does anyone else think...

[Anne_FS]

[QUOTE=Arizona DQ;3429902]

Why is jumping more popular than dressage?? because of the chance of fences down or rider (unfortunately)…[/QUOTE]

No, I don’t agree with this (that jumping is more popular because of the chances of rider or fences down). Jumping is more popular because it’s faster and easier to understand and it’s not subjective scoring.

In dressage people have no idea what’s going on - they have no idea what it takes. They just see a horsie going around and up & down. They don’t get the difference between a 7 and a 9, and they don’t care. In jumping, they can see & understand who’s the best, plus there’s all the colorful jumps to look at and people always talk about them. And it’s faster. It’s much more understandable and therefore fun for the average spectator and has nothing to do with crashes.

[seeuatx]

[QUOTE=Anne FS;3429187]
Olympic Dodgeball!! That would be fantastic! I am so there. The carnage would be something. The horror…the horror…[/QUOTE]

I had just said this to my husband the other night, lol. And Capture the Flag… I’m serious (at least the way I play it… hehehe [evil grin]).

In all seriousness, I like volleyball. I suck at it, but I like it. However, I could do without the teeny weeny bikini club being the “team”.

[cloudyandcallie]

[QUOTE=Anne FS;3428021]
What ticks me off about beach volleyball is that the women wear TINY bikinis but the men? Big t-shirts and long shorts. I protest. Speedos for the men![/QUOTE]

Exactly! I don’t want to see those women wearing almost nothing, but then the guys have baggie pants? Why doesn’t Nike require that the guys play in tiny
speedo sized bathing suits?

[Frank_B]

Olympic dodgeball? How about tossing in Olympic paintball also?

[AnsleyGrace]

[QUOTE=cloudyandcallie;3429936]
Exactly! I don’t want to see those women wearing almost nothing, but then the guys have baggie pants? Why doesn’t Nike require that the guys play in tiny
speedo sized bathing suits?[/QUOTE]

That’s why we have Micheal Phelps and his wonderful choice to forgo those giant bodysuits some men wear in the swimming.

[Nikki]

We were eating at Red Robin and Beach Vollyball came on. My B/F kept starting at the girls. I told him that the only reason why it’s on prime time is that the girls are wearing next to nothing. Then he told me “It’s better then watching riding cause the horse does all the work.”

So I came back with “Equestrain is the ONLY olympic sport where men and women compete against each other. Also, you are working with an horse and the professionals make it look easy.” He shut his mouth.

To give him credit, he did watch some eventing dressage with me on the computer.

Cannot wait for the Show Jumping!!!

[vineyridge]

Personally I’m fond of men’s diving. Beautiful bodies, they don’t wear much, and they spend a lot of time up on the board exposing all that beauty while they are preparing for their dives.

Plus the dives themselves are pretty incredible.

I don’t understand why we have rhythmic gymnastics and synchronized swimming but women’s softball is getting canned in 2012. Reckon it’s because softball isn’t feminine enough and the players are all covered up?

[Anne_FS]

How about: solo synchronized swimming? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!. Only in from 1984 to 1992, but really…I remember seeing that and thinking, “women will never be equal as long as there is synchronized swimming as a sport…” Then came SOLO synchronized swimming and all hope was lost.

Check this out: http://observer.guardian.co.uk/osm/story/0,,1270844,00.html#article_continue

[vineyridge]

@Anne FS;3430032

How about: solo synchronized swimming? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!. Only in from 1984 to 1992, but really…I remember seeing that and thinking, “women will never be equal as long as there is synchronized swimming as a sport…” Then came SOLO synchronized swimming and all hope was lost.

Check this out: http://observer.guardian.co.uk/osm/story/0,,1270844,00.html#article_continue

If synchronized swimming started in LA in 1984, maybe we can attribute its inclusion to Hollywood, Esther Williams, and Busby Berkeley. A real Southern California speciality that didn’t get bounced when it should have.

[billiebob]

I can’t believe I’m writing this, but there are definitely NOT enough men in Speedos in the Olympics. That’s the main reason I watch swimming, people!

If I had to throw out an Olympic “sport” I would go with synchronized swimming or rhythmic gymnastics. Are you kidding me? How about Olympic miniature golf? And what the hell is curling doing in the Winter Games?

I’m watching the coverage at the moment and there is a Head and Shoulders commercial with a dressage rider in it. She and her horse bow. Sorry that’s random.

[mayhew]

I’m trying to remind myself not to be judgemental, especially when it comes to what is televised and what isn’t. And I’m sure that one day I truly will believe that there is every bit as much athleticism and skill involved in competitive badminton as there is in equestrian… if I keep telling that to myself long enough. After all, I’m sure there are competitive cup stackers out there who are just fuming that a dancing horse is an Olympic event but the IOC won’t even acknowledge cup stacking.

[Aggie4Bar]

[QUOTE=Anne FS;3430032]
How about: solo synchronized swimming? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!. Only in from 1984 to 1992, but really…I remember seeing that and thinking, “women will never be equal as long as there is synchronized swimming as a sport…” Then came SOLO synchronized swimming and all hope was lost.[/QUOTE]The name alone should have ruled that one out. Solo synchronized swimming. If you are solo, you’re in synch with… what? :rolleyes:

Thus far, the most I’ve gotten out of the Olympic coverage is an opportunity to discuss geography with the b/f’s kiddos. While I do appreciate that (really fun actually!), a little equestrian coverage would be nice.

(And I so totally agree with the beach volleyball uniforms. The men get eye-candy, but we don’t? No fair. :no:)

[Ajierene]

OK, I clicked on the link and this just made me laugh:

3 Cricket
1900

The gentleman’s game was so unpopular at the turn of the last century that only two nations competed at the games in Paris: Great Britain and France. L’equipe francaise was comprised almost entirely of ringers: British Embassy staff who secured a few days off from the office. A report summed up the hopelessly one-sided contest (England won the two-innings match by 158 runs) thus: ‘The French temperament is too excitable to enjoy the game and no Frenchman can be persuaded to play more than once.’ More significantly, no one on the Olympic committee could be persuaded that cricket should stay in the games.

RINGERS!!!

The French played the English and brought English ringers. So really the English played the English…

[Ajierene]

We need to bring back this Equestrian sport!

10 Long jump for horses
1900

Yes, this was an event for horses, although it is not clear whether the beasts themselves ever mounted the podium to collect their own medals. From an animal as lean, powerful and disciplined as the horse, one would expect Eddie Kidd bus-jumping antics, but, in fact, these equine leaps were a tad more modest. Extra Dry won the contest at the Paris Olympics with a jump of 20 feet and a quarter of an inch. Putting it into perspective, that’s 2.63 metres shy of the current world record. For humans.

[Janet]

@Nikki^;3429965

So I came back with "Equestrain is the ONLY olympic sport where men and women compete against each other.

I thought Olympic Sailing had some non-gender-specific classes?

[Running_Fox_Farm]

Yeah. As we were watching the Games last night and I made the same observation, I suggested to my husband that perhaps if the female dressage riders( not to mention the other disciplines) wore skimpy bikini tops w/ their breeches instead of the traditional riding attire,I bet they’d get A LOT more air time!!! ( Imagine the sitting trot!!)

         Different subject, I know, but I'd like to post a request for help from my more-knowledgeable horse brethren. We're moving from Maryland to Aiken SC and I've never undertaken such a long, complex trip before w/ my horses - 4 crossbred ponies, 1 yearling gelding, a 2 yo and 4 yo mare, a 17 yo OTTB, and a 16 yo broodmare. ANY suggestions gratefully accepted re how to keep them as happy and healthy ( pls God no colics!!!) as I can during this transition. Thanks in advance to all of you for your help.

[Janet]

@Running Fox Farm;3433760

…

Any connection to “Uncle Harry” Gibson’s Running Fox Farm in Bedford, NY?

[Hopewell]

What about Badminton??? My husband saw it was on while I was watching the video online!

[Wellspotted]

Well, I for one have a much better idea of what they’re doing in the equestrian competitions than I do about basketball, volleyball, and especially water polo.
And I admit to having moments when I wish the men would compete now as they did in the Ancient Games – but have no desire to watch a bunch of women competing naked, so that wouldn’t work …

Maybe if they’d let the equestriennes (I know, that’s an old-fashioned word) compete in just sports bras and breeches and the equestrians compete in just breeches (and tall leather boots), that would draw more nonhorsey spectators.

Or do the Olympics as they do so many other things, and make PrimeTime programming suitable for children by showing a lot of pretty horsies!

[J-Lu]

'kay, I’m a dressage rider, but having had to explain the ins and outs of what looks kinda boring to non-dressagey people, I can see why eventing dressage isn’t on primetime. I can see why Grand Prix dressage isn’t on primetime. I love the Special myself but the same routine over and over again…gets boring to the uninitiated. Especially since so many horses are dark brown/black - they blend together. The freestyle, they’re kind of long and there are so many of them (although the top ones are very entertaining and might be fun). Bummed as I am, I can see why people might get bored.

But I’m surprised they don’t show cross country, and I’m really surprised they don’t show show jumping. Show jumping is very exciting, easy to understand, and a good jump-off round is a nail-biter. Plus, the horses are gorgeous and half the population (the one with two x chromosomes) are predisposed to love horsie things. Having watched some of the coverage, and even having my DAD complain about the length of time given to beach volleyball (and he’s a male and not horsie at all), I think they can squeeze a few minutes of horsie stuff on primetime. Personally. :winkgrin: