Is there a dollar amount where you draw the line where stealing something is not OK anymore, or is there some other deciding factor?
I am not outraged (to use your word), just trying to figure out how people decide which rules like the VIP tent are followed and which are not.
They catch a few here and there. The odds of getting caught are actually pretty slim.
WellâŠwhen everybody on the property knows they are testing? Lots of âbruised feetâ and âspiked a low tempâ scratches as well as some lower scores then usual.
And yes, I have been tested many times since the â70s and am a lifetime member so know how it works. Also show non rated and breed shows and seen those snakes hiding under the rocks.
My feeling on the VIP tent is why is this not a show management issue? Why does the federation have to step in beyond putting that person on the same list as those who donât make good on their entry fees? This is a financial discussion, not an abuse of minors or horses.
Sneaking into the VIP tent probably financially impacts show management less that chasing after bad pay on entries, but Iâve never met someone who puts that on the same level as horse abuse, regardless of the dollars involved.
Oh, I am in no way saying that I agree that sneaking into the VIP tent is the same as so many other things that have been discussed.
I am just asking about the tangent where people are saying that everyone does it and it is OK.
Iâve been at shows when there is news that the testers are there and thereâs a mass exodus of people scratching and leaving.
Is something wrong with me? Iâve never snuck into a VIP tent. I donât care whatâs happening in a VIP tent. If I want to go into a tent or other ticketed place, I buy a ticket. But for the most part I donât spare one second of space in my brain to what people are doing in VIP tents. And now I feel like an oddball because apparently everyone sneaks into VIP tents. LOL.
I am just as odd.
I never gave the contents of the VIP tent any thought and then I am told in this thread that everyone sneaks in.
If only Iâd known. I always look with longing at the Tbird VIP and Termal VIP areas. Never had the wherewithal to actually go in. Darn!
Just to add perspective - I lodged a formal complaint several years ago. I was contacted (all parties involved were interviewed). I didnât think a fine was actually needed, IMO, I thought that the person just needed to be alerted and made aware that a particular behavior was being called out as having potentially dangerous impact to humans interacting with equines affected by this personâs behavior.
After speaking to the party against whom the complaint was lodged (and their verbal runaround) the person was actually fined. So I feel the process worked for us, here.
I fully support holding horse abusers accountable with serious consequences, and Iâm glad that GH838 addresses this by outlining a range of offenses, even if itâs not an exhaustive list. That said, while I donât know all the details of whatâs being considered âassaultâ in this case, I did see that the person in question cooperated with the investigation. The claim about sneaking into a VIP tent honestly seems minorâgrabbing a few hors dâoeuvres at an event 
like that would typically result in a warning and hand slap.
However, the assault portion is a completely different matter. Regardless of the circumstances, itâs a serious accusation that implies physical harm or threatening behavior. Even if the intent wasnât malicious, the legal and reputational consequences of such a charge can be severe. Iâm guessing formal charges werenât filed?
People need to be held accountable across the board for any infractionsâconsistency is important. That said, while the penalty in this case appears to be the same as for horse abuse, itâs hard to know how to differentiate the severity of discipline without understanding all the facts. Assault is a serious, and even though we donât know exactly what happened here, the implications are significant. Itâs difficult to compare that directly to an act of animal abuse, but both deserve meaningful consequences. The key is ensuring that the disciplinary actions reflect the actual behavior and contextânot just the label of the charge.
The rule she violated by not just sneaking into the tent, but the assault portion:
GR702.1.D d. Acting or inciting or permitting any other to act in a manner contrary to the rules of the Federation, or in a manner deemed improper, unethical, dishonest, unsportsmanlike or intemperate, or prejudicial to the best interests of the sport and the Federation.
f. Physical assault upon a person and/or cruelty to a horse as defined in GR839.
I donât disagree, but the conversation had devolved into a discussion of the moral line related to sneaking into the VIP tent. I mean there is one, but itâs a financial crime from the perspective of the rules. Assault is a charge irrespective of the VIP tent even if that might have been the underlying cause⊠or maybe the people involved had history and the VIP tent was just an innocent bystander, kind of a wrong place, wrong time tent. 
Typical COTH thread to devolve 
. I wasnât arguing with you, just using your sentence to springboard on some upthread comments.
And yet testers are at WEF every single week.
That is good to hearâŠstill donât see them that often at the average rated show.
The VIP tent incident seemed fairly well explained (to me anyway) in the back of the magazine and on the website.
It was a weird situation (that went well past helping themselves to cocktail sausages) caused by a member of the board of the Oregon Dressage Society. The behavior was not in anyway OK and probably wouldnât have ended with anything but a warning if not for the escalations made by the woman who was penalized.
Itâs not a good idea to rip off sponsors, and have people who pay the required (usually exorbitant) fee to eat and drink there, feel as if theyâre in a bar that requires bouncers, and that seems to be what happened.
Of course itâs not as serious an issue to most of us as horse abuse is, but I can understand why USEF did what they did. The comparative fines? Who knows how USEF decides what amount to fine people. They have guidelines and discretion.
Iâm glad that they are cracking down on bad behavior as well as horse abuse. People with that sense of entitlement can really ruin everyoneâs show experience, VIP tent or not.
So your solution is what? For USEF to stop drug testing altogether?
Donât think thatâs what I said. I think they should be testing more and more people should be getting set down for it. As it is itâs a paper tiger and everybody knows it.
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