I did not want to put anyone else into my fate but I did tell the stewards and gj that there were multiple riders who had already used this bit over the weekend and they chose to ignore that information. For obvious reasons I don’t want to push on that and hurt anyone else but they should realize their error and maybe card all of us instead or something? I don’t know.
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If other competitors were using this bit, and the final verdict is elimination, they need to be eliminated too.
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Mandatory Retirement
I believe the tack check is almost always after the Dressage (in Europe at least).
It used to be before but was considered disruptive/off-putting to have someone potentially fishing around in your horse’s mouth etc before the test. As it’s your responsibility to know the rules (as an overall rule, NOT specific to/aimed at this poor rider), you do your test and then if you are found afterwards to have forgotten to take your boots off/have the wrong bit or whatever, then the steward check will pick that up and retrospectively give the penalty.
If you’d prefer it before (ie have multiple horses and tight times or similar), then you can request the check be done beforehand.
Can I paste this in:
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OT was pulled up on CC at Badminton last year on a tired horse, so I wouldn’t say he has learned his lesson.
I am a total nobody, I can’t even afford to take lessons rn. Watching the 5* live streams is one of the few horsey things I still indulge in. I know that most of the other upper level riders are probably doing unsavory things behind the scenes, but OT is the only one who I have personally seen beat tired horses around CC year after year.
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A wonderful post! Thank you!
Yeah, I respect @Willesdon and @Texarkana very much and always enjoy their posts, but I’m struggling to square that fact with their positive words about OT. I’d welcome any additional insight either of them have to offer, because the Badminton situation was–to my eyes–not subtle and not borderline.
I do believe that folks can make mistakes and learn and grow, and it seems that others mentioned on this thread as having made similar mistakes may have done so. I’ve spoken with at least one ULR who was carded and generally roundly panned on these forums about their experience (different problem), and that person was thoughtful and contrite and I ultimately came away understanding how what happened happened (to be clear, I was not demanding an explanation–it came up in a coaching situation.)
But I’m genuinely trying to reconcile the perspective of “this person has learned and grown” with “this person beat a tired horse around a year ago to the extent that they were pulled up.”
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https://www.facebook.com/share/p/MqUXxn1pxxbPiQdr/?mibextid=WC7FNe
A photo of the set up has now been posted.
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Just as an aside, not that anyone wants to get eliminated for an illegal bit in dressage, but if a rider “had” to be eliminated for this reason, at least after dressage they haven’t spent their horse cross-country AND over stadium the next day. This is particularly awful for the rider, because not only does it take away her competitive placing, but she also needs to do the necessary rehab and rest of her mount after any major event, with nothing to “show” for it.
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beat tired horses year after year? Which ones at which events?
Oh I completely agree that this particular situation is entirely wrong and the rider seems to have been treated in a way that is not at all right - for the welfare of the horse, for the rider, for the overall comms etc.
I was remarking on the fact that in several places in this thread people have mentioned that the tack check should have been pre the dressage test, which isn’t the case (as I understand it).
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Oh yes, I wasn’t arguing with you, but just as an aside! I’ve volunteered at dressage events and the bit check was always after-I honestly did not know that having it done before was even an option.
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My trainer has drilled into all of us (a barn full of adult ammys) that if you can’t afford to not go to a show after paying your entry fee (for whatever reason), or to pull up on course if something happens/your horse doesn’t feel right, then you can’t afford to enter that show in the first place from both a monetary and horsemanship perspective. I found myself thinking about that a lot this past weekend relative to some choices that were made.
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Traditional collection of random assorted thoughts:
Assuming standard preparation schedules, the horses in the 4S will likely continue to run, as it was just a short format event. The horses in the 5L will have a holiday and will likely only have time for a few short prep runs before the Olympics, if selected.
I agree with this. There has been some backlash against Zach Brandt, but at least his horse finished on its feet. And while someone early in their 5* career may not quite know what a very tired horse feels like (though certainly they should), Phillip Dutton absolutely does, and that makes the error much more egregious. That, combined with the fact that he felt poorly enough to go get checked out at the hospital but only did so after he’d chosen to pilot a second horse around, does not speak well to his attitude towards safety, IMO.
What the heck. The whole thing is ridiculous but this starts to sound like mafia action. Very embarrassing for elite level sport. Congratulations on a great weekend (that is well documented regardless of the final score sheet). Please update us on your progress with the protest!
This does have to cut both ways. I, too, was uncomfortable with the frequency he went to the whip in years past, but this weekend he patted that mare on course more times than every other competitor combined, and I didn’t see him go to the whip once. He appears to do what works for each individual horse. I really like Cooley Rosalent, and one of the reasons I do is she always looks to be having a notably fabulous time doing her job (in all three phases). I have very mixed feelings about Oliver, but I do have to acknowledge the role he plays in his horses going that well (and for that many years). Ballaghmor Class has moved mountains for him, and never looks to be doing so out of anything other than love for the game.
This was bad, and that horse absolutely should have been stopped, but you cannot possibly give out to OT over this without giving the same or worse (given the outcome) to PD at Kentucky this year. Both were unacceptable, and the GJ should have been involved in both (not only Oliver). I want to know why they weren’t.
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I absolutely agree - it’s the pro riders on owner horses or funded by sponsors that have that extra “motivation” to do well. Totally different feeling from even the most competitive amateur on their own horses. Not an excuse, but it IS muddying to the horsemanship waters.
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It 100% would not surprise me if PD had a concussion and should not have been allowed on the second horse. His face looked pretty bruised up and I bet he had a hell of a headache.
His team should have pulled him in my opinion. It looked like he was riding on autopilot.
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Perfect, that makes my heart so happy!
Super glad that all was able to be addressed appropriately!
I hope you enjoyed the feed and competition(s)!
Be blessed,
Ashleah
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Is it because the hackamore part is on top of a figure 8 noseband? To me this would alter the function of the bit. I’d be curious if the other riders using that bit had no noseband or one above the Hackamore piece.
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I actually was wondering about that, too. Thank you for asking.
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Looks like Zach did in fact get a yellow card warning for riding an exhausted horse.
So did Susie Berry for blood on the horse (recorded warning).
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