But they did not skip that stage of their development, right?
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Which step? Working with OTTBs or working with young horses? The answer to both is that it depends on the rider. There are very much upper level riders out there who have learned their skills on upper level horsesānot horses theyāve developed. There are upper level riders who may or may not be able to get on an unbroke or very green horse and get it around. Thatās a separate skill set from navigating an international level track. And whether through money or connections, there are top level riders who didnāt have to do those steps. It may diminish their skills as well rounded horsemen, but it does not diminish their ability to ride championship level tracksāwhich is the stated goal of this program.
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Very well said.
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Imagineā¦oh, forget imagining, I know upper level Jumper riders are too busy out getting ranked by money won so they can get and keep the notoriety needed to attract clients to provide them with horses and funds as well as teaching/coaching and competing on the road most weeks.
They have assistant trainers at home to develop horses or they, and/or their clients, buy them made from those who specialize in that.
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Youāre right. She has a team silver medal from the Tokyo Olympics. I misspoke.
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Reining. Though sheās likely shown in Horsemanship. Two different classes.
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Exactly.
Thereās a need for what Laura and Katie are doing and this is a very good way of going about it. Kudos to them for doing it. I think itās bound to be more effective than what USEF has done so far and you can bet they are refining the kidsā horsemanship and care skills.
Watching 14 year old J.J. Torano ride the buck and jump so well in the Prix de States at Penn National made me smile and hope for the future. I think heād be a great candidate for the program in a few years.
We have quite a few juniors with a lot of talent. Talent that the mentorship of Laura and Katie can help develop into good International riders.
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I thought I read last year that she had been maybe second in some big western horsemanship class the previous year. It sounded like it would have been similar to being second at the USEF (hunt seat) Medal, but Iām not familiar with all the terminology.
There was some discussion when she won the USEF Medal last year that it was no surprise that she nailed the halt in the test, given her reining experience. Lol.
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Iām trying to familiarize you with the terminology. She also shows in Reining, not āsome big western horsemanship classā. Horsemanship is a specific class at western shows. Her family on both sides are big time Reiners. Her grandmother on her motherās side is into the jumping, Colleen McQuay. Her mother Mandy also rode hunters and jumpers as well as excelling as a non-pro rider on reiners.
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I have to say, that as well as seeing Toranoās good ride on a quirky horse, there were other riders there that were riding horses that were not easy, and they rode them very well. One young lady particularly comes to mind, Iāll have to go back to the replay to remember her name.
Anyway, several of these juniors are not riding easy horses and can probably out ride many of their critics here.
Bringing up young TBs would be a pointless endeavor for them at this stage in their development. They can already ride difficult horses over a good sized jumper course.
Starting young horses will not help them develop into Olympians, but Laura and Katie may have a good chance to do just that.
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Looking back to the Penn National Prix de States, it was Olivia Sweetnam, riding a very tactful ride on a tricky but talented mare, who I was thinking of.
Beautifully done Olivia!
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I think the point is that theyāve misbranded the program (and/or the Chronicle article is disingenuous). I have no problem with a program for taking the top junior/YA riders and helping them get to the big leagues, but donāt try to sell it as some sort of Cinderella grant. The kids theyāve selected are fine riders (and hopefully know how to develop their own horses), but they didnāt start from ground zero. To suggest that they did is just more USEF bs.
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Did they suggest that the riders started from āground zeroā? I must have missed that.
I only read that the enormous amount of funds (much more than the million or so that the parents of some of these juniors may have spent on their kids career so far) required to point a rider toward the Olympic games will necessarily need several wealthy or one billionaire sponsor.
Laura Kraut knows how it works and I believe Katie does as well. Neither of them are billionaireās kids. Thereās nothing wrong with billionaireās kids if they can ride well enough and put in the work, but there arenāt that many of those with unlimited funds that have the talent and the desire to use their family funds to that end.
And most of those successful Juniors go on to top colleges and careers in other fields. Some continue on a hobby levelā¦I know two who also came back in Reining as Ammies- they have a different definition of Non Pro. At least one of those two does not miss the big jumps.
JMHO but focusing on riders that are a little older with more life experience and familiarity with the realities of training and competing over the big sticks, including falls and being on the road might be a better use of limited funds for rider development.
Need to add that most of these Juniors donāt have time or facilities to break colts and neither do their trainers. BUT if they are interested, arrangements can be made and some do pursue that aspect of the sport. Mostly purpose bred WBs though and for only a short period of time what with working to get into a good college, training fir competitions, qualifying etc. time is not really there unless they have the colt(s) at home.
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Not exactly, no, but this quote from the article:
āYoung riders coming up, they have a hard time making it,ā explains Prudent. āFor the young, struggling professional trying to get to the top, they are going to need some help. And thatās what I am trying to do.ā
was what made my eyebrows raise. These are talented, hard working young riders and, by all accounts, more than worthy of the opportunity being granted to them. But āstrugglingā is an interesting term for someone who was born into more wealth than most of us can dream of seeing in our lifetimesā¦
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From the article:
āThe value of each of these horses, the best in the world, exceeds the $1 million mark, usually in multiples.ā
āThe goal of Road To The Top is to carry two to three horses for each athlete in the program to compete under the tutelage of their mentorāeither Kraut or Prudent.ā
āRoad To The Top is solely supported by donations, which fund the expenses of the athletes and their mounts as they compete with their mentors. Travel expenses, entries, and hard costs for each horse are covered. The athletes do much of their own groundwork not only to keep costs down but to learn essential skills outside of the saddle. Prudent and Kraut donate their time and expertise to the effort, and they source horses for the young riders.ā
So Katie and Laura are donating their time (which is very generous), and they are going to rely solely on donations to cover much of the expenses associated with getting to the shows and competing? Do they already have donors lined up? Who is going to provide the millions of dollars for the 2-3 horses for each rider (or do both riders already have multiple horses that are appropriate for these goals)?
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AI defines a parallel universes as
The number of parallel universes is difficult to determine because the existence of parallel universes is unproven. However, some theories and calculations suggest that there could be a vast number of parallel
I can attest there must be many and I live in one of the much lessors
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I think the plan assumes riders have at least one horse. My take was that Katie and Laura will help them not only get more skills at riding, but more skills with obtaining and retaining sponsors. Karl Cook has talked about how it is hard for young pros to get good American horses because of the way the ranking system rewards those with multiple horses. So perhaps they are addressing the problem of even being able to get into the bigger show classes. . .
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They already state that they are expecting donors to cover all expenses for showing, and that the goal is for each rider to have two or three horses. If they are relying on donors (sponsors) for that too, thatās a huge expectation that could be hard to make a reality. Unless they already have donors/sponsors lined up. Or the goal of two or three horses is more of a wish than a goal.
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To me, this is a different skill set and farther back than what this particular program is focused on. To me, you are presenting a way to get kids into the jumper ring to begin with. I do have to say, tossing them a horse and checking in 18 months later is not the way it should be done. Your suggestion should also come with trainers versed in how to take those particular steps. I remember a mom whoās kid did the EAP being unhappy about her kid not going forward, because her horse could not counter canter. Mom said the kid and trainer had been working on getting a balanced canter instead, so apparently, the trainer didnāt know counter cantering helps create a balanced canter.
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