SERIOUS CORRUPTION IN THE SHOW RING

I seriously don't know what is going on with the British show scene at the moment. Recently, a rather dark and unappealing side of the sport has reared its ugly head. Or, more likely, it was there all along and has only just been uncovered.

According to Stuart Hollings, a well respected judge, author, show horse/pony producer and columnist in Horse & Hound, there has been a large amount of blackmail and intimidation going on. As an example- one judge has claimed that a very well known producer phoned him the night before a prestigious show and said:

'Hello- we will be bringing X pony to X show tomorrow and, as you and I both very well know, he will be the best pony on the grounds on the day and we expect to be judged as such.'

Apparently, this is not an uncommon occurance. I know that the British Show Pony Society, British Show Horse Society, Ponies (UK) and other organisations have been working to stamp out cheating, but they are clearly fighting an uphill battle. Backhanders and intimidation are rife. I'm not sure what these competitors are using as leverage- maybe their high status and the fact that they have a certain amount (some would say too much....) power within some of the organisations. Maybe it's physical violence? Either way- there are judges that feel scared, cornered and bullied. It's not a good state of affairs. At all.

This is not the only sign that the sport has taken a nasty turn. You have the poor show pony that had it's tail burnt off in an 'acid attack' at the Royal International this year- full story here

This pony owner was banned from CHAPS recently (Coloured Horse & Pony Society) for giving the animal a sedative before an important championship

In fact, doping has long been considered a problem in the showing world. Over time, this has resulted in an increase in drugs testing.

The measuring saga is still trucking on....

To be honest, I'm sick of hearing about all these ridiculous and completely immoral things that are going on back in the UK. When did people become so desperate to win that they are willing to hurt other people and their horses or even their own animals?

So far, New Zealand showies seem to be a lot more relaxed when it comes to competition and I'm enjoying this change in attitude. There are a few hiccups and a couple of areas where things could be improved but I don't think the show scene is anywhere near as corrupt and biased as it is in Great Britain.

I wonder why this is? Could it be because a lot of the individuals competing in the UK are professional producers? Their income is basically reliant on their ability to keep winning on horses they are training/competing on behalf of their clients. Maybe the pressure to keep on picking up that red ribbon drives them to do these horribly unethical things sometimes?

Answers on a postcard please!

SHOULD BRITISH JUDGES BE INVITED TO HORSE OF THE YEAR NZ?

I follow the Showring Online forum, a message board which gives New Zealanders the opportunity to discuss everything from upcoming shows to which jacket to wear in a particular class.

Anyway, I was reading a thread about the new Show Riding Horse section and an interesting point was raised. Should British judges be invited to assess horses at the New Zealand Horse of the Year Show? According to the poster:

'It is funny that we want to model our showing classes on what UK does, as there are many people out there that don't want UK judges to judge here!! They feel that we base ourselves on what happens in Australia, not the UK, so we should be getting Australian judges to judge at HOYS here. Interesting concept, when the English can judge conformation as good as anyone else and have less idea about any of our competitors.'

An interesting opinion isn't it? I can kind of see where they are coming from as there are certain key differences between the UK and NZ when it comes to the show ring. For example, turnout of both horse and rider is very different so I would certainly not expect a British judge to be able to properly judge a turnout class in New Zealand.

I am also of the opinion that hacks in Australia and New Zealand are streets ahead of the UK, as far as quality, type, conformation and performace go. So perhaps it wouldn't be particularly useful to fly a British judge in for those classes

However, I do think it would be a mistake to exclude British judges from the Show Pony classes. The classes are judged exactly the same in both countries (60% suitablity and safeness, 40% conformation and paces- check the British Show Pony Society rules out here). The only difference is that, in the UK, riders are asked for a freestyle individual performance whereas NZ judges usually insist on a set workout. Plus, although Show Pony breeding, presentation and performace in both NZ and Australia has come along in leaps and bounds, with ponies now even being exported from this side of the world to England (e.g. Willowcroft Regal Bronze), I still think an awful lot can be learned from the British judges. It would be a shame to shut NZ off from that valuable chance to further improve and learn.

I think that the hunter classes still have a looooong way to go in the Southern Hemisphere as well. I think the occasional visit from an iconic British hunter judge, such as Richard Ramsey, could be really useful in further improving the quality and performance of saddle hunters in this country.

Anyway, those are my thoughts on the mattter. I do believe that we can learn from any other country that is breeding, producing and competing show horses and ponies, be it the UK, Australia, South Africa or any others that I have missed out! No country is going to show their horses in exactly the same way- just as no country is going to train/produce/present their dressage or eventing horses in the same way. But it doesn't mean that we can't pick up some valuable tips and advice from them to further improve the sport in our own country