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    YttriumJordan Sargent
    8/15/16 4:31pm

    *Equestrian is fine outside of the Olympics. The Olympics are about humans and pushing the human body to its highest ability, not about pushing an non human animal to its highest ability.

    If a competitors equipment has to go through weeks of quarantine in order to participate, it should not be in the olympics.

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      Wookin Pa NubYttrium
      8/15/16 4:49pm

      There’s no quarantine in Brazil. They’ve gone with some sort of “biosecure” cordon thing where they travel directly from the airport to the venue and don’t leave. The only real concern in Brazil is glanders, which has been eradicated in all of the places the horses are coming from, so so long as the cordon is maintained there’s no reason to quarantine.

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      YttriumWookin Pa Nub
      8/15/16 4:53pm

      My mistake then, however the point remains. Procedures such as those should not have to be involved with the olympics

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    IhpsdmJordan Sargent
    8/15/16 4:08pm

    I’m more concerned with how the horses got there. Were they forced to fly coach? At least let them graze in the economy class.

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      handmadeproteinshakeIhpsdm
      8/15/16 4:13pm

      It’s is a serious question. Most likely shipped on a freight carrier.

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      Esme Squalor4handmadeproteinshake
      8/15/16 4:16pm

      You are correct.

      http://eventingnation.com/pegasus-for-a-…

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    Barry PetcheskyJordan Sargent
    8/15/16 4:05pm

    The horses should get medals.

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      YourTeamSucksBarry Petchesky
      8/15/16 4:16pm

      Goddamn right! They get wreaths and crowns and all kinds of other shit in track racing, give those majestic beasts a medal!

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      Gucci CoochieBarry Petchesky
      8/15/16 4:26pm

      they do. when you win, they pin a rosette on the horse’s bridle. not on the rider.

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    AFSJordan Sargent
    8/15/16 4:29pm

    If the horse riders are that good then they should just be assigned a random horse on the day. I don’t think horses were intended to go on planes.

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      Wookin Pa NubAFS
      8/15/16 4:43pm

      That’s part of pentathlon, actually. You draw the horse before the ride, get about fifteen minutes to warm up, then go jump a course. It is not for the faint of heart. Particularly since the host country provides the horses and they can be...questionable.

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      Pup1213AFS
      8/15/16 6:37pm

      Was anyone or anything intended to go on planes? Humans? Bombs? It’s all a bit mad.

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    Hit Bull Win SteakJordan Sargent
    8/15/16 4:09pm

    I motion that if your event includes anything involved directly in the War of 1812 (horses, rifles, Oksana Chusovitina, etc.), that it not be considered an actual Olympic event.

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      Sid and FinancyHit Bull Win Steak
      8/15/16 4:11pm

      I guess that rules out boxing, because ANDREW JACKSON KICKED SOME LIMEY ASS.

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      handmadeproteinshakeHit Bull Win Steak
      8/15/16 4:16pm

      I motion that if equestrian sports are worthy of olympics, then so too is falconry! As is lion taming and bear wrestling!

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    Sid and FinancyJordan Sargent
    8/15/16 4:07pm

    I knew the housing situation in Rio was dire, but this is ridiculous.

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      catzo5Sid and Financy
      8/15/16 6:38pm

      How is this not top comment?

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      Burned5xSid and Financy
      8/15/16 9:15pm

      Heh heh heh, good show Sid, jolly good show ol’ chap!

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    ninjaginJordan Sargent
    8/15/16 4:35pm

    Agree on show-jumping. It’s pretty neat to watch.

    I asked a horsey person at the office what the whole appeal of dressage is, when I can’t see the rider doing anything. She said that the really good riders don’t look like they’re doing anything at all, but they are making little motions with their legs and balance and putting pressure on parts of the saddle and holding the reins in ways that tell the horse what to do. There’s also an old-tymey military aspect to all the kinds of moves and trots and whatever that they do, apparently. Honestly, it just seems like horsey-dancing to me, and I told her that I thought the horses should be awarded the medal.

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      Wookin Pa Nubninjagin
      8/15/16 4:42pm

      That’s the issue with dressage. If you watch world record holder Charlotte Dujardin ride, her position is so perfect it looks like she’s not doing anything, when in fact there is a huge amount of stuff going on that’s really only identifiable to someone with familiarity with the sport. Plus, to get to the point where it looks like you’re just dancing around on horseback, you’ve put in thousands upon thousands of hours working with that horse.

      But I totally get why people think it’s boring.

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      2ndFastestDerbyninjagin
      8/15/16 10:56pm

      Dressage sucks cause its rigged towards the Germans and Dutch teams (I say this as a person who rides horses, owns horses, and races horses).

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    Ned FreyJordan Sargent
    8/15/16 8:21pm

    What’s most entertaining is the “Cross Country” competition, a timed race where the competitors leap fences and gallop through the countryside over a three to four-mile-long course.

    I’m convinced if they found some way to have a camera follow competitors at race speed over the length of the entire course (using drones, maybe?), even most non-equestrian fans would find this sport quite entertaining to watch.

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      LaPendejaIsGrumpyAsHellNed Frey
      8/15/16 10:53pm

      Oh my god, the horses would totally wig out having a drone buzz them at low altitudes, but I’d watch the crap out of that.

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      Ned FreyLaPendejaIsGrumpyAsHell
      8/16/16 12:05am

      I don’t think the horses would necessarily notice the drone if it were flying in the right position and distance — and not too noisy.

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    AshtauJordan Sargent
    8/15/16 8:40pm

    Legitimate question....how do they transport the horses to the Olympics?

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      otterbirdAshtau
      8/16/16 8:23am

      I know others answered this, but they fly them. It happens with top race horses all the time. Earlier this year California Chrome (2014 Kentucky Derby-Preakness winner) was flown to Dubai to compete in the Dubai World Cup. He won that (with a saddle that was slipping off!), was flown home to California and won his next race, too. They can handle it.

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      Ashtauotterbird
      8/16/16 1:50pm

      Wow! I travel a fair amount for work and definitely don't feel at my *peak* after a long flight. They clearly handle the travel better than I!

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    reggieinatlJordan Sargent
    8/15/16 4:06pm

    Easy comparison. NASCAR. Riding a horse is just as bad as driving a car.

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      Malloryreggieinatl
      8/15/16 5:25pm

      wow how I wish people who have never ridden a horse would stop commenting on this topic

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      ThunderousGeniusMallory
      8/15/16 5:39pm

      Yeah we get it, riding a horse is hard. Who gives a shit? Lots of things are hard to do, so what the fuck makes Dressage and Show Jumping so special? You know, besides the animal abuse.

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