June Shows

I’m not particularly concerned about Struzzieri or Bellisimo.

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There will be a vaccine or a viable treatment. No the virus won’t “ go away”. Frankly your last paragraph gives me hope. Too big to fail shows will suffer the most in the near future. I see that as a Good thing.

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Contact tracing will be critical as we re-enter this phase of reintroducing shows. Show participants will really need to be diligent, so if there is an uptick in cases- it does not become impossible to track people down.

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In contrast… I live just outside KC where denial is knee deep and brown necked fools shoot people for requiring a mask. If you are from the Coasts you are certainly getting a different view of how people are reacting than we are seeing here. The childish phrase “ You aren’t the boss of me.” is a motto here.

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I know it’s a pipe dream, but a return to the days of the more laid back charity horse shows vs. franchised point earning systems would be lovely.

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Show organizers for Brownland and Michigan have pretty mich told us to “wait” but are “hoping” to run. It’s going to come down to individual governments, but I can tell you from inside the TX horse show that the new guidelines and our new “horse show life” is very strange and uncertain. At this point I question why were even going back and if profit will even come (and yes I work in the horse show industry so I get it).

it’s hard to enforce people to wear masks. It’s hard to make sure everyone’s following the rules. Everyone is confused about vendors and how shopping is supposed to happen. Not to mention keeping everything clean inside those stores and beyond. To me, it’s a pipe dream and there’s no way to make it totally “safe” - so at this point I’m considering a career move because I don’t see horse shows in this COVID world working out or being a safe option for all.

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Not sure if you saw what MI’s governor did yesterday, but according to her there will be no travel allowed until Phase 5, which considering they extended Phase 3 until June yesterday, Phase 5 looks like it’s pretty far off. Probably September could potentially happen there. I think the show managements need to be fair though because many of us have rented houses and will lose a lot of $ if they cancel last second. Yeah, according to USEF the other day these shows will be VERY weird it seems.

Here’s an article with an image of Michigan’s plan:
https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2020/05/07/whitmer-extends-stay-home-order-through-may-28/3090683001/?fbclid=IwAR2ZYqcBcpkCvkbJ77pBg6xQrbngaq5K28fBUXnUTl0o9ekKP_6FDzOmycI

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The big question which I think all of these show managements should provide guidance on currently is what “phase” do horse shows and outside travel fall in their state. I know Robert Ridland at Blenheim has provided guidance on where they fall in CA, I think all of these show managements should do the same so we have better ideas of what is likely and what is not.

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Agreed.

At this point I’m about as worried about losing big horse shows as I am about losing country clubs, yacht marinas and the local Land Rover dealership. That is to say, I am frankly not. These are luxury services and luxury entertainment and recreation providers. Local communities and society as a whole are not going to collapse if a portion of them have to permanently close. I will be sad if my dentist can’t maintain his practice. I will be significantly less affected if the local boutique tack store can’t reopen.

We knew from the beginning of this that some businesses would likely not survive, whether big or small. Horse related companies and groups are no different and are no more special or valuable than other businesses. There are many more non-essential businesses that greatly contribute to the quality of life of the majority of people that we should be most concerned for. Some examples would be clothing retailers, restaurants, hospitality, dentists and medical specialists, health/wellness providers and facilities and therapy providers and mental health professionals.

From an outsiders perspective, we are complaining about our inability to publicly showcase selectively bred farm animals. Horse shows and horse stuff only matter within our very small worlds. 99% of society is not worried about us and that’s totally correct of them.

Other sports and recreational clubs are affected by this as well. I’m sure many baseball and soccer facilities, ice rinks, and tennis clubs are on the brink right now too. Everyone wants to get back to doing what they love. But sports and recreational activities – yes, even horses! – are a pretty low priority compared to other things.

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Totally agree with you. It’s very easy to get caught up in this weird world of the elite and lose sight of what really matters. I think the fact we have 15% unemployment rate and life will not be the same for the majority of people in this country-- and the world for that matter–for a very long time, we need to take a step back and look outside of just the “horse” world. My husband and I were actually talking just recently about how much money many of the people in the equestrian business have made over the years. Considering many don’t have college degrees and truly have been lucky to be able to have uber wealthy clients that pay large commissions and high fees (whether it be trainers, braiders, horse show managers), while I know it leaves them in a hard place, to your point, how about the dentist that went to school for years and years, or the doctors that have been furloughed, the list goes on and on? This is way bigger than the horse world. A lot of horse people have made pretty good money for a long time, it will eventually come back, but it could be awhile and people may need to make lifestyle adjustments, sadly. We need to look out for the greater humanity I feel though. This is a sad time for a lot of people - at least 15% of the US as of right now, not including those businesses that just can’t run.

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People can always give money or gifts to their coaches, trainers, grooms, etc. if they want to help them right now. We can help support horse professionals without going to full blown rated shows. Sometimes I feel like some of the people rooting to get back to showing are using the “Support the trainers/managers/braiders!” angle as a feel-good cover for their selfish desire to just do something they want to do.

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^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
this this this

Everyone interested in showing, whenever they are thinking of doing it, should engrave this on their heart. Over a year, maybe 2 years.

Either we learn to show safely over the next couple of years, or we close the showing segment of the industry, and people do with their horses whatever people wish to do at home.

Should probably plan for 3 to 5 years of a covid world, and celebrate if it is less.

If we close showing, we accept that many professionals and venues will have to move on to something else to keep themselves going. They may or may not ever return to showing, or even to horses in some cases.

It’s like New Orleans after Katrina. Many refugees had to make so much change to their lives to survive somewhere else “temporarily “, they never came back.

One word for this is “sacrifice”. It isn’t always a personal choice, so much as a necessity.

Hypothetically, if we go that route and close showing across the board, when the covid closure is done, in a year or two or five, whatever is left will pull itself together, along with new enterprises and new entry showers.

For the foreseeable future, covid will continue to spread while we wait on millions to get a vaccine. (Unless we do whatever it takes to control it through testing— and we are a long way from that.)

Either we learn how to live, and how to show if we wish to do so, without catching or spreading covid. Or we accept the sacrifices and put everything off, and allow whoever can’t last the two-to-five years to make a life change so as not to starve.

There’s no “waiting” because this thing people are waiting on is 1 to 5 years away. Not weeks or months. That’s not “waiting”. It is a life-altering decision for the industry.

It’s a decision everyone will have to make about many aspects of their lives, and they are likely to be forced to make these decisions fairly soon.

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Intending no disrespect to you personally …

I must challenge this “inside the bubble of privilege “ perspective that things that are recreational to the bubble don’t really matter. This idea is shockingly blind to the thousands of jobs on the other side of the economic wall that depend on the horse industry (and other recreational endeavors). Thousands, tens of thousands, of paychecks and real people who depend on this industry to support their families. And who don’t enjoy the financial options and stability of the bubble.

And no, a few handouts are not going to get those people through this. Especially not for 2+ years before a vaccine is widely available. They are going to take the brunt of the current shutdown, and any extension thereof.

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I read somewhere that the June Aiken horse shows are sold old. I personally know a few barns going & some planning Tryon in July.
Pretty much in FL, things are getting back to normal. Farms are opening up & planning to go to shows. Mostly people seem comfortable moving around & going back to a cautious, but normal life again.

There’s a show going on right now in Katy, Texas at the Great Southwest Equestrian Center. I don’t get it. Seriously? There’s no way show management is prepared. Yikes!

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Thank you. The reverse snobbery in this thread is shocking to me.

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My stance is not meant to be a personal attack against any particular set of business owners. I certainly do not intend to sound snobby. My point, and I suspect the point of some of the people that share my perspective, is that we have prioritized our concern towards the businesses that benefit the majority of people in our communities. Horse trainers, coaches, judges, braiders, etc. do not benefit the majority of people living my area. I recognize that thousands of people in horse-related jobs could lose their jobs or businesses. I’m not celebrating this. However, I can’t pretend that the loss of their businesses is somehow worse or more significant for me than the loss of something like the local hardware store, restaurants, or non-life sustaining medical practices. That’s not snobbery. That’s looking at the entire picture and thinking about people other than myself in my community who have no ties to the horse world.

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Well, at least you’ve provided a justification for your determination that they are expendable.

Even if there is a way that they don’t have to be dumped into the financial collapse, a way forward that does not contribute to further covid infections.

It’s not a zero sum game. The hardware store won’t fail if people find safe ways to continue horse shows in some form or fashion. And at least partially preserve a force that puts billions of dollars into the economy annually. “Safe” as in not contributing to the spread of covid, by using the means that have been determined to be effective for that.

According to studies, horse showing puts $28.8 billion into the U.S. economy annually. In addition to direct show spending, that counts hotel, restaurant, transportation, a lot of product sales, as well as employment and so forth.

https://www.eqgroup.com/library/eqstats_us/

The horse industry sustains approximately 1.4 million full-time equivalent jobs on an annual basis, with over 460,000 of those jobs created from the direct spending within the industry.

Seems worth saving to me, for economic reasons rather than recreational ones. Too many non-horse-industry people are already facing financial crisis to dump even more people into hardship on top of that. And up the competition for the few other employment options out there in the face of the covid meltdown (Walmart et.al. are not going to hire everybody who is out of work). When it isn’t strictly necessary to dump them to save lives from covid, if we do it properly and safely.

It’s worth the effort, imo. We don’t have to throw certain people overboard because we think that how they make a living is not as important as how other people make a living. That’s an irrelevant consideration to someone facing the loss of their income.

It’s possible that there is a safe way forward with horse showing that can save some people from the personal financial catastrophe that will resonate through the system when they don’t pay their bills, regardless of the type of job that they lost. For those riders who are ready and willing to show, it is well worth doing, IMO.

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I suppose pointing out the huge sums of money raised for an injured GP rider and contrasting the great concern some profess for those on the other side of the wall might be in poor taste. Yes, the groups you point to are going to be hurt badly. Will the .01% in this business help to fund those who have wiped their boots, braided, bathed and made their lives oh TOO easy pay up? I doubt it.

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An awful lot of people “essential” to horse shows have no insurance, live on the margins, and are in an especially poor position to cope if they get COVID-19. I don’t know that the same people who claim to be so concerned about these folks and their livelihood would turn around and express the same concern (or rather, show their concern with their pocketbooks) if grooms, jump crew, braiders, etc. got terribly sick because they went back to work at a horse show. I just have a hard time seeing this as being about those “poor workers” and their livelihood. No one is stopping anyone from taking the money they would have spent showing last month and sending it to their grooms, braiders, etc. It’s hard not to think a lot of this is about the fact that people want to show, and it really is about the fun/recreation for them, and less about how vital the equine economy is.

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