From the Publisher

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14 – November/December, 2022

By Tom Grabe

Without You…

There is, as always, a lot of discussion in our industry about the issues that affect the sport. The current hot topics range from the amateurs being able to give lessons for pay to animal welfare to how to attract younger exhibitors to the show pen. Sometimes there is so much talk that it all becomes white noise; the important issues of the day are all but ignored by those affected most. Those affected most are occasionally a silent majority. They are sometimes silent by choice and other times their opinions are ignored. Either way, as the old adage goes, the squeaky wheel gets the grease. Sometimes that is one wheel out of hundreds of thousands, but it gets the grease nonetheless.

I think many of us are guilty of looking at our industry as a whole, rather than viewing it as many individuals with shared goals but sometimes differing opinions. We see segments of our industry in monolithic blocks, each with its own subset of goals. However, there is nothing monolithic about it. Whether a breeder or an exhibitor, a cutter, jumper, or pleasure rider, or just a lover of horses, we all have certain shared interests that are much broader than those narrow interests we might have as exhibitors or breeders. We all want horses to be healthy and safe. We all want people to have the freedom to own and breed horses. We all have common interests that happen to involve our passion for equine pursuits.

Click here to read the complete article
14 – November/December, 2022