Winner of BADMINTON

BTW - I was wrong in my above post about Galan in 2002 - he did le lion in 2000 and won the ** at Punchestown in 2002 and then the *** Euros in '03. So he was/is way too young in 2000 to have been at Sydney!
Personally I don't think there was anything wrong in what he did in the SJ round at Badders...as Tia has just said, many have don't it before. My personal disregard is his use of this 'trick' when the horses are tired and in full gallop on after a long XC course.
 
well, i think i'd probably count as one of the 'old guard'
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sorry if that's shot your theory out of the water!
i think there's been a lot of misunderstanding of what some of us (or maybe it's just me) object to. just because i don't like one thing the guy does, does not mean that i think he's a crap rider, that i think i'm better than him (god, i wish!), or that i wish he hadn't won Badminton.
dragging in the names of other riders who have made mistakes xc, or had horses not come right, etc etc, merely clouds the issue unnecessarily imho. what on earth does any of that have to do with it?
 
I wonder if you're right Tia, as I find many of today's young riders a bit "precious" at times.
The whole horse scene is very different to when I started, then it was an incredibly rare thing for anyone other than a professional or a riding school to have an arena, and eventing was a different world too.
I started riding as the average riding school kid and eventually prgressed to a pony of my own, but was given only a bridle, so rode bareback until I could afford a saddle. that followed but no leathers or irons, and I had to learn to ride without.
I am sure we made all sorts of terrible mistakes, our time was spent constructing jumps on the local spare ground made out of people's garden tippings, cardboard boxes, discarded dining chairs etc, yet we all survived!
We rode our horses 10 miles to the beach, galloped the guts out of them and rode them home again.. Some days we rode them all day apart from lunchtime, yet I can only rememebr one of about 20 going lame.
the youngsters of today in many cases have only ever ridden decent horses and been conditioned what is the "correct" way of doing things.
I feel like laughing to be honest they are so silly making a fuss over a rider galloping his horse round an arena without any contact, for goodness sake lighten up you lot, you're beginning to sound so daft.
Are you saying the only way to ever ride a horse is in contact and under full control?
Have you never been charged off with on the beach for several miles and laughed at the breathtaking terror and fun of it?
Sorry but perhaps age does come into it, the day I get as cotton-woolly over my horses I'll sell the lot.
Of course I can see their point, but in this instance the horse was not tired, was in a fenced Sj arena and looked full of life. I feel far crosser about seeing exhausted horses drag their weary limbs over huge fences than a fun filled celebratory gallop.
Smell the roses people, you're all making a fuss about the wrong things...
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Ahh the memories - yes I do believe I grew up in the very same world as you. The beach rides in particular - yep did that, 7 miles to our beach, bombed around on the beach all day and then 7 miles back home again ... poor blooming ponies, but it WAS fun!
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As were all the shows; ride 10 miles to a show, do almost every single class there, non-stop riding pretty much all day, then ride 10 miles back home again.
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i totally agree....

horses/ponies are treated as if they are made of glass and icing sugar these days...

20 yrs ago Badminton was a joy to watch/take part in..

trouble is that theses days there are far too many know it alls/think they know it all/and wannabes..
 
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I started riding as the average riding school kid and eventually prgressed to a pony of my own, but was given only a bridle, so rode bareback until I could afford a saddle. that followed but no leathers or irons, and I had to learn to ride without.
I am sure we made all sorts of terrible mistakes, our time was spent constructing jumps on the local spare ground made out of people's garden tippings, cardboard boxes, discarded dining chairs etc, yet we all survived!
We rode our horses 10 miles to the beach, galloped the guts out of them and rode them home again.. Some days we rode them all day apart from lunchtime, yet I can only rememebr one of about 20 going lame.
the youngsters of today in many cases have only ever ridden decent horses and been conditioned what is the "correct" way of doing things.
I feel like laughing to be honest they are so silly making a fuss over a rider galloping his horse round an arena without any contact, for goodness sake lighten up you lot, you're beginning to sound so daft.
Are you saying the only way to ever ride a horse is in contact and under full control?
Have you never been charged off with on the beach for several miles and laughed at the breathtaking terror and fun of it?
Sorry but perhaps age does come into it, the day I get as cotton-woolly over my horses I'll sell the lot.
Of course I can see their point, but in this instance the horse was not tired, was in a fenced Sj arena and looked full of life. I feel far crosser about seeing exhausted horses drag their weary limbs over huge fences than a fun filled celebratory gallop.
Smell the roses people, you're all making a fuss about the wrong things...
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HH - this was me when I learned to ride!!
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And I'm only 23!! God that has brought back some good memories of riding down the beach (all 6 miles of it) galloping across the whole length of it and then ride back. God if i told some people of some of the stuff we used to get up to I would be shot to pieces.........

Sometimes I wish I could turn back the past 6 years LOL
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Ahh the memories - yes I do believe I grew up in the very same world as you. The beach rides in particular - yep did that, 7 miles to our beach, bombed around on the beach all day and then 7 miles back home again ... poor blooming ponies, but it WAS fun!
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As were all the shows; ride 10 miles to a show, do almost every single class there, non-stop riding pretty much all day, then ride 10 miles back home again.
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Ssh Tia don't tell anyone but we used to jump the ditches and the rock pools!
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And then we used to actually go in the sea! And then have races!

Also when we turned out we rode to the field bareback and then gallop across the field.......

I actually feel a bit sad that i don't do that anymore
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Could well be right Tia regarding the age.

I've only been riding 9 years and definately in more recent years when getting involved with instructors who were out competing every weekend, seeing them come home after a day's competition (use to work weekends) etc, I learnt first hand about after care for a horse which was pretty meticulous.

When I was working, the kids were always told (and so was I) that going xc, you'd pull up in a straight line, canter, trot, walk etc. You'd always finish a sj round with a pat and come back steadily, even after jumping a winning round (2ft3 class to a 11 yr old means a lot) type thing.

Maybe that's where my views come from? I never got to jump down a grid with no reins or no stirrups etc due to the increasing H&S culture. Most of the hacks I went on and front escorted had to be safe and I could probably count on one hand the number times that we truly kicked on and just went sod it!

These days I'm riding elsewhere and have gained far more in fun, confidence and experience than in my previous 5 yrs at somewhere else. I'm practically living my Thelwell years
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jumping logs, puddles, riding ponies that are too small for me, turning them out by bareback and a leadrope....

God I love it
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These days I'm riding elsewhere and have gained far more in fun, confidence and experience than in my previous 5 yrs at somewhere else. I'm practically living my Thelwell years
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jumping logs, puddles, riding ponies that are too small for me, turning them out by bareback and a leadrope....

God I love it
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Thats what it was like where I used to ride - but for the past 2/3 years it hasn't been like that for me
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Enjoy it while you can! I only thought about it all again when I watched the shetland grand national
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Jen and Teapot; I'm reliving my youth at the moment; that's the reason I'm not on here a lot right now, and only on this afternoon as it started raining earlier. I've been out twice this morning down the river ride and had a blast on my girls.
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I think, also another thing though may be this; we buy big horses and become stuffy - well I've gone back to ponies fundementally (QH's not much bigger than ponies) and THIS is what it's all about for me; I'd never have a big horse again I'm afraid, too much prissying around with them.
 
Tia good for you! I haven't been for a good old blast for oh I don't know, a year and a half?? Seriously!
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Something for the summer
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Interesting how this has developed. I think I must be old school as well. First pony no saddle, used to borrow one to go to shows with one jacket between several of us. Riding in headcollars, cantering on grass verges, jumps made out of anything we could find. We didn't go showjumping all the time but we played show jumping, I was alway Caroline Bradley with Marius. I thought nothing of the gallop around the arena other than he was celebrating. Have to admit to droping reins and galloping my good hunter across a field in the days when i was brave enough to hunt. He was balanced, I learnt to ride with my weight, legs and seat, , reins were for steering. Don't won't to crititise anyone for their opinions, that's what makes this forum great but if everyone was honest wouldn't you love the opportunity to have a proper gallop around an arena such as Badminton
 
Well said HH and Tia, and thanks for bringing back memories!
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Hours of bareback riding, where we learned balance and seat aids outside of an arena, with no instructor, and often no hat,
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I wonder how long I would last bareback nowadays. Not long I don't think!
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Now I would consider myself old school in how I was taught to ride etc and personally hate how H&S is taking over the sport but I will stick to my guns on this, taking nothing away from the win which was deserved I still believe IMHO that when he completely dropped reins a matter of strides after the fence (photo earlier in thread was on lap(s) of honour when he had taken back reins not straight after fence when dropped reins completely and punched air with two hands) he was irresponsible as a rider and was risking serious injury to the horse. This is my opinion, no I'm not a 4* eventer, infact I have never competed BE in my life but I have ridden more than my fair share of horses XC, hunting, showjumping, dressage and all number of other disciplines BUT I don't think that means much.

To me the dropping of reins was inexcusable for the potential injury it could have caused and the flat out lap of honour was unnecessary considering the last three days effort the horse had given and the increased likelyhood of injury. (yes 'some' showjumpers do it but I would think the tendons/ligaments of a horse after badminton were more prone to injury than lets say a horse after the Hickstead Derby!??!)

Ok crawling back to my hole. Its my 'humble' opinion which I will not be swayed from and I would hope if anyone saw me intentionally completely drop my contact so soon after a fence that I would be suitably chastised for doing so.

EDIT to say and yes I did ride lots bareback and I still do! not quite as good as once was as my back a bit well dodgy to say least but will still canter around happily although gets hairy when fleur starts broncing, and will still jump bareback! Thats if that is being used as classification of old school
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oh but can only vault on up to a 14h2 these days again due to back oh what I would have to be as supple as I was when I was 16 again!!
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Hours of bareback riding, where we learned balance and seat aids outside of an arena, with no instructor, and often no hat,
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I wonder how long I would last bareback nowadays. Not long I don't think!
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My friends school in Cornwall takes all the horses to the field bareback.........and they always have two, or three, leads!
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On the main road! Its almost a 'thing to see' - a convoy of about 30 horses being lead by kids on horses with NO SADDLES whhoooo

I remember once I got on one of the lead reins and got a lift up the hill to my house
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Ahh such great memories
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I'm only 31, but learnt to ride in very unpolished surroundings. With the two loan ponies I had, I rode bareback much of the time, whizzed over hedges without a care in the world, and even though I wore a hat, my first was a beagler that cost three quid from a car boot sale.
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Perhaps it was because we were rough and ready northerners.

As for the beach, there was nothing better than razzing along the sands at Ainsdale, perhaps incorporating some ad-hoc PC-type games en route. So, I guess I'm old school as well.
 
I still ride bareback an awful lot
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. I actually love riding bareback, and if you were a child bareback rider (like me), then I would bet my life that you would have NO trouble staying on these days; I only went back to riding bareback 4 years ago and it was like riding a bike; jumped on, cantered off, no problems whatsoever; everything was still in the place I left it decades ago.
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cantering is waaaaaaaaaay easier than trotting bareback - I always made sure I had the fat round cobs to ride as apposed to the skinny tbs
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ouch!

hehe
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I would hope if anyone saw me intentionally completely drop my contact so soon after a fence that I would be suitably chastised for doing so.


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Sorry to disappoint, but I wouldn't chastise you
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. I'd simply remind you of your post on this thread!!
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And then I'd come on here and tell tales about you!
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Ah you see I'm really lucky on both scores there; my QH's are very muscular but still have shape as they aren't fat, so they are super easy to ride bareback, and actually very comfortable .... plus they are pretty nicely trained so not many surprises lurking for any rider, saddled or bareback.
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Our instructor had us ride bareback--no hands--on the lunge more times than I care to remember, often spending half an entire lesson focussing on rising trot (nothing like that to get the inner thighs working).

I understand why riding schools and even private liveries are so focussed on health and safety these days, but I can't help but feel today's youngsters are missing out somewhat.

Good for you for still being a daredevil, Tia.
 
Tia- I still do that sort of thing when riding- when R pisses off with me I can either laugh or cry with terror lol.
I hate the way H and S are taking over everything. I am 16 years old and was there and loved the way the horse was loving the gallop round they both looked so happy and I hold nothing against him doing it!
 
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As for the beach, there was nothing better than razzing along the sands at Ainsdale, perhaps incorporating some ad-hoc PC-type games en route. So, I guess I'm old school as well.

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Last time i rode on ainsdale it was southport Airshow, beach was like a scene from Apocolyse Now with about 50 helicopters heading towards us.
 
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As for the beach, there was nothing better than razzing along the sands at Ainsdale, perhaps incorporating some ad-hoc PC-type games en route. So, I guess I'm old school as well.

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Last time i rode on ainsdale it was southport Airshow, beach was like a scene from Apocolyse Now with about 50 helicopters heading towards us.

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How scary. Do you still get a fair old crowd riding at the beach these days?

If we rode close to Southport itself, I remember us loading up the ponies, putting elders on watch duty, and heading over to the fair, still wearing jods and boots. Always kept my rubber clips on, of course
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Prose and Madclause; yes it is sad how H&S seems to have taken over everyone's lives these days. We just aren't capable of looking after ourselves anymore, well I'm rebelling!!
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And I'm blooming well enjoying it, Lol!!
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I dont know what all the fuss is about either, but one thing I am sure of is that a horse of this calibre ( partnered with a bloody good rider) is surely capable of self carriage. Maybe BD should drop the give & retake of the reins in the dressage test. Just in case
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