I have yet to show in a rated show, but I would expect that this sort of conduct should at least result in a sternly written warning letter (placing it “on the record” to support future sanctions should it recur).
2 Likes
Money can’t buy you class. Or talent apparently.
7 Likes
You expressed my thoughts precisely. I realize there may be exceptions, but for most riders who are in the AA division at a show of that caliber (and costliness), the option to purchase a more suitable mount is available.
7 Likes
As of the other day, it was for sale on Big Eq so I would assume she’s already trying to.
2 Likes
i dont think the issue should be this exact rider but the issue of when an incident goes up the ladder of rule violation and sanction. That the judge called it out is significant.
Who decides and what is their criteria?
Is this “known” rider given a better shake than someone like myself from nowhere? Would a lower level show have been treated differently from a big name show. Does show management get a break here as well?
3 Likes
I have seen riders ejected and trainers banned from show grounds on the local schooling show circuit for similar offenses.
USEF needs to get their act together.
17 Likes
I don’t think anyone thinks the behavior is in anyway acceptable- or at least I hope not- and I hope the rider is not abusive to her horses and that she learns a lesson from this- we can never control how we feel but we can control how we act. We have all made mistakes, behaved badly, regrettably, etc. I for one have learned lessons that I hope have made me a better person but also a more compassionate and forgiving one- and not so judgmental and hypocritical- All of us are so lucky to be involved in horses- we should always remember that.
3 Likes
She was literally dragging him. I expect better horse handling from my totally non horsey husband.
If you can’t control your emotions, horseback riding is not the sport for you. Maybe running would be good? She could throw as many tantrums as she wanted and not risk hurting anyone or anything but herself.
16 Likes
I see someone doing something incredibly stupid in the heat of the moment.
I know I’ve done REALLY stupid things in the heat of the moment. Maybe not this but really very stupid.
Doesn’t mean she’s a monster, just means that she probably needs someone to sit her butt down and tell her to get her sh*t together.
She doesn’t need this world-wide pile on and I agree that it’s weird that this is being publicized to this level considering the rider is an amateur. If some soccer mom makes a total jerk out of herself at a local game - is ESPN going to pick it up as an example of the decay of ethics in the sport? Probably not. I certainly hope not.
If this was a professional trainer I say - yeah make hell rain down - this is probably an example of the systemic abuse within the sport. An amateur who probably waits on the mounting block for her horse? Come on.
And sorry, ya’ll are pearl clutching just a bit. I’ve seen WAY worse stuff than this happening in the warm-up ring of shows in front of everyone (to be fair not USEF or USDF but recognized within other associations). I’ve seen WAY worse stuff happening quietly in private indoor arenas or back aisles.
If you think you’re going to “solve” humane issues in the sport by carding an amateur who did something incredibly stupid in the heat of the moment then I think you’re totally on the wrong track.
Though I will say that those who have the most to gain by keeping the REAL abuse on the down-low will be more than happy to let her take the heat off them.
And isn’t that what we learned earlier this year? Amateurs really are the punching bags of the sport?
Edited to clarify: I do think she should have been sanctioned but I don’t think it would have had the epic importance that people are suggesting.
14 Likes
At least for me, it appears the horse knew what was coming. I think that much of the huge reaction is from that as well as how the steward handled the situation or seemed to not handle it If the USEF actually had a good track record with abuses, drugging etc I think people would be angry still, but the anger wouldn’t be coming from two places.
I also think people should quit saying she’s a bad rider because she fell off. I for one have fallen off so to speak trying to get on:o We have all had those moments. Her ability, how dirty or not dirty her horse is, is not the issue. Knee jerk reaction to kick the horse is. The bigger issue IMO too is the steward seemingly saying “nothing to see here.”
8 Likes
They are indeed in the moral majority with respect to what they think should be done. That’s because sharing an opinion with others is all it takes to join the moral majority; there’s no membership requirement of non-hypocrisy. Rather, whether or not you walk the walk is a separate issue.
The part that bothers me is not whether or not the rider can ride; she might still be angry at the horse for his performance, whether or not she stayed on. It doesn’t bother me that this kind of thing might get done in private or has been done by others. Heck, I know everyone is has times they loose their cool and do things of which they are ashamed.
What does bother me about such a public temper tantrum is that it represents lack of self-control on the rider’s part. And that being done by an adult in a hobby competition suggests that the usual social norms that constrain the rest of us are believed not to apply to this rider. In other words, if you are pissed-- anywhere, anytime, your emotions take precedence over all else. That’s certainly an ethical problem for riding horses. But to me, it’s a larger indication of character. Part of what we learn in being around horses is that sense of justice and self-control it takes to temper our emotions when animals do things to make us mad. That’s a valuable and ecumenical skill that I, for one, have taken into all spheres of my life. If I can do it, anyone can. And I’m not willing to co-sign petulance and revenge taken toward an animal by any adult.
17 Likes
This is textbook Veronica DiAngelo behavior.
For all those mentioning Yellow Cards: those are and eventing/FEI thing that don’t exist in Hunters. Putting the specifics of this incident aside, maybe the fallout from it can be that something like that system should be implemented for hunters and other non-FEI competitions, because as far as I know, there’s not really any system of tracking things like this currently.
19 Likes
I think it strikes a nerve since what happens behind closed doors is likely much worse. The lack of appropriate discipline after the incident was reported is equally concerning. What is the point of rules if they are not enforced? Or do only poor people have to play by the rules? That is the reason I support the publicity. She didn’t face any consequences, so social justice is being served. And it is often a lot harsher in this internet era.
Also, amateur doesn’t really indicate experience level. She is just not getting paid to ride. But she is riding horses worth more than most houses, and has had (probably based on her age) decades of the best training, lessons, and horses that money can buy. She has had every advantage. And I think that is the problem. Most amateurs have or currently do muck stalls, tack their horses, exercise their own horses (either lunging or those long slow hacks that many pros pimp out so they can focus on the fun stuff), but I would be shocked if she has ever picked out a hoof. And I would put money on the fact that she has never shoveled a pile of horse poop into a wheelbarrow.
You see horses different when you care for them yourself. You bond at a different level and know them so much better. I wouldn’t trade my experience with my horse for all of her daddy’s money.
12 Likes
Wow, girl looses temper at show and does something she shouldn’t have. Horse not injured. Everything on video. Was she wrong? Yup. Will I just go on about my day? Yup. Better things to spend my time on.
9 Likes
I believe stewards at any USEF show can issue yellow cards. Although I think they are more widely used in eventing (and maybe have more “teeth”?), but I do know someone who got a yellow card for very unsafe golf cart driving at a USEF show.
From the USEF general rules:
GR1036 Yellow Warning Card - Stewards and Technical Delegates
- A Yellow Warning Card may be issued by a Steward, Technical Delegate, or Competition Official working in any of these capacities at the competition to any competitor, spectator or participant for improper conduct, or for noncompliance with the rules, provided the issuer considers the conduct not severe enough to cause the issuer to file formal Charges pursuant to GR604.
5 Likes
This feels like a commentary on Miss Johnson’s privilege. Do we know she’s never mucked a stall? I mean, she probably never HAD to, but maybe she did? She could be doing any number of other activities to climb the social ladder, but does this. I’ve known a few kids with very little who rode every horse they could/cleaned stalls, etc, that still put winning above the welfare of the animal - their wealth and privilege had no bearing on their overall character and concern for the horse.
Imagine if it were some scrappy kid who worked their way up with an OTTB and was also known to train mustangs, then pushed the horse beyond measure in competition, and when the horse clumsily stumbled across a fence and dumped her, she slapped the ground then threw the reins at a groom at the end of a tough XC course in England, would there be a similar outcry? Wait…
5 Likes
And that thought pattern is pretty much what is wrong with social media in a case like this. You can say whatever you want about whatever you want despite the way you are actually treating real life animals and people. And many people I see wagging their virtual finger at this woman are guilty of being just as crappy to the animals and people in their lives.
4 Likes
Is that why you need an alter to post this?
9 Likes
Well, ok. But people bitching on social media didn’t get here by themselves. And whether or not they have committed the same sin or worse under cover of anonymity isn’t the point. Rather, the point is that this rider in a very public space and the governing body of the sport didn’t to establish a bright line about what none of us should be doing to horses…whether anyone is watching or not.
Had that been done, I’ll bet this would have gone away quietly.
9 Likes
I can definitely see the point you are making. Honestly my mind went straight to “wow what a spoiled rich B*” based on her temper tantrum, before I even read the article and saw the name. That just added fuel to my fire of anger towards her. That was just so inappropriate. It is easier for me to blame her money than think that maybe some people are just nasty and think it is ok to lash out at animals.
My apologies for the digression.
4 Likes
