Eventing Nation booted from covering Event in Unionville, PA

Well, we can impute sinister meaning to the land owner and the name, or we can read what has been printed in the programs for years.

In 1998, Glaccum moved the events to Menfelt in Frederick, Maryland while a more permanent site could be constructed in Pennsylvania. That’s where Walker came in. “In 2000 I approached Cuyler Walker about the possibility of using a portion of his property to conduct our trials. We ran our first horse trials at Plantation in the spring of 2001.”

With the move to Plantation came a shift in the name of the 501©(3). “The field was known as Logan’s Field and it also had a woods known as Plantation Woods. So, we changed our name to Plantation Field Equestrian Events, Inc. (PFEE). Since then, we have conducted four recognized events a year (one being [an international]) and three unrecognized events as well as schooling jumper and dressage shows.”

I’m going to guess that Mr. Walker feels that changing the name besmirches his family history as doing so is admitting to a past use that never occurred and obscures why the name was chosen in the first place. Simply my guess. It’s his land and if he wishes to dig in his heels and keep the name, that is his prerogative. He doesn’t have to let anyone do anything on that property at all. My next worry is that it will now be turned into houses, unless it has been preserved in a land trust.

https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/vi…blic-relations

The information has been in the programs since at least 2009. Maybe earlier.

I still suspect if it had been quietly discussed this year behind the scenes and more board members who Mr. Walker knew, trusted and respected were persuaded they, in turn, may have been able to persuade him to rename it for 2021. Appealing to his better nature rather than effectively, if not literally saying, “Do this or we will contact the MSM and encourage social media to let loose.”

Or not. I don’t know the guy. But he has every right to change the name or not, as he sees fit.

I hope he softens at least enough to let other groups use it for dog trials, 4H, etc.

8 Likes

But, again, my understanding is that no one is asking him to change the name of the property, just the event.

8 Likes

Sure it has to do with the users…EN touts itself as an eventing periodical. It represents itself as a voice for eventers.

Eventers rely on use of large tracts of land. It is one of the reasons the IOC keeps considering cutting equestrian.

Eventers…and all equestrians…we are collectively all in the same boat. If someone damages the boat below the waterline, they risk sinking the boat.

What I do on someone’s land reflects on all equestrians. If I leave piles of poop, trash etc…it may lead to a land owner restricting or eliminating my access.

If EN, as representative of the eventing community, came to (rhetorically) poop on my property, you bet I would react to close the door.

14 Likes

We know. You’ve said this at least 7 times on this thread, we get it. No need to write it at the top of every reply.

6 Likes

And THIS ^^^^ is the reason why landowners shut the door.

24 Likes

yes, how dare the evil rich white man shut the door on the property he allows equestrians to use for free when they threaten to smear him across the mainstream media over something thats suddenly a problem after 20+ years.

29 Likes

Interesting. I would not have associated EN’s conduct with the conduct of all the other users, guests, and organizers. But, I do take your point: if you misuse land it does make it harder for others to use it even if they are blameless. So, since EN, which is connected to eventing/eventers, was ungrateful, it had the effect of tainting the actual users by association.

Of course, this is only true if the LO has a very emotional and defensive reaction, not a reasonable one. A confident LO could have either done as I proposed above and used the opportunity to make something positive happen, a la Dolly Parton, or could have said, “You annoy me, EN, but everyone else associated with this event is blameless and grateful and good to work with, so I will not let your outburst ruin something for everyone. You are not welcome on my property. Please go away.”

I’m perplexed by all the, “he owns it, so he can” responses. That is and was never in question. We as a group of eventing enthusiasts are only wondering why he took the nuclear option when so many other options were available had cooler heads prevailed. That is all. There is no challenge to his “right” or ability to do anything he takes a fancy to doing.

14 Likes

Oh boo-hoo.

I live in the land of spoiled rich people. I know how this works. He could have easily been reasonable and come out smelling like a rose. But his ego decided to screw over a whole bunch of people.

Whatever.

Seb

13 Likes

Obviously you missed the first lesson on the Care and Feeding of Landowners.

Lesson #1 states: He/she/it who has the barn/land, gets to make the rules. All others get in line.

15 Likes

Do you believe that would have satisfied EN? It sounds as though they demanded it happen. Now. Or else. And they completely failed to understand that people using his land aren’t required to have access to it at all. After all, they said they never considered the possibility of the event being lost entirely. Which was flat-out stupid on their parts.

Mr. Earl Robinson has every right to his opinion about the name of the show. Maybe if he had been asked to petition the board in person (and EN paid for his travel costs), that would have been effective. But coming from a lily-white editorial board pretty much guaranteed there was no chance of a visceral emotional appeal. Plus it doesn’t sound as though they made a particularly persuasive argument.

Mr. Walker is an attorney. EN didn’t follow the protocol for asking for a name change and I bet that also chafed.

We as a group of eventing enthusiasts are only wondering why he took the nuclear option when so many other options were available had cooler heads prevailed.

Well, as none of us were part of the discussions or read the emails, etc., we really don’t know why he felt the nuclear option was the best one. It doesn’t sound as though EN did their homework.

6 Likes

LMAO, why should he have been reasonable to the people that were anything but right from the start with him? Is EN exempt from having to act rationally because they are a bunch of equestrian white women acting on their white savior complex?

24 Likes

I don’t think it is accurate to say that EN only wanted the name of the event changed. From this statement on their website, they clearly felt the name of the property needed to be changed (or the event moved to a different property) and alleged that the landowner was actively hurting black people by keeping that name.

https://eventingnation.com/the-problem-with-plantation/

“Asking people of color to come visit, to spectate, volunteer, or compete, at a place called Plantation is insensitive at best and works against our efforts to implement more diversity in the sport.”

15 Likes

I suspect it would have satisfied EN. Wasn’t their initial discomfort related to having the word PLANTATION emblazoned across their front page for the coverage? This is why I am honestly confused about why they didn’t simply call it UNIONVILLE and, if asked, say, “We are using the FEI name of the event as we are not comfortable with the other name.” Done.

They don’t cover the property; they only cover the event. They have no need to refer to the property name at all ever outside the times that events they cover are held there and only to the extent that the property name is reflected in the event name.

8 Likes

As for the farm name itself, bestowed a very long time ago, long before the event ever came along, I now understand where it comes from and that it isn’t offensive locally (in the white population, I presume). The local POC would have to speak for themselves as to their perceptions. Their opinion would be the only one that mattered, and I would follow it.

It’s the event name that is the problem. The more successful the event, the more widely the name is known, and the bigger the problem becomes. The event name is the face of the event to the world.

No one can expect that the general public from outside the area will understand why this ‘plantation’ is different from the general perception of ‘plantation’. Broadly geographic public relations doesn’t work that way. People don’t read minds. Their perception is their reality.

So in that context, I’m astonished that the name ‘Plantation’ was ever given to an event in or about the year 2000. Long after the word was in public discussion as one that is no longer welcoming or palatable to a large segment of the population. Huge incomprehensible miss, to me. The event name is a preventable problem that will not stand the test of time. A problem that the original organizers gave to themselves.

Had the event only been a local one, forever and always, it wouldn’t cross most people’s radar in the bigger world that doesn’t understand the history, and I’d have no opinion. Unfortunately the original organizers didn’t do well in their name choice for a much larger scale and profile event.

My reaction comes from my own background and life experience (as does everyone’s). Many pages back I reviewed a bit of that, that I grew up and live now in an area that was heavily affected by slavery and today has many descendants of slaves in the population. They are part of my daily life, which I gather must not be the case in Unionville, PA.

I’ve come to understand more how my neighbors, friends and co-workers feel about things like ‘plantation’ that are a constant downer. It’s partly a reminder of a bitter past. But more importantly, for them it’s a question mark about the true attitudes and messages of the whites they live alongside. They always wonder if they are really welcome, really accepted, by the larger white society. I think their feelings matter. I care what message they may be picking up.

Plus, also a factor in my opinion, in my part of the world there are many POC who are horse people. There are rodeos and other horse events organized by and for black horse people. There are professional horse trainers who are black, and one locally that I recommend who starts young horses and re-makes older problem horses. I’m getting the impression that things may be different in Unionville – hope Unionville understands why I get that impression.

I would give a great deal if some of the black horse people in this area would become interested in eventing, both making eventing more representative, and adding what they could bring that is not part of the white horse culture right now. But how the hell can we invite them in, recruit them in, and then present them with a confusing, hurtful name like ‘plantation’ decorating the sport? I do not know where to start on that one.

I can only imagine how I would feel in their place. Not good. And not too interested in getting involved with that sport.

Fortunately PF is too far away for me to consider a road trip there, to see and ride what looks like an amazing course. I can’t think how I would tell a local black horse person where I was going to ride. Just could not do that - so in the end, wouldn’t go, to avoid that moment of accountability and cringeworthiness. Ick. Geez. Wake up, Unionville PA!

13 Likes

“I can’t think how I would tell a local black horse person where I was going to ride.”

Unionville, PA wouldn’t be enough information?

8 Likes

When the ‘spoiled rich white people’ are letting you use their multimillion dollar property, dont kick them in the teeth

20 Likes

I will make a frank admission: This is the first time in COTH reading that I ever loved a post by FitzE. :winkgrin: :yes: :smiley:

You nailed it, FitzE. Beautifully said. Every sentence is straight on. :yes: :yes: :yes:

9 Likes

They would ask where, about the horses, about the event.

Why would I evade or lie? THINK ABOUT THE ANSWER TO THAT QUESTION. THINK !!!

These are friends. I see some more than I see most of my immediate family. Is that how you do people you trust and like, and who trust and like you?

10 Likes

Now that I’ve seen the closer-up pictures of the course, I kind of wish I’d never heard of the place. It is so gorgeous, the countryside, those fantastic stone walls. I would love to figure out a way to go see it as I’ve done other far away courses … but I absolutely cannot as long as it has that name. It’s killing me. But I cannot do my friends, neighbors, co-workers like that.

Why, LO and organizer? Why why why? AAAaaaaahhhhhh !!! :confused:

2 Likes

Or maybe, when the ‘spoiled rich white people’ are kicking others in the teeth with a horrid name they want to push on everyone, don’t be surprised that the others don’t get in line and say ‘ok we understand’.

13 Likes