Any other parents finding Harlow white very annoying

[Coppercreek1]

DD has 2 ponies and is big into watching equestrian YouTubers.

But I can't help but finding Harlow very annoying and spoilt. Even DD will now only watch her if nothing new to watch from the others.

She tried to say hello to her when she was doing the pony racing on her Shetland at one of the local shows and she was very dismissive...much prefer this esme who seems to show a lot of the reality of having horses, mucking out and poo picking etc herself rathr than being on a posh livery where they tack your pony up for you!

Not to mention the posting videos from luxury holidays abroad.

DD is a similar age and has her old pony plus a new project pony both on DIY and struggles to relate to her at all!

@Greatly I disagree about ThisEsme always being sunny and everythings great.

She is very real, Joey's accident, losing her confidence, bad fall cracking ribs, she doesn't doesn't push her horses for views either.

Taking it very slowly and not over jumping him. Some you tubers seem to jump so much, constant clinics, lessons and shows, combined training etc with 4/5 year olds.

Harlow white does seem a bit spoilt and Im not a fan. But she is just a child and I hope the exposure doesn't go wrong when she is older.

Some you tubers seem to jump so much, constant clinics, lessons and shows, combined training etc with 4/5 year olds

Who?

Oh I feel a bit sorry for Harlow. She seems like a sweet kid and I assumed quite pressured into it all by her mum. I mean it’s not to my taste at all. But she’s just a kid and being exploited almost by the adults.
DD likes watching her but also says the riding she does looks like hard work and it’s more fun to dash about the countryside on her scruffy little pony 🤦🏼‍♀️

I am very proud of her, our family set up is a bit complicated and she has a severely disabled brother so we only agreed on the second pony (who is a project) if she took on more of the work and she has shown endless dedication!

Wasn't a mammoth hack or schooling session mind, just aquick half hour each to get out the stable as no turnout currently!

I have a friend who works in equine media, the opinion is that she is too young to be on You Tube, the mother wants her to be an influencer. It is all down to the mother, they are wealthy, but I fail to understand why you would want to do this to you kid.

They have moved from the livery yard, probably because idiot people were turning up to the private location to see the kid and her ponies, climbing through fences and trespassing on the yard. Why do people think they can invade private property?

It’s not just the mother though (although she is the prime instigator of all this) - all the companies that rush to hitch their wagon to the Harlow gravy train (mixing my metaphors but you know what I mean) are to blame too. I saw a ridiculous post from Aztec Diamond the other day about a ‘great meeting with Harlow signing off their new collaboration collection’ yeah right 🙄

There’s a tattle thread on the mother…

Where is this? I think it is definitely more the mums fault, Harlow seems to be made to do all of these videos

Why are adults commenting on a kid, wierd thread!

Hmmm. This is a kid who has 336k followers on YouTube, and 152.2k on Instagram. She is sponsored by multiple brands & her channels target tween girls. I don’t agree that her content shouldn’t be critiqued. It’s like saying film reviewers should never comment on child actor’s performances.

I can’t believe all this hate towards Harlow! She’s an 11 year old girl and you are adults. Disgraceful!

My daughters of a similar age absolutely love Harlow and her ponies and get so much enjoyment from watching her. You all sound very jealous!

This. We compete in the same classes and she is a polite and very nice girl. She certainly doesn't think she is better than anyone else in the line up. As we are at the same shows I see fans approach her at really inappropriate times like mid warm up, from the side of the ring while she is in the line up, just before she enters a class. Always see her chatting and signing at other times.

I looked up the previous results of the Dartmoor pony she's recently qualified for HOYS and LIHS - they must have spent a fortune buying it and its not as if they've done any of the work themselves, the pony was already a prolific champion before they bought it.

Guess when you have enough money it's easy to buy the horsepower to get into the major championships 🤷‍♀️

My only awareness of Harlow is that video her mum posted of her after she injured herself pony racing. I feel sorry for her- she's a child and really can't consent to what's going on. I'm sure she enjoys all the things the money pays for, but I still feel sorry for her.

In general, I'm not keen on people monetising their children- to be fair to Harlow's mum, she's not the only one doing it with ponies, just the most successful. At least Harlow is old enough to express her opinions and understand it's going out for the world to see (whether she gets listened to or not is another thing)- when the children are young primary school age, it really concerns me.

There are a couple of (adult) influencers who live locally to me, and I know they've caused issues for other people on fun rides etc, hogging jumps and similar because they want to get the right shots- which I feel is unfair. I'm sure they're perfectly nice people, and I don't blame them for wanting to make a bit of extra money- we all know horses are expensive! But I think there needs to be a level of consideration for others when out and about!

What @Pleasedontdothat said

I think that there should be a minimum age for appearing in YouTube videos etc. Not just Harlow but I see so many mummy bloggers exploiting their kids for laughs and likes.

I have previously criticised Harlow myself, which I now realise is unfair because it really isn’t her fault. She must be under such pressure to perform for the videos. Kids her age should just be having fun on their ponies not worrying if the content they produce will elicit enough likes to please her mother. As someone said upthread, I do think that companies that collaborate with need to take a look at themselves.

Completely agree with this. I used to criticise her a bit too and find her a bit irritating, but actually she's a child and cannot possibly consent to her whole life being documented in such a way.

There are a few videos of her doing an activity with a friend, but I look at my DD over these summer holidays with her big gang of horsey pals, hanging out at the yard, getting filthy, having mucking out races to earn a Starbucks, lying down in the long grass chatting away for hours, going to shows and stay aways as a group of friends and existing on pot noodles for days, it's pretty idyllic, and I don't think I'd swap DD's pony life for Harlow's.

I also think as she has got older she seems to take the off days with very good grace...she was chasing her HOYS ticket for ages and always seemed to accept it when she didn't get it 'well it wasn't our day today but I'm still so proud of how he went, he was such a good boy'. And then day she didn't even get to ride XC at a ODE after course walking with somebody famous, after getting eliminated in the SJ. She seems to handle her 'fails' with pretty good grace for a kid her age. I guess she can't afford not to as it's all captured on camera and shared with the world and people would be vocal about it if she didn't pat her pony or sulked and tantrummed about things!

Honestly, I think Harlow is a great rider, really good, she only has 3 ponies (Rolo, Popcorn and Panda) Cloudy the other pony is only for Harlen her brother. The coaching might be expensive but it pays off. She does not say hello or seem friendly but why? Think about it, would you like thousands of strangers hugging you and asking for autographs? She has taught me a lot, and my pony is very good, but a lot like the palomino, Popcorn. I love watching her vlogs, they are so fun, and her seat and posture is great. She is so nice and although I have never met her ponies they seem happy with Harlow. She is only 12, quit putting so much hate and pressure on her. After you have read this message think about this. What you are saying is kinda rude. Although, she is very spoilt, it is so nice to see the collections of saddle pads worn it looks so nice. BTW, she doesn't BUY EVERYTHING, she is gifted for helping model clothes. O f course this Esme is better, she is an adult and Harlow is not even a teenager, she is a great influencer for everyone.

God I miss Horse and Pony.

I've not ridden since 2019, I used to be a freelance groom and have worked to a very decent level on some serious horsepower. Gave it up years ago, not even considered it again. But I had to look on YouTube! 😂 she's just a little kid, she seems to have ponies I would've dreamed about when I was a kid but also I don't see much evidence of galloping through the woods and building log piles to jump, or hacking 10 miles to a show...! Seems very clinical and lacking in a bit of fun tbh.

Jumping with Ivy keeps popping up on my youtube feed, she's much younger - maybe 6? very sweet, brave and determined.

My daughter inhales this stuff but it makes me feel à bit queasy to see all the stuff they have. How many saddle pads, headcollers, jodphurs etc in matching colour combos does one need, for goodness sake?? My daughter's riding teacher was saying the other day that kids should put all the money they spend on matchy 'clobber' towards a really decent helmet.

I have, however, enjoyed watching some of her earlier videos as they seem so much more genuine and less focused on all the clobber.

Listen, Harlow used to be terrified on doing anything more than 50cm jumps, in the same competition she was scared and wanted to back out of 60cm, but decided to still do it, she decided to do a 70cm as well, she puts in so much effort and time.

Harlow isn't even 12 yet, she is still 11 and I totally agree with you. If you were a youtube horse rider, would you really want people to come up to you all the time, hug you, ask for autographs, etc, while you're waiting for results for a competition? People say she doesn't put in work and effort, but she actually has quite a few videos on her channel that show her daily routine, WHILE SHE ISN'T AT SCHOOL, which normally includes mucking out, grooming, tacking up, etc. Even though she is on full livery, she still puts in the effort and takes care of her ponies. She mucks her stables out, even though she doesn't have to, she exercises her horses better than any of you adults could. You really aren't good for hating on an 11 year old girl whose 1st proper video, was grooming her old Shetland pony.

I really think she seems like a lovely little girl. She seems well brought up to me. I don't really agree with her mum monetising her riding and ponies but she does seem to be a willing participant and they clearly work hard (much harder than I could be bothered to do) to create new and interesting "content". She also seems very knowledgeable and she's certainly a skilled rider and has a lot of fun with her ponies.

My 4 year old has become obsessed with her videos. I've got to be very careful though to make sure she only watched occasionally and to make sure she doesn't watch any "unboxing" or birthday present type videos which I think are very unhealthy.

I've not seen her personally, so won't comment, but maybe have a look for some alternatives, don't have to be famous influencers, who are more down to earth. I think we have to remember the brands push these influencers, because it's selling their product, and they probably vet what they post pretty carefully, too, which would explain the rather sanitised, sunny view of horse ownership.

I don't suppose watching me fall over pushing a wheelbarrow full of poo, while wearing my ancient orange overalls, or spilling cold water down my boots will sell many saddle cloths, nor would me nearly getting my head taken off as I try to mend the electric fence while the reprobates hooley around in excitement because a leaf rustled sell many diamonte riding hats. Unless they saved my life.