Clothes make the rider? Equestrian competition dress and sporting identity

Abstract

Tailored jackets, long boots and white gloves are clothes not normally associated with sport, yet they make up required competition dress within equestrianism. The modern equestrian sports of dressage and showjumping have their origins in the military and on the hunting field, and this highly formal, masculine style persists in contemporary equestrian circles. Perceived by many non-participants as archaic, comical and distinctly unsporty, equestrian competition dress requirements have remained relatively unchanged for a century and are one factor (amongst many others) that visibly marks equestrianism as different to most other sporting practices. This paper draws on an ethnographic study of equestrian sport in Britain in order to consider how participants today relate to and experience formal competition dress in the course of regular sporting activities. Formal competition dress is an important aspect of individual sporting identity for contemporary riders and is understood by participants to represent the unusual ethos of equestrian sport.

Keywords:

• dress
• equestrian
• gender
• identity
• sport

Acknowledgements

This research was supported in part by the Staff Development Fund of Carnegie Faculty, Leeds Beckett University.

Notes on contributors

Katherine Dashper is senior lecturer in the Institute for Sport, Physical Activity and Leisure at Leeds Beckett University. Her research interests focus predominantly on issues of identity in sport and leisure contexts, particularly in relation to gender and embodiment. Her current research explores human-animal relations within equestrian sport and leisure, and the gendered aspects of involvement in a mixed-sex, but often female-dominated, sporting environment with strong masculine origins. Katherine is editor of three books (Rural Tourism: An International Perspective, 2015, Cambridge Scholars; Sports Events, Society and Culture, 2014, Routledge; Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Sport and Leisure, 2014, Routledge) and on the associate editorial board of Sociology.

Michael St John is currently one of the leading consultants in the fashion & active sportswear business, specialising in creative direction and brand building. With his vast knowledge and a special talent for identifying problems and creating strategic solutions, Michael has revitalised, assisted or launched many global brands. He is the inspiration and creative director behind his own fashion design studio and advertising agency but also dedicates time to trend forecasting, lecturing, educating and writing for magazines. For the last 3 years he has worked on a start-up project for Miasuki, a luxury fashion & equestrian company.

Notes

1. Advertising and fashion shoots in equestrian media use models of similar shape and size to that seen in mainstream fashion media (i.e. tall, very slim and toned but not overly muscular).

2. Hacking is an English term, similar to trail riding. To hack is to ride a horse outside of an arena, in open space or on the road. In the context of this quote, the rider has ‘hacked’ to a competition, meaning that she rode her horse there and did not transport the horse on a trailer or lorry. Hacking to competitions is uncommon today in the UK due to the volume of traffic on the roads and associated safety concerns, and only a rider who does not have access to horse transportation would consider hacking to a competition, so this is an indication of the financial status of the rider.