Ann Romney's horse and trainer qualify for U.S. Olympic team
This discussion thread was locked as off-topic by yardwork (a host of the Latest Breaking News forum).
Source: Los Angeles Times
Ann Romney’s dressage horse, Rafalca, and her trainer, Jan Ebeling, earned a place on the U.S. Olympic Equestrian team on Saturday, cementing the Romneyfamily’s already deep ties to the Olympic games. The official announcement is expected to come Sunday by the U.S. Equestrian Federation.
Rafalca and Ebeling will compete for the U.S. in the London Summer Games.
The Romneys’ involvement in dressage has raised the profile of the sport, linking it to the American presidential campaign in a way that has brought both adulation and mild ridicule as some have poked fun at dressage as a sport of the elite.
Kenneth Braddick of Dressage News said Ebeling had “the best performance of his life” Saturday at the second of two Olympic trials at the U.S. Equestrian Federation national dressage championships in Gladstone, N.J. In a post on the website, Dressage News, Braddick wrote that Ebling has also taken in stride the ribbing he’s gotten from comedians such as Stephen Colbert.
Read more: http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-ann-romney-horse-trainer-qualify-for-us-olympic-team-20120616,0,1966631.story
Whew, I was so worried about this. God knows that dressage is at the top of Americans' concerns right now, and only the GOP has the sense to nominate a candidate who appreciates the dressage crisis we face in competing with the rest of the world.
= new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight:
NoneDon't highlight anything
5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
tularetom
(23,664 posts)
I suppose the liberal media will be jumping backwards through their own assholes to report this as though anybody gives a shit.
TrollBuster9090
(6,123 posts)ASAP. In their never ending quest to appear 'unbiased' they've made a commitment to only use CULTURE WAR crap against liberals.
John Kerry wind surfing instead of clearing brush off of his dude ranch? Fair game.
Mitt Romney being an EQUESTRIAN? Off limits. PREJUDICIAL!
snot
(11,770 posts)Fox could whip up its base to the point of enthusiasm for dressage.
You gotta admit, it would be an interesting test of their brain-washing techniques.
TrollBuster9090
(6,123 posts)I've seen roundworms that are harder to brainwash than the average Fox viewer. They proved this when they managed to convince them that unlimited detention of random arabs in GITMO is suddenly a BAD thing, now that Obama is doing it.
It should be no trouble at all to convince them that EQUESTRIAN SPORT is now a "real American" thing, and BASKETBALL is for elitist liberal snobs.
"The Founding Fathers intended for all real Americans to wear powdered wigs. Why do these liberals insist on dressing like the French?"
bahrbearian
(13,466 posts)
Lars77
(3,032 posts)Cause nothing says commitment to the olympics like having your own horse and an employee qualify.
BEAU1943
(61 posts)Dressage? Doesn't our President play an American game like Basketball? Noting against Dressage, but our present President is an American playing American sports like basketball and golf. (I know golf was not created in America) Now who is the elite one running for President.
Question: Does the horse ride on the roof?
citysyde
(74 posts)I guess when Rob-me is elected we will all be eating snails and french fries again!
And, yes, the horse WOULD ride on the roof, but the bridges are too low for the horse to clear.
NV Whino
(20,886 posts)
aint_no_life_nowhere
(21,925 posts)since I learned that George Bush appointed the Commissioner for the Arabian Horse Association, "heck of a job, Brownie" Michael Brown, to be the head of FEMA. We definitely need more horse expertise in the U.S. government.
magical thyme
(14,881 posts)The arabian horse would was pretty shocked and horrified when they learned that it was the same Michael Brown.
citysyde
(74 posts)would have the best staff money can buy when it comes to horses.
And her husband would have the best horse shit money can buy for his campaign, too!
It all fits!
pwb
(12,634 posts)Horse are for racing and working not dancing like they are walking on hot coals. That horse is probably never allowed to run free. Sick..
riderinthestorm
(23,272 posts)and was trained in special movements designed to kill.
I'm not sure horses are "for" racing, working (I presume you mean for ranch work or farm work), or dressage however we use horses for all three and I'm not sure you can claim that one of those efforts is more okay than the other unless you don't believe any animal should "work".
As for never being allowed to run free, from my own knowledge of Olympic caliber horses, I'd guess not. She does however live the MOST pampered life - with a much longer lifespan than a wild horse (which is approximately 8 years).
maddiemom
(5,177 posts)Ever see the Lipizzaner stallions? Those moves were trained into them for battle. Dressage moves require intricate training and amazing response to signals and flexibility on the part of the horse. Think the rider isn't obviously signaling the horse? Some amazing muscle control and subtle moves are going on on the part of the rider. Don't disparage amazing training and skills on the part of both horse and rider because you disapprove of one rich woman. Check out Three Day Eventing do see what the same horses and riders can do in addition to Dressage.
pwb
(12,634 posts)
annabanana
(52,804 posts)
csziggy
(34,189 posts)Watch this video of Andalusians (the forerunners of the Lippizaner horses of Austria):
Aside from the precision shown in the first part of the video, the control of the horse from the ground, especially the moves where the horse rears and jumps forward or he leaps into the air and kicks back, could save a cavalry officer's life if he were dismounted in the middle of a battle. Those moves begin just before the five minute mark of the video.
Another part that is lost is that many if not most dressage riders today are women who support themselves and their horses and sacrifice a lot to support their hobby. I stopped following the Olympics since NBC picked up the coverage (since their coverage is abysmal) but some years ago a woman in her forties made the Olympic dressage team with a horse she had trained herself.
Riding horses is one sport where the self funded amateur can reach levels equivalent to the most generously financed professional. It takes a lot of time and dedication, but it is possible and does happen.
Don't smear an entire sport just because we don't like the family who is sponsoring this one horse.
Tumbulu
(6,630 posts)
kentauros
(29,414 posts)I haven't watched the Olympics in ages, due mostly to having to put up with all those biographies, commentaries, and whatnot when all I want to see is what the spectators see. We need C-SPAN to do the Olympics! 
As for our clueless sub-thread creator, I'm getting the strong impression that a "dancing" horse is neither respectable nor "manly" enough. Otherwise, why try to compare it to those "macho" horses like those for racing and working? 
csziggy
(34,189 posts)I now get my dressage and other equine event videos from YouTube. An amazing number are posted there all the time. NBC really has messed up their coverage from the first year they bought the Olympic coverage rights.
Many people don't have a clue about most horse related activities. Here, there is an international level three day event held once a year. On a regular basis someone complains to the newspaper about the coverage, the inconvenience and the cost to the community. This past spring the newspaper did a report on how many millions that one weekend a year brings into the community. Compared to the amount FSU football brings in for the season, the horse event is a bigger inflow of money for the amount it costs the community in policing and inconvenience.
obamanut2012
(29,335 posts)As much as I loathe the Romneys, it is a rare dressage horse that is mistreated.
BlueMTexpat
(15,687 posts)(it is generally considered to be a sport of the elite - or of the military), it is a very old and respected art. These are "working" horses in every sense of the word.
Many Americans know about the famous and beautiful Lipizzaner stallions that perform at the Spanish Riding School in Vienna. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Riding_School
Fewer know of the more recent French equivalent, the "Cadre Noir." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadre_Noir
With all of Ann's "qualifications" (note that the story is about her horse and trainer, not even her, LOL), Mitt would probably name her head of FEMA.
Please all the gods, let Mitt never be in a position to name anyone to anything.
tanyev
(49,202 posts)Gold medal around his neck, waving the royal wave. Rill Amurrka would love it!
Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)obamanut2012
(29,335 posts)riderinthestorm
(23,272 posts)now THAT would be a laugh!
TrollBuster9090
(6,123 posts)
Scootaloo
(25,699 posts)...I can't say this bothers me one way or the other. Unless the R. Moneys bought Jan Ebeling's place in the games, I don't even see how this is relevant to much.
Hope she does well, I guess? Can't say I even know what "dressage" is, much less have a clue what the fuck it's doing in the Olympics.
riderinthestorm
(23,272 posts)and many dressage maneuvers at the Olympic level are old war moves. At its most basic levels its training that produces a more harmonious and comfortable ride.
Virtually all of the equestrian events at the Olympics are hold-overs from military tests and they're in the Olympics because they are damn difficult to do and have value as an ancient and revered sport like fencing.
JDPriestly
(57,936 posts)The Republicans want to take us back to the Middle Ages.
This proves it.
The Lippizaner are beautiful, but they are about as relevant today as the armor and other military material of the Austrian Empire and King Richard III.
Frankly, I think this horse is a perfect symbol for the anachronism of the Republican Party and philosophy.
Can you imagine one of these horses opposing a drone? A land mine? A tank? Even a machine gun?
That's what a Romney presidency would be, a dressage horse opposing a drone. If the Republicans didn't, at the moment, have so much money, I would feel sorry for them. Romney isn't just old Europe. He is old Empire.
The Lippizaner, the dressage horses, were the pride of the Austrian Empire.
Does anyone know much about the twilight of the Austrian Empire -- the death of Prince Rudolph, the events that lead to WWI? The thought of a Romney presidency reminds me of that Empire and its decline.
One of the hallmarks of the waning Austrian Empire was its highly efficient, effective intelligence service. It is said that the news of the events surrounding the death of Kronprinz Rudoph were managed by the Kaiser's government so well that it has taken late 20th, early 21st century scientific study to figure out what we know, and we are still not 100% certain what happened.
Reminds me of what we see today. After all, the whole Wikileaks scandal was not about the leaking of information regarding operations planned for the future or really even ongoing. It was almost entirely about hiding the truth about past events. Controlling the news, so to speak.
In my opinion, a Romney presidency would mean even more news manipulation, surveillance and thought control than an Obama one. Of course, Romney is more likely to bungle than Obama is. So . . .
For those who are curious (it's a fantastic story), more on the end of the Austrian Empire:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudolf,_Crown_Prince_of_Austria
On Rudolph's wife:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_St%C3%A9phanie_of_Belgium
Link does not look right to me. If it doesn't work, just Google. That is the best I could get.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austrian_Empire
Then there is the Hapsburg dynasty.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Habsburg_Monarchy
Like the Kaiser, who had once been a robust and energetic leader of the Austrian Empire, Romney is out of touch with the needs and problems of the people he would govern if president. He does not understand the demands of our society, not well enough to govern effectively.
Dressage indeed. Nice sport -- but strictly for the elite, for the wealthy. You and I could not feed a horse much less stable it or find the time to ride it on a regular basis.
I don't think the Republican Party is going to jump into the White House on the old Romney/Rove nag.
Winning the Olympics in a sport in which there is relatively little competition and what there is pretty much limited to the idle rich? That's not what we need in the White House.
riderinthestorm
(23,272 posts)My husband and I are pros in the dressage business, both of us come from poverty. Its a misconception that riders are rich - most are librarians, schoolteachers, carpenters, insurance salespersons, cops. Sure, we have clients who are surgeons and hedge fund managers but they're rare - most are regular folks.
The sport has millions of followers and has a hefty competitive base.
However, you are 110% correct that at the rMoney's level, its completely different than for the rest of us mortals. Honestly, it takes the big bucks to preserve this rare, old skill at that level. The US doesn't do well in dressage because we are hasty, impatient and unwilling to commit to the long view in order to build the riders and horses we need to be successful at the international level. In that way the Europeans have us beat by miles EXCEPT for people like the rMoneys who are willing to throw themselves behind making this sport truly great in the US.
While I hate to admit it (that the rMoneys are doing a good thing in helping preserve this rare beautiful art), I can also appreciate your history lesson.
Tumbulu
(6,630 posts)I have a 20 yr old KWPN mare that I have had since she was 4, and have shared with other women like myself. My mare has been treasured by all of us her entire life- not a one of us in the 1% .
All working hard to be better riders and give our horses the best athletic conditioning we can.
Dressage is art and history and philosophy..... I love it.
kentauros
(29,414 posts)and have great respect for those that can do it. The training is long and arduous, and monotonous. Hardly like the training that goes into any of the other physical Olympic sports.
My suspicion of those that dismiss this as an Olympic-level sport is that they only see a dancing horse, with a rider in place to qualify it for the Olympics. Until they do some actual research, their attitudes toward the art will be no better than the member that started this subthread.
BlueMTexpat
(15,687 posts)When done well, it is indeed a beautiful sport to watch and requires excellent communication between horse and rider.
And communication is always a good thing!
But you are correct, in those countries where there has been a long-term national commitment to the sport (to be fair, it is in part historically based), there are more who have been able to benefit from it.
JDPriestly
(57,936 posts)time and money on it is to me a sign of the kind of decadence that signaled the end of the Austrian Empire.
Dressage by ordinary people is entirely different. I see a few people riding horses for jumping at the stables in a local park, but even that is very different.
How much do you think that the Romney's horses cost them including the initial costs and the annual stabling and feeding? I'd be interested in an estimate on that.
maddiemom
(5,177 posts)Even those in the British Royal Family who competed weren't just "given" a place. I guess judges can be prejudiced, just as in regular horse shows at times. You can't get away with being obvious or blatant, certainly. Your country would be an embarrassment in the competition.
Response to maddiemom (Reply #19)
devilgrrl This message was self-deleted by its author.
RufusTFirefly
(8,812 posts)Wind-surfing is salt-of-the-earth stuff compared to dressage, but don't expect the same derision from the librul meedya. IOKIYAR.
pwb
(12,634 posts)We have a few defenders here but generally this is way out of touch with most of us.
RufusTFirefly
(8,812 posts)I have absolutely no interest in horses, but, you know, different strokes for different folks.
That said, what I definitely am condemning is the obvious double-standard at work here.
If this were Michelle Obama, we'd never hear the end of it. Limbaugh-loving right-wingers are usually so disdainful of elitists, but clearly, it's a conditional aversion. Just as their condemnation of drug users doesn't include Rush for some reason and their adoration for the teachings of Jesus permits a loophole that allows them to cheer on situations where we bomb innocent people back to the Stone Age.
If it were Michelle Obama's horse we'd never hear the end of it from (R). It would be elitist, it would indicate that she's out of touch.
Then again, most of the DU response would be to say how cultured and sophisticated it is, how nice it is to have a 1st lady involved in the Olympics. Perhaps it would educate the American masses as to what dressage is--and, when you get right down to it, anybody who excels in any sport either needs to have a huge income to achieve the necessary excellence or be wealthy. And we'd hear calls for government financing of Olympic athletes.
But it's Frau Romney. Therefore we'll never hear the end of it from (D). It is elitist. It's out of touch with the common folk.
Most (R) response will be to say how cultured and sophisticated it is, how nice it would be to have a 1st lady involved in the Olympics (and they might even point out that Romny almost certainly knows more French than Obama knows Indonesian). Perhaps we'll be educated as to dressage, we lumpen-Amerikanen. On rare occasion we may even hear calls for government backing of Olympic athletes.
I don't like double standards. Even when it comes to pointing out double standards.
That said, I had a student who missed several days of class for some dressage competition. Economically disadvantaged--think "trailer park"--she started riding through the local FFA and continued with some local folks' support. I asked why she missed class and she said. Maybe 3 of us in class knew what "dressage" was. Others asked, but we had more pressing business.
It's like playing virtuoso violin--yeah, it's elitist, but sometimes poor folk are uppity enough to get into it (not that the professionals mind in the least--it's the un-elites that seem to really mind this kind of thing). You'll even find a the odd junior fiddler with the desire and dedication to learn how to play Sibelius. So, no, it's not necessarily elitist.
JDPriestly
(57,936 posts)between the Romneys and most Americans.
This is not about education. It's not a question of liking classical music or opera.
Most American girls around 12 or 13 and a lot of boys dream of owning and riding a horse.
Their families couldn't dream of affording it. The most they can do is maybe if they are pretty prosperous, purchase a few riding lessons for their daughters.
The Obamas are not poor, and their girls may take riding lessons -- but the cost of buying, feeding, housing and then racing a horse?
This dressage business is like a dagger in the heart of every American parent who can barely afford to feed his or her child, maybe send the child to a summer camp for a couple of weeks (if they are lucky) or give the child a few basketball or music or art lessons.
Spending money on your dressage habit is symbolic for the kind of waste that the rich indulge in when they get additional tax cuts. This story is a double-edged sword for Romney.
Tumbulu
(6,630 posts)but mainly the expenses are highest in urban areas.
I have lived in areas where retired people and those working at minimum wage have been able to keep a horse at a stable. Dressage is favored by many older people (mainly women) because it is perhaps the safest of the disciplines, and it is really interesting. A good many of the therapeutic riding programs for the children with cerebral palsy and other neurological disorders are at dressage barns. It really is not an elitist thing. It is more of a middle aged woman thing. Most children find dressage not so interesting, they want to jump or do barrel racing or rope calves.
Dressage is perhaps the most boring of all the disciplines in that it is very precise and methodical and it is really done for the health of the horse. If one trains and rides their horse properly, it can be sound and happy and healthy into it's 30's. Other types of riding see horses all used up and lame by the time they are in their early teens (horse racing even earlier).
Lots of kids have horses and it really depends on what part of the country one lives in. In rural areas it tends to be quite inexpensive to keep a horse, in urban areas it is usually very expensive.
Spending time with a horse is a wonderful thing and I am sorry that it is such an out of the question expense in urban areas. In rural areas, not so much.
kentauros
(29,414 posts)
And now that I think about it, every time I've seen one of those news stories about people riding horses for therapy, it's almost always in one of those barns that looks like it was made for slower training. Those barn's aren't very big, compared to what's needed for jumping and barrel racing.
I suspect it will be a long while before we see people not automatically judging dressage as an elitist sport, though. What's interesting, is I never see our flying members here being called elitist because they can afford to fly a plane
maddiemom
(5,177 posts)If Michelle or her girls even got on a horse for fun , the right wing would be screaming "elitist!" Going back to John Kerry's windsurfing: That sport certainly costs ways less than golf ( which is very big with Republicans), especially the fees for some of the private courses and clubs they favor. Oh, but probably their lobbyists cover it.
amuse bouche
(3,672 posts)has been showing clips of a horse doing fancy footwork for weeks, and calling it
Romney.
That Dave is ahead of his time 
Botany
(77,208 posts)..... to give up my home in the Hampton's.
Does Romney have any campaign staff worth a crap? What in God's name is he doing having
a dressage horse in the olympics as he is running for POTUS?
TrollBuster9090
(6,123 posts)
Botany
(77,208 posts)We winter in La Jolla, CA. Just remember when seasons are verbs life is good.
Angry Dragon
(36,693 posts)
Brigid
(17,621 posts)I had just read that thread before I read this one. It's absolutely ridiculous. I hope they lose, and lose big. 
annabanana
(52,804 posts)Their deduction for this silly hobby is huge.
tawadi
(2,110 posts)Bet 90% of the country doesn't even know what the word means.
yurbud
(39,405 posts)for kissing Mitt's pasty robotic ass.
JDPriestly
(57,936 posts)Probably chose this competition because the win is pretty much in the bag.
riderinthestorm
(23,272 posts)While they're good by US standards, they're not amongst the top competitors by international standards.
JitterbugPerfume
(18,183 posts)and the horse she rode in on
onehandle
(51,122 posts)
bluedigger
(17,431 posts)The better they do, the more negative attention will be drawn to Rmoney's wealth and his distance from average Americans. Besides, it's the Olympics, and I won't root against an American horse because of the owners' politics.
AllyCat
(18,796 posts)It is extremely difficult and takes a huge amount of training and time for both horse and rider. And money. It takes money and riders at the top of their sport really rely on help from the owners of the horses.
I can't stand the RMoneys, but I understand that the riders rarely have the $$ to fund this venture themselves.
AllyCat
(18,796 posts)The RMoneys are douches however.
Go USA!
nolabear
(43,850 posts)There's nothing wrong with having money, or with dressage. The problem imo is everything else, the things that have to do with being a caring, intelligent, empathic human being who has the best interest of his poeople at heart. Hell, let him have his success. Let her have her horse. But don't try to convince me he's got anything but his own best interest and that of his sharklike financial cronies in mind.
Betcha money that horse has insurance that's better than most middle income Americans'.
tabasco
(22,974 posts)Republicans, that is.
sad sally
(2,627 posts)Lol ita
(2 posts)Maybe Ann should take the horse's place.
Bjorn Against
(12,041 posts)
JustABozoOnThisBus
(24,671 posts)They can stop in Iceland to hose off the horse and the jet.
Rosa Luxemburg
(28,627 posts)Princess Anne used to do dressage. See how the electorate fawns over these pseudo-Royals.
It is nauseating how Americans idolize people with money.
truthisfreedom
(23,531 posts)powder dry until just before the election.
yardwork
(69,297 posts)In terms of this being Latest Breaking News as a topic, it's borderline. I would have left it except that when it was posted it had already exceeded the time limit for latest breaking news. Please check the ToS for this forum. You are welcome to re-post this thread in General Discussion or another group on DU. Thanks.