I have too. The only one who has come out of this seeming like a decent person is Karl himself. The hunter/equitation/show jumping community is an absolute disgrace.
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He has not but he hasn’t made any effort to stop it. I think when he saw it taking such a downturn he could have been the bigger person and said “hey let’s keep this about the riding only please and stop the personal attack” but alas he did not. That’s almost as bad since this whole thing started because of what he posted.
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You think someone can dictate what others post in their comments on Facebook? You’re much more optimistic than I am.
If that were possible, there would be no more nitpicking or criticism of every single aspect of the old pictures that people post with their horses.
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Not dictate but acknowledge it is wrong same way he thought the article was wrong. Obviously you can’t control what others post
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Seriously? He could have edited the post and told folks to be kind, he could actually respond to comments and tell folks to tone it down. You can hide or delete responses on your own posts. Every BNT responding knows exactly what McLain thinks and is saying the not-so-quiet part very loudly with his full permission.
I’ve always defended McLain and said “nah, no way he would have put plastic chips in boots” “he’s not his father”. But this is one of the most disappointing things I’ve witnessed from a group of professional adults in a very long time.
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I’m sure there are people who spend all day on Facebook monitoring the comments on their posts. But somehow I doubt that McLain is one of them.
Particularly since I think he was at that international jumper rider meeting this week, which probably was occupying a fair amount of his attention.
He doesn’t even seem to post very often on Facebook from what I can see.
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He’s posted three times since the post that started this whole mess, and he edited the original post. Pretty much the entire hunter/jumper community around the globe has weighed in on this; there is no way he’s not aware of what’s going on. I completely agree with @wanderlust; McLain should have done much better than this. What a jerk.
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I read his comment, that Rebecca Hart won 3 golds at the Olympics, and thought, heck yeah she deserves the recognition more than one member of a silver medal team. Maybe McLain feels that way too.
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But that’s not the only “way in”. If someone has the funds to self support and can jump around the big tracks- more power to them. Wish I was one of them, as I imagine a lot of the upper level riders would much rather just be able to ride then have to cater to owners and put on. I say this as a no. KC fan. He still has to ride what he buys.
And please. McClain came back and said- my bad. Clearly he’s not perfect, no one is. Haters on both side gonna hate.
Not to mention Erica McKeever has been commenting and liking a bunch of the posts, including the super mean one from Val Renihan, so yeah, agreed, he knows exactly what is being said.
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Did Val Renihan post more than one thing? Because the one comment I saw from her was pointing out that Karl had three advantages going for him that many people don’t: 1) the wealth to be self sufficient; 2) access to incredible training; 3) a natural fearlessness that most people don’t have.
I think those are fair observations. Karl has accomplished a lot. I think he’s had to modify quite a bit to ride his quirkier horses, and he’s risen to that occasion admirably. I like listening to his thoughts on bit design and his reflections on what his coaches has told him. There’s some interesting food for thought there.
But to say he doesn’t enjoy advantages even beyond those of the already privileged feels silly.
Idk, but to me it sounds like there are sour grapes on both sides. Some of the comments about Karl may have crossed a line (none I saw, but I didn’t read them all). But there are also people that seemed to be upset that the old guard dared to say anything at all. None of the comments I saw from the elite of our sport seemed to cross over into the personal. There was some thoughtful discussion on both sides. Maybe it was animated by personal animus, but that’s speculation on our part. If anything, I’ve seen a lot more character assassination against Mclain, Val, the Maddens, etc. on these forums than against Karl on FB.
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You’re right. I removed it.
“He has skipped the basics” “He will run as fast as his horse will gallop to a 1.60 jump with no apparent regard for a distance” “he should give credit where credit is due <his family’s money and his alleged lack of fear> not encourage the rest of the world to also do it wrong”
There is also zero reason to look up and post his family’s net worth.
Honestly, I’ve never heard anything but good things about Val, and certainly not on this forum, so was quite surprised to see that post.
Does he enjoy privileges that Jessie Springsteen, Georgina Bloomberg, Jen Gates and others of that super wealthy ilk don’t?
I don’t care if you love him or hate him, but if he’s not abusing horses or children, breaking USEF/FEI rules, or cheating people who can’t afford it out of money they can’t afford to lose, there’s no reason for a 400 comment pack mentality take-down on FB. There are lots of other high profile people in the industry who actually do horrible things that are worth going after en masse.
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That’s horrible.
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Charlie Woods has become a good golfer. When Charlie’s name is mentioned in the news or on forums are Tiger’s scandals mentioned? No. Did Charlie have anything to do with Tiger adult activities? No. Charlie was a child. Does Charlie love and admire his father? It seems that way from photos and videos. McLain was a child during the insurance scandals. Think what you want about him, but do not blame him or hold him accountable for actions that happened when he was a child.
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I don’t. As I posted earlier, people can’t help which parents they’re born to. Rich, poor, honest or criminal, no one can choose their parents. That’s what is so disgusting about all the talk about Cook’s family money.
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for me the opposite!
including some really nasty things about a groom who had recently committed suicide.
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Well, McLain doesn’t sell “Fc Off” sweatshirts. Doing so would be kinda jerk-ish.
Also, here’s a nice article:
My last thought on this: correct riding creates consistency. Not every horse is going to respond to a very particular style of riding, thus making it harder to get a new horse and go compete right away. I was brought up in eq-land and can go catch ride anything 1.10 and below confidently, because I have good basics. I’m so thankful for my eq years. I think if someone like Conor Swail or Ashlee Bond were to catch ride my horse, it would not go well. If Lillie Keenan rode her, she would likely win the class. Why? Basics - not having such a unique “style” that it hinders and limits your abilities only to select horses who can ignore it, basically. I think that is the overall importance of what McLain is talking about.
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Cook adapted to ride a very determined mare and has ridden her around some very difficult courses.
Apparently Ward thinks that Cook’s success is in spite of his riding. What is Ward’s reasoning when he has rails or bad rounds despite his “classic” position? The whole thing is ridiculous and disappointing.
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Good basics and the ability to read a horses personality. My former trainer came up in the school of hard knocks. She did have excellent mentors available but no access to trained horses. Pretty much everything she rode in her early days of training was either green or had a problem. Her horsemanship and sound riding basics helped her to build a good business. (And she was respected by other local trainers)
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