Barisone Pleads Not Guilty

[Cowgirl]

@GreenWithEnvy

How is USEF making showing dressage more expensive? It’s show managers who set the price of classes and stalls (tack and horse). Their costs are based on facility charges, judge daily fee plus transportation, etc.

I’ll take this one. By raising qualifying scores for freestyles, for example, they are causing people at the lower end of the spectrum of money (i.e. those that don’t have an international quality schoolmaster who is backed down five levels, for example) to have to show more to get qualifying scores to participate. Same for qualifying for regionals. Also those less likely to qualify because they live in the hinterlands without an instructor (a large part of the US) and have to travel hours to go to a show, have to go to more shows or simply give up because the mountain is too high to climb now. The rationale being given for qualifying score increases is often that the judges are tired of seeing “bad rides” (other way to look at this is NOT bad rides, but people learning, or people with show nerves on average horses) or the quality (i.e. number of well healed amateurs on expensive schoolmasters) has increased, requiring the change (why don’t you just say you only want to see international quality schoolmaster horses ridden by amateurs in full training with BNTs).

I am not worried about the qualifying scores increasing for my next generation of show horses, however I object to this change in dynamics in american dressage because the result is that is favors gaits over training and creates this mentality that you need to buy your medals through buying horses and professional coaching that most people with families and other financial obligations cannot justify. IF you really believe that dressage is for everyone, you will not put up with these constant increases in qualifying requirements that are against the wishes of the membership.

BTW, I have no opinion on the events that are subject to this thread, in case someone thinks they need to threaten me with a subpoena.

ETA: a show organizer from California did a report on comparing regional championship freestyle show entries in 2019 under the new qualifying rule to entries from 2018 when the rule was 3% less. There has been a 24% drop in participation.

[MHM]

@Gardenhorse

It’s a bit confusing, but seems to have come to light mostly in this thread. https://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/forum/discussion-forums/horse-care/10550654-raising-a-colt

Whoa. That was interesting in a bad way.

[GreenWithEnvy]

@Cowgirl

I’ll take this one. By raising qualifying scores for freestyles, for example, they are causing people at the lower end of the spectrum of money (i.e. those that don’t have an international quality schoolmaster who is backed down five levels, for example) to have to show more to get qualifying scores to participate. Same for qualifying for regionals. Also those less likely to qualify because they live in the hinterlands without an instructor (a large part of the US) and have to travel hours to go to a show, have to go to more shows or simply give up because the mountain is too high to climb now. The rationale being given for qualifying score increases is often that the judges are tired of seeing “bad rides” (other way to look at this is NOT bad rides, but people learning, or people with show nerves on average horses) or the quality (i.e. number of well healed amateurs on expensive schoolmasters) has increased, requiring the change (why don’t you just say you only want to see international quality schoolmaster horses ridden by amateurs in full training with BNTs).

I am not worried about the qualifying scores increasing for my next generation of show horses, however I object to this change in dynamics in american dressage because the result is that is favors gaits over training and creates this mentality that you need to buy your medals through buying horses and professional coaching that most people with families and other financial obligations cannot justify. IF you really believe that dressage is for everyone, you will not put up with these constant increases in qualifying requirements that are against the wishes of the membership.

BTW, I have no opinion on the events that are subject to this thread, in case someone thinks they need to threaten me with a subpoena.

ETA: a show organizer from California did a report on comparing regional championship freestyle show entries in 2019 under the new qualifying rule to entries from 2018 when the rule was 3% less. There has been a 24% drop in participation.

You are assuming the majority of those who show are riding for qualifying scores for Regionals. In my current environment, few are interested in Regionals unless they are solidly confirmed a level, ie, VERY confirmed (the old adage show at least one level lower than you are schooling at home). Not everyone is interested in Regionals because of the distance to get to the Regional Championship.

As far as needing a high dollar, imported schoolmaster to succeed, I have one word: Malarkey. I have seen more locally bred, locally trained horses consistently scoring higher than the “fancy import” up through 4th level. Putting this comment back on topic, someone posted in one of these threads somewhere as I recall, LK’s average score for all levels on all her horses is in the upper fifties (I have not verified this because I simply don’t really care to take the time to research her scores over the past several years), which proves one must be very dedicated in learning to ride the made schoolmasters in order to achieve higher scores. Just because one owns a very well trained upper-level horse, does not mean they can ride it well. Dressage is a partnership that shouldn’t have a rapid rise timeline for a partnership to form for most riders IMO.

And, who on earth is going to threaten you with a subpoena? For what?

[Cowgirl]

@GreenWithEnvy

You are assuming the majority of those who show are riding for qualifying scores for Regionals. In my current environment, few are interested in Regionals unless they are solidly confirmed a level, ie, VERY confirmed (the old adage show at least one level lower than you are schooling at home). Not everyone is interested in Regionals because of the distance to get to the Regional Championship.

As far as needing a high dollar, imported schoolmaster to succeed, I have one word: Malarkey. I have seen more locally bred, locally trained horses consistently scoring higher than the “fancy import” up through 4th level. Putting this comment back on topic, someone posted in one of these threads somewhere as I recall, LK’s average score for all levels on all her horses is in the upper fifties (I have not verified this because I simply don’t really care to take the time to research her scores over the past several years), which proves one must be very dedicated in learning to ride the made schoolmasters in order to achieve higher scores. Just because one owns a very well trained upper-level horse, does not mean they can ride it well. Dressage is a partnership that shouldn’t have a rapid rise timeline for a partnership to form for most riders IMO.

And, who on earth is going to threaten you with a subpoena? For what?

People who want to ride freestyles now have to get higher qualifying scores to ride them. I hope that clarifies. As for the rest, I don’t choose to argue and I don’t choose to discuss the person who is the subject of this thread or get involved in that discussion. You can discuss them all you want. I’m just trying to explain why showing is costing more and why there was a 24% drop in participation in freestyles in regional championships ACROSS THE COUNTRY.

[AnotherRound]

@Jealoushe

what were barn hours? How do you know what the hours are? Didn’t she live on the property?

The barn hours were until 9pm. However, there is a 911 where he was talking about LK and her boyfriend being in the barn after 7pm, so when his family moved into the barn, he may have changed the barn hours. In fact, that may have been the kind of paperwork he was trying to get LK and her boyfriend to agree to, certain rules he wanted adhered to on the property. LK was hollering or screaming after 9pm in the barn at one point, and screaming coming down the driveway another time. You would think she knew what the rules were, but apparently she was terrorizing the family, as well as telling him on her fb page to watch out for her other personalities because she diesn’t know what they might do.

[La-LaPopRider]

@MorganSercu

I don’t disagree with that but I do have a question. Let’s work with the oft-repeated idea that you need to look a certain way while riding too in order to be successful. That without a particular body type, you’re not as likely to do well. I don’t put stock in that theory but for the sake of discussion, let’s say it has merit.

1. Is that a selection bias by the judges, or by the fact that many people who ride upper level dressage are riding a lot of horses, burning a fair number of calories, etc.?
2. IF (IF IF IF) it is the whole “the way you look plays a role in how we score you” (a la gymnastics or figure skating), then USEF/USDF didn’t make it happen, but they do need to look hard at what the judges are doing.

We’re all human. Some of us prefer horses a certain color, or breed and it’s not too much of a stretch to say that a competitor who presents a particular silhouette may grab more attention by a judge. For good or ill. Remember how much influence Balanchine had over generations of dancers and we still haven’t totally moved away from it.

But no, USEF/USDF didn’t make this happen and it’s silly to think they did.

Barisone shot Kanarek. He shouldn’t have done so.

I just wanted to add here- you ARE right in a lot of ways. Judges have a type - not all- but plenty. When I mentioned “body shaming,” as one of the things I reported MB to SS for, it wasn’t a little “no big deal,” thing. He did this & he did it cruelly. For example, if 4 thin, long legged (bigger chested) girls were riding in the arena - but one or two more were short, overweight & not his taste of “pretty,” he would decide to make a whole speech about it.
Personally, a coach telling students that others need to adapt their body types to look like “these 4,” or they will go nowhere I I t’s inappropriate to pin point the reasons (it’s Pervy). Plus, imagine how the other girls felt! I wish I could say competitors aren’t judged on their fashion coordination & fanciness of the horses- (despite mistakes) but that wouldn’t be entirely true.
Even people who who were around back in the day & know MB’s gf from when she was a YR & had some success - almost all of them say “it wasn’t her riding ability, for sure. Her parents bought her this big black GP stallion & add to that a thin, young blonde girl, perfectly fashioned to horse show attire - she stood out & was scored accordingly.” Mb told us all the time if he were the judge for that competition (which is where he first saw her & “fell in love” - gross- think of that fir a second) she’d have been scored a 100%” . He told us to keep that in mind & im sure those with a less than satisfactory body type (according to him,) DID keep it mind… too much.
I have ALWAYS fought really hard for 2 things re competition:
1.) Handing in your freestyle floor plan ahead time - so people can’t just make things up if they miss their next musical cue.
2.) Live-streaming all recognized shows on a YouTube Dressage channel so everyone can see whoever they want riding any test. Or, at the very least, hiring videographers for each ring to then post each persons video on a subscription only Dressage channel via YouTube.
Show costs are enormously expensive anyway. If every competitor contributed 5-10 dollars per test extra- the videographers are paid by the show management & if there is a discrepancy in the score - or, if it seemed subjective, there’s video!
Turns out, all that HAS been done is making the necessary score to perform a freestyle much higher than even a score needed for GAIGS. Which is obviously ridiculous.

[MHM]

@La-LaPopRider

I just wanted to add here- you ARE right in a lot of ways. Judges have a type - not all- but plenty. When I mentioned “body shaming,” as one of the things I reported MB to SS for, it wasn’t a little “no big deal,” thing. He did this & he did it cruelly. For example, if 4 thin, long legged (bigger chested) girls were riding in the arena - but one or two more were short, overweight & not his taste of “pretty,” he would decide to make a whole speech about it.
Personally, a coach telling students that others need to adapt their body types to look like “these 4,” or they will go nowhere I I t’s inappropriate to pin point the reasons (it’s Pervy). Plus, imagine how the other girls felt! I wish I could say competitors aren’t judged on their fashion coordination & fanciness of the horses- (despite mistakes) but that wouldn’t be entirely true.
Even people who who were around back in the day & know MB’s gf from when she was a YR & had some success - almost all of them say “it wasn’t her riding ability, for sure. Her parents bought her this big black GP stallion & add to that a thin, young blonde girl, perfectly fashioned to horse show attire - she stood out & was scored accordingly.” Mb told us all the time if he were the judge for that competition (which is where he first saw her & “fell in love” - gross- think of that fir a second) she’d have been scored a 100%” . He told us to keep that in mind & im sure those with a less than satisfactory body type (according to him,) DID keep it mind… too much.
I have ALWAYS fought really hard for 2 things re competition:
1.) Handing in your freestyle floor plan ahead time - so people can’t just make things up if they miss their next musical cue.
2.) Live-streaming all recognized shows on a YouTube Dressage channel so everyone can see whoever they want riding any test. Or, at the very least, hiring videographers for each ring to then post each persons video on a subscription only Dressage channel via YouTube.
Show costs are enormously expensive anyway. If every competitor contributed 5-10 dollars per test extra- the videographers are paid by the show management & if there is a discrepancy in the score - or, if it seemed subjective, there’s video!
Turns out, all that HAS been done is making the necessary score to perform a freestyle much higher than even a score needed for GAIGS. Which is obviously ridiculous.

[La-LaPopRider]

@GreenWithEnvy

I’m still waiting for some proof of this cat litter box accusation. It’s really, really hard to believe and again, I’ll ask, were the children’s bedrooms open for the “tenants” to enter at will and take photos and check things out?

ETA: By the way, if she installed surveillance equipment in the barn, did she also install devices in the private areas of the home that MB/MH, the children, and staff occupied???

Short answer- first question- Yes. For very specific reasons. And pictures were a MUST. Again, for very specific reasons. You will not be sent “evidence,” of anything, at any time. But, nice try. I could not give less of a meow what you find “really, really hard to believe.” There’s this saying cops & prosecutors have in criminal investigations- “What do we think, what do we know, what can we PROVE.”

Second question- NO. I have no clue who occupied where in the barn- where they were all made to live - crammed into a small space so that MH could have the house remodeled for her kids & parents. I do know Exactly where no one lived bc it is a common area, where anyone could be at any time - knowing full well any person could easily overhear any conversation. If they were close enough to these devices to be heard so clearly… well, there are privacy issues with that from ME - again - for very specific reasons - none which I’ll be disclosing to you.

[La-LaPopRider]

Jan. 17, 2020, 03:47 PM
Originally posted by Jenerationx View Post
How did we get to being told what USEF issues we’re allowed to gripe about or not?

I hope the cat is in his condo and not pooping in anymore beds. In the meantime, if nether MH nor MB can be bothered to emoty a litter box… I wonder how the stalls are kept, {QUOTE}

Pretty sure it’s not the job of the stall cleaner to oversee (or clean) disgusting cat mess out of MB & MH’s floor in the house.
Btw- whose condo? I wouldn’t call a jail cell a “condo.” If you were referring to JH, he hates cats. So does his “condo.”

[MHM]

@La-LaPopRider

Short answer- first question- Yes. For very specific reasons. And pictures were a MUST. Again, for very specific reasons. You will not be sent “evidence,” of anything, at any time. But, nice try. I could not give less of a meow what you find “really, really hard to believe.” There’s this saying cops & prosecutors have in criminal investigations- “What do we think, what do we know, what can we PROVE.”

Second question- NO. I have no clue who occupied where in the barn- where they were all made to live - crammed into a small space so that MH could have the house remodeled for her kids & parents. I do know Exactly where no one lived bc it is a common area, where anyone could be at any time - knowing full well any person could easily overhear any conversation. If they were close enough to these devices to be heard so clearly… well, there are privacy issues with that from ME - again - for very specific reasons - none which I’ll be disclosing to you.

@La-LaPopRider

Pretty sure it’s not the job of the stall cleaner to oversee (or clean) disgusting cat mess out of MB & MH’s floor in the house.
Btw- whose condo? I wouldn’t call a jail cell a “condo.” If you were referring to JH, he hates cats. So does his “condo.”

[La-LaPopRider]

@Denali6298

No. LK being an asshat does not warrant getting shot. What I meant was LK the asshat with money can “buy” a bronze medal. It’s not hard to ride those tests when you can buy the gaits and the school master or afford MB as a trainer.

I have never even said LKs actions led to her being shot and disagree with people who say that! You’re either the type to pull a gun and shoot or your not.

None of my scores at any levels which earn a bronze medal were received on any horse considered anything close to schoolmaster. I import them - yes. You can find better quality horses for much cheaper than let’s say, Wellington prices. But the process isn’t quick. You might go through 50 horses just to narrow down the ones with no vet issues & correct gaits (especially walk & Canter.) A trot can be developed very significantly- not so much the walk or canter. You are right about the trainer, though, for sure. Having an experienced trainer on the ground who (yes, I admit) doesn’t let up on you & allow you get away with mistakes is a crucial part of a horse’s development up the levels.

In the end, it’s just really about what one’s goals are. If you want to go as far as you can - you ride many horses a day & learn consistency with every horse you ride. If you just want to have a lesson once or twice a week- that’s ok too. Just depends what the goal is, I guess. But, “buying medals,” def isn’t a thing. No matter what horse you compete- it takes a good year to figure them out & build an harmonious relationship. I personally prefer to buy horses aged 5-7. Just a preference… 🤷🏼”â™€ï¸

[La-LaPopRider]

[quote="“carolprudm,post:964,topic:464825”]

@La-LaPopRider

Post
When my son was in second grade my son told his teacher that he hated me (because I made him go to school) and she reported my family to CPS. It was pretty horriffic and took almost a year to get it straightened out, not to mention a fair amount of money.

They threatened to take my 3 children.

She told CPS that my mother had siezures, which was not true and was irrelevant in any case. She had brain damage from surgery to remove a brain tumor and had aphasia. We finally got it straightened out when I was able to catch her in a lie. She told the psychologist that he was habitually late for school because his mom (me) regularly overslept. Children who were late for school had to be signed in at the office and that never happened.

She was fired.

I am in no way shape or form part of your circus. These monkeys are all yours.

Strange. You not only make a point to post here- but also make a point to post as yourself (same name) on the Coth fb threads. Looks to me you enjoy being part of the circus & find an entrance gate anywhere one is available.

[MHM]

@La-LaPopRider

None of my scores at any levels which earn a bronze medal were received on any horse considered anything close to schoolmaster. I import them - yes. You can find better quality horses for much cheaper than let’s say, Wellington prices. But the process isn’t quick. You might go through 50 horses just to narrow down the ones with no vet issues & correct gaits (especially walk & Canter.) A trot can be developed very significantly- not so much the walk or canter. You are right about the trainer, though, for sure. Having an experienced trainer on the ground who (yes, I admit) doesn’t let up on you & allow you get away with mistakes is a crucial part of a horse’s development up the levels.

In the end, it’s just really about what one’s goals are. If you want to go as far as you can - you ride many horses a day & learn consistency with every horse you ride. If you just want to have a lesson once or twice a week- that’s ok too. Just depends what the goal is, I guess. But, “buying medals,” def isn’t a thing. No matter what horse you compete- it takes a good year to figure them out & build an harmonious relationship. I personally prefer to buy horses aged 5-7. Just a preference… 🤷🏼*♀️

@La-LaPopRider

Strange. You not only make a point to post here- but also make a point to post as yourself (same name) on the Coth fb threads. Looks to me you enjoy being part of the circus & find an entrance gate anywhere one is available.

[Jenerationx]

@La-LaPopRider

Jan. 17, 2020, 03:47 PM

Pretty sure it’s not the job of the stall cleaner to oversee (or clean) disgusting cat mess out of MB & MH’s floor in the house.
Btw- whose condo? I wouldn’t call a jail cell a “condo.” If you were referring to JH, he hates cats. So does his “condo.”

Back in another thread someone mistook a poster referring to a person going to his condo as discussing where the cats were and it went off on a cat condo tangent. That part was a joke.

My point is that if MB and MH are overall the ones in charge on that property in general, and their standards for cleanliness and care are that low, they may not give a damn if care is lacking in other areas as well. I’ve had trainers that insisted on a high level of cleanliness and care, and I’ve had trainers that could care less as long as you’re paying them. You could see how their own attitudes carried over to staff and effected almost everyone in the barn.

[La-LaPopRider]

@GreenWithEnvy

You are assuming the majority of those who show are riding for qualifying scores for Regionals. In my current environment, few are interested in Regionals unless they are solidly confirmed a level, ie, VERY confirmed (the old adage show at least one level lower than you are schooling at home). Not everyone is interested in Regionals because of the distance to get to the Regional Championship.

As far as needing a high dollar, imported schoolmaster to succeed, I have one word: Malarkey. I have seen more locally bred, locally trained horses consistently scoring higher than the “fancy import” up through 4th level. Putting this comment back on topic, someone posted in one of these threads somewhere as I recall, LK’s average score for all levels on all her horses is in the upper fifties (I have not verified this because I simply don’t really care to take the time to research her scores over the past several years), which proves one must be very dedicated in learning to ride the made schoolmasters in order to achieve higher scores. Just because one owns a very well trained upper-level horse, does not mean they can ride it well. Dressage is a partnership that shouldn’t have a rapid rise timeline for a partnership to form for most riders IMO.

And, who on earth is going to threaten you with a subpoena? For what?

perhaps you should “verify,” my score averages… lowest, highest, and medians. The ONLY horse my score average could possibly be in the high 50’s… is , ironically, the GP schoolmaster I bought from Michael. The horses I bought to train myself (who cares they were imported?) with a trainer on the ground- have mid 60’s medians. One really bad score can bring an otherwise high score averaging horse to a median which isn’t the same as “your average score.” No one has perfect rides … or we’d all have 100%s every time. For example, my 4th level average is 62 or something. I’ve ridden 4-3 once and that was my score. Hardly an “average.” Had I not been shot, I’d have been at HITS on the 15th riding it again every day plus my first CDI at PSG. I’d have been riding my other horses at 3-3 to practice for GAIGS which were just a few weeks away. Qualifiers were earned prior to that.
If you ever DO bother to “investigate,” you’ll find most horses and riders (even the best one’s) have scores ranging from the 40’s to high 70’s. That’s the result of competing at as many available shows as possible. Another result of doing that is… experience & learning. And, year end awards- national, zone/region & all breed awards.
Ftr- the two “BNT,” trainers I have now have scores all over the place. But, they’ve both ridden in the Olympics and have other world class competition victories… That’s good enough for me! No complaints here.

[La-LaPopRider]

@strangewings

I think Manni was just suggesting that Lauren may not have been involved in the sport at all if you couldn’t buy a horse (or 4, not to mention full training with an Olympian, winters in Wellington, etc) that could substantially change the work:glory balance, and that USEF/USDF have a role in the degree to which purchasing power impacts the ease with which one can achieve goals like medals and other awards.

If she weren’t attracted to the sport, she wouldn’t be in the sport, wouldn’t have been training at his barn, etc, ergo no tragedy.

Not saying I think this is a salient point to make, whether it’s true or not, but the above is how I interpreted her statements.

Ok, that’s just dumb. If the sport were cheap as dirt, I’d still be doing it. Also, no competitive sports are “cheap.” Further, I’ve been eliminated 3 seconds after first half bc the judge (NOT THE TD whose responsibility it is to check) noticed blood on on the horse’s mouth. The “relationship,” didn’t “sour,” over that.!! He bit his lip when he spooked at a flower pot.

Part of the relationship going south on my end- was being forced to take lessons w JH when I was NOT paying for the Justin Hardin Dressage academy. I was paying for MB’s expertise. Unfortunately, a certain someone threw hissy fits anytime MB gave his PAYED FOR time to anyone else besides her. Even the young, gorgeous WORKING STUDENts! They weren’t having it. They outshined her & pretty much everyone else by being good riders - but they outshined “her,” by being young & beautiful. She wasn’t having it. So she berated them on numerous occasions & did everything she could to limit their horse lessons for the day. Meanwhile, they were the ones who rode the young horses when MH was too afraid. Of course, once these girls worked the issues out - suddenly MH wanted to take credit for it. The girls left. Even after almost making the YR team - They were treated HORRIBLY. No, that’s not a string enough word.

[La-LaPopRider]

@AnotherRound

The barn hours were until 9pm. However, there is a 911 where he was talking about LK and her boyfriend being in the barn after 7pm, so when his family moved into the barn, he may have changed the barn hours. In fact, that may have been the kind of paperwork he was trying to get LK and her boyfriend to agree to, certain rules he wanted adhered to on the property. LK was hollering or screaming after 9pm in the barn at one point, and screaming coming down the driveway another time. You would think she knew what the rules were, but apparently she was terrorizing the family, as well as telling him on her fb page to watch out for her other personalities because she diesn’t know what they might do.

False. Listen to the 911 call AGAIN. He blatantly says “it’s past 9pm. “They’re not supposed to be in the barn past 9pm and they’re in barn.” He was not allowed to limit the hours. The DA’s office told him so. In any case, we weren’t even there when he made that call. We were totally unaware he even made such a false claim when we have cameras in our house which would prove the opposite. Also, we were specifically allowed to be there if we wanted/needed since mb himself agreed we should wrap our horse with cellulitis at 9:15 pm. He made that call before we got there thinking the cops would arrive 15 mins later & think he was telling the truth. Good thing they stopped at the house FIRST. To our surprise… seeing as though we had no idea cops were even called. Let’s just say, the written evidence provided to them by us was satisfactory & although we did go to the barn to wrap this mare- prob 5 mins after he made that call - we were back at the house just as cop cars were pulling in- about 15 mins later- just as Michael expected. In a way, I’m glad he pulled that stunt. It resulted in the township having to make him fully aware he could not, by law, limit the hours. His lies backfiring once again.
(Btw- this is just one incident I remember. There could’ve been other ones similar to this which may have been the result of that specific 911 call. NEVER did he say “7pm.” Check your facts.) Be sure these facts will be checked in court.

[La-LaPopRider]

@Cowgirl

I’ll take this one. By raising qualifying scores for freestyles, for example, they are causing people at the lower end of the spectrum of money (i.e. those that don’t have an international quality schoolmaster who is backed down five levels, for example) to have to show more to get qualifying scores to participate. Same for qualifying for regionals. Also those less likely to qualify because they live in the hinterlands without an instructor (a large part of the US) and have to travel hours to go to a show, have to go to more shows or simply give up because the mountain is too high to climb now. The rationale being given for qualifying score increases is often that the judges are tired of seeing “bad rides” (other way to look at this is NOT bad rides, but people learning, or people with show nerves on average horses) or the quality (i.e. number of well healed amateurs on expensive schoolmasters) has increased, requiring the change (why don’t you just say you only want to see international quality schoolmaster horses ridden by amateurs in full training with BNTs).

I am not worried about the qualifying scores increasing for my next generation of show horses, however I object to this change in dynamics in american dressage because the result is that is favors gaits over training and creates this mentality that you need to buy your medals through buying horses and professional coaching that most people with families and other financial obligations cannot justify. IF you really believe that dressage is for everyone, you will not put up with these constant increases in qualifying requirements that are against the wishes of the membership.

BTW, I have no opinion on the events that are subject to this thread, in case someone thinks they need to threaten me with a subpoena.

ETA: a show organizer from California did a report on comparing regional championship freestyle show entries in 2019 under the new qualifying rule to entries from 2018 when the rule was 3% less. There has been a 24% drop in participation.

100% agree!!! What they’re doing is really, really unfair & unacceptable. The only way it will change is if all the “regulars,” who compete at USEF comps in their regions, stop for a season, entirely. They won’t care if a select few opt to not participate. Has to be a unified thing. In fact, going further, if participating members cancelled their memberships for a year- it would be like the housing recession as an example- 800k homes being sold for 100k. USEF would be forced to lower prices and even Q scores for MFS. There is absolutely no reason a MFS Q score should need to be higher than a regular Q score. Which, is many times higher than a medal score.

It’s really hurting the livelihoods of MFS Choreographers who have lost so much business over this.

[Jenerationx]

When I pay attention to dressage it’s mostly all about those freestyles. I love watching a horse dance to the music. It’s a shame that there are fewer and fewer freestyles. There’s nothing really comparable in hunter/jumper land.

[MHM]

@La-LaPopRider

perhaps you should “verify,” my score averages… lowest, highest, and medians. The ONLY horse my score average could possibly be in the high 50’s… is , ironically, the GP schoolmaster I bought from Michael. The horses I bought to train myself (who cares they were imported?) with a trainer on the ground- have mid 60’s medians. One really bad score can bring an otherwise high score averaging horse to a median which isn’t the same as “your average score.” No one has perfect rides … or we’d all have 100%s every time. For example, my 4th level average is 62 or something. I’ve ridden 4-3 once and that was my score. Hardly an “average.” Had I not been shot, I’d have been at HITS on the 15th riding it again every day plus my first CDI at PSG. I’d have been riding my other horses at 3-3 to practice for GAIGS which were just a few weeks away. Qualifiers were earned prior to that.
If you ever DO bother to “investigate,” you’ll find most horses and riders (even the best one’s) have scores ranging from the 40’s to high 70’s. That’s the result of competing at as many available shows as possible. Another result of doing that is… experience & learning. And, year end awards- national, zone/region & all breed awards.
Ftr- the two “BNT,” trainers I have now have scores all over the place. But, they’ve both ridden in the Olympics and have other world class competition victories… That’s good enough for me! No complaints here.

@La-LaPopRider

Ok, that’s just dumb. If the sport were cheap as dirt, I’d still be doing it. Also, no competitive sports are “cheap.” Further, I’ve been eliminated 3 seconds after first half bc the judge (NOT THE TD whose responsibility it is to check) noticed blood on on the horse’s mouth. The “relationship,” didn’t “sour,” over that.!! He bit his lip when he spooked at a flower pot.

Part of the relationship going south on my end- was being forced to take lessons w JH when I was NOT paying for the Justin Hardin Dressage academy. I was paying for MB’s expertise. Unfortunately, a certain someone threw hissy fits anytime MB gave his PAYED FOR time to anyone else besides her. Even the young, gorgeous WORKING STUDENts! They weren’t having it. They outshined her & pretty much everyone else by being good riders - but they outshined “her,” by being young & beautiful. She wasn’t having it. So she berated them on numerous occasions & did everything she could to limit their horse lessons for the day. Meanwhile, they were the ones who rode the young horses when MH was too afraid. Of course, once these girls worked the issues out - suddenly MH wanted to take credit for it. The girls left. Even after almost making the YR team - They were treated HORRIBLY. No, that’s not a string enough word.

@La-LaPopRider

False. Listen to the 911 call AGAIN. He blatantly says “it’s past 9pm. “They’re not supposed to be in the barn past 9pm and they’re in barn.” He was not allowed to limit the hours. The DA’s office told him so. In any case, we weren’t even there when he made that call. We were totally unaware he even made such a false claim when we have cameras in our house which would prove the opposite. Also, we were specifically allowed to be there if we wanted/needed since mb himself agreed we should wrap our horse with cellulitis at 9:15 pm. He made that call before we got there thinking the cops would arrive 15 mins later & think he was telling the truth. Good thing they stopped at the house FIRST. To our surprise… seeing as though we had no idea cops were even called. Let’s just say, the written evidence provided to them by us was satisfactory & although we did go to the barn to wrap this mare- prob 5 mins after he made that call - we were back at the house just as cop cars were pulling in- about 15 mins later- just as Michael expected. In a way, I’m glad he pulled that stunt. It resulted in the township having to make him fully aware he could not, by law, limit the hours. His lies backfiring once again.
(Btw- this is just one incident I remember. There could’ve been other ones similar to this which may have been the result of that specific 911 call. NEVER did he say “7pm.” Check your facts.) Be sure these facts will be checked in court.

@La-LaPopRider

100% agree!!! What they’re doing is really, really unfair & unacceptable. The only way it will change is if all the “regulars,” who compete at USEF comps in their regions, stop for a season, entirely. They won’t care if a select few opt to not participate. Has to be a unified thing. In fact, going further, if participating members cancelled their memberships for a year- it would be like the housing recession as an example- 800k homes being sold for 100k. USEF would be forced to lower prices and even Q scores for MFS. There is absolutely no reason a MFS Q score should need to be higher than a regular Q score. Which, is many times higher than a medal score.

It’s really hurting the livelihoods of MFS Choreographers who have lost so much business over this.