Horse-obsessed youth are posting videos on TikTok and opening the eyes of the world to a bizarre community of people who compete in competitions using toy horses. Requiring skills that would be suited for track and field, the trend is known as ‘hobby horsing’ and we promise you it is very, very real.
The hobby horse community shares training routines, competition clips, and role-playing videos of themselves with their fake horses. The “horses” are made of plush horse heads attached to sticks (just like those toys many of us had as kids).
Hobby Horsing started in Finland, and became more popular in 2001, after Finish filmmaker Selma Vilhunen released a documentary on the phenomenon titled, Hobbyhorse Revolution.
Competition categories include: jumping, dressage (horse dancing), and obstacle courses. “Riders” are judged on their horsemanship, creativity, and overall performance. @_kht_semi placed first in a competition with their horse, TCC Turbo, and received nearly 1 million likes on a video featuring clips from the competition.
Comments from viewers all share an understandable confusion. “This is like those “air guitar” competitions,” @dancingcactussongs stated in a comment that received 41,000 likes.
“Imagine the strength and unconditional love it takes to be a supportive parent there on the stands,” @taykait47 said, noting the support parents have for their kids who partake in hobby horsing.
While it’s not nearly as dangerous as riding actual horses, hobby horsing can apparently sustain injuries, as documented by @kht.linna who shared a video showing the cuts and bruises she has sustained.
While it's easy to roast the hobby horse competitors, they do have jokes of their own, specifically one that involves sharing videos set to Me and The Devil by Soap&Skin, where they call their “horses” “the devil.”
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