He was entered in this Off-the-Track horse height as a safety in case it was all a bit much for him; he’s still quite green at competing so we’re going through what I like to call the ‘teenager phase’ where he think he’s got this and doesn’t need as much input from me anymore 💔 work in progress 🤣 nice commentator though!
Starting to get stronger and pull me into the fences more these days; it’s since become less of exposure-training and more ‘it’s actually not that exciting’ training 😆 getting a bit too confident for his own good!
I'm really struggling with this one and would love to hear from people who have maybe been in a similar position.
I've always bought young horses, produced them, sold them on, and repeated the process. It's never really bothered me because I always knew they were projects, but this one is a little different.
He's a 7-year-old warmblood that I've had since he was a yearling. He's been with me through everything. I backed him myself, brought him up as an eventer, exposed him to absolutely everything, and now he's turning into the horse I always hoped he'd be.
He's one of those annoyingly talented horses. A huge natural jump, incredibly careful, but also genuinely clever on the flat. He's brave, sensible, and easy to ride. The sort that gives you confidence rather than taking it away.
Someone saw him out, approached me, and wants to come try him for just under 6-figures.
The thing making this so difficult is that it genuinely sounds like a wonderful home. The rider is an adult who wants a safe, quality dressage horse to develop under instruction. She has incredible facilities, the kind of care and resources I could only dream of providing, and he'd have a pretty relaxed lifestyle compared to an event horse.
The problem is... I'd always imagined he'd be the horse that took me up the levels over the next few years. He's capable of things I've never been able to do before, and it's hard to let go of that dream.
On the other hand, that kind of money could really help set me up in my early 20's. I also know horses aren't investments in the traditional sense. He could step in a hole tomorrow and suddenly be worth nothing. That's the reality of owning horses.
I also have a fantastic young OTTB that I think will go a long way. He's exceptional for a Thoroughbred and I have no doubt he'll be successful. But if I'm being objective, he doesn't have quite the same effortless ability that this warmblood has. The WB just has "it."
So I'm stuck between keeping the horse I've always dreamed of competing, or taking an incredible offer while everything has lined up perfectly.
Has anyone here actually sold the horse they thought they'd keep forever? Did you regret it, or was it the right decision?
I'd especially love to hear from people who've been on either side of this. Right now I honestly can't tell whether my heart or my head is making the better argument.
I’ve noticed a few posts recently that have sparked some pretty heated debates about jumping position, and it got me thinking about how much of it seems to come down to where you learned to ride.
I’m Australian, and we don’t really have a hunter culture here. Our jumping position, particularly for eventers, tends to be much more defensive. The emphasis is on staying balanced over your feet, keeping your upper body with the horse rather than throwing it at the fence, maintaining soft elbows, and allowing with your hands without a huge crest release. If anything, getting ahead of the movement is something we’re actively taught to avoid.
Then I saw a post discussing hunter equitation, followed by another where a girl on a young horse with quite a big jump was getting half praised and half criticised because she had a very still, secure position but wasn’t making a more dramatic release over the fence.
It made me realise just how differently people are taught depending on the discipline and country they’re riding in. What one group sees as a secure, effective position, another sees as restrictive or incorrect.
For those who have ridden in different countries or disciplines (hunters, jumpers, eventing, etc.), what differences have you noticed? Is it mostly stylistic, or do you think there are genuine biomechanical advantages to one approach over another?
One thing I have noticed, though, is that people on this sub can be incredibly harsh when critiquing photos or videos. It’s interesting that the same position can be praised by one group and torn apart by another, when often it’s simply a reflection of different systems of riding.
(Not my photo, just one I thought illustrated the sort of position I’m talking about.)
I’ve had my young warmblood, since he was a yearling. He’s six now and is starting to show some pretty serious talent across all three phases of eventing.
I’ve never had a horse like him before, both in terms of quality and attitude. He genuinely just does not say no. Every time I ask a slightly harder question, he seems to understand it immediately, and he just keeps getting stronger, braver and more capable.
We went cross-country schooling on the weekend, and it was probably the first time it became really obvious to me just how much ability he has. He was jumping some harder combinations and fairly technical fences without me needing to do much at all. He was reading everything, staying confident and making it feel far easier than I expected.
I’ve always been quite conscious of not over facing a young horse or rushing them through the levels, especially when they have a long career ahead of them. He is currently at 95 and has been there for about 4 months (taking into account his break over winter- maybe 4 or 5 events in that time?) But I’m now getting a lot of pressure from the people around me—coaches, friends and other competitors—to move him up because he is finding his current level too easy and is already schooling well beyond it (I've even been accused of ribbon chasing, albeit lightheartedly!).
My instructor said over the weekend that he was fantastic and clearly very talented, but that I need to “stop moving so slowly and get braver.”
I’m not a bad rider by any means. We’ve won around 70% of his eventing starts over the past two years, and I’ve produced him myself from the beginning. But when I look at the bigger fences at two-star and above, they honestly do feel quite daunting. I’m starting to worry that there may come a point where I’m holding him back, rather than protecting him or producing him carefully.
Has anyone else been in this position with a horse who perhaps had more ability than they felt confident using? How did you work out whether you genuinely needed more time, or whether it was simply your confidence lagging behind the horse’s ability?
I’m looking at the Victorian Off The Track Carnival and Equimillion in Sydney later this year and would love to hear from people who have actually been! I've seen some people post their OTTB's in this group from Australia but dont see too much discussion about these events.
What was the competition like? Was it mostly very established, polished horses, or was there still a decent mix of genuine retrainers and horses at different stages of their post-racing careers?
Also curious what people think of the prize money. Equimillion in particular offers a huge amount ($15,000 for first in your class, over a $1,000,000 in the entire event!) compared with most normal events, which is obviously great for OTTs, but does it make the competition feel more intense or attract people who are already producing horses at a very high level? Do you think the money is actually helping increase the value and demand for OTT Thoroughbreds, or is it mostly benefiting the top few combinations?
Would love to know what the atmosphere was like, whether you thought it was well run, and whether you’d enter again!! Bonus points if you plan on entering and have photos of your OTTB to share in the comments!!