Halter (horse show) Puns

I have been showing under saddle for 9 years now, I’m training my own horse now without a trainer and just to get my hunter prospect ready to the new atmosphere at a show I’m going to show him in halter classes, more specifically saddle type. I have no idea where to begin so if anyone does show in halter saddle type please comment if you don’t mind me asking questions!

My background: pro hunter/jumper rider & trainer for the past decade. 2 years ago I switched careers due to burn out from this industry and frustration with rampant ethical dilemmas when it comes to competing and sales. Nevertheless, I’m a lifer.

I’m still involved with a handful of clients and finally enough time to focus on my own riding and horse. I also feel major freedom- I no longer depend on assimilating to the status quo in order to appease clients who pay my bills. I can now advocate for what I think is right with no fear of consequences to my livelihood, which is so important to me, because I think that there’s a A LOT wrong. I come across archaic and traumatic “coaching methods” too often, I constantly find customers who had been ignorantly led to purchase a horse not for for them, I meet too many associates who do not know how to conduct professional and authentic business practices. There are so many snakes in this industry who think that that’s what this business is about- snaking people. The industry is rampant with people who woke up and decided to be a trainer, and the results are insulting to the professionals who know how to provide excellent business, practice and care, who are far and few between. I digress. Carrying on to my point…

I bought my horse as a promising yearling. She has now recently turned 4, has been undersaddle less than 30 times, and despite everything I advocate for, I still feel this deeply imbedded voice in my head telling me we are behind due to the structure of the show world.

Deep down I know my mare is not ready to be pushed. But that in itself brings up so many other questions for me- Having worked with my mare since she was a yearling (this is the first time I’ve trained a horse from being halter broken to broken under saddle), I see how immature she is. But that goes against the 4 year olds I’ve imported, who were promising young hunters, but are now broken school horses as 9 year olds.

But going back to my mare, she is just now starting to mature enough to up her work load and introduce some actual work to under saddle time. But I’m still hesitant, it still feels too soon.

But what about those 4 yr old hunter classes? Where apparently she should already be jumping 2’6”? And the 5 yr olds?!

With our timeline, it’ll be atleast another year before I start introducing her to schooling shows, let alone rated shows!

I don’t really know what I’m looking for. Validation perhaps? She is a very promisi

Otherwise we would be seeing a lot more of something…

The eighth commandment of the ten commandments is “Thou shalt not steal". This would imply that stealing is a sin. Therefore if Jesus stole a horse, then Jesus sinned and was not without sin when he died and could not be the Messiah as promised by the Jewish god in the old testament.

As a Latina bi woman…the wokeness in this show is awful and I’m so glad everyone hates it as much as I do. It’s not clever or subtle, it just beats you on the head with a very shallow message and no real meaning behind any of it. It’s all performatjve and forced and I can’t stand it. When that character in Miranda’s class said “someone’s quick with the pronouns” I immediately was turned off. And I can’t stand Che. They are too much. And that stand up scene was torture, felt more like a speech than a comedy set. Miranda being gay or bi I think wouldn’t make sense considering they already explored this topic??? And I would hate to see her and Steve separate after everything they’ve been through! It just feels like a slap in the face to see this relationship fall apart again after rooting for them for so long I don’t understand this angle they’re doing with her. Charlotte and Carrie aren’t any better. And what they did with Samantha got so under my skin, considering how much of a fan favorite she was. Also…idk if it’s just me. But they don’t talk about clothes and fashion and things like that and that was kinda something I enjoy about the show. Relationship and fashion and sex and…those topics just seem to take a backseat to the wokeness and it doesn’t feel like the same show anymore. I know I’m not saying anything new, but I was kinda excited to see these characters again and now they’re ruined. I wish Hollywood would stop with its performative activism, it’s more insulting than anything

I'm focusing on the wheel behind Xür, it shows the enemy races but I don't recognise the one at the top.

https://imgur.com/a/QCf6NV7

It shows Vex, Fallen, Hive, Taken.

There isn't any Cabal symbol shown, it doesn't look like Red Legion unless it's a different Blue Legion/Caiatl's fleet but I'm assuming Caiatl's Fleet's symbol is the Season of the Chosen symbol.

[EDIT] I'm a fool, the top one is Cabal meaning the missing one is Scorn

[EDIT 2] I'm also being told this is the new 6 man activity not the Dungeon

I’ve always loved hearing horse show names! Some are so regal, while some may sound like stripper names… I may or may not be talking about my sweet, darling childhood pony’s show name. I’d love hear some of your favourite show names, whether cool- or silly-sounding, and whether you heard it somewhere or made it up yourself.

For me, I would have changed my childhood pony’s show name. Her name was Destiny and her show name was “Exotic Destiny”… I’m not kidding. We used Destiny for shows. I would have loved to change her name to something that better fits her personality, though I never did.

Joe is obviously tip freaking top IMO, telling that horse to sit for a treat on his FS date 🤣 I’m not lying though. Between that interaction, him with the baby cows, and his dairy-farm-owning grandparents, Joe is my top pick. He needs to model some Carhartt jackets for the Tractor Supply STAT.

Bottom of the list is Tyler C. The man couldn’t sit on a horse. And his palpable fear of horses is, sadly, a turn off. He’s the guy you leave holding the lead rope for a quick sec and find your horse has dragged him halfway across the farm to a favorite patch of grass.

Honorable mention goes to Matt James, who, prior to his stint as lead, posted a pic of him cantering on a lil palomino QH. Neither he nor the horse looked uncomfortable IIRC, and that’s an accomplishment for a 6’6” guy on a stock horse. Way to go Matt!

This has been driving me crazy for the past week. Within the last month I watched either a movie or show where it either takes place in the 1960's or there's a flashback / time travel to the 1960's. I just remember there is a wife speaking to (I think) the main character and behind her in the background her husband is watching TV and starts laughing and yells to her about a talking horse (clearly talking about the sitcom Mr. Ed, also why I'm assuming at least this one scene takes place in the 60's). I've been watching a ton of Christmas movies on different platforms so I can't remember what genre or time period the movie is from, other than it had to be at least the 90's but could be much more recent. Pretty sure it was a comedy though.

I know I didn't imagine it because about a week ago my 9 year old daughter asked me what was that movie where they guy yells to his wife about the talking horse on TV. I instantly remembered the scene in my head and knew it was in something we'd recently watched. I can't say for sure if it was a kid's movie / show, It's possible my daughter wasn't watching it with me but just happened to walk in the room at that particular part.

The amount of time they spend showcasing horses spinning in circles and putting the brakes on is beginning to piss me off. I love the tv show but let up on the horse show…….

I’ve noticed a trend on this subreddit of misinformation about how some equestrian sports (specifically, hunters and equitation) are judged being shared and often very highly upvoted. I’m probably setting myself up for a deluge of downvotes :), but I bet that there are people out there who would be interested in hearing from someone who has formal training as a judge, so I’m making this post to clear up the misinformation I’ve seen.

So people know that I’m not totally pulling this information out of my ass, I have attended USEF judges trainings on both coasts of the US, have an apprentice judge’s card, have learner judged with some of the top judges in the sport, and have been involved as a competitor in the hunters, equitation and jumpers at A/AA shows for about two decades.

There are specific, clear, and public rules for the judging of both hunters and equitation. The fact that we have rules and they are how the classes are judged is clearly evident in the fact that observers can predict how a class will be placed. If there were no rules or the judges didn’t follow them, random observers would have no way to accurately predict how a class will be placed, but repeatedly spectators are able to tell who will place where.

The hunters are looking for a horse with nice bascule over the jumps, a good front end, who jumps clean and straight over the jumps. A horse who moves with a long stride with minimal knee action is preferred and judges wants to see a horse meet all the jumps nicely out of stride, either land their leads or cleanly change leads, be able to make the numbers in the lines, and keep a consistent pace around the course. You are not judged on your clothes or tack or the horse’s color or breeding. I’ve sat with judges, learner judging, as they’ve noted they don’t like certain fashion trends and then have given the rider wearing that trend first when the rider was the best in the class. No judge I’ve ever learned from has ever said clothes or trends are a criteria for judging or has ever used it as such.

The equitation is judged on the rider’s form and ability to get a good performance out of their horse. Ideally, you want to see a rider with their shoulder hip and heel in alignment, weight in their heel, and an elastic contact with the bit. A good ride will show a horse being ridden into contact, using themselves well through their backs, finding the jumps out of stride and demonstrating an ability to ride an efficient track. Riders and tr

Edit: I just wanted to say thank you to all of you for your wonderful advice! I’m shocked to tell you that I placed 2nd in pleasure, 1st in w/t equitation, and 3rd in w/t/c equitation! Very grateful for this community… your tips about spending time with your horse, bringing snacks, and remembering it’s supposed to be fun were all KEY. ALSO….whoever it was that said to show the judges you’re having a good time, it really helped!

I’m an adult beginner and I’m really nervous! Originally I was going to do w/t/c AND x rails, but I actually fell over a jump and got a concussion on Monday, so we are skipping the x rails for safety purposes. I’m really nervous about dumb details (do I wear show clothes to the venue or change there?) etc. I’d appreciate any tips you have!