That poor animal's back and mouth is destroyed. Paralyzed or not this is cruel. He has no idea how amazing that pony is to be able to jump and stay so in balance while he back is being pounded on and his mouth used to steady a fat bastard.
it scared all of my barn while watching... this man has NOOOOO business riding... this horse is a saint! Thank God the guy can't have children anymore after this ride!
This is an example of good intentions (For charity) with a bad execution (welfare of the horse). He slams on the horse---regardless of his riding abilities, he's not taking into consideration the difficulty this horse has with his 'comedy'.
Even if it's for charity, I don't like it. It was way too dangerous for both the horse and the rider. The showjumper and polo rider could have "swapped saddles" without risking their lives and the horse's health - I don't have anything against making fun of yourself in a saddle, but next time do it in a safe and reasonable way, because what happened here is just nonsense.
How did they teach him to ride??! "Ok, when you go over a fence, jump as high as you can out of the stirrups. Try to touch your toes together. That is the main goal."
The back story on this is that it was an exhibition ride in Spain, during which polo teams and jumping teams 'switched disciplines.' Hence the mess over the jumps, but somehow the rider still has the ability to point and shoot his horse around a course anyway. It's not a Grand Prix horse, just a nice little Andalusian who can navigate a 3'6" - 3'9" course without getting pissed off about the loose-limbed 'stylings' of his pilot.
The text at the end of the video reads: We guarantee that the animal was left with only a small back pain, and that it was in perfect condition the next day to return to jumping. So anyone claiming that the horse's back was not affected is incorrect. Also, the rider is NOT paralyzed (which can be clearly seen in the video). His name is Vítor Gonçalves, and was riding for Carlos Simões. He is still riding and recently placed third in a class at the National Showjumping Competition A** in Portugal riding Eguador. The horse Andarilho was for sale at the time, so some have suggested that it was all a marketing stunt.
Áldott jó ló az ilyen, amelyik egy ilyen rettenetes lovast 2 pillanatnál tovább elvisel a hátán! Minden ugrás után a teljes testtömegével a ló gerincére esik vissza. Szerencsétlen jószág a jóindulat mintaképe lehetne, a lovast meg el kellene tiltani állatkínzásért (folyamatos fájdalmat okoz a lónak az ügyetlenségével) a lovaglástól vagy vissza kellene küldeni az iskolába!
Hát igen.. A szárat is csak rángatta, a felvétel elején is látszott hogy húzza a ló száját. A belső száron fordítgatta folyamatosan, azt pedig nem tudom, hogy hogy tudott az ugrásoknál kiesni a nyeregből. Mondjuk, csak ül ott a lovon, nem csinál semmit.
this is the most amazing bit of riding I've ever seen! Amazing that the pony puts up with being caught in the mouth like that, amazing he didn't lose his stirrups more often and seriously amazing that the guy stayed on...amazing yet horrible
You know what's totally awesome about this guy that I wish I could do? Loose my stirrup mid air and magically land with it right back on my foot again. I would pay good money for that kinda skill!
A dark mark on this industry. What a horrid display of animal abuse I hope the pony got to retire after that and had a good vet check and care after that.
Look really. He never hurts horse's back. He absorbs the fall with his knees. Very strange style but not a bad rider at all. Very good balance and the horse doesn't seem to be bothered by his rider.
We were watching this at my barn today; my trainer said that if that horse ever goes up for sale, she wants it. :P And we all agree that it should be made a Saint.
How DARE he strike the horse after he failed to jump that last one. The horse had enough. This guy CLEARLY has no clue what he is doing. That horse has a heart of gold for putting up with as much as he does.
I'm not sure I understand how you can be that bad a rider with a horse that has that big of a heart. Bless him, I hope he retires to some lovely pasture.
I kind of feel for the man riding that horse, because he obviously isn't that experienced in what he is doing, so he can't help landing on the horse's neck each time. But... that horse deserves a much more experienced rider with its skill level. It's a great jumper, and the skill shouldn't be disrupted by the rider; the rider should assist the horse in every jump. This rider is just on the horse for guidance around the course. The horse is doing all the work.
The rider's name is Vitor Gonçalves - He's not handicapped... Also this was NOT a pentathlon, or a polo/jumper exchange as some rumours are saying. The event was the Campeonato de Cavalos Novos (championship of young horses) in Lisbon, Portugal - It was the 1m jumper class. The results are under Campeonato de Cavalos de 4 Anos (championship of 4 y.o. horses) here is the
He is one of those oh so many riders whom pay to have the horse ridden and trained everyday and only shows on weekends thinking he can ride once a week or less and win win win!!!
THAT MAN IS NOT A SHOWJUMPER!! That man is an elite horse polo rider & he switched the discipline with some famous jumper. It was an exhibition ride, not standart. This man had never jumped before. This is why he has this horrible style. The horse is a real saint, though.
Can't even watch this, had to cut it off. The fact that that horse chose not to DESTROY this freak, speaks volumes about its character. Most horses wouldn't have even given that person a second chance, much less saved his life over every friggin' jump. Whoever was managing this show/event should NOT have let this go on.
I have been looking for this video for MONTHS and I'm so glad I finally found it. Nothing like watching this failure to make you feel better about yourself XD
Read the comments people! The guy was a top level polo player that switched jobs with a top level jumper as TxRanchlady1 said. You can see that he is not a novice from the parts of the video when he's not jumping. It's just, he's not a jumper and he's not used to jumping such heights. This one looks tricky. Come on, I bet you've seen much worse than this in your own centers - so many riders who hurt their horses in the back or the mouth. This was just for one course time. Honest pony anyway ;)
I admire that horse's patience and tolerance... I am a very patient person, but if I were that horsie, I would throw him of my back after the second jump... O.o
What a very talented, very genuining, very honest little horse. Why have you all called this guy a 'rider'? Anyone actually see any riding happening here? I have never seen anything like this- i mean how the hell do you even get a position like that? Even someone who has never touch a horse could of 'ridden' that poor pony better! Lets hope this beautiful horse is free of this waste of space!
Poor horse, Is it not any judges there who can tell the rider to not compete anymore and that he have a fantastic horse who not would be treated like this. fantastic horse who still jumpes
The man is actually an excellent rider - look at how he regains his stirrups so easily and manages the horse beautifully between jumps with a very good seat, legs & hands. What he is NOT is a show jumping rider, or even a dressage rider - he's a polo player who is taking part in some charity event or something like that and literally had a few jumping lessons and then this competition. Very honest horse and an extremely brave man... may not have kids after this, though.
That was so painful to watch, that I didn't watch the whole thing. That horse is excellent, because it completed the course in spite of the rider. Hope it's back wasn't too sore afterwards.
that horse is so honest! looks like he's have a nice jump in him if he had a decent rider. only one refusal and one (?) pole down when riding like that is unreal. horse riding is supposed to be a partnership.
That is a saint of a horse. The rider has awful hands and jumps every fence BEFORE the horse even takes off, which is his problem. And hauling off on the horse after the refusal is just not right. I don't care if it's for charity, you don't treat an animal that way. I would have bought this horse based on this ride alone.
I seriously don't know what this man was thinking. That pony was way to honest for him. And to be honest if he rode my horse like that, she definitely wouldn't have been so nice
Apparently it was a thing where polo players and showjumpers swap horses or something... but even if he only played polo he should still have a basis in basic jumping...
this poor horse, he really needs to learn how to do a basic small cross before he goes trying to jump these heights, this pony is so so honest he wouldnt even last the first fence with my horse!
All I know is that this proves out that we are 'not the supreme species' after all.That is the most forgiving horse that I have seen. Take the rider behind the barn and put him out of his misery. Don't let him ride ever again unless it is a 'stick horse'.
Title: Andarilho (hiker), criterios (criteria) 2009 Words at end: "I guarantee that the animal was left with only a slight back pain, and that was the next day in perfect conditions to jump"
That has got to borderline animal abuse...I mean, god, think about that poor horses back! But I have to say, that horse is a trooper for putting up with that guy.
Yeah every year the polo riders switch horses with the show jumpers and attempt to compete in the different classes. Obviously a polo rider isn't going to have a clue about jumping and stuff if all they do is polo! I know the horses back could be sore. but personally I think that rider done amazingly to stay on after all that i mean you can see that in a few jumps he does his best not to land hard on the horses back.And he has an amazing seat to jump without a stirrup and stay on after all that!
he's a show jump rider who jumps with a polo horse. it's some tradition, polo players and showjumpers change horses. it's supposed to be funny, well i think it's not. i bet the horse doesnt like that. what a kind horse, still jumping over even though the rider swings all the time. - sorry for my bad english(:
the horse refused the jump because the rider got the distances wrong and was laying on the horse's neck for a good 2 strides. It's hard for the horse to propel his body into the air when the rider isn't supporting themselves
OH MY GOD WHAT IS HIS PROBLEM!!!! After a refusal, which was completely HIS fault, the rider beats the horse into going fast just as it was calm again!!! A bit late there if it was an attempt to stop the horse refusing, and if it was to make the horse go, you could try using your leg first!!! They shouldn't let polo riders jump if it turns out like this, it's just cruel, the only good thing I have to say is it's pretty darn amazing how he always lands back on the horse but damn that must hurt :/
i see him absorbing with his knees and heels . each to their own opinion, i have seen this before with an english rider and she gave an explananation of how it started and it became a habit . dont see any buck or reaction ,ie sign of uncomfort from the horse when he lands at all. as for the stop, horse didnt like the jump.nothing to do with his style of riding . only issue is he's prone to lose a stirrup because of it x
Well said Kanga, I believe the horse may have been 'loaned' to this guy to try his hand at jumping? I hope the owner of the horse flogged the rider with that crop when he left the ring.
He really really needs to slow his horse down, half halt and get that poor thing back into control! Jeeze..good on the horse for actually trying despite the bag of lard on his back
I can't believe the pony kept jumping! The best jump was when the rider didn't have her irons. Take them away for a very long time. The poor pony will have a very soar back to say the least, and will stop jumping....
That horse is a saint to continue to jump w/ such a wretched rider. That man needs to go back to his Hunter/Jumper roots and actually LEARN HOW TO JUMP. Go back to hours and hours in a 2 point position to CREATE an anchor in his seat. That's just...wow. It's obvious the horse is hurting by it...look at it's ears..pinned flat at each jump...but it's a saint to continue.
How come NO ONE Stopped him! Jeez if I was an official, I so would've been like "DQ!!" I am not much of a jumper, i prefer flat, but @ least I have a solid form. What a GREAT pony tho! :D
Although this guy is a HORRIBLE jumper, I give him serious applaud for staying on when he fails miserably. Also, he is obviously a decent rider on the flat, just definitely not a jumper. But poor horse, he/she is a saint for dealing with this horrible man flopping around on him. The horse I ride would probably kill me if I rode like this over jumps.
