"Most riders aren't wealthy"

Its all relative. Yes they maybe rich to people who have £8 a week to live on but not in the main. For most riders not at the peak of competition success it is a financial slog and a lot go without most things others consider normal ie meals out, holidays etc etc to fund their horses.

She maybe means that most riders don't come from wealthy backgrounds but have become comfortable through their own efforts maybe and a lot of these shiny boxes she is referring to will possibly be owned by sponsors, owners etc etc.
 
Why is it that equestrian sports always have to fend off the elite rich stamp, what about other sports eg power boat racing, Formula One etc etc they're not for those on a budget either but I don't see them fending off stereotypical tags.
 
Er why?

Most professional riders don't own their horses, horseboxes or facilities

If they could no longer ride and you took a stock take of their assets they are not wealthy

Of course there are exceptions, but I think you'd be surprised how many shiney horseboxes are on Hire purchase!

Also most people i know would be more "wealthy" if they didn't have a horse

I have a horsebox (albeit a lemon) and 6 horses, and a car. So am I wealthy? Er no as I don't own a house which would be '000's more in terms of an asset.
 
I can understand where she comes from to say some of those things. What she fails to mention is that mostly competing (other people's) horses comes down to luck. You have to be lucky to be spotted for talent/dedication and you have to be lucky to find wealthy owners!

But, to joe public who sees all the lorries, entry fees and ''horses'' in general, there is money involved, lots of money!
 
It's a difficult perception to overcome I think and having the different levels across the sport makes it appear that 'normal' people are wealthy enough to compete against the likes of these olympians etc.

Wealth has nothing to do with it. I think it is dependant on drive, ambition and how you spend your money.

I went to Uni to get a good job to be able to afford to have a horse and event. I come from a 'normal' working class background and unlike the rest of my immediate family chose to go to University.

I'm now 31 own 2 horses and a lorry, rent a yard and own a house and car. Am I wealthy? No...I've just chosen to spend my money differently to others. Some friends from Uni have nicer houses, flasher cars and lovely holidays and new clothes...are they wealthy? No thats just how they choose to spend their money.

Good on her I say :)
 
I used to sail competitively and that is another area where people assume everyone is wealthy but is it often not the case.

In relation to my friends on similar incomes I have a lot less disposable income (some months none with comps and vets bills!) but this is my choice.
 
Jen-cotts I totally agree with you. Most top riders, or even riders at a good level will take on schooling breaking etc to fund their sport
 
Completely agree with her. I know a lot of pro's who live very hand to mouth, even though they seemingly have "big flash lorries" etc. Terry Boon I believe gave up competing a couple of years ago cos he suddenly realised the only thing in the world he owned was a clapped out old lorry. He took up teaching full time to start earning a "proper" income.
 
My friend at school used to have a jumper with the slogan

'poverty is owning a horse'

Ha ha, it did cause a few raised eyebrows though when she wore it!

I would be a lot richer if I didn't have my horse. I daren't even think about how many beautiful things I would be able to afford! I would be fat, miserable and materialistic though so it's probably a good thing my horse keeps me poor and grounded ;).

Tbh horsie people may not be 'rich' in one sense but it is all relative. To people struggling to feed and clothe their family's, people who can afford to feed and clothe a horse probably do look rich.

Everyones circumstance is different though. I know someone who lives in a caravan in order to fund her daughters showjumping career.

It's very hard to make statements such a people that have horses must be rich or poor or whatever as there are always exceptions to the rule :).
 
I think it depends how you define wealth partly.

For me that would be having a comfortable lifestyle, and being able to afford to plough a decent amount of money into something you want without struggling. For example if you're living in a mobile home, running a beaten up old lorry and buying ex racehorses and turning them into eventers - then you're probably not wealthy.

But I also think that lots of riders are asset rich but cash poor. If you have a nice house and an expensive car, lorry, saddles and horses, and compete a lot - but don't go on many holidays - then I'd say you're still wealthy, but just choosing to spend that wealth on horses rather than a flash lifestyle.
 
I remember some years ago watching a programme that showed Tim Stockdale and he was then earning around the £ 30 something k. This was someone at the top of his game and eventing is far less lucrative. I roughly worked approx costs and events and unless you say won the FEI classic, could not see how you could make money. You would need to produce on horses for sale, teach,other interests to earn any sort of living and be heavily reliant on sponsors etc. think it all looks good but horses are one of the worst sports to try to earn a living from! As a comparison a friends 19 year old nephew plays for arsenal and was earning £6k per week!
 
We event and we're certainly not wealthy. We don't own a lorry (can't afford one) and tow our light-weight trailer with the family car that will be 10 years old soon. Horse wants for nothing, but I have a huge list! Wouldn't change anything though - seeing the uncontrolled smiles after my daughter first finished an event and then went on to gain her first foundation points was totally priceless.

I don't think we're the exception either. Certainly a few competitors don't have to compromise, but I think the majority do to some respect.
 
I think it's all about compromise, there are lots of things horsey people compromise in order to train & compete, i would rather do an extra event/ have an extra lesson than have a spa weekend.... much to the dismay of all my non horsey girlfriends!!

and it is all relative, my mum recons it costs less to have a racehorse in training than it is to run an event horse, and even at the low end of the scale, if you win, you win a reasonable amount of money, get a nice lunch & somewhere to sit if it's raining, you get your photo taken, get to watch the replay while drinking some fizz & even take the dvd home with you!

(as an example our filly won 3 times, was 2nd 8 times & won £11,000, by no means world beating, but effectively she was racing at the equiv of Be100/novice..... & you don't win that at those BE levels!
 
My uncle is an international SJer. He was at WEG last year. He has MASSIVE running costs, I believe he worked it out at over 100k a year about 10 years ago (I daren't ask how much it is now), so whilst he does make a decent sum from buying and selling on horses, and from lessons, he ploughs a huge amount of it back into his sport.
 
I am skintight where do I go wrong?
Maybe something to do with the fact I do own a horse and I do event but I have to really scrape to do so does that really make me wealthy?
 
Professionals probably are not wealthy as they don't own the horses, may rent the yards and the owners pay for everything.

Amateurs are a different matter, I think to be able to pay for the upkeep of an eventer and compete regularly at affiliated costs quite a lot of money. People may not have much money left after the have paid for the costs of horse ownership but it is does not mean that they are poor to start off with, they just choose to spend their income on horses instead of designer clothes or saving. Riding is one of the most expensive sports there is to compete in as an amateur certainly compared to football or running for example.
 
It's a tough one.. I agree with poster above, I'm certainly not poor and am pretty comfortable but the horse takes a massive chunk out of my earnings and so I live within my means. They are expensive creatures, that cannot be denied, and I think you would be lucky to get much change out of £500 per month running an event horse in the summer. TBH, even if you survive on beans on toast you are still making the conscious choice of how you spend your disposable income and so I don't think you can truly say you are skint if you have made that choice.
 
They may appear to have everything, but really they own a fraction of it. Horses, transport and all the gear are given by owners and sponsors, without any of these there would be...3 competitors at Badminton? Only very few have enormously wealthy backgrounds.
But good on them though for sticking to what they love doing!
 
Yup I can truly say I am skint!
I could be bored and drive a nice new car and have new clothes instead of eBay bargains but no horse well maybe a plod , so yes I do to some degree choose to be skint but believe me I am skint!
 
Lolo said:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/hardtalk/9661196.stm?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

I disagree almost totally with what she says.

If you own a horse and event you are wealthy...
Click to expand...

i'm quite offended by that :( i event and am most certainly not wealthy...yes compared to someone having to survive on minimum wage i have more disposable income...but i work two jobs to afford to event...i don't think this makes me 'wealthy'?- just willing to sacrifice having other things like holidays and nice clothes etc. would also add that i have quite a lot of debt (stupid i know so please don't lecture me) built up through eventing...so eventing has actually made me extremely not wealthy!
the pros that i know are also far from wealthy. they rely on owners and sponsors and horses can be taken from them and given to someone else without warning
 
What bugs me is how small the competition prize funds in horse events are versus what you get in snooker or darts - I mean how much does it take to keep/train/maintain/feed a snooker cue?
All comes down to public popularity unfortunately.
 
I think anyone who owns a horse, never mind competes it is, relatively speaking, well off, since they have enough disposable income to choose to spend it on a horse. That's not to say they can afford to do everything they want to, just that they have a reasonable amount of disposable income. I don't really understand the argument that one is poor because one has a horse - because it would be exceptionally easy to not spend all your disposable income on one, and then you would be able to choose to spend it on other things.

Like anything in life, it's a choice, and horses are an expensive, luxury hobby for most people. There is a reason why BE has the demographic stats it does on it's website to roll out to sponsors after all!

I think pro-riders are a different kettle of fish as many are not backed by family money and just scrape by - but again, it's a choice. I chose to set up my business, I am not backed by family money. It's the same thing when you look at the pure economics of it.
 
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