what real equitation means.

You wonder about the hand-gallop? Get your friggin judge’s card–he was probably so far ahead with points that it was a smart decision to get the right distance, not ride hell for leather. Just go back to the basics, learn from the way this guy rode, stop talking P points (I’m sure that neither of Timmy nor Chance [cared]), and figure out how to find great distances, stay balanced, and keep sane. Gahhhhhh. [edit].

I’m one of the people who was hung up on the hand gallop, so I feel like I need to address this. I have no interest in posting my credentials to validate what I say, sorry.

I think - and have always thought - that he’s a lovely, soft, effective rider. The back didn’t bother me. When I think of a hand gallop, I picture Jessica Springsteen really cranking it up at Maclay Finals in 2008. That is how my trainer, an R judge, expected us to do it. Many (many!) of the kids in the equitation do not do it to that extent - and on some of these horses, it would be difficult to make it look that drastic (particularly Brian’s horse). When the second round had shaken so many up, playing it safe and conservative was smart.

Sam (and the others) rode very well the whole day. I didn’t agree with the judges’ decision to test after the second round, but putting that aside, I totally agreed with the results afterward. It really shook things up, and some riders handled it better than others, for sure. He deserved the win.