judging in hand

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samnpaddy

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help - my local riding club has asked me to judge some in hand classes at the local show - never done this before need some tips please asap as show is on sat 2nd june! classes are -
youngstock - m & m - veteran - coloured - junior turnout - junior handler -
any and all advice appreciated!

ought to say i'm not complete nonce - been horse owner for around 25 years but never judged a class of any sort before!!
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thanks to all who relpy!!!!!!!!
 
Can't offer advise on judging as I am not a judge. There are people on here who do this and will be able to offer the right kind of help. But as a competitor I know what I consider a good judge. Someone who takes their time looking at each individiual horse/pony. I like to know I have got my monies worth and a lot of people have taken a lot of time and trouble to get their horses ready and think the world of them and don't want a 2 second glance and right okay off you go. Being friendly and asking the age of horse etc. Judge each horse on it's own merit and the class it is competing in. Don't pick all the greys if greys are your fav etc etc. Or the show ponies if you like them better than chunky cobs in a best conditioned class etc etc. Sure you know what I mean. Good luck and enjoy it. Be ready for people to ask you why they didn't get placed or how they can improve on their pony or horses way of going and be careful what you say. You need to run a bit faster, slower, show your horse off better, etc etc. Once heard a judge saying something really horrid with a reference to dog food and no she never did judge at our show again. Contructive critisim in the right direction and something that will help the competitor to improve their horse even if it is not the best horse around!! Good luck and most of all enjoy it.
 
A quick reply for now, but if you want any more help, PM me.

In the youngstock and coloured classes you are looking for correct conformation, movement and soundness (not colour, even in coloured classes). In m&m classes you are looking for the same, plus the pony being true to breed standard (at first glance the pony should look like the breed it is, rather than you ummin and arghing about whether it's a dartmoor or a welsh A for example). In the youngstock class, if it's mixed, ask everyone how old their horse is - a two year old and 3 year old really vary in maturity and you have to allow for this.

In a veteran class you are looking for a horse or pony that looks good for it's age - look at condition, soundness, zest for life etc.

Do you know correct turnout for inhand classes? You should be looking for the basic correctness (tweed, shirt, tie, hat etc) plus cleanliness and good plaits or condition of the mane and tail if natural.

In junior handler you want someone who looks in control of their pony, who shows it to their best ability etc. They'll need to walk near the shoulder on the correct side, stand the pony up correctly for you, turn the horse away from them in the trot up etc.
 
That's interesting Virtual. How come they don't look at the colour in coloured classes. Just wondered that was all. Thought a "good" coloured was a certain ratio of colour to white. So really you are judging the horse as if it was a "solid" colour for conformation etc etc. Interesting.
 
Here goes then:-

1) Youngstock. Can be of any breed or crossbreed, yearlings, two and three year olds. Colts, fillies or geldings. Judge the conformation from the point of view of 'potential'.

2) M&M - This class covers all native breeds and you may find that you will have to split the class into 2 (providing there are enough rosettes). Smalls - Shetland, Welsh A&B, Dartmoor, Exmoor. Large - New Forest, Connemara, Fell, Dales & Highland. This class should be judged as 'true to type'. That is, the exhibit which is as near to it's particular breed type as possible.

3) Veterans - this is the class I dislike judging most!!! The exhibit should have a bright eye, be sound, in good condition and have well kept feet. Ask the handler how old the animal is but don't necessarily feel that you have to put the eldest first. Consider all the above first.

4) Coloureds - check the Schedule. Coloureds are piebald and skewbald only, unless otherwise stated in the schedule. When judging this class look at the animal as a whole and don't take into consideration it's colouring and markings until you have considered it's conformation and way of going.

5) Junior Turnout - The handler should be wearing a hat, gloves, have tidy hair and carry a short leather covered stick,
as well as the usual clean jacket and trousers or jods, and clean jod. boots. If the pony is plaited, ask if the handler plaited it himself. You can usually tell, tho. by just looking!! Give extra marks if they have done them themselves, rather than Mum. Bridle should be spotless and supple.

6) Junior Handler - Depending on the age of the child, ask each one a simple question which you think they should be able to answer correctly. e.g. where is the chestnut/ergot? What type of bit is this? What is this part of the bridle called? When the ponies are called into the line-up each handler should stand facing the pony's head, holding the reins just behind the bit, in both hands. This should apply to ALL handlers in ALL in-hand classes.

The procedure in all these classes is the same. They enter on the right rein, e.g. turn left when going into the ring. After a couple of go-rounds, get your steward to stop them all on a corner and ask each individual to trot the length of the ring and around the next corner.

Look for soundness and way of going. When all have been, get your Steward to call them in, either in a rough order, starting with your first preference, or call them in to the middle in any order. Each exhibitor now brings their pony out of the line-up and stands it up before you. Give each a good look round but don't touch it and don't ask what it's breeding is. If you are not sure, then don't say anything at all!!!
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Then the exhibitor will walk the pony away from you and trot it straight back towards you, where you will be looking to see how straight it moves. Move to one side as it passes you and then step back to watch it trot away from you, from behind.

When the whole class has had a turn, send them out again, in a small circle and call them in, in their final placings. Check in the Schedule if it is rosettes to sixth place. Try and award as many specials that there are available, especially in the child handler classes.
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I will place lower down the line any pony that is a)grossly overweight; b) very bad mannered. I will even put it lower if the exhibitor is very bad mannered!!!!
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Hopefully you will have a good Steward who should take on the responsibilty of looking after the entries in your ring and help you at the same time. Always say good morning or afternoon to EVERY exhibitor, not just 'Hello', and 'Thank you' should be said at each step of the procedure, to EVERY person.

Your outfit:- As it is local level you will be able to wear slacks or trousers, unless of course you do want to wear a skirt or suit. Do not wear riding clothes. Choose comfy shoes and smart jacket and IMO you MUST wear a hat, I'm afraid!!! Take your wellies, change of clothes etc. then, hopefully, you won't need them! Don't wear sun-glasses whilst you are judging.

I have outlined the general procedure which I and many other judges use at local level. Different styles of judging can vary greatly, which is just as well!!!

I do hope you enjoy this experience. I started judging 30 years ago and have loved every minute of it. Please PM me if there is anything else you want to know, and please tell me after the weekend how you got on.
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Dun4 has given a really good run down on what you need to do. It should be enjoyable, so I hope it's not too stressful. As Dun4 said - if in doubt, don't say anything (many a judge has said "what a lovely example of a new forest", only to find it's a connemara!) If your judging in the afternoon, try to go in the morning to see other judges in action and take some tips at lunch time!

One thing that competitors hate is hanging around if there are big classes and/or you're running late. You don't need to see them walk round hundreds of times, but do give yourself enough time to see everyone properly. A positive comment to everyone at the end never goes amiss.

I don't agree that the children in the child handler should "stand facing the pony's head, holding the reins just behind the bit, in both hands" - most stand to the side of the pony until they go out to do their individual stand and run out, or if the judge specifically comes to look at their pony, and even then the reins can be held in one hand, with the other hand used to prick the pony's ears.

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That's interesting Virtual. How come they don't look at the colour in coloured classes. Just wondered that was all. Thought a "good" coloured was a certain ratio of colour to white. So really you are judging the horse as if it was a "solid" colour for conformation etc etc. Interesting.

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Coloured horse classes are judged just as if the horse was of solid colour, yes - so even horses with ghost markings (blue and whites that have gone grey) can and do win. At specialist coloured shows they have Colour and Markings classes, which are obviously just judged on colour.
 
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