[QUOTE=Tha Ridge;7224669]
Man, Leslie looked like she was in pain. That doesn’t look like an easy horse to ride, much less with a broken leg!
ETA: Rothchild is a such a freak. Incredibly cool horse.[/QUOTE]
Ditto. Twice.
[QUOTE=Tha Ridge;7224669]
Man, Leslie looked like she was in pain. That doesn’t look like an easy horse to ride, much less with a broken leg!
ETA: Rothchild is a such a freak. Incredibly cool horse.[/QUOTE]
He looks like more of a handful indoors then on a big field (I saw him go at Spruce) It was a shame about her rail. It’s so nice to see Leslie with a quality horse like him.
And yes, Rothchild is definitely a freak!
Well for only having 3 in the jump off, I think it will be a very good one. 3 very fast horses and riders!
It will be interesting to see if Kent can pull off back to back wins, after he did that with Up Chiqui at Harrisburg in the past.
[QUOTE=MHM;7224719]
It will be interesting to see if Kent can pull off back to back wins, after he did that with Up Chiqui at Harrisburg in the past.[/QUOTE]
Considering how “on” Uceko looked its definitely a possibility.
ETA Although Connor Swail just went blisteringly fast
SO close! I was rooting for Mclain and Rothchild!
[QUOTE=Artemis;7224737]
SO close! I was rooting for Mclain and Rothchild![/QUOTE]
me too!
Aww. Sweet that the winner gave his ribbons to kids in the stands. 
I attended my 24th consecutive Penn National Horse Show this week. Back when we lived in Harrisburg I attended every day either as a spectator or as a volunteer for a horse rescue. Once we moved to to Maryland I cut it down to a few times per show but still made the trek. The Penn National Horse show is DYING. The decline has been coming on for years but it really hit home last night.
The vendor spots used to be completely full, now they are maybe 1/4 full. Grand Prix night used to be so crowded you could hardly move through the hallways. Last night the halls were virtually deserted. So few people attended that the Kiwanis volunteer ushers didn’t even bother to show up. The vendors were in the process of packing up as the small crowd arrived so the crowd couldn’t shop if they wanted to. They were gone by the time the Grand Prix ended. Contrast that with the Pennsylvania horse expo that aside from a few clinicians is nothing but shopping, mostly for cheap crap, but shopping nonetheless and the place is so packed they have to bus people in from the parking lot of the community college. With the exception of last night when they jacked the the general admission up to $20 from $15 the price is exactly the same as the expo. The vendors that were there were clearly catering to the exhibitors with tons of disposable income as they made no effort whatsoever to keep their prices even remotely in line with Dover, Smartpak etc.
The farm show building is one of my top three places on earth and it saddens me to see the steady decline. As near as I can tell the amount of exhibitors is roughly the same but I don’t know if they can survive on exhibitor income alone.
I noticed the small crowd while watching online, I also remember it being packed with people in years past. I think there were more people there for Clinton Anderson this summer! Sad 
I recall going in college and it being so crowded that we had to have a plan for where to meet up if we got separated.
I’ve gone for the Grand Prix the past two years and it is really sad. I remember going as a kid and it was packed! I was looking forward to doing a little browsing/shopping but as said above, there was a very limited selection of vendors and those who were there were already packing up.
And while I am being Debbie Downer, it is really super nice when they give their ribbons to the kids in the stands after the awards presentation. It sucks when those kids hide the ribbons behind their backs so they can get a second ribbon.
yes and numbers way, way down in several divisions. as an exhibitor, there are valid reasons, though. the horse shows needs to re-examine their costs and their priorities or it won’t be around ten years from now.
I showed there as a JR and still go every year for JR weekend and then back up for the GrandPrix. You’re right the vendors have disappeared and the ones there you would have to be stupid to waste your money on because the prices are so jacked up! I was talking to a friend who was showing her pony there and she said that the price the vendors have to pay to rent the space is huge and so the place stays empty. There is no reason the show can’t bring in vendors and spectators it’s just run poorly!
[QUOTE=Tha Ridge;7224064]
Is there a reason that Ahmed Alali rides with his feet stuck straight out in front of him? He sure has nice horses, though.[/QUOTE]
Because he has more money then ability and should be ripped off of his horses post haste. He is what is wrong with our sport.
I couldn’t believe the small crowds, and did wonder why the attendance was tiny for such a big show with big prize money. A real shame.
I grew up watching the Horse of the Year Show and Olympia (big indoor shows in the UK) and they are incredibly well-attended with a good atmosphere among the crowd:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SESBD4hTGzs
I think part of the reason that HOYS and Olympia remain popular is that they offer a nice contrast between high-level competition, with Grand Prix showjumping, plus crowd-pleasing events, such as the puissance, and fun events everyone likes (mounted games, Shetland Pony Grand National etc.)
[QUOTE=Snowfox;7225910]
Because he has more money then ability and should be ripped off of his horses post haste. He is what is wrong with our sport.[/QUOTE]
Are you being facetious?
I don’t know the guy, but he definitely struck me as someone who bought nice horses to move up as soon as possible with little regard for the basics.
[QUOTE=prosefullstop;7225932]
I couldn’t believe the small crowds, and did wonder why the attendance was tiny for such a big show with big prize money. A real shame.
I grew up watching the Horse of the Year Show and Olympia (big indoor shows in the UK) and they are incredibly well-attended with a good atmosphere among the crowd:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SESBD4hTGzs
I think part of the reason that HOYS and Olympia remain popular is that they offer a nice contrast between high-level competition, with Grand Prix showjumping, plus crowd-pleasing events, such as the puissance, and fun events everyone likes (mounted games, Shetland Pony Grand National etc.)[/QUOTE]
Seems like WIHS is trying to go that direction with stuff like mutton busting and shetland steeplechase (you would NOT believe how excited my boyfriend is about the latter). I’m really hoping it works.
[QUOTE=Tha Ridge;7225934]
Are you being facetious?
I don’t know the guy, but he definitely struck me as someone who bought nice horses to move up as soon as possible with little regard for the basics.[/QUOTE]
I’m serious, he can’t ride to save his life and the amount of times he caught his poor horses in the mouth should be illegal. Such wonderful horses and he will ruin them and then they will get a reputation as a stopper or sneaky or any of the other labels people give “bad” horses ruined by bad riders.
