"Schoolmaster"-Type Pricing?

[bouncytrot]

@skrosenthal

Yup. Lauren Sprieser did a snippet last weekend for her blog about that issue, and I think that’s a totally plausible explanation. Horses in that mid-teens but competitive and amateur friendly range are always going to be rare and expensive, but they do seem to be even more so than usual rn.

Her post nailed exactly what I had been thinking for a while, about us having the double whammy of fewer of-age horses available (due to the recession) and a higher number of people wanting to buy horses (due to Covid ultimately giving white collar professionals more free time and disposable income).

I am no economist but I suspect since the market is so so hot right now mixed with people having more time on their hands due to Covid, we are likely going to see a spike in horses foaled in 2020 onwards. Maybe if we can wait another 4-6 years, we’ll see more of a buyers’ market for horse sales? Maybe wishful thinking but one can hope…

[Arlomine]

I don’t think you will find that perception in dressage. People understand the value of schoolmasters.

[lorilu]

The Jockey Club (and, I believe, some breeds/registries) consider all horses’ birthdays to be Jan 1. Additionally, this holds for Materiale classes through USDF/USEF: " Horses must be at least 36 months of age to participate in materiale classes. For competition purposes, the age of a horse is considered to be one-year-old on the first day of January following the actual date of foaling (USEF GR102)."

[skrosenthal]

Just to circle back on this thread, the aforementioned late-teens schoolmaster came home about two weeks ago, and while I know the honeymoon will end eventually, I am pretty sure this is the best decision I have ever made in my horsegoing life. I am learning so much, and trying so many new things, and I feel better about my riding (and that my calling to this new discipline was not, in fact, a wrong number) than I ever have. Obviously there’s a million things that could go wrong that might not go wrong with a youngster, but…this was definitely the right choice for where I am at.

[BigMama1]

I’m so happy to hear that! There are a million things that can go wrong with a young horse too. Enjoy everything you new partner can teach you!