Bruce Davidson on Why Americans Have Not Won a 4* Recently

[redalter]

@CatchMeIfUCan

A lot of the “non-trendy” riders do this stuff. They are not the ones that have their working students riding the horses 75% of the time. They also aren’t the ones that make the teams because they aren’t “trendy” or backed by big money with huge strings. They are they ones that are putting in the saddle time, not the working students. And they aren’t willing to sacrifice their horses’ welfare just for the team either (a la Clark and the Olympics and flying all over the world). They do right by their horses and don’t run them into the ground for their own gain.

I just went for an hour and half walk hack this past weekend with a 4* horse who has never been unsound in his life and is lovingly managed by his rider. The entire string and the babies get this at least once a week. Also long slow trots and easy canters mixed in with the gallops. The horse made time or had minimal time faults at 3* level in 2017.

This. Great post.

And the walking- I try to do a 2 hour walk once a week, weather and time permitting. Weather was awful since Christmas, haven’t ridden in three weeks, so we have been walking. Started back up last week, walked 5 times since then- started with 30 minutes. Sometimes I feel goofy for doing it, but with my guy, it helps his mind so much, in addition to his body. And we walk out, not amble along.

[Marigold]

@Blugal

Perhaps for instance Buck is less ruthless than needed… (if so I’m sure his horses are quite happy not being 4* winners).

He may very well be. My point was responding to @Texarkana’s pet theory about the children of the greats being “incomplete horsemen”. Buck’s horsemanship, by all accounts and statistics, is excellent, and very much seems complete. If he wants to win 4*s, maybe he needs to add some ruthlessness to move up from the top 10, but to your point, I’d just as soon see him continue the way he has been instead.

[amb]

@redalter

Started back up last week, walked 5 times since then- started with 30 minutes. Sometimes I feel goofy for doing it, but with my guy, it helps his mind so much, in addition to his body.

I was just about to make this point–it helps with conditioning, absolutely, but keeping them sane is a very close second!

[Synthesis]

@vineyridge

To my thinking, it’s pretty amazing that Buck has done as well as Buck has done, given that he has far from the ideal equestrian’s body–which his father does have. I honestly can’t think off the top of my head of another 4* athlete who is short and very stocky.

I hear you there!
This past year I just realized that Buck is the rider I need to be watching for body use. His proportions are, by far, the closest to my own. Once I started doing that, a number of things started falling into place on XC.