Someday I’d love to go to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington to watch the Rolex Kentucky three-day event. Lately, I’m a little obsessed with how eventers go all-out for fashion at first jog or first horse inspection. I’m talking badass outfits.
Just what does badassery look like at a horse competition of this variety? You might ask. Precisely, how it looks anywhere else, I’d answer.
exuding confidence
simple, neither overdone nor over flourished
causes you to pause and take a breath
maybe incorporates some trademark or signature item
So, no more wasting time. Linking to some of those images from the United States Eventing Association, to these teams I say, “You got soul, you got class, you got style with your bad ass.” (CHRISTINA AGUILERA)
Alexandra Knowles and Last Call are awesome-looking! She looks classic, comfortable, confident, and totally American-Revolution with a badassery girl-power edge. Her choice to present Last Call against this palette of blues makes him really stand out. I love the navy cuffs and collar on her coat, the royal blue lining, her pearl earrings and his pearly browband, his black tack. She’s beautiful, natural, and just looks like she’s relaxed and ready to go.
Caitlin Silliman and Catch a Star are so striking together. If a goal of first inspection is to showcase your horse, her outfit totally does it for me. This flame and black ensemble is simple, practical, and makes a breathtaking canvas for Catch a Star’s gray coat. And (more badassery on display), my favorite touch is Caitlin’s black nail polish. This team has been through so much together. Stories of Silliman’s dedication to her mare after a 2010 barn fire also infuse the pair with can’t-touch-me mojo, regardless of their threads.
Hawley Bennett-Awad and the 15’3 TB mare, Gin and Juice (Ginny), are ready rock. Black leather jacket, neon skinny pants. Her hair is kinda disheveled but she doesn’t care, so I love her! Ginny’s browband even hints at Billy Idol-spikeyness. More please.
Ok. My confession here: I love to see a guy working the khakis, navy blazer, and tousley hair. The badassery in Daniel Clasing and Houston comes from the confidence in relying on the thing that is reliable – just a good, clean, traditional look that is, to me, always sexy. Yes, it is. I think Daniel Clasing is from Maryland, but really, in this outfit he could pass for that finest of gentleman: the one that hails from Virginia or, maybe, North Carolina. He wears this look well. Bold but not ugly tie. Two buttons on the jacket that is NOT double-breasted. Sly smile (what is on that mind of his?! That is always the question for a man in khakis and a blazer.) Sorry. I’ll stop now.
Kristin Schmolze and Ballylaffin Bracken (Rox), wow, so badass! Her hair, his tail. I can’t resist the color combo I see here: tobacco and black. Delish. And, the scarf, those white pants, the long black coat. Feels very Britsh Invasion/Very Exile on Main Street. Yeah, the outfit keeps me happy.
Buck Davidson and Mar De Amor: Off the badassery charts. One. His name is Buck. Two. Yeah, the trademark socks. And, look. The suit is tailored nicely for him. (A great fit is essential for the badass – male, female, or transgendered.)
For full coverage of the Kentucky Rolex fashion and competition, rely on the experts (not me):
Here are the US Eventing Association’s photos from the first horse inspection.
Practical Horseman magazine is there, too.
The Chronicle of the Horse agrees with me on two fashion statements from Wednesday’s jog. See The Chronicle’s fashion photos, too.
If you enjoyed your ride, kiss your horse 