They put up a banner after all the schooling and all of the preliminary rounds… and every horse spooked at the new banner. Surprises me a bit, since banners are just about always present in this type of show, both to advertise sponsors and to provide a visual barrier for the cattle so they don’t crash into the fence, or think they can go through the fence.
But then, the banner was new, and black, and probably gave a strange black hole kind of visual to the horses.
Nice of the production company to try to make it right.
But I still would like to see show horses broke enough to deal with it.
This morning went to feed at still dark, turned all lights on, old horse came in running, then snorted, whirled around, kicked out and bucked.
I was thinking, cold morning feeling good today?
When feeding, he kept pointing at something and sure enough, on the corner of the shed was a large birds nest the wind blew there last night.
Guess he was right, there was a monster in that shed that was not there before.
New things or old ones moved around will have any smart enough horse paying attention and telling on it.
Nice of the show management to make it right for the contestants, since so many were bothered by that banner, for whatever horse reason they had.
It was a banner for the Yellowstone TV show, for filming. It was also the show’s producer, Taylor Sheridan, that paid everybody the equivalent of the first place check.
on the lines of everyone gets a first place check back in the mid 1960s I was at a Hunter show where the judge of a class would not place any horse first since they were all terrible …they started with second place.
I was at this show and watched the event in question. The banner was placed on the gate that the cattle come out of. All these horses had competed in the prelims knowing where the cattle come out. The black color of the banner, the location down low, the fact that this was a run in pattern, and that no horses had seen it before the class combined into a perfect storm. These are cow horses - you want them to have some mind of their own and not be automatic machines. Many of them spooked towards the banner, lining up to work it like they would work a cow.
This! It’s funny seeing the comments. You can tell who has ridden a true cowhorse. They are very broke but ready for their job! If I am riding me bridle horse in an arena with a flag, he keeps his eye on it ready to go…
Regardless of whether or not the horses should have spooked (after all, we have bred look and brains into these cow horses for years) how incredibly cool of Taylor Sheridan. He has truly done a lot for both the reining and cow horse industry.
Regardless of whether or not the horses should have spooked (after all, we have bred look and brains into these cow horses for years) how incredibly cool of Taylor Sheridan. He has truly done a lot for both the reining and cow horse industry.
I’m a huge fan of the show and am glad to see that Sheridan has the integrity to take responsibility for the banner and the distraction it caused. Can’t wait for next season!
