This weekend in California, class sponsor of the AIG $1 Million Grand Prix waived the coat rule for the biggest class of the HITS Thermal Desert Circuit. That is, riders had the option of competing in their hunt coat or a polo shirt. AIG even provided polo shirts for them. It was nearly 100°F in Thermal that day. Presumably, the athletically inclined folks at AIG thought that the riders would be more comfortable and, therefore, perform better without heat stroke. Some riders, presumably, agreed.

Eight or so, including second and third place finishers Charlie Jayne and Jonathan McCrea, chose to exercise the polo shirt option. In doing so, they ignited a social media firestorm that has continued to rage today over the appropriateness of polos in the Grand Prix ring.

Even within our office there were strong feelings on either side. I, for one, am #propolo. But both our director of business development, Liz Davoll, and art director, Ryan Polli, are firmly in the #nopolo camp.

Here’s why they’re wrong. (You can read Nina Fedrizzi’s defense of the hunt coat here. For the record, she’s wrong, too.)

1. Athletic wear should enhance athletic performance.

Traditionally, tennis players wore slacks with a button-down shirt and tie.

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Now they wear this:

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Guess what! Despite that radical change in apparel, we still call it tennis. That’s because…

2. Putting on a suit jacket and tie to compete is batsh*t insane.

Just think about that for a minute. Have you ever put on a suit and tie to go for a run? Or play a pickup game of hoops? Of course not. You probably haven’t even slipped one on to jump school your horse. Because it’s the opposite of athletic wear.

3. Now you might be thinking, BUT TECHNICAL FABRICS.

Yes, lightweight technical fabrics that breathe and stretch have made hunt coats more conducive to the athletic demands of the sport. It’s still a suit and tie. When your horse is sweating in 95°F weather, do you add an extra “breathable” layer? No. Because that would be nonsensical. Until they find a way to weave fabric out of air, wearing a hunt coat is never going to be more comfortable in the heat than not wearing a hunt coat.

4. “It’s 90 seconds in the ring. The riders can take it.”

They can and they do. Does that mean they should? Insisting on hunt coats in the ring prioritizes appearance over performance. While it is indeed a fashionable kit, last I checked it was “horse sport.” Not “horse runway.”

5. No other sport in the world insists on a uniform that actually impedes performance.

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Consider this: swimmers, soccer players, hockey, rugby, and tennis athletes all train in the same style of uniform they compete in. Never, in the history of show jumping, has a rider made it their practice to school at home in a hunt coat and tie. Not even George Morris.

6. “But it’s tradition!” (Also known as “respect for the sport.”)

Good horsemanship. Classical training. The teachings of Littauer, Steinkraus and de Nemethy. These are traditions worthy of honoring in the sport. Fashion doesn’t fall into that category. Like witch burning and foot binding, it just doesn’t make sense in the modern world. And anyway, what is show jumping but the bastard child of field hunting? It’s but a shadow of its natural obstacle jumping roots. It only makes sense that the uniform would evolve along with it.

7. “What’s next, McDonald’s logos on their collar?!”

Another popular concern among the #nopolo crowd is that phasing out show coats will lead to anarchy and neon pants.

Are sponsor logos in the future of the sport? Maybe. In soccer, literally the most popular sport in the world, corporations pay millions in endorsement deals to have their logo on the front of a team shirt. Not only does soccer dominate primetime television slots, it generates billions in economic opportunity. Call me crazy, that’s not a terrible model to emulate. Or maybe, like in hockey, the logos never make it on the uniform.

The more likely outcome of allowing polos in the Grand Prix ring is “show polos.” That is, competition sanctified colors and designs as determined by the Federation. Made in technical fabrics, of course. None of which are likely to be neon.

8. Respect for the sport.

Riders are athletes. How about we start letting them dress like it?

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