# Top Level Show Horse - Low Level Rider



## CLaPorte432 (Jan 3, 2012)

I think jealousy plays a major role here. I dont find anything wrong with it as long as the horse is capable of keeping his brain with a child. And the parents make sure their child is capable of handling the horse.

Some children just have natural talent.

Fallon Taylor, a barrel racer, had a 5 year old student that was just an amazing little rider. This girl, at 5 years old, was running 1st division times. Her parents put major bucks into her horses. They are $30,000 horses...each. but she was a good enough rider to have that kind of horse. Most kids wouldnt have that until they are in their teens to adulthood.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## bsms (Dec 31, 2010)

CLaPorte432 said:


> ...They are $30,000 horses...each. but she was a good enough rider to have that kind of horse. Most kids wouldnt have that until they are in their teens to adulthood.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


I dunno...I couldn't afford that and I'm in my 50s.

I'd guess it is frustration. If the riders are equal in ability, and one is on a $30,000 horse and one is on a $1,000 horse she trained herself, who is most likely to win?

I'm not very sympathetic myself, tho. I have almost no depth perception. Wanna guess what type of athlete I was in high school? Here's a hint - when picking teams, a guy with a broken arm was once picked ahead of me. No depth perception means no ability at all in sports involving throwing, catching, etc.

And while I would have loved just to OWN horses as a teen, it wasn't going to happen. At 50, I was reluctant because of the cost. So I tend to think anyone who has the option of riding horses in their teens is lucky, and shouldn't be upset because they can't afford superhorses for their competitions...:? 

Might as well learn early: Life is not fair. Desire doesn't equal results. Disney didn't get rich making films about how life really works. Rich people have more than average people. That is what defines them as rich.

You can count your blessings, or complain. It is an individual choice, but most find life works better with the former than the latter.


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## oh vair oh (Mar 27, 2012)

What I say may not have to do with horses and kids, but the price of "fancy" horses in general...

In my opinion, you get what you pay for. For my personal experience:

I bought my first western pleasure gelding for $7500, which I consider "mid price range". I trained him myself without the help of a trainer and we got top 5 in Congress, but nothing higher than that. He was a great little horse and one who I really "transformed" through good training, but he had faults. He had no good breeding, was very long in the back which made it hard for him to collect, thick neck, and a weak stifle. Terrible flaws? No way, and at 12 years old we sold him as a push-button horse to some novices for $5k. 

Now I have a weanling who has been appraised for roughly $10-12k, and you can see the immediate differences. She has great breeding, perfect pencil neck, great proportions, excellent topline, and a nice hindquarters. After I put some good training on her and take her to shows, I expect her to be an expensive, "fancy" horse. I couldn't go out and buy one of her without breeding it, because it was cheaper to pay $5k to breed. But when I look at her, all I see is quality. And unlike my first horse, many of the conformational problems will not be there. She will be able to collect easier and compete in multiple events.

I don't see anything wrong with a "top level" horse. If you want to win, you need to have the complete package - breeding, conformation, and talent. That costs money. That isn't to say you don't stand a chance on a lesser horse, but I believe the value is really there. I'm sorry it's difficult to afford, I was fortunate enough to be able to breed my dream horse because I would not be able to purchase one like her. But I have always believed that horse showing is a rich man's sport. But that isn't to say you can't have fun at the same time!

I also don't like this misconception that people who have expensive horses don't train them themselves. I certainly do, I wouldn't want anyone else to touch my expensive horse!


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## ~*~anebel~*~ (Aug 21, 2008)

I think there is a stigma attached to people that buy expensive horses and I see a lot of discrimination against it on this board.

I'm casually looking for my next horse and am only looking at 3 and under as I can't afford anything that is as talented as I would like that is any older. A horse showing promise for international level competitions that is 5 years old is already selling for 6 figures. A horse that can pack a little kid around the 1.10m is going to be at least $200,000. A school master, confirmed at international level GP and still sound enough to compete starts at $300,000 if they are a tough ride or not fancy, and it goes way up from there. And I say if you have the money - why not?? 
My only motivation (other than money) to buy a young horse and train it up is that I want to learn how to do that for a long-term basis, and I enjoy training my horses and watching them develop. If I just wanted to compete at the upper levels with a push button horse, and went out and bought said push button horse, then there is nothing wrong with that. I have gone out on my locally bred horse that I bought as a prospect and still can win stuff against people on their imported upper level horses, that's not the issue. There is a shortage in NA of well trained, nice, upper level horses and the price reflects that - so trainers that can produce them and sell them successfully make money, in Europe and NA. It's all about supply and demand and if people with money are making the demand high - the price goes up. 
Do you judge someone for buying a Ferrari instead of a Miata because they "could have just tuned up and added parts to the Miata" to make it "equal or better to the Ferrari"??? It may be true, but if you have enough money in the bank for the Ferrari, why would you bother to tinker with the Miata?

I do agree with oh vair oh - you do get what you pay for in horses.


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## kitten_Val (Apr 25, 2007)

I don't see anything wrong at all with buying an expensive well-trained horse as long as you can afford it. All I say to myself is how lucky the person is to afford to buy such a horse (and then keep in nice place). No jealousy. 

I also don't see it as something bad when low level rider gets a nice expensive horse as long as the rider is serious about learning and progressing. 

However I don't see the point of throwing bunch of money into expensive horse so you (or your beginner kid) just look "cool" or feel superior. It doesn't make me mad or jealous, but I think it's stupid. With that being said it's not my business, so I wouldn't comment to that person.


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## MyBoyPuck (Mar 27, 2009)

All I know is there a barn near me that is all rich folks, very expensive horses. I have yet to see a kid there that can steer no less ride, so yes, while it's nice to have a fancy horse, you still have to ride it well. I think for the most part, the rider's have paid their training dues like the rest of us.


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## Casey02 (Sep 20, 2011)

Lets put it this way....I hope they know they are lucky


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## Corazon Lock (Dec 26, 2011)

I always like to think that you should buy a horse in accordance to your level. If you're an advanced beginner rider and you want to buy a top-level jumper, it's kind of a waste on both sides. You will pay a lot of money for a horse that you won't be able to get your money's worth out of for years because you won't be showing at that level, and not every horse out there is talented - so why waste the talent? It would be much cheaper to buy a horse a little ahead of your level for room to grow - besides, a top level horse has a lot of "buttons" - buttons a learning rider may not know how to push. 

When the situation does arise, I think it is silly for people to buy an expensive horse to just win all of the classes. It's a much better feeling and there's much better horsemanship overall if you win a class on a horse that you worked with - because you put the tons of work in, not because you bought the horse that way. It makes riding much more satisfying. You will learn more as a rider if you work with horses that aren't "perfect" - and you can't tell me that the horses at the top are perfect. Look at the Olympians right now - for the jumping and eventing, they have to have spirited horses to finish the event. Those horses need fire, and it takes a lot of finesse to control fire. 

If you're lucky enough to have an expensive horse, that's great. But I think it's much better to work with a horse at your level that has a few quirks. Like I said, it makes your riding better. And isn't learning what it's all about?


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## EKH15 (Jul 27, 2012)

I just don't see why any of this matters. They win they win, they loose they loose. You have a nice horse you dont have a nice horse. Seriously people. Give it a break.


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## .Delete. (Jan 7, 2008)

There is alot of grey area around buying according to your level of riding. I think it all depends on what you want to do and how well you want to do. For example, i know a girl who is a very green rider who's mother spent 45k on a older several time world champion horse. She wants to win big on the QH circuit and is willing to spend the money to get there. Then there are the trainers who will spend 20-50k on a yearling based on potential and train it themselves.


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## Golden Horse (Feb 20, 2010)

You could buy me Totilas and I would still suck.

You can't totally buy success in the equine world, because the horse is only half of the partnership, and rider ability certainly comes into play. This is a quote from another board, discussing the best horse you have ever ridden



> I swear if he could speak he'd have said something like, "Okay, I have no idea what you want so let's do this alphabetically. Canter? No? Passage? No? Piaffe? No? Okay, I got nothing."


Kind of summed it up for me:lol::lol:


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## soenjer55 (Dec 4, 2011)

The horse world is just as judgmental of a 30,000 dollar horse as it is a 500 dollar horse, really. But it's true that you get what you pay for- sometimes someone will luck out, but the rule stands. Quality is money. And if you have the money that you earned, you have the right to spend it how you want. 

If a girl rides a top-level horse in a beginner's class, and the only reason she wins is because of the horse, I can see being angry. But if she won because she's a good rider, get over it. This "Slighted Underdog" mentality of a lot of equestrians grates on my nerves... I'm not saying judges can't be biased, and I'm not saying you can't be a good rider if your horse is under 10,000 dollars- but if the rider is truly good, look past your jealousy or your prejudices and acknowledge that. An expensive horse doesn't change talent or hard work, and neither does an inexpensive horse. The horse world is incredibly biased and judgmental...

And OT, but 5 years old, on a 30,000 dollar horse, riding 1-D barrels? I wouldn't care how talented my kid was, 5 is way too young in my eyes to even be on their own- if it's talent, it's not going anywhere and they can wait until they're 7. Lol.


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## EvilHorseOfDoom (Jun 17, 2012)

I guess what frustrates me is when people without great ability go spend a fortune on a fantastic horse, and when they don't end up winning heaps of trophies they blame the horse. I've seen too many bratty, spoiled teenage girls (don't know many male riders) take out their frustration born from their lack of ability on their poor horse.

Personally I don't think I'd want someone to give me a top horse. I prefer to make the best of a horse with limited potential, I feel as if I've achieved more as there's no way I'm good enough to ride a champion dressage horse at anything more than intermediate level anyway...
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## bsms (Dec 31, 2010)

EvilHorseOfDoom said:


> I guess what frustrates me is when people without great ability go spend a fortune on a fantastic horse, and when they don't end up winning heaps of trophies they blame the horse._..._


Indeed. My farrier was fired by a woman who had gone thru a dozen horses in 3 years. She'd buy them and then discover they had problems, then sell them and buy another. On his last visit, the farrier got fed up with the tale of her latest 'bad horse', and replied, "Maybe it is the rider who sucks donkey dicks..." Needless to say, he didn't stay long after THAT comment!

Regarding the theme of the thread:

If you want to compete at top levels, you either need money or so much talent that someone with money notices you. But I just got off another forum where a guy posted that I was "lucky" to be able to own horses in this economy. I replied that I spent 30 years being careful with my money, and that was why I was 'lucky'. 

Like a lot of horse owners, particularly those of us who came to it late in life, I feel 'lucky' to own and ride horses. 8 months after we got him, my free BLM mustang pony has figured out to go to his bucket at feed time instead of following me around the corral. I've gotten to know him too, so after dumping pellets in his bucket, I let him check the 3 buckets I take out with me and see that truly ALL the remaining pellets had gone into his bucket. As he started gobbling his food, I scratched his back and called him a fat little hobbit pony. He sighed and continued eating. As I left, I swear he turned and winked at me. THAT is the sort of thing that, to me, makes me 'lucky', and tells me I'm as happy as if he was a $500,000 master who can piaffe and poof and do all those other amazing things.

I'm not jealous of someone with a $500,000 horse. I couldn't compete as a rider in anything anyways, and it isn't what I find rewarding about horses. What thrills me are those moments when a member of another, very different species makes the effort to connect with me.

Give things your best shot, but be glad your life includes horses. Over time, I'm betting it is the horses that you will remember.

My 5'2" wife on our hobbit pony:


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## soenjer55 (Dec 4, 2011)

BSMS, out of curiosity, is that Catalina State Park? It looks like the trail to the falls.


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## bsms (Dec 31, 2010)

No, it is SE of Tucson, a few miles west of Highway 83. The Catalinas are very faintly visible in the background. My mare is still way too spooky to handle trailering her someplace like Catalina State Park. Maybe in a few more years...sigh.


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## soenjer55 (Dec 4, 2011)

Ah. Now that I look harder, it's not quite the same... Close enough to make me miss it, though- haven't been there in a while.  Sorry for getting off topic, lol.


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