Kentucky Three Day Event 2024

[FLeventer]

I was very against OT and know his whip usage and yellow cards. I also was pretty against him and his treatment of Piggy. He had this massive chip on his shoulder and he had something to prove, which he was upfront with in articles from the past. You can find them online.

There’s a lot of praise for Andrew Nicholson, lovely rider, but Oliver has worked with and under him for years. He took most of his rides when Andrew stepped away from UL competition.

Do I think people deserve a second chance? Yeah, probably, because if I did something reckless when I was young, but changed my behaviour and the way I operated, then I’d want a chance at forgiveness. I don’t think OT is the same man he was in 09 or 2018 even.

I am not a super fan, but I will admit that he’s impressive. I do hope he’s changed as a person and I think maybe he has. I’m not jumping on the OT #1 bandwagon, but I’m not against him as I was. People grow and change.

[FLeventer]

https://www.chronofhorse.com/article/oliver-townend-wins-kentucky-in-his-100th-five-star-start/

The pictures at the bottom of the article show one of Buck using the driving rein.

[Larksmom]

excuse my ignorance but what is a driving rein? I see the photo but what is a driving rein?

[pokesaladannie]

Hold your rein like a cup of coffee - rein comes up from beneath your closed fingers/fist and out the top where your thumb then presses down on rein. It can help steady the connection.

[pony_grandma]

It keeps your wrist straight. Often used in lessons to prevent puppy paw hand when a rider turns their wrists inward = which breaks the straight line connection from horse to riders hand to riders elbow

also other explanation below for more advanced work

[beowulf]

Rather than have your reins held in the traditional manner, the reins go through your thumb and index first, then down through your pinky, with the bight trailing out from your pinky (versus the other way).

Sometimes used to develop a better/softer connection or with very sensitive-mouthed horses. The driving rein also helps you “feel” the flow from elbow to mouth, so to speak.

[be-here-now]

I love the driving rein for helping me feel like my whole arm (from my shoulders down) “belongs” to the horse’s mouth.

[MunchingonHay]

I was looking for an actual driving rein. Like for a single horse or something and I am thinking, why would he need all of those extra feet of leather!?!?!?

Ok, I understand know.

As someone that drove most of my career, I never use the “driving rein”; even when I drove. I find it very uncomfortable and always hold my reins the more traditional up from the pinky.

I was also taught the old school Achenbach system and mainly drove in that syle, but if I needed more finess, would hold both like I was riding. I find it to be so much better, but to each their own and Buck has more experience in the saddle than I do.

[skydy]

Perhaps the hair loss is from that. I sure isn’t a spur rub as claimed up thread.

[Saskatoonian]

Watched OT’s grey start out on XC looking green as grass at the level, gradually become more confident, and looked ready to take on the world at the end of the course before jumping beautifully in stadium. Not the first time I’ve noticed his horses develop like that. I don’t know they guy and have seen videos with more smacking than I like, but the horses don’t lie, and they’re not offended. That’s all that matters to me. Thought he did a lovely job at KY.

[Blugal]

@Saskatoonian

but the horses don’t lie, and they’re not offended

Try watching him on Swallow Springs at Badminton last year. That horse didn’t lie either - Oliver ignored him, used him, risked the horse’s health, and had to be eliminated by the ground jury, rather than making that decision himself, which he should have.

This video contains clips of that ride at 1:40 (which also shows his horse abuse with whip in 2018), and 3:40.

We all realize he’ll be going for the Rolex Grand Slam in 2 weeks right?

[Rnichols]

It’s really easy to be nice in person for a set period of time. Much harder to show over time that you’re a kind person. Also, personally I don’t loathe him because of the way he treats people - it’s how he treats horses that I have the problem with.

[SadieRidingHorses]

A lot of this is just not true, or presented in a factually misleading way. His dad was a three-day eventer who competed at Burghley; his mom rode sidesaddle. The “milk man’s son” yarn does not hold much water - there was quite a bit of generational wealth there that enabled the pursuit of an incredibly expensive hobby, like wealthy farming and ranching families in the US. So while he might have a northern accent, his “bootstraps” story is not very compelling. My (British) husband and I were listening to a podcast once where Oliver was trying to sell it, and my husband scoffed at it - Oliver might not be “privileged” or “posh” compared to say, Harry Meade, but he certainly started out in the sport with way more than nothing.

[SadieRidingHorses]

@RooTheDay, I would take some of the defense of OT with a huge grain of salt. The claim that he came from a family “without a parent active in the sport” - his dad did Burghley, so?

[SadieRidingHorses]

@Rnichols, very wise.

[Texarkana]

@Rnichols

It’s really easy to be nice in person for a set period of time. Much harder to show over time that you’re a kind person. Also, personally I don’t loathe him because of the way he treats people - it’s how he treats horses that I have the problem with.

Absolutely. And that’s why I also said “And each time he has seemed more involved, concerned, and attentive to his horses than I expected.”

I’m not trying to die on a hill defending OT. I’m a peon volunteer who has just happened to work directly alongside him twice now.

But I do feel compelled to speak up when the negative narrative doesn’t match my experience.

More than anything, what bothers me more than the OT hate is the collective adulation for some other riders who have been horrible to their horses in plain sight. I know my vagueness isn’t particularly helpful, but I don’t feel comfortable publicly throwing people under the bus, especially not after relatively brief interactions.

I’m only speaking up so people pause and fully consider who they are rooting for or against.

[Impractical_Horsewoman]

This isn’t meant in a mushy or touchy-feely way, but I can to some extent see how BOTH sides can be true–on one hand OT isn’t like say, Marylin Little, who seemed to try to cover up massive holes in her cross-country riding with basically bitting her horses like she was still riding in showjumping. That he is a very skilled horseman and can pilot a horse through all three phases more often than not in a very accomplished way, and he doesn’t go out of his way to be harmful to horses or an asshole to other riders and volunteers. And that many of the horses he rides do well in their careers, because he is skilled, and knows how to ride them well.

And also that he is a competitor first and foremost, and he isn’t shy about reaching for the whip (above and beyond which the rules allow) and really going after a horse because he wants to win (both for financial and reputation reasons), has a massive chip on his shoulder (even if it’s not entirely factually accurate, he may perceive himself to be less privileged, which honestly isn’t atypical among equestrians even from upper-middle-class backgrounds, because there is so much wealth in the sport), and has pushed some of his horses more than he should. And honestly, not just with OT, I am always very eye-roll-y about the “he’s changed” language.

I think the vast majority of pros do plenty of things that wouldn’t look good on social media off-camera, because ultimately their business is a business, even if it involves horses, and there is a different emotional relationship between them and their animals than most people with a beloved pet. (Although I am kind of hoping Michael Jung and the Prices are not the people who are being referenced as doing less-than-ethical stuff with their horses.)

[Marigold]

@Texarkana

More than anything, what bothers me more than the OT hate is the collective adulation for some other riders who have been horrible to their horses in plain sight. I know my vagueness isn’t particularly helpful, but I don’t feel comfortable publicly throwing people under the bus, especially not after relatively brief interactions.

I’m only speaking up so people pause and fully consider who they are rooting for or against.

This deserves a re-post.

[FitToBeTied]

I would hope that people’s perceptions are based on direct experience and not the rumor mill or second and third hand postings. For example, I know Marilynn Little is not liked, to put it kindly, on this board. My experience with her was very positive. She was very nice. On the other hand, one of the riders that is up for this years US Olympic team has been consistently rude and obnoxious. Yet people here seem to love them. I was in the warm-up ring with them one time and they were on the phone and almost slammed into me and my horse. Then yelled at me.

[Davignport]

I believe the reason most people on here do not like Maryilyn Little was due to the way she treated her horses. How many times did we see bloody mouths on those horses. Whether she is nice in person has little to to do with the photos of blood in her horse’s mouths and making sure there were dark towels on hand at the end of her rides so the groom could wipe their mouths. I, for one, would rather see a horse finish cross country with no blood in their mouth. No one was sorry to see her exit from eventing.