Eventing Vlogs

[Bensmom]

While I’ve been working from home, I’ve been watching lots of YouTube videos in the background, especially when trying to drown out my poor thunder panicked dog. The headphones are a great assist with that. I started with watching Tina Wallace and Emily Dunstan, through LIfe on the Left Rein, and then fell down the rabbit hole. I have really enjoyed the inside look into eventing in England from the perspective of adult riders, who fit eventing into their lives with jobs and the obligations of everyday life in general.

I’ve started digging around, and didn’t find any sort of riders from the US that are doing the same sort of YouTube channel. The UK and Australia, yes, but the US no. It is a ton of work, that’s obvious from the amount of recording and editing that would be required. And it appears that a great deal of the motivation might be found in the brand ambassadorships that the riders have with many of the companies. Do we not see US riders doing this because those type of sponsor or ambassadorships would mess up amateur status in the US? Or perhaps my Google searching needs work?

I’ve been (well, HSLC has ) approached by riders here that are pros for sponsorship and have had juniors ask to be ambassadors, but I’ve never seen adult ammies with the channels/social media exposure and working with brands like these riders do in the UK. I’ve seen some junior riders in the US with Vlogs, but not any adults with non-riding related day jobs. I will say that I have seen lots of people with a strong IG presence, but again, mostly in the US, it seems to be riders who work with horses for a living.

Do y’all know of any US riders who have put together a Vlog similar to these in the UK, or is the issue as I guessed, that the sponsorships would mess up adult riders here, and so it isn’t worth doing?

Perhaps I shouldn’t be left alone to work with YouTube on? I am highly suggestible, and now want, no need, a new Champion skull cap, and a cool custom shirt for XC (which I haven’t even schooled since 2013), and many other goodies. This may be a highly effective marketing channel . . .

[Gardenhorse]

I guess EventionTV by Dom and Jimmie Schramm isn’t exactly a vlog, but it’s fun if you haven’t seen it yet.

[Bensmom]

@Gardenhorse

I guess EventionTV by Dom and Jimmie Schramm isn’t exactly a vlog, but it’s fun if you haven’t seen it yet.

Oh, it is fantastic! But, after the two Evention seasons and the Along for the Ride series, they are no longer filming the episodes. I loved and have seen them all (and HSLC sponsors Dom and Jimmie!).

I was more curious to see if there are some non-pros vlogging, and I’ve just missed them in my searching, and if not, why not? I know in the H/J world, the amateur status is a very big deal – is that what would keep someone from creating a vlog, and seeking ambassadorships?

[Gardenhorse]

Oh, sorry, I missed that you were mostly looking for non-pros. Since Amateur isn’t really a thing for eventing, except for some of the championships like AEC, I wouldn’t expect that to be the major issue with respect to eventing vlogs. Maybe we’re just not as cool as the Brits and Aussies.

[bornfreenowexpensive]

You can check out the US Event Horse Futurity. Each entrants does vlogs. It’s interesting to watch the young horses develop and you can get a bit of insight into both breeding choices and then young horse training.

https://theuseventhorsefuturity.com/2020-vlogs

eta: I can say that as someone who had made a few…they really take a lot of time to make. So I just think people haven’t caught on…but there are a ton of rider based channels out there. Just not Too many are eventers in the US…because honestly, there are not that many eventers compared to other horse sports…

[MsRidiculous]

I’m doing monthly vlogs for my young horse, and I’ve done some videos and mini-series (like with AEC coverage) here and there over the years, just for fun, and I can say that omg it is so much work. Waaaaaaaay more work than blogging 5 days a week, that’s for sure. I don’t think I could justify the time and effort unless it was paying me back somehow, and that does get really tricky here.

[WalnutGroveEq]

There are a handful out there, but not with not nearly the following as the ones you’ve mentioned above. So that’s the big piece with sponsorships, no company is going to sponsor someone who doesn’t already have a large following because their products simply won’t get the views and the return on investment isn’t there. And it doesn’t seem like there’s a large following to eventing focused channels in the US outside of Claire Eventing and previously JETeventing (who is now JetEquitheory and R+ focused, no longer eventing).

The few US specific eventing focused channels I know of are

-Keelari (I think she’s an adult ammy)
-Ride and Roam (adult ammy)
-AMP Eventing (she’s a professional I believe)
-AJS Eventing (she’s a junior)
-(selfish plug here) my own HHF Eventing (I’m technically a pro, but not really. I have a full time job)

There’s a fair number of H/J youtube channels based in the US, but most are very small. Vlogging is really fun, but super time consuming and challenging if you don’t have someone to consistently film. Pluse it’s becoming harder to grow a channel unless there’s already a following on another social media platform, or there’s that one vid that really takes off because there is just so much content that gets uploaded to the site the smaller channels just get buried.

[anon69112984]

To be a successful vlogger/instagrammer you don’t need to be a good rider. You don’t even have to be close. My experience is the successful vloggers - at least in my part of the world - are either 15 year old girls with braces or cute boys just turned seniors. The thing they do have in common is they seem to have all the time in the world to vlog themselves through life. And there are plenty around of these vloggers. But… they are normally vlogging in their native languages

[bornfreenowexpensive]

Also several US based riders to training clubs. Sally Cousins has a good one. She posts short videos with voice over what she is thinking etc. but most of these you need to pay to subscribe (not much) and are usually supported by students and friends. But yes…they all take a lot of time…and a lot of the super successful ones really are not about the quality of riding or training but more the production on the videos…which is a skill unrelated to horses.

[Bensmom]

@MsRidiculous

I’m doing monthly vlogs for my young horse, and I’ve done some videos and mini-series (like with AEC coverage) here and there over the years, just for fun, and I can say that omg it is so much work. Waaaaaaaay more work than blogging 5 days a week, that’s for sure. I don’t think I could justify the time and effort unless it was paying me back somehow, and that does get really tricky here.

And we love ALLLLLL the Presto we can get!

And that was what I was really wondering – is it the ambassadorships/sponsorships that make it worth spending the time, because as I can tell, just from all the footage I’ve gathered, it isn’t the filming that is difficult, but the editing can eat up all your time.

Thanks for the feedback and suggestions of others to check out. If I am representative, it is an effective way for companies to get their products out into the world. I am far more likely to make a purchase if MsRidiculous has reviewed it, for instance, and was pleased and gives good blog feedback. On the UK Eventing Vlogs I’ve watched, I have really liked seeing the products in use, and I’m also more likely to want to make a purchase. (Though neither @MsRidiculous nor the UK Vlogs have convinced me on the helmet pom-poms! )

[MsRidiculous]

@Bensmom

. (Though neither @MsRidiculous nor the UK Vlogs have convinced me on the helmet pom-poms! )

We’ll get you someday, my pretty. :winkgrin:

[Bensmom]

@MsRidiculous

We’ll get you someday, my pretty. :winkgrin:

:lol: :lol: :lol:
:lol::lol::lol:ha! Never! <lol>

Seriously, though. I was stalking around, and found some US ammie event riders with Vlogs after all!

Amateur Eventer Tales
HHF Eventing
Savannah Kennedy
EventerGirlProbs
K&The Bays
Keelari

I haven’t actually watched all of them yet, but I’m watching and working this week. I think they are all adults and mostly not trainers. but no one has anything like the UK following, but there were some out there, I just had to follow some rabbit trails to find them!