Hi! I just wanted to know if anyone had any snark on Florida influencers who are in equestrian? I feel like there must be some sort of drama or BTS of the Wellington/Palm Beach/even Boca communities because they all feel very rich and put together.
Thank you to anyone who has anything to share!
It’s not Welly, but adjacent. Coming up on a year since this…
If anyone wants a rabbit hole with an equestrian twist the r/justiceforclayton sub is a wild ride.
Where was this thread during the 2012 Olympics!? I was obsessed with all the unspoken business around Reed Kessler, she was 17 but her boyfriend was a 25yo British equestrian… Noelle Floyd had just started her blog and it was basically a Reed Kessler fan site, it was all so weird. And wasn’t it kind of hush hush that Beezie Madden hated Reed?
Man I do not miss this sport AT ALL.
The stories I hear about these teenage girls and the money their parents are dropping on deep six figure horses!! And the trainers who are enabling kids who pick up the wrong diagonal who then show in the 1.2’s. The real question is wtf was going on with the Capital Challenge judges this last year. Judges texting trainers… one judge who was completely off from the other two… take a look at some of the hunters champions rounds and tell me if they really should’ve won!!
Grew up there (middle/high school) and didn't know there were influencers there but I guess there are influencers everywhere! Not surprised.
I remember that.
lol, the TALES I COULD TELL about these ppl
why don't you then
too lazy to make a burner acct lmao
Who are you interested in? I know a few.
I honestly don't know much about any of them/am asking about specific ones. I just came across the community and looked into it for a second and thought maybe I'd take to reddit to ask who to check out!
i live here and don’t know any drama! 🤷🏻♀️
same! now i wanna know lol
This request is so specific it’s making me laugh. What beef do you have with Florida equestrians?
OP is definitely looking for the super niche, but having grown up in that realm with two generations of pro trainers in my family… in short, the horse world is full of debauchery and salacious, sordid stories/people. It’s beyond entertainment.
FL/Ocala/WEF is especially nuts through the winter show circuit because you have all these looney horse people from all over the nation heavily concentrated in to one tiny area for weeks on end.
No suggestions but wanted to say that I miss the days of the Chronical online forum being full of all the juicy gossip.
The halcyon days of COTH were so good.
The Stormy Daniels thread there is still going strong after the recent WaPo story revived it.
I see people downvoting so just to clarify that it’s not a thread about her - this is a thread she started about a trainer in Texas who seems pretty controversial/ sketchy (one of Stormy’s horses drowned in a flooded turnout) which exploded with a lot of other people chiming in with other stories now at over 1500 posts.
I used to know an eventer who knew her (we are not fancy equestrians, we have old horses and a backyard farm) and they said she was a good horsewoman, I’m not trying to hate on her.
Not what you asked but this book is about competitive riding and is full of fun drama
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/62692859
ETA- in case you don’t want to click the link - girls and their horses by Eliza Jane Brazier
Following. But look up Peter Leone. Connecticut and Wellington/ PB
doesn’t the Onassis granddaughter compete in Wellington as well as Steve Jobs and Bill Gates daughters?
yes. they all live in one neighborhood too
yes. they all live in one neighborhood too
yes. they all live in one neighborhood too
Oooh I want equestrian gossip! Any good accounts to follow?
Oh boy, I moved from Wellington 5 years ago but still have friends to keep me in the loop. We are “the poors” but always entertained by the shady shit rich horse people did.
Super small community, I remember gossiping at the Mexican restaurant to have the subject get in a booth right behind me.
Commenting so I remember to come back & check for the horsey gossip!!
Same here i am all into horse drama
Jericho!!
My sister rides in Ocala and Wellington. Going to ask for some tea
My understanding is that Ocala is more chill than Welly-world (my trainer is threatening to kidnap me for a month next winter to train down there and they're based out of Ocala, somewhat intentionally)
just wanna add she is the least snarkable person who rolls in horse shit all day, but she is a good listener so let's see what she has
appreciate you <3
The real drama doesn't happen with the influencers. I used to complete on the West Coast circuit and there was always tons of drama and gossip. On the west coast, there were a good amount of celebrities kids riding. I haven't shown in 8 years though so I'm quite out of the loop. There have been quite a few high-profile trainers exposed for sexual misconduct with their minor students (and more that still haven't but should be). One, Jeff Campf, I knew about at the time through rumours but there was really no way to report anything. I hated that people still trained with him and his wife. Another top rider/trainer Rich Fellers recently pled guilty to sexual misconduct (can't remember the actual charges but he had sex with his 16 yr old student) and has been banned permanently from the sport
Omg same. Also haven’t shown in 8 years 😂
Would absolutely love any tea!!
As someone who rode the A circuit back in the late 90’s I would LOVE to hear about current equestrian drama lol.
There used to be this spectacularly scurrilous web forum called horse show diva that was where I got all my badly sourced possibly libelous WEF intel but I think it’s dead now. RIP.
It’s still alive! There’s not a lot of people on it, but every once in a while something pops off on there.
thank you for this! going to do a deep dive later 🕵️♀️
Oh god now I have to go look!
I’d imagine it would be all the Ocala ladies. That’s where the big horse farms are.
Wellington is a huge equestrian area for wealthy east coasters
That’s interesting. I’m more used to the racing set and everyone decamps to Ocala in the winter.
Who are some of these influencers? I need to follow.
I feel like it's old money and they don't brag or aren't showy.
Tell me you’ve never been to Wellington/ west palm beach. Aren’t showy 🤣🤣
Oh no, the Wellington/Ocala hunter jumper world is spectacularly and aggressively showy about money. There’s still some of the old families floating around but the vibe down there is very much conspicuous consumption.
I don’t follow her for horse content as I’m not part of that world but @notnataliebenson on tik tok is an interesting watch if you’re into weed and, I assume, horses lol. She travels down to ocala for competition and I’m constantly mesmerized by her wealth. I think she might be the one who popularized calling weed “gardening” but not 100% sure on that one