Watching Louisville 2021

The Horse World

Awareness of the outside world. The cognitive dissonance is strong. In one corner, cheering for my friends. For people who have welcomed me, have been good to me, have given me a barn home, which is no small thing. In the other corner, being appalled at the sea of maskless faces crowding the indoor seating in the same state as CNN: National Guard will be deployed across Kentucky to help overwhelmed hospitals. Holcombe and Sarisohn, 24 Aug 2021.
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I caved. I got the Richfield Video livestream of the World’s Championship Horse Show last week. The Stepping Stone Farm entrants were spread out over enough days that buying the entire week made more sense. For an I-need-an-excuse definition of ‘sense’.

I got excited about the show.

I got nervous before classes.

I yelled during the rides and cheered for the results.

I’m exhausted & I’m two states away.

To me, Peter Doubleday is the voice of big jumper classes. It’s always weird to hear him calling for riders to Rack On!

During the Lexington livestream, the Tour de France was on. This week, it was the the Vuelta a España. At one point, I had dueling screens – TV and phone – happening. [Couch Jockey]

One division had the top 7 move on to the championship class. Top 7?!? Top 4, top 8, top 10, sure, but top 7?!? What in the name of all that is satiny and shiny is going on here? Yes, as you may have guessed, one of the SSF folks came in 8th in this deeply annoying division.

Super props to the young lady who wore a helmet in her Show Pleasure Class.

Helmets showed up in the expected places. In the Hunter classes, where a few helmets were mixed in with the hunt caps. In Roadster driving and undersaddle, where juniors are required to wear helmets.

I got all excited to see helmets in Open Road Horse Under Saddle. Then I realized they were probably juniors and had to. I couldn’t tell from their other classes.

One helmet spotted in Amateur Road Horse. AFAIK, amateur means adult. So, yay.

OTOH, this was an easy reach. A colored helmet fits in with racing silks. The young lady pictured above may have been the only person on the grounds wearing a formal saddle seat suit and a helmet.

Saddle seat helmets are coming. I have no doubt. You heard it here first. Meanwhile, I will totally admit that it is hard to be in the vanguard. Doesn’t bother me, but I am old and crotchety. Bucking the trend as an Under 13? Girl Power!

Speaking of little used safety measures. To circle back to the outside world. The only messaging I heard all week on masks was from a horse. Retirement video for Mr.’s Bones. East Coast Equestrian: Rescued Horse, 71 Year Old Owner, Are Repeat World Champions, Lawson, 2009. The pair continued to win big after this article.

Update. Past helmet posts [Archives].

Stay safe. Stay sane.
Katherine