I think about some of the 9 and 10 year old students I have, and while they’re certainly not on the same track these girls were, I can’t imagine any of them having the poise to answer a reporter’s questions, never mind explain so well their thought process and what went into their pony’s schooling and showing that day. I think that impresses me almost more than the riding
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As others have said, you’ve got to pay a premium for ponies. For some perspective, at Devon this year, the lease free of one of our pony kids was more than the purchase price of our 3’6 green horse who was top 5 in every class last week!
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That is the one I remember as well as the one of her on that streamlined grey…but I remember the Pony as a buckskin but some bays are close…it had a stripe on a cute dished face and was…rather rotund… and she was wearing spurs. 3/4 front shot right over the top of the jump. Could it have been the USEF magazine instead of Dover??
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She’s had the ride on one or two nice ponies and all of them looked good on a glossy cover, so who knows? Maybe @supershorty628 remembers the buckskin pony.
7 figures… a YEAR?!!
I know I’ve been out of the realm for awhile, but… wow… to buy such an animal, is one looking at 2-3mil? Or do owners just hang on to the best eq/jr horses these days and lease them out as a sort of investment?
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Interesting question. I don’t know but given how determined most horses are to kill themselves, my choice would be to take the $3M and run!
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I wasn’t paying attention when Keenan was a kid, so I have no memories of what glossy covers she may gave graced while wearing garters. But in my unsuccessful searches prior to @supershorty628 finding the photo on the gray from the Dover catalog, I did notice that there did seem to be a lot of COTH articles about her as a pony kid, and from other equestrian magazines as well. So it seems entirely likely to me that she did have another cover or two. Or if not, at least some nice big photos and features within magazines.
Also, considering how good and accomplished she is and how documented her career is, I think it would be kind of interesting to see documentation of her career from little kid to where she is now (or however much higher she goes in the future). Mostly to see the progression over the years, with good and bad.
There was not a lot of bad from Lillie. She was a lovely rider from the beginning, despite her turned out toes in the Dover photo. IIRC toes out was a short lived style in 00s.
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Toes out is also what happens when you are a narrow-hipped, long-legged child on a fat pony and you’re desperately trying to keep your leg on the pony like your trainer says.
My sister is built in that way, and she rode a chonky black pony. She had a taupe coat at the time. They became known as the “toothpick and olive show” because that’s what she looked like on top of him.
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Suspect I’m not going to win friends & influence people, but here’s my unpopular opinion:
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There’s a world between the extremes of rank a$$ Bucky-McBuckerson & a 6-figure-lease for Pony Finals. Both can potentially ruin young riders in their own way.
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All young riders, at least once in their lives but preferably more often, need to partner with “that” pony. The one that hates adults but loves & protects kids like their own foal. The pony who knows better than any human trainer what is needed & whose motto is “friendly, fair, & firm”.
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Taking into account #1 & 2, wtf are we adults doing here? What are we teaching? ( Perhaps I was just a dumb kid. But the why & wherefore behind leads was a mystery to me until I wad an adult & it dawned on me that the correct lead helped the horse balance.) Is the short stirrup kid riding the pony that’s trained to switch leads when the trainer coughs from the rail but scaring the shit out of us with their distances really doing so much better than the kid who can steer & see distances but whose pony is occassionally on the wrong lead? What’s the point of Short Stirrup & Pony Hunters, then?
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You can become a dang good rider sitting only on 6-figure ponies. Just probably not a legendary, best-of-your-generation rider.
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I have no issues acknowledging that Lillie is much better than I’ll ever be. She’s young. We all say stupid stuff. I’ll give her the benefit of the doubt – Lord knows I’m twice her age & still stick my foot in my mouth regularly. Hearing her state in an interview “I used [this horse] for the xyz class,” gave me the ick, though. No one else says “used”. Have some humility before the amazing animals who are kind enough to share their wings with you, please. She’s a pretty rider, to be sure. She’s one where I wonder what will happen if ish truly hits the fan, unlike a Cathleen Driscoll or Mimi Gochmann or JJ Torano, though.
Donning my fireproof suit for #5 
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Oh, I have no doubt! Like I’m pretty sure she’s doing better in her pony photos than I’m doing as a much older adult!
I think I maybe was more trying to say the “fits and starts” or maybe how often riding seems to be a two steps forward, one step backward kind of thing? And as good as Lillie is and as good as she’s been since a kid, there could be benefit watching her progression and seeing how it likely wasn’t linear. I’m sure she struggled at times. I’m sure there were horses or ponies that she didn’t vibe with, even if she could still get them around.
And just, right now, I know so many kids who are relatively good riding kids and have aspirations of getting to the very top, and I don’t think they understand how very very difficult it is to get there.
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I’m fascinated by how these ponies are “made.” Are there trainers who are just known for making up amazing ponies for kids? What’s their process? I want to watch a sports docuseries/reality show that is just all about training up the ultimate pony finals pony.
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These same kids getting side eye for riding “made” ponies are critical for making the next generation of made ponies. Not every child but the ones who are serious will then be the earlier riders and competitors of the next generation of competitive ponies. They often sit out the green moments, deep spots, spooks, spin outs, etc that some are implying they get to avoid and thus never become “real” riders. They just have an opportunity to build a foundation before having to learn how to navigate green moments.
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There definitely are! The pony mafia is real—and honestly, the ones I’ve met have been really awesome. 
I don’t think we’ll ever get a reality show revealing their secrets, but I did get a brief behind-the-scenes glimpse once, and there was more natural horsemanship involved than I expected.
I really believe there’s a special art to producing those top ponies, and the folks who do it have a sharp eye for two things:
1. Breeding and temperament – They know the pony lines that consistently produce sound, level-headed citizens who can safely pack kids around well into their teens.
2. Imports and adaptation – There’s a real skill in taking recently imported ponies and transforming them into an American-style ride that works for little kids.
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As mentioned above it starts with breeding and temperament. From there putting on a proper foundation (with a competent professional involved!) and then consistent miles in the ring with a solid junior. There is also some luck involved to move on to the truly top show barn and become a known commodity. The recent rule change of letting adults show early in the week should make for better ponies in the long run.
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What a great discussion this is! Yup, those big-figure ponies should do at least this: build confidence. Young riders need this, so that they can advance. Done wrong, those big-figure ponies develop entitlement. That’s a risk. I loved seeing those phenomenal ponies go, like Strike A Pose. I’m convinced that the good ones have the courses memorized… “Oh yeah, line, diagonal, …” 
and know where to end with a courtesy circle.
Can young riders develop confidence other ways? Of course. Do I love that these big-figure ponies are a thing? Not really. But hey, that’s how it is. I am impressed with the training that gets these ponies to this point!
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It is just weird to me to compare an accomplished, world ranked professional against a kid and think the professional is the one who is somehow more untested.
COTH had a recent article where they asked three pros (Lillie being one) the horse that changed their career. Lillie talked about Super Sox, and how “[t]here are moments now where I just wish that I could have had another chance with him because he deserved a much better rider than I was capable of being at that stage of my career.” And talks through feeling like she didn’t deserve him. It was a good, if short read.
https://www.chronofhorse.com/article/ask-3-which-horse-from-your-past-got-you-where-you-are-today/
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Sure. But those kids are mostly the older catch riders. The most impressive moment in the last 5 years that I’ve seen at a show was JJ Torano showing a mare in the Medium Greens. Pony very understandably got nervous approaching the outside line. He sat down & closed his leg & supported her into the fences. Of course, they barely pinned. JJ lost the battle but won the war for the pony’s eventual “real” kids with that trip. Few kids can ride like that, though.
In my lifetime, we’ve gone from expecting the occasional mishap & fall at shows to dismissing any equine with a slightly sharp edge as a child’s mount. Why? Then we complain that none of the younger generations are the complete package. Imo, it’s just like Prix Saint Georges dressage. You need that perfect schoomaster. The one that will kick your butt until you get it right but responds appropriately when you finally get it right. And then you need the up-and-coming horse upon which you slowly learn to codify your commands.
Now, make no mistake. Dangerous is a different bowl of wax. I’ve seen ponies that have no forking business at a show with a kid on them. For example, there was one gelding from a well-known breeder that caused an almighty ruckus at every single schooling show I saw it at. As in, lost it’s ever loving mind & would bolt blindly, mowing down other ponies & kids & attempting to throw itself sideways over the arena fence during the Limit hack. The catch rider was amazing. There’s just not much to be done in that situation, though. The show really should’ve banned the pony. It was dangerous & no one benefitted from it being there, poor soul.
Fortunately, that pony is an outlier. But why are we now so afraid for a child to ride a pony that is fundamentally safe, but not perfect?
Eta: huh, @Rel6? I’m talking about how she rides now. Not as a child.
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Right.
It is just weird to me to compare an accomplished, world ranked professional (Lillie) against a kid (JJ Torano) and think the professional (Lillie) is the one who is somehow more untested (“wonder what will happen if ish truly hits the fan”).
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Wow - to my mind, this has drifted far from “how much does a winning packer cost” and “should someone lease a winning packer for their kid”. (And yes, I know that thread drift.)
No shade on Lilie (or JJ), but you don’t get to where they were as kids by riding the made ponies. You also don’t get there if you aren’t either a trainer’s kid (so you’re riding lots of ponies for other people) or fairly well off. Riding a made pony around a rated course is confidence-building, for sure, but doesn’t give you the skills to ride the next one.
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