After riding my two boys on Saturday, I headed to the KY state fair for some weirdo ... umm "people" watching and best of all - stake night at the World's Grand Championship saddlebred show.
I have not been to this show since I was a teen, but I still have friends who go and my old trainers (who used to have Morgans but switched to ASBs) were also there. He made sure to poke fun of me and my dressage riding. He said the only reason women ride dressage and do "that sitting trot" is because, and I quote him, "their husbands are too old and tired." I had a good laugh, but secretly wanted to dare him to a sitting-trot challenge. haha.
It is a different world than dressage, that is for sure. Even though I grew up in this world, now that I have been an outsider for so long, some of it really blows my mind. I watch these people ride and think "Some dressage could really help you solve that problem!" ... like when your horse is going sideways down the rail, or has to be run into the canter. Things like that. But then I remember it's not WRONG riding, it's just different. And I really do miss it.
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If your horse tosses a shoe during the class, they stop the class for you and you have 5 minutes for the farrier to tack it back on. This pair excused themselves instead. In my experience, this usually means their shoe was illegal (weight or length of toe).
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The show was a blast. So many nice horses ... EXPENSIVE horses. The saddlebreds are doing something right. They draw a GREAT crowd - and charge you to get in! And they draw great entries and it is competitive. People are not afraid to get beat here, like in some other breeds and sports. Even if you get a 5th place, you may still bring home a couple grand. However, in order to even have a chance in hell at winning at a show like this, you are looking at AT LEAST a 6-figure horse. Not joking. And then the cost to board, train, show ... I mean I would have to marry an extremely filthy rich doctor or something. The likes of Carson Kressley and William Shatner also exhibit and own saddlebreds. The sport is all about the show, that is for sure.
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| At the end of each championship or "stake" class, they strip the horses of the saddles. Supposedly, the horses are also judged on conformation but I think it's just tradition. |
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| Ladies 3-gaited world's champion |
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| Carson Kressley |
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| Carson shows Saddlebreds and was of course dressed to the 9s. |
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| My jaw hit the ground when I saw this guy in a HELMET. This is very rare in this sport (I never wore a helmet as a kid when I rode my show horse). I wanted to shake this guy's hand! |
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| One of the nicest horses I saw all evening. |
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| William Shatner was driving around in his golf cart. |
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| Beautiful Freedom Hall. The shavings are dyed green. |
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| Ringmasters |
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Roadster pony
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Sorry for the crappy, blurry photos. One day I'll actually learn how to use my camera indoors. Ha.
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One of my mom's friends is really big into Saddlebreds. I don't think she showed her own horse this year though. Glad you had fun!
ReplyDeleteVery cool and thank you for explaining some of the stuff. Our BO used to show Saddlebreds big time with Michael Craghead. Saddleseat is very interesting outside the controversy.
ReplyDeleteI love watching saddlebreds. Sure it's different, but it's also kind of magical.
ReplyDeleteTaking a couple of saddleseat lessons is on my bucket list. Just wish that they weren't so dang expensive!
ReplyDeleteLooks like a fun night! I'm not a big fan of saddlebreds but then there are others who don't love TB's like I do haha!
ReplyDeleteI''ve met some show saddlebreds lately and HOLY WOW are they expensive. Never seen them go the way they're supposed to, but I'm sure they're fancy. Thanks for the cool pics. :)
ReplyDeleteWow, I knew Saddlebred shows were fancy but I had no idea! Kind of makes me want to go to one now, lol. Thanks for the pics, even with the blur :)
ReplyDeleteLooks like a fun show! And celebrity spotting makes it even better :)
ReplyDeleteThere were always a couple of Saddlebreds at the local county
4-H fair when my daughter was in it, but I have never been to a big time show and watched them. Lovely horses!
Thanks for this post on a world I know very little about. I see them every year at the Hoosier Horse Fair and marvel at the way they keep their tails and the way they go. I even got to watch the saddleseat clinic this year, which was MINDBOGGLING! Totally different world.
ReplyDeleteJust incredible! I love how you put it, that it wasn't better or worse, just different. I do love a nice Saddle bred horse, however nothing compares to a nice Morgan :) ;)
ReplyDeleteWow. Very interesting. I like when a discipline really puts on a show and manages to draw the crowd and make people really want to be there. I know very little about Saddlebreds so this was really interesting!
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