As I sit here reading news and other blogs, I am vaguely aware of the football chaos going on in the room with me. The TV is blaring the announcers' blathering, the occasional cheerleader yelling something silly and the marching band playing the occasional song. Then my dad starts yelling at the TV. I will admit that he doesn't get rowdy and jump up screaming, but he doesn't keep his thoughts to himself either.
"Why do you think Equestrian sports aren't popular in the United States?" I ask him.
"Well... I don't know."
"You don't like watching it, do you?" I prompt, looking for more than just a dismissal of my question. "Why don't you like watching someone racing around on horseback, jumping over things? Risking death every moment!" Of course, I'm talking about Cross Country jumping, probably the only type of Equestrian sport he has ever watched on TV.
"Well if someone would die occasionally... or at least get carried off in a stretcher..." He is kidding about the dying, of course but it was clear that this was all I was going to get out of him.
It set me thinking about why Equine related sports really aren't mainstream. Surely Stadium jumping or Cross Country would be found interesting by the general public. They would have to admire the sheer athleticism and power of the horse and the balance of their riders. I can see how dressage would be a stretch for the laymen, since they wouldn't understand the complexities behind the flawless technical feats unfolding before their eyes. But surely Cross Country...
I can't seem to wrap my mind around it, why people would not be interested. Any thoughts?
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