Totally.
Thankfully I got mine a bit younger, but when I first got him things were a mystery…why could he not stand at the mounting block? Oh, he was never taught to do so without someone holding him!
Convincing them of things like that after they have spent a lot of time with things “not that way” can definitely be a trick!
@Alterration Have you checked out the book “Saddle Seat Horsemanship” by Smith Lilly? It’s got some good info in it.
When I was working as a groom at a Saddlebred barn in Kentucky there was a younger (high school age) gal who had a show pleasure horse but his canter tended to be way too fast. Throughout the week the trainer would work on him, and a couple times a week the gal would come ride and they would try to get a better canter. When it was time to go to a show the trainer would ask her “what is our goal for this show?” meaning, of course, to get that pleasure canter. The gal would always reply: “to get a good show picture!” I have held on to that credo ever since. 
I know I’ll never beat the pros, or the “professional amateurs” that have multiple horses in training with BNTs and no 40+ hour a week job to get in the way of their riding. But I like being an AOT. If I get my horse into the ring and put in a good performance I know that’s all my own doing. If I don’t have a good ride I know what I have to work on for next time. And of course I always look for that good show picture to prove that I showed up and did my best. 
Y’all are making me want to buy a nice park horse to keep at home just so I can show with y’all!!! 
I do miss the fun at shows.
I have! It’s one I read and re-read 
It did really unlock for me some of the reasons behind the differences between what I had done before, such as valuing spirit over submission and baking that into the training. Which then helped me understand my horse better, as he is prone to airs above the ground in the lines when he is feeling good. All of a sudden I was able to see that from a different perspective instead of a “oh crap, he’s going to be bad” perspective. Interestingly, it also put a lot of the critiques that I had gotten when I purchased him into context - I had a dressage trainer try to force him into compliance and reject him for being “not submissive” and an eventing trainer tell me I’d never ride him because he was crazy. He’s not crazy. He’s a show horse and he knows it. I now understand the words “thinks highly of himself” because he really truly does.
I love this! That’s one of the best things about the little show we did. We did a simple walk-trot class (not the 3-gaited walk trot, literal hunt seat walk trot) because I had just had hip surgeries and wasn’t sure I was going to stay aboard if he was silly in his canter in a class of 1. We got our picture in National Horseman, which seems silly but it is one of my FAVORITE pictures, as is our victory pass photo. It’s a photo and a memory I’ll have forever - who cares how many were in the class. I felt silly taking the plate that was the championship prize, but also? It’s a HUGE accomplishment. He was a horse that I was told I’d never ride, much less get into the ring and not die haha!
I was always a self-made amateur in “regular” hunter-land (though I took plenty of lessons, I wasn’t at a show barn). I had a small lesson program and backed green hunters for sale. Though it’s entirely different than saddle seat, it is totally foreign to me to hand over the reins to someone else even for training rides. I get it, and I appreciate that for some people, that’s the best way to do it and they are competitive and want to win.
I want to learn, have fun, make progress with my horse, and yes, there’s the teensiest bit of pride knowing that I taught him x, y or z. And now I’m going to add to that list - looking for that great show picture!
Not that I’m totally an enabler…but…uhhh…YES!!! 
Come join the crazy AOT fun! There’ve been some nice ones in the $15k and under Facebook group lately that if I had unlimited budget I’d totally snap up. Youngsters too.
I do have to say - I love the camaraderie at the Saddlebred shows. I’ve met the BEST people. totally 100% different than the hunter/jumper & dressage scene. I’m not sure if it’s because there are so few of us, but everyone cheers everyone else on. I’m sure competition is fierce among the trainers, but the competitors themselves are great to each other - at least here.
Lined again yesterday due to time. Maybe it’s just me, but when I’m strapped for time that seems awfully convenient.
We’re still having slipping issues with the surcingle even with the crupper. I can’t seem to get the darned thing tight enough when he really gets going and usually have to adjust several times. So now we need to add the breast collar.
I think people underestimate how much these horses move when they move. He’s still very forward, no collection is being asked for right now. It is amazing to see the amount of forward power that can come out this way. It’s like watching an extended trot on a Grand Prix horse - obviously not exactly the same thing - but that same kind of pushing power. So we have extension, but right now it comes with a great amount of speed.
I keep wondering where he’ll fit in the grand scheme of things. He hasn’t worked in collection, so I don’t know how much he will elevate when he does. He likes to kind of put his head down and push hard - reminds me almost of a PRE when he does it, but I suspect that’s because he isn’t strong yet.
He’s again, pretty out of shape, so it will be interesting to see how much stronger he can get and what he will do with those shoulders once he does get strong. He’s got a lot of freedom in his shoulders, I’ve got photos at the canter with them very free, but obviously he’s just not strong enough to do much right now. He has never worn any action devices except some of the leather strap types of weights that the trainer put on him about 3 years ago (and they were super light).
For the non-saddlebred people, he just has a regular shoe with a rolled toe on and his toe is pretty short even by sport horse standards (he was barefoot and they got chewed up this summer), he’s barefoot behind, and he’s wearing a Boucher soft snaffle with a lozenge. No check or anything, and he’s very soft-mouthed which is why you see some slack in the lines.
Nothing fancy nor exciting - this is just how they move.
Some stills from the video - note that he’s also only wearing back fly boots because he enjoys taking them off and flinging them, and they were in the process of being cleaned and dried off.
)
He’s gorgeous!
I just scored some old training books (volume 1 and 2 of Training & Gaiting by Susanne) published in 1947 that I’m super excited about. I also ordered Riding and Training by Earl R. Farshler, and Professor Beery’s Saddle Horse instructions (a 5 volume set) which I got for an absolute steal. The Saddle Horse is available on Kindle for like $1.99, and that one is from 1881, which is just a blast.
I’m sure not all of the old techniques are good, but I love reading them!
I have always loved that book.
saddle seat to me defaults to Helen Crabtree’s Saddle Seat Equitation , I never knew her personally but often had horses entered in classes that followed the equitation class where ALL of her riders were tied the top ribbons
I have that one too I need to re-read it.
another good one.
I remember the Ky State Fair in 1974 where the barn I was working for had a horse going in the class after the equitation class that had over 400 riders entered. That class was broken down into groups of about 25 then the winners of the those rounds were the finial class. Crabtree riders took all the top spots and she had a bunch of kids in that class
Her riders were easy to pick out as they were fit to the tee, dressed nicely and all were supportive of each other
She was an elegant woman, the last time I saw her we had our kids’ horse entered at the Shelby County Fair, she attended and liked our kids horse as it won its first Blue Ribbon
Concerning Helen Crabtree; Ruth Ann Lewis, one of her students has written ‘The Last Crabtree Girl’ a wonderful short read about what it was like riding with her. She notes that toward the end of her equitation career Helen’s students were not placing well because people were sick of them all winning all the time.
That was probably around the time Lillian Shively was coming into her dominance. Rather sad, I thought.
I recall in her book, Helen said when she was younger she was showing a mare and put her in every class she could. She was winning then she didn’t place in one class. When she aked the judge, he said ‘why Miss Helen I was just tired of seeing her’. 
We’re back in our riding routine. I rode for two days in my saddle seat saddle and then today I returned to my trusty hunt seat saddle because it’s windy and rainy and yucky, and I’m second guessing my thoughts of making him a SS horse and thinking he might still love HCP. I’m more comfortable in my hunt seat saddle, so he was definitely more comfortable. I feel like if I start now by March I might be ready for next year’s spring show. The real challenge is his leaping about in company. But I need to stop worrying about that so much and focus on getting us both strong enough so that if he does do that he won’t get me off so I get trampled (the hunter classes here are just chock full). If I can find some friends to come do some of the exercises with, maybe he’ll quit that malarkey. Maybe.
Hope everyone out there is making good progress!
I have only ever once shown a saddle seat horse, but when I was a teen I had the good fortune of being mentored by a retired veterinarian who had Hackney ponies. Once his ponies were trained to pull the cart (elsewhere), all he ever did was line them at home. He didn’t have the space to do anything else. We used to line them in a big round pen, take them to the show, hook 'em and go!
I got one in February. He’s a freaking Golden Retriever. He’d really like to climb in a car and go home with someone - anyone. At 6, he’s the safest, sanest one to drive. The kid who works at the barn showed him last month. He (the kid) had a week & a half crash course in driving. He’d jogged horses, but never asked anything of them. They didn’t win, but did beat a couple ponies.
Funny story about that. My old trainer, emphasis on OLD, recalled when Lillian Shively & some other up and coming equitation trainers got together & decided that Helen was done. Judges stopped pinning her. As the saying goes, the fix was in.
When my trainer was fussing about me not having the perfect horse show bun, I told him not to worry, Helen was dead and wouldn’t come get him or me.
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