How does this story affect the publics perception of eventing and equestrian sport?
ESPN, USA Today, and Sports Illustrated all covered the story by publishing the same AP release. This makes it one of the few non-racing sport horse stories that will be covered by the national media in 2010, and serves to support many unfair and incorrect misconceptions about equestrianism. I can only imagine what Joe Six-Pack said about riders when he read the story on ESPN; there is no positive way to spin this. Many people might not care what non-horse people think about our sport, but any increase in fans, sponsorship, or membership is closely affected by our sport’s image.
