Next Generation Sport horses

04/26/2026

Super nice horse with lots of miles left

04/16/2026

This ⬇️
I love a well rounded older horse who knows the job. Some horses are competitive into their 20’s. At the 2024 Paris Olympics a 21-year-old gelding named Wundermaske ridden by Ecuador's Ronald Zabala Goetschel in eventing.

So happy to see well-known horsey influencer, Katie Van Slyke buying an 18 year old horse for herself!

I am constantly having the “too old” conversation with people, and it does my head in.

Here’s the thing; we have ZERO idea how long our horse may live, or be sound enough to do their job.

I see just as many unsound 3, 5, 8, 12, 15 year olds as any older age. To be honest, I have the view that if they’ve been competing and stayed sound into their mid teens.. they’re likely to keep on being sound. Those younger horses may well be a gamble.

I’ve seen horses 💀 at any age, from days old to nearly 40, and from totally unforeseen reasons.

Now I’m not saying don’t buy a young horse, or something around that desired 8-12 year mark.

I AM saying that “old” depends entirely on the horse. And that unless it’s your ambition to be picked for a national team, or to resell the horse horse… maybe let it be a lower priority and choose the horse you fall in love with, that makes you feel safe, that is fun, that is sound and let age just be a number. And hey, it may even save you some money on that sale price for bucking the trend 🤷‍♀️

Picture of my “too old” horse, doing his first Grand Prix at the ripe old age of 20, having finished racing at 8, doing his last CCI5* at 19 and his last CIC4**** at 21 and being sound the entire time. Cause luckily nobody ever told him he was too old for such things!

04/11/2026

Great article

As the jumps got higher and the exercises more technical, Laura Kraut reminded today's clinic riders that any glitches were opportunities. “I think that sometimes we try so hard that they get panicked or claustrophobic,” she said of the horses feeling their riders’ energy.

“I like it when it's hard, because then you can learn from it,” Kraut continued. “If you don't do it right, you don't do it right. That happens to me every day!”

Read the full article at the link in our comments.
Sponsored by Chewy
📸 Lisa Slade/COTH

04/11/2026

Horses all barefoot, we do composite’s or scoot boots as needed

You may have noticed over the past several years that an increasing number of horses at the pinnacle of the showjumping sport are competing barefoot, Annika Kortlang writes. This includes highly successful horses such as King Edward, United Touch S, Donatello 141, and more. At the 2024 FEI World Cup Finals, the top three finishers were all barefoot. The 2025 winner, Julien Epaillard, keeps all his horses barefoot. Riders and grooms of these elite barefoot horses have indicated in interviews that they believe their horses benefit from being barefoot.

What might these benefits be?

While I don’t show at the 5* Grand Prix level, I do compete my barefoot horses in the junior hunters and equitation divisions at A shows up and down the West Coast. My horses did not come to us barefoot, and I have been involved in transitioning all four of our horses from shod to barefoot. In the process, I have learned how to seek out science-based information about hoofcare, what transitioning horses to barefoot entails, and how transitioning to barefoot can help some horses.

The equine foot is a marvel of engineering. We usually see just the tough keratin exterior, but encapsulated in the hoof is a complex apparatus of bones, tendons, ligaments, vasculature, cartilage, and other soft tissues that are designed to absorb shock and return energy to the horse. Metal horseshoes, which have changed little in over a thousand years, provide obvious protection to the perimeter of the underside of the hoof. They do so, however, at some cost to hoof function and internal balance.

As explained by Dr Stephen O’Grady and Dr Hilary Clayton, two widely published equine veterinarians and researchers, “The equine foot has evolved as the interface between the limb and the ground. Its functions include accepting the weight of the horse, providing shock absorption, dissipating the energy of impact, and providing traction. A structurally healthy foot in its natural or barefoot state outperforms the shod foot in these functions. Furthermore, the structures of the foot have an inherent ability to change shape, strengthen and improve over time through the process of adaptation” (O’Grady, Stephen and Clayton, Hilary (2024) “Barefoot methodology as a viable farriery option.” Equine Veterinary Education Vol 36(8)). Open-heeled metal shoes concentrate load on the perimeter of the hoof, prevent the heels from expanding and flexing independently, and refer shock back up the leg.

📎 Continue reading this article at https://www.theplaidhorse.com/2025/04/20/are-you-curious-about-barefoot/
📸 Photo © Helen ST via Flickr

04/11/2026

Yes 👏🏻

Even the best riders in the world have bad rounds. Missing a distance, rushing a line, or forgetting your course are mistakes that are part of riding. According to top hunter rider and trainer Geoff Teall, mistakes are inevitable in the show ring. What matters most is learning from them and using them to improve.

Every rider, no matter their level, will face setbacks in the ring. Learning to handle those moments with honesty, perspective, and responsibility is a crucial part of becoming a better horseman.

No amount of preparation can eliminate mistakes in riding. Even when riders plan carefully and practice diligently, things can still go wrong in the show ring. A rider chip at a fence or misjudge a distance. These situations are frustrating, but they are also completely normal. Every rider, from beginners to top competitors, experiences bad rounds from time to time. Accepting that reality is the first step toward dealing with mistakes constructively.

When a round goes poorly, riders often feel the urge to find someone or something to blame. It might be the course design, the footing, the judge, the weather, or even the horse. But Teall makes it clear that blaming outside factors prevents riders from learning from their mistakes. Instead of identifying what went wrong and improving for the future, the rider avoids responsibility.

Teall emphasizes that riders should take ownership of their performance. If something goes wrong, the first question should be: what could I have done differently?

Instructors often face a delicate balance when working with students who make mistakes. Some riders become overly critical of themselves after a bad ride. Others immediately begin making excuses. Teall argues that neither response is productive.

Being too hard on yourself can destroy confidence, but constantly blaming others is equally harmful. Riders who blame the horse, the instructor, or the conditions are avoiding the responsibility that comes with improving.

Good sportsmanship requires honesty. If a mistake happened because of something the rider did, the rider must acknowledge it. That honesty creates the opportunity to learn and improve.

📎 Continue reading this article at https://www.theplaidhorse.com/2026/04/08/handling-bad-rounds-and-mistakes-like-a-true-horseman/
📸 © The Plaid Horse

04/04/2026

All of this ⬇️

Doing business with the wrong people teaches you lessons you don’t forget—usually the hard way. Here are some of the biggest takeaways:

1. Not everyone shares your values
You might assume honesty, work ethic, and respect are a given—but they’re not. Misaligned values will eventually show up in decisions, communication, and how problems get handled.

2. Red flags are real—don’t ignore them
That gut feeling early on? It’s usually right. Whether it’s poor communication, lack of transparency, or inconsistency—small issues at the start often become big ones later.

3. Clear agreements matter
Verbal promises don’t protect you. Contracts, expectations, roles, and boundaries need to be clearly defined from day one.

4. Time is your most expensive mistake
Working with the wrong people doesn’t just cost money—it drains energy, delays progress, and can set you back months or years.

5. Reputation is tied to association
Who you partner with reflects on you. The wrong people can damage your credibility, even if you did nothing wrong.

6. Boundaries are non-negotiable
You can’t “be easygoing” your way through a bad partnership. Strong boundaries protect your business and your sanity.

7. Not all opportunities are worth it
Just because something looks good on paper doesn’t mean it’s right. The who is just as important as the what.

8. Walking away is a strength, not a failure
Knowing when to cut ties is one of the most powerful business skills you can develop.

9. Trust should be earned, not assumed
Give people the chance to prove themselves before going all-in—especially when money, reputation, or long-term plans are involved.

10. The right people change everything
Once you experience good partnerships—where there’s trust, clarity, and mutual respect—you realize how much easier business can actually be.

03/21/2026

03/10/2026

Riding is f**king hard, horses humble us

You know why it takes like 10 years to train a dressage horse to Grand Prix?
Cause it's f*cking hard, that's why.
Today I rode a big, wobbly, 5-year-old who still thinks the world might end if he has to carry himself properly for more than three strides.
He braced the second I asked for anything resembling dressage, poll tight, hollow back, hind legs trailing like they were on vacation.
I half-halted softly. He popped his head.
I tried again, lighter. He shortened but stayed braced.
Forward came back, tension stayed.
Rinse, repeat.
At one point I caught myself thinking the same old lie: "If I just did this better, he'd get it."
Then I remembered: no.
This isn't about me being bad.
This is about the sport being brutal in the best way.
The brace is normal.
It's not failure. It's not evidence you suck. It's proof the horse is alive, feeling, thinking, reacting. It's proof you're asking for something real. Something that goes against a million years of survival wiring.
We spend years (years...) chipping away at that brace. Teaching a flight animal that carrying himself (and me) won't kill him. That softness is safer than tension. That the rider asking for collection isn't a predator on his back.
Our instincts fight it. We want control, security, quick fixes.
The horse wants to run from pressure, brace against uncertainty, protect the parts of them that feel vulnerable.
So we override all of it. We stop gripping when we want to hold. Stop pushing when we want to force. Stop fixing when we want to correct. We stay soft in the face of resistance. Patient in the face of chaos. Curious instead of frustrated.
And slowly (so f*cking slowly) the brace starts to fade.
Today, after twenty minutes of brace-and-release, brace-and-forward, brace-and-breathe, something shifted.
Not dramatic. Not Grand Prix.
Just one moment where it felt right, relaxed a little over his back, softened and let go for two whole strides.
Then the tension came back.
But those two strides?
That's the long game.
Years of meeting brace with softness until the horse starts to believe that carrying himself isn't scary. Until suppleness isn't something we impose, it's something he offers because he trusts what we ask.
If you're riding a young one right now and feeling like you're getting nowhere, hear this:
You're not failing. You're in the middle of the hardest, most beautiful part.
The brace is normal. The wobbles are normal. The frustration is normal.
Keep showing up soft. Keep asking without demanding. Keep releasing when the answer is "not yet."
Until then? Embrace the brace.
The softness you're building doesn't happen in spite of the resistance. It happens because of it.
Every brace met with patience is a brick in the foundation of trust. Every wobble you don't punish is proof that safety exists here. Every moment you choose release over force, you're teaching them that maybe (just maybe) carrying himself won't kill him.
That's not failure. That's dressage.
And in 12 years, when that horse is floating through Grand Prix like it's nothing, no one will remember the wobbles. But you will. You'll remember every braced step that taught him to trust. Every moment you chose softness over force. Every day you showed up when it would've been easier to quit.
That's why it takes 10 years.
Not because the movements are hard.
Because the trust is.

~Stephen Forbes

The moment we finally get through the brace, pure magic, and it’s what keeps us going and going and going✨

✨Soft answers to brace, release instead of resistance, safety instead of survival mode.✨

Thank you Stephen your word and light are shining 🌟