Dutch Times was back out?? That’s wonderful to see after his injury at Maryland! Thank you for sharing.
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I agree! I was very happy to see him back and with his “rightful owner” riding him (her mom, she stole him from her mom).
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The one good thing about all the competitive riders gravitating to the south is it leaves those back in Area 1 on a somewhat even playing field - cant say it was that way two decades ago, though. 
Seeing Thomas in my Novice class would both thrill me and make me try even harder! Eventing is very special that way; it goes to show you that the capabilities of the rider are just as crucial as the talent of the horse.
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Here’s the post… sounds like Thomas will no longer be contesting the upper levels for those concerned about the optics or fairness of Boyd having recently run him elsewhere.
My $0.02 as a lowly Smurf is this sounds like a really cool opportunity for an exceptionally hard working professional like Steph to show a class horse like Thomas ready for a step down.
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Honestly it’s pretty much par for the course in eventing. When I was doing recognized training ten years ago Tipperary Liadhnan was almost always in my training rider division. I see Blackfoot Mystery out at starter events and dressage shows all the time.
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More than anything else, I’m glad to see Steph get the chance to have some fun competing herself, and especially on such a good horse.
I am sure she has been taking great care of him for years, so it’s nice for her to get the opportunity to get in the ring on him. 
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I think that at least in some parts of the country, people are accustomed to seeing these horses in their divisions. It’s great for the horses and the sport that it’s relatively common for these upper level horses to continue their careers at the lower levels, and competing against them is part of the sport. If we (generally) don’t welcome them or roll our eyes when they show up in our divisions, then what is the pathway for them to continue their useful careers at the lower levels?
Plus, as others have pointed out, these horses don’t automatically win just because of their previous success. Thomas went around slowly (understandable for his first time doing this job, but also because it was very wet at HPNJ). Paddy the Caddy wasn’t competitive in the dressage and finished XC a minute and a half over the time. Dutch Times and Campground were both at or towards the bottom of their divisions after dressage. Even if they were going out and winning (and congrats to Dassett Olympus, who did!), it would be fair and sporting for them to compete at the lower levels. But it is a nice reflection on the nature of the sport that they don’t automatically win at the lower levels.
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Some of these upper level horses stepping down seem hard to ride. More buttons to push and they seem like they can be sharp/super responsive to their riders.
I’m so low level it doesn’t matter, but good on them for letting the horse continue to have purpose and teach someone the ropes. I’d love to see a high level horse show up in my division even if they win. Means I need to step up my game.
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So schoolmasters and such should be available to help riders learn, horses should be stepped down when the time is right…but they better not be in events where I might have to compete against them.
Eye rolling and chuckling over here…
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“Back in the day” - horses received points for placings at certain levels (I believe Prelim and above) and they were not allowed to compete at lower levels unless they had been officially “downgraded”. This required an application of some sort to the governing body. I believe they also were only allowed to compete in open divisions once they had downgraded.
As a teen, I was given the opportunity to ride and compete a horse at Prelim that had formerly gone up to what is now 4*-L. He was opinionated and very sensitive about his mouth. I got hit in the face by his head numerous times when I was too rough with my hands. I only did a few events with him - we were not bothering the leaders because I still had so much to learn, I couldn’t access all of his training.
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That’s not what I’m saying at all!
I live in area 2! I’m used to seeing top horses out and about.
I was just surprised when I clicked on the novice results and saw soooooo many at once at Jersey. Every section had 1 or 2. I thought that was kind of funny, because while it’s always a possibility, you don’t expect to hit that many upper level horses every which way you look.
Apparently my sarcastic comment about “hating” to be up against that was taken way too literally!
Sorry!!!
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I understood what you meant, I’m not sure why that observation seemed so divisive. As a person, I can enjoy how incredible Thomas and his connections are while also wishing they were in literally any other class besides mine. Doesn’t diminish anyone or anything and certainly doesn’t mean we want to change the structure of eventing or need participation trophies.
Going even further, last year I watched a rider in my division put down the most harmonious dressage test I have ever seen outside of ULs. And… I just so happened to be the rider on deck, riding a fractious horse who was very close to threshold after the warmup arena gauntlet. %#$^. Was I thrilled for her? Of course. But I hated being the rider to follow that class act.
I survived the test, but when I was done my SO said watching her ride and then mine was like drinking OJ after brushing your teeth. So…
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HA! But also ouch!
At my most recent event I was scheduled to do dressage after a girl I know who was riding a very nice dressage horse. When times got shuffled around due to a storm delay, I jumped at the chance to go into the ring before her. I knew she would score better than me no matter what, but I didn’t want the judge to be comparing my test to hers if I could avoid it! 
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Oh it’s all good, I was a fair bit tongue in cheek when I wrote that, wasn’t taking you to task if it came across that way 
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Yes - I do believe some people find that type of life super fulfilling. No idea just completely throwing it out there - but perhaps she does have a significant other that fully supports her long hours and maybe having a child isn’t high on her list right now and maybe she does get paid well enough to having good savings and throw some in an IRA and she does get good health insurance. So while it is a ton of hours - as long as someone is compensated properly - they probably aren’t looking at it as life passing them by. And based on some recent posts, it does seem like she gets to ride. So maybe some part of those 12 hours days, she gets to be in the saddle herself.
Now to play devil’s advocate for my own post - if she doesn’t have a significant other but deep down longs for that but has no time for a date and wants a child but isn’t able to make that happen right now and isn’t funding savings/a retirement and can’t afford health insurance - then sure 10 years down the road she’ll probably be looking back and second guessing.
She may also be (probably) compensated a bit more than other head grooms of big (but not as famous) operations. So, the same person making significantly less than her and thus not funding a retirement, not being able to save, not affording health insurance, etc…that person will probably regret it more in 10 years.
But overall, some people do TRULY find this lifestyle completely fulfilling. And plenty of other people wouldn’t. As long as people are free to make their own choice - including the choice to walk away if you aren’t being compensated properly or move on if consistent 12 hours days is too much - we can only hope that they do.
I think she’s amazing and complete rockstar based on the social media I see.
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Hm, she’s hardly going to say her job is crushing her in an interview her boss is likely to read, now is she? So we are unlikely to ever know if this level of work is actually fine for her or not.
Either way the message that “12 hour days are the norm and never taking time off is fine” is perpetuated.
And I feel that does a disservice to most people who would burn out pretty quickly under that workload.
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As far as “life passing you by” - well that depends. Some people like to travel and prioritize that. Some people do not. Some people want to see all the sites in a different place, some are content to say they went there.
Personally, I like off-beat/local museums and sites but other people want to see the popular or big attraction there. For example, someone may head straight to the Eiffel Tower in Paris, leaving me happily at some hole in the wall homage to bread museum in Paris (I’m making that up, no idea if there is such a place in Paris but if there is, it would top of my list).
I have known some people that never left their hometown, others that travelled a bit when younger and are happy to just work now. Some work such long hours but get a lot of fulfillment over it.
I was discussing that with someone as someone at my small company just stated she’s not planning to retire - she’s 72 now. Like really? Insurance is just that fulfilling? I remember stating I could understand it if you were a farmer or teacher or something then kind of stopped myself and had to redirect and remind myself that we all find different things/subjects fulfilling.
As far as family/relationships - same thing, we all want different things and different types of relationships can fill that need for connection.
As far as long hours being the norm. I do think the horse world needs to mentally shift. There was a time, especially 50 or more years ago, where living in the cottage on the property wasn’t bad because even though it didn’t have central air or cable, most places didn’t. Job opportunities were more limited for those lacking education and higher education was harder to come by. The class system, especially prior to WWII was more prevalent so you could only get so far (exceptions noted). You generally didn’t travel as much in your youth, especially if you were of the lower classes, so you didn’t see what options were out there.
Now, there are more expectations - the trailer on the property with dodgy a/c is not as nice as even the low-rent apartments nearby, there is more of a social scene and going out with friends on the weekend is seen as a higher priority than before. There is more mixing of classes or elimination of the old class system so people are expecting more upward mobility. Higher education is easier to come by and with it broader knowledge of the possibilities.
The “old days” of a large amount of people willing to work long hours for little pay/benefits is gone and agricultural business need to find ways to adjust. I say Ag in general because you see it in farming as well. The children of farmers want to automate, lessen the load, not get up at 3am to milk the cows, be able to go on vacations, etc.
Anyway, so yeah, interesting article and discussion but also yeah, people need to realize people like Steph are more the outlier than the norm now.
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%. Upper level horses can be extraordinarily sensitive and their experience gives them definite opinions about how things are done. Thus, as often as not they can be a trickier ride when they’re not running at or near peak aerobic exertion. Sometimes they have to run at a slower pace because they will steamroll through the tack if l asked for more speed but without the commensurate effort over jumps.
Not saying it’s the case here, just a thought when it comes to feeling disadvantaged against these Yoda-level horses!
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