This is true. Present a different point of view and people often get very angry, writing a novel and twisting peoples’ statements around to mean something they don’t.
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Pot meet kettle? The article you wrote was the rudest most judgemental thing ever so…
yes UL riders need sponsors. Yes she may be the nicest and most talented, however one owner for life isn’t going to cut it. Learning how to develop relationships, raise money, do business in this sport is JUST AS IMPORTANT as being able to ride.
Sure we aren’t all riding at Rolex, but we also aren’t asking people to buy us horses we can’t afford either.
comparing Jontys horse to this is also not really accurate, where Art was competitive, this horse can jump XC but his dressage will never make him a team Horse, or even a top placing Horse.
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I know a lot of talented riders who can take a OTTB and move it to 3* level very successfully who end up not being able to stay at that level for long or to get to 4* due to finances. It takes a lot of money to compete regularly at the FEI level.
I can’t stand Marilyn Little either. Such a poor example for this sport.
Year after year we see Phillip Dutton and Boyd on teams, often with several horses they could potentially use. Kind of like how McLain Ward and Beezie have been on teams for years.
It seems the strong people get stronger and some of the talented but less well funded people often struggle, or do ok until their one horse has a issue and then it’s a while before we see them again.
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:lol::lol::lol:
it doesn’t matter how long i go witout checking this forum, one thing is always constant. That there will be the same old negative fishwives who have nothing good to say about anything or anyone. It must really suck to be in such a negative headspace all the time.
thanks for the reminder to donate.
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I can’t agree with this more. The negative loudmouths have made this a really unfriendly forum. Not much substance lately and the little we do have gets tromped on by the usual suspects.
sad.
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And on one hand: I get it. If someone is going to buy a (tremendously expensive, talented) horse, if you can afford the horse and the training/partnership, naturally you’re going to want it to go to the best place you can where they’ll be the most competitive. (We have McLain Ward and Beezie in showjumping, Boyd Martin and Phillip Dutton in eventing, Steffen Peters has his wonderful sponsor Akiko Yamazaki who has brought him the ride on a multitude of good horses.)
But on the other hand, it’s really tragic when we see the same riders year after year and it ends up edging other (good people, good riders) out. I do sincerely wish there were an apparent answer for how to address this.
That all said, specific to this situation: it’s not like Sara went out horse shopping, bought a horse on loans, and is now asking the public to help her pay it back. (Or even that she’s trying to crowd-source funding for horse shopping, period.) Trying to conflate those situations with this specific one feels a bit disingenuous to me. It isn’t as if she’s out actively looking to buy a horse, shopping around, with money she doesn’t have.
A good reminder, when all is said and done, for all of us to make sure all of our business is in writing and as solid as we can make it.
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Personally, I don’t care what someone sets up a Go Fund Me for, I can always just not donate.
As far as USEA not having adequate support for young professionals…I don’t know about organization to help any particular community stay their own business- namely auto mechanics, plumbers, electricians, shop owners, etc- they all have access to the local small business advisor that is usually available through the local chamber of commerce and any mentors they pick up along the way.
As far as paying off loans for a horse… if I were to pick up the race horse I’ve had my eye on since he was recording from injury at a friend’s place and I walked him 45 min a day… anyone willing to help for the purchase and upkeep bill? No? Yea… that’s how I feel about literally anyone else which is why I will most likely never be an owner of a show horse that I do not ride myself…I just don’t see the point. If Tully do, have at it but it doesn’t pull my heart strings or get me excited about ‘owning an Olympic horse’.
If she’s having issues with paying for this horse, how is she going to pay to keep and compete him?
That being said, just in case you think I’m nothing but an old curmudgeon: several years ago someone on here had a donation page set up to get to a Training 3 day, her sister pointed it out at one point, the donors looked to be all family and friends and she was $48 short so I put her over the edge.
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Putting up a gofundme is no different than asking for sponsors in general so if you oppose this, then you’d better get after most ULR’s here in the US and shame them for having owners. Where is your Boyd Martin is a terrible person because other people pay for his horse hobby post?
I don’t have a problem with Gofundme for something like this. If you don’t like it don’t donate.
But it seems crazy to me to want to punish someone with the loss of their horse because you don’t like that that they don’t have a day job, family money or a rich husband to support it.
No one is buying me a horse because i’m a bad rider. That doesn’t make me upset that some one might fork over $500 towards this girl keeping her horse. I have a really hard time understanding why other horse lovers have a hard time understanding why someone would be emotionally attached to their first big horse that they made themselves.
Signed NCRider, who over the years has contributed towards a crowdfunded documentary project on a topic she cares nothing about for a friend’s brother, bought Girl Scout cookies, wrapping paper, magazines, and all sorts of unwanted stuff to support her well-to-do friend’s children’s scouting careers, etc. etc and once contributed towards the vet expenses of a horse that she didn’t own.
No one says you have to give.
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Maybe if she puts up the money to buy him, it would put a huge dent in the funds she would have available to compete him at the FEI level. She might have money for one ut not the other.
If she’s having issues with paying for this horse, how is she going to pay to keep and compete him?
That being said, just in case you think I’m nothing but an old curmudgeon: several years ago someone on here had a donation page set up to get to a Training 3 day, her sister pointed it out at one point, the donors looked to be all family and friends and she was $48 short so I put her over the edge.
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Ah, but sponsorship is different. That’s a business relationship, and those companies get something out of it. They get signage, social media posts and influence. They also have contracts spelling out exactly what the rider is obligated to do in return for the free or discounted goods and/or monetary donation.
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Im not talking about corporate sponsorship and you know it. I’m talking about individual sponsorship of riders through financial support and horse ownership whether individually or through a syndicate.
Check out the entry lists for any four star-very few horses are rider owned
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That is also a business relationship. A GoFundME is purely donation.
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In general, actually, I think the idea of crowdfunding horse and rider teams is a positive development, over say people sending money to the USET and hoping it goes to a rider they like. We as a community can donate say the cost of spectating at one event to support a pair we’d like to see there - I’ve done some of that in the past and while there isn’t the same security to the rider as a solid wealthy single sponsor, there are advantages too.
I’ll agree though with Edre’s critique that the “Save My Horsey” writing rubs me the wrong way. No one is going to eat this horse and he’ll have a nice life even if he doesn’t stay with her. We can acknowledge that and still be interested in supporting the dream of this particular horse and rider combination. A successful crowdfund IME is a) realistic in its goals, b) comes with a real acknowledgement from the rider as to the heavy lifting required from the rider c) comes with some sort of plan for future sustainability if it’s a horse purchase and not just one competition, and d) honors the contributions of the people funding, small or large.
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There are even more privately sponsored horses. They are sponsored by those who like the sport, like horses and like the rider. No financial gain.
So I think you could call it a purely major donation.
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In what other professional industry is it commonly acceptable to ask for 100% free handouts to fund a business expense?
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BINGO! That is the reality of the world.
That is how life works. If you get a shot, you take it. But also, you work your ass off to make sure there is a plan B, C, D, in place even if you never need them. And if that is what she is doing, wonderful.
The reality is, nobody owes an upper level rider (or really any rider) a damn thing. There is no definable intrinsic value to what they do (e.g. something of inherent market value such as a billet of steel, a pine board) other than the meat price of the horse. Outside of that, horses are only worth what people like to think they are. A rider simply creates a perceived value based on transitory performance.
And that is the reality. Riders who aim for the upper levels have to be cognizant they may only ever have one shot at it and if they want more, they have to take it upon themselves to ensure it happens. The truth is, if the horse goes away, she will take up tomorrow alive and be able to eat and work and maybe have to do what she did with this horse with another.
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There is some gain to the sponsor, clearly or they wouldn’t do it.
Most people feel like they are contributing to the career of a rider they like. They get to be a part of the journey. Anyone who gets into event horse ownership at the upper levels thinking they’re going to make a profit is foolish. There is no “gain”. The only difference with crowdfunding is scale. It allows people who don’t know rich people to attempt to compete.
i cannot understand why people feel that gofundme is a charitable endeavor.
I know Sara as well and do think some are being overly negative. She’s a good person and a hard worker. I’m personally not a huge fan of crowd sourcing like this. But, it can be helpful when you have friends and family spread out who want to give a person a helping hand. I had a good friend who had a major medical issue…her sister set up a page to make it easier for friends and family to help out if they wanted. I’m sure Sara is not counting on crowdsourcing here to bail her out. But she has lots of friends spread out and I’m sure some asked her to set the page up so they can contribute. I have certainly given money to friends and family before. My feelings are that people can set these things up and I can choose whether or not I want to contribute. So I really don’t care. (Personally I dont contribute to these type of GFM but I don’t care if someone else does).
I would totally expect she is exploring syndication and other ownership options. And if she can’t make it work…she will sell her horse just like most horse professionals do. Many have had to sell their top horses because that is how you run a horse business but it can be a tough balance. Those top horses are also how you make a name for yourself too and gain experience. It sucks but that is the business.
I chose to leave the horse world as my primary business because I personally get attached to some of my horses and didn’t want to always have to sell. But before I earned a paycheck out side of horses, every horse was always for sale (now it’s just most are for sale and I can be even more choosy to whom). I hope she is able to raise a syndicate and continue on with this horse but if she has to sell him…I’m sure she will also do just fine. It just may take some time before she is at this level again.
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Uh, no, I didn’t know it or else I wouldn’t have said it. Unwad the panties. Geez.
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