Wednesday

Grrl power


casualjaneandamanda
Originally uploaded by kgranju.
This is a picture of my daughter, Jane (the small one) with her 13 year old pal Amanda at a recent horse show.

One of the reasons I like it that my daughter is involved in equestrian sports is that it's a very feminist environment. It's one of the only sports in which men and women compete at absolutely the same level with no accomodations whatsoever made for gender.

And for whatever reason, the world of hunter-jumper/dressagehorse shows and trainers and barns is very female-centric. When we go to horse shows, like we did last weekend, my kids spend the entire day immersed in a world full of confident, athletic, smart, strong girls and women.

There are boys and men who ride (more men compete at the highest levels and internationally), but mostly, this sport is all about women. And it's a great environment for girls, mothers, and even boys who may not have any other area of their lives where women run the show.
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1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I used to show hunters and jumpers and honestly I saw this as very different. a good chunk of the english riding instructors I knew were man hating lesbians. I have never been around more people in serious need of therapy than when i was in this environment. I sort of floated away from horses and as an adult, my kids have sort of rediscovered them. they are in 4H now and it is very low key and while there are more girls than boys there are definately more boys than I remember in hj circles growing up. I like that my kids 4h leader is a man instead of some ugly fat harpy who hates men. so if you want people like this as role models for your kid, feel free. I still remember the woman who owned the stable where I kept my horse (my horse had some special circumstances and I was short cash so my options were slim) who allowed "no men" on the property....not even a male riding teacher. she had some serious man hate issues and that is not somethign I would want my daughter to be around. it is a very short walk from 'girl power" to "man hating". sure I want my daughter to feel empowered as a woman but I also want her to be able to have a functional relationship with a man. I love horses but I have to say that there are more messed up people per square inch in the horse world than in any other extra curricular activity that I or my children have been involved with. maybe because there are so many spoiled trust fund babies. who knows. my non horsy mother allowed me to get a horse because she thought it would keep me busy. I have never encountered so many people with alcohol problems, so many drug dealers and so many really deranged people as I did in the show world. I would think long and hard about sticking my kid in this environment just so they can get "girl power". if your kids passion in life is horses, sure, indulge it (assuming you can afford to do so) HOWEVER do not for one second think that this is a wholesome environment, one that will "protect" them from the evils of the world. my recommendation actually for a horse crazed kid would be 4H because it is still, at this point, a relatively sane program and not so much oriented to whose parents can cough up the most money for an expensive horse.

Monday, April 4, 2005 at 12:41:00 AM GMT

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