Showing report - someone slap me please!!

[miamibear]

I love my horse to death but showing is obviously not his forte!!

Took Red in school master - which he truly is and he was an idiot. Napping, wouldnt canter not listening to my legs etc, disaster!! Was disaponted but thought oh well i have another class to go, he may be better for that.

Took him in ridden horse, he did much better canters were there hardly any napping and i was really confident.

Everone kept admiring him all day.

Here are my gripes!! Ready .....

1) the ring was littered with working hunter jumps which wasnt a problem but a bit awkward, he said gallop was optional but would be nice, there was no space for a gallop!

2) Judge judged all horse classes and probably pony classes too and he is the yard owners husband, not a judge!

3) I did my show in ridden horse which was rudely cut short when he called the next person (i was first) and didnt even want to see me halt and salute and have a chat with me - very rude and i was very upset about this!! I would have liked to know where i could do better next time!

4) He told everyone whilst i was doing my show that he wanted them to do the show infront of the line up when all the shows in the classes before had used the full ring and he didnt tell me before i did mine.

I was already considering not going in the class because of how much of a muppet he had been in the class before and i knew i had little or no chance of getting anywhere but i thought he may be better which he was and i felt like he should have let me at least show my canter on both reins but he cut it short before i did my second canter!

5) The space in front of the line up was about 15m wide and 40m long with 3 working hunter jumps in it so very small!

6) It was such a long day, we hacked down and i was sat on Red for 4 hours, by the end of the day i was tired, hungry, my legs were in agony, poor red had me sat on him for 4 hours, and to top it all off the judge had offended me by cutting me off. I was very grumpy!!

So i have decided to give showing a miss from now on, at least with dressage you get a proper judge and you know where you have gone wrong and improve on next time!

My friend got a 3rd and a 4th. 4th in school master when her 4yo horse has only been backed for 4 months and the judge said what he was looking for was a horse he could pull out and use for his riding school if he needed it!!!! How does that work??!! Also a lot of them in school master were wearing spurs and double bridles - doesnt that defeat the object?


On a plus point Red was a bit nappy when we arrived and by the end he was much better much more chilled, we even sat and watched the doggy jumping when we were in the last class because if i had actually watched the class and the judge i think i would have exploded with anger!!

I think its such an awful thing to do not to give you your time, you have paid the same money as everyone else! It makes you feel like your horse is worthless and i know Red isnt that!! Hes a babe!! I suppose im not very good with rejection!!

Anyway thats my complaints over and done with NO MORE SHOWING!!

Anyone got any similar experiences or anything really to calm me down i could hardly sleep last night i was so wound up!!

 

[miamibear]

Just 2 : one of me on him

And a head shot

 

[peapod]

Sounds like typical local level showing to me! I would say in future (if you want to try showing again!) go to a show with an affiliated judge - that way you know that you have at least a better chance of getting judged properly - local shows are a law unto their own at times!

Lovely photos though - Red looks fab!

 

[Tempi]

hes SO gorgeous!!! I decided showing wasnt for me and Bloss either - same reasons as you really, at least in dressage you know what you need to improve on, whereas showing it really is down to what 'type' the judge likes.

well done anyways, and its all good experience, like you said he was more chilled by the end which is great

 

[miamibear]

Yes at least at dressage you get more of an idea wher to improve on and you get marked!!

One of the girls that got 6th had a lovely horse but her turnout was appauling, boots were very dirty, they looked brown not black!

Also 2 of the people who were placed in school master were liveries at the judges yard! Says a lot to me when one reared in the rein back and kept cantering on the wrong leg!!

Never mind - dressage here we come!!

 

[miamibear]

Im not sure i want to any more, im not sure i can cope with the rejection seriously. When you worship the ground your horse walks on its so hard to admit that someone doesnt like them.

Im afraid im just not cut out for it. I wish i had said something to the judge but im too timid!! Never mind!!

Need to forget about it now and chill out. Everytime i think about it now my blood boils!!

 

[fairhill]

He is a lovely horse, and I know exactly where you're coming from - I'm often ignored with my mum's heavy horse as we don't make a "pretty picture". I now only do equitation classes, as the judging should be fairer (but often isn't) and have just started taking her to dressage competitions for the same reasons as you. I see going to the shows useful more as schooling exercises, so each time we've hopefully improved in an area (e.g. napping at the gate, cantering on the correct leads, relaxing between classes etc) and take the judging comments and line-ups with a pinch of salt.

 

[miamibear]

I suppose i need to learn to take everything a little less to heart. I would feel less like i had failed getting 20% in a dressage test than being snubbed in a showing class!!

Even my friends in the same class were appauled by his behaviour!! Everyone else got spoken to!

Never mind!!

 

[fairhill]

I went to one local show to give my youngster some ring experience - ended up being the only competitor in the class, and we napped our way around the ring - judge's comment was "oh dear she's going to struggle in the championship isn't she?". Same show i took my mum's horse in the ridden cob. There was only 5 in the class, and she was so well behaved, did a lovely show and came last, beaten by a horse that even the judge said was obscenly overweight - his comment to me was "she'll improve in time"??? I thought of great retorts all the way home, but at the time was just stunned by the rudeness!

 

[miamibear]

"Stunned by the rudeness "

Sums up my feelings exactly. Seems he had a lot more time for the horses he liked and no time for the ones he didnt. Even though we all paid exactly the same entry fee!!

Speechless!!

 

[fairhill]

I find it really funny now and I quite like going in a ring with no expectations to do well in the lineups, and then it's a bonus if we get a rossette. I took the heavy girl to do a prelim dressage yesterday, and the judges comments were really encouraging, and we ended up winning the class. I think I'm still in shock from that one...

 

[miamibear]

See what i mean - your horse obviously goes well - but showing its a no go - why?

Is it all confirmation or what?

I spent hours turning myself and horse out for it not to make a notch of a difference people getting marked above me with terrible turnout, so much work for nothing. At dressage at least you get a sheet with comments on!! Seems much more worth it!!

Well done you!!

 

[fairhill]

Thanks!
I wish I knew the answer to that one, I can't really comment on the turnout because I'm very lazy on that front (horse dragged in from the field and golfball plaits). Confirmation does play a big part in showing, and imo they seem overly harsh if there are a few blemishes, but then seem to ignore a lot of behavioural issues. It does seems crazy to me - I've never really understood the showing mentality, I think you need very thick skin to do it seriously.

 

[Sparklet]

He looks gorgeous - judge must want his glasses replacing.

 

[peapod]

It's such a shame you had such a bad experience - I totally understand how you feel - I went to a local show years ago with my sister - both of us on Dales ponies. We went into the "M&M type" class - we were on the only purebred M&M ponies in the class. The judge stuck us to one side, completley seperate from the rest of the class - we came last and second to last. Why? Because we had turned our ponies out traditionally, with ribbons in their tails to signify their breed. The judge, when asked, reported that we were last because "Children shouldn't be on ponies that kick"!!!

Maybe I've developed a thicker skin now - but I honestly enjoy showing - I ALWAYS come out of the ring thinking I've got the best pony - even though most of the time I'm down the bottom of the line (working on that though!). Local showing can be so subjective - if you don't have proper, affiliated judges, then they more often than not do NOT know what they are looking at - affilliated judges come in from Riding Club level up - and you WILL get a more fair judging (most of the time!)

The way I see it is - if you get placed last it's not because the judge thinks your horse is hideous - it's often just little things that determine the placings - I've been down the bottom of the line up a lot this year because my pony is only 5 - he's not fully mature, and we're competing against older, better schooled, more mature animals - but our time will come!

You have a beautiful horse, so don't be too disheartened - it's all experience!

 

[the watcher]

Local showing is a pain so can't offer any real advice there.
Just wanted to say that your horse looks lovely and nicely turned out but because he is quite 'workmanlike' looking you might be better going with a more 'working hunter' type of turnout.
Just my opinion

 

[miamibear]

I agree i should have had a tweed on with shirt and tie and gone with brown tack not black with a dressage saddle but there was much worse there most of which tack wasnt even clean!!

Plus i wasnt going to spend obscene amounts of money on a tweed for showing because it was just a one off day to see how he did, if he did well i would do more but seing as he didnt i wont!

The only ridden classes (without jumping) were ridden horse and school master which i did both.

The funniest thing was when we were going round in trot the judge asked his assistant what the schedule said next to ridden horse - he didnt even know what he should be looking for!!

Anyway rant over, i feel a bit calmer now, will chalk it down to experience and stick to dressage!!

Thanks for everyones kind words and experiences!

 

[calon]

thi nk u picked a bad show check out the venue next time u were unlucky dont give up cheer up better things to come i am sure

 

[lilym]

thats showing for you! see my post yesterday.......me and my horse have been doing really well out and about all summer and yesterday we did crap, turns out the only people winning yesterday were the commitee members friends and families!!!!! what pissed me off was the horses placed in novice classes wearing pelhams and were in NO WAY novices!! still, i'm not going to let it spoil it for me and i will continue to show, just not under those judges, try another show, you maybe pleasantly surprised.

 

[AtiraApps]

Told you Mel........thats why l wouldnt go to Chesney!!!!!!!!! Seriousley folks.........the judge is a joke.I took one of my appies there a few years ago when he had just been broken- we won the col/spotty class. We also won the reserve championship.....then the following year (after a very succesfull few years of affilated showing- including winning Northern Appaloosa championship & many many championship showing awards)went back the following year- with it been "LOCAL". The SAME judge who judged Mel & Red (the owners husband) was judging-turned around to me and said"Trish he,s won loads-we know- and he won last year-so l,ll give it to another-o.k?" Needless to say- l NEVER said anything- just shook my head- congratulated the winner- and vowed ld never re show there again! Dez has gone on to win the championship at National Appaloosa (BApS) and 4 times unbeaten at the Northern! Plus many many more- so l wont show low level anymore (am not a pot hunter!).
Mels right in everything she said though- because apparentley the same judge that day placed a horse that refused 3 jumps in the working hunter 3rd- over horses that went clear! Ho hum!"

 

[Mithras]

There is one judge who has placed me stone cold last in all 5 classes I have ever done judged by him. I don't know him or anything but he knows a lot of the other competitors. This is on 2 different horses too. At one county show on my small hunter we were last in one WH out of about 12 clears, most of which had scraped round, jumping from a standstill, napping, etc and the rider who won actually fell off after the last jump but they still let him through. I was last in the small hunter too and then went into the ridden horse out of desperation and got 4th in a large class, the (different) judge said my mare had lovely conformation and manners but was definately more of a hunter!

Recently on my young horse we were clear in the Novice WH and placed last of 7 in the showing phase under this judge, then went on to be the only Novice entry to go clear in the Open at 3 feet 6, we were immediatly put at the end of the line, told the judge didn't want to ride her again and sat there like lemons doing nothing only to slink out when the rosettes were being handed out as yet again there were only 7 clears.

No wonder people get disheartened by showing. But I suspect a lot of people want it that way as they don't want more competition. That said, I believe the art to showing is to know what the judge is looking for and this time your judge may just have been looking for a shorter individual show from you.

 

[Doreys_Mum]

Welcome to local showing!

BTW, judges are entitled to cut short a show if they're not intending to place the horse anywhere... and nothing piddles the rest of the line up more than someone expecting 20 minutes to show off all their top class dressage moves when the class is already half an hour late and there's another 10 riders to go...

 

[miamibear]

Thats not the way it was at all, i was actually not much longer than the rest of them because they showed their horses off a lot more, i just wanted a sensible trot and canter on each rein!!

From what i understand the judge is entitled to do whatever they like! I just thought it was extremely rude when i had paid as much money as all the other competitors!! In all honesty i should have walked out of the ring seing as i was cut short and had no chance!! Instead of standing there for half an hour watching the others do their shows (some terribly) and still be given the time of day by the judge!!

Re : Working hunter. A girl from the yard went, her horse refused 3 jumps and was jumping from a standstill all the way round she had to use a lot of leg. Did their shows which were all smart shows and hers got pulled in 3rd before a clear round horse because the judge would have placed it in the hunting field!! Even that girl who got 3rd thought it was out of order and unfair on 4th place!!