Exhibition
The rules for showmanship classes are set by organizations such as 4-H, the United States Equestrian Federation and the American Quarter Horse Association. While rules vary a bit from one breed or organization to another, there are general principles that usually apply in all competitions.
The pattern the exhibitors are to perform is usually posted ahead of time. It must be memorized and riders cannot carry notes or be coached while in the ring. Horses are usually led into the ring at a walk. Depending on the breed and the pattern, exhibitors may enter and perform the required pattern one at a time, then line up in a group on one side of the ring, other times they may all enter the ring, line up first, then work the pattern.
Most patterns are deceptively simple: The exhibitor will lead the horse at a walk and trot, make one or two turns, stop at specific locations, and sometimes back up. However, all straight lines must be perfectly straight, all turns smooth and crisp, all changes of speed executed promptly. Orange highway cones are often used to designate the precise spot a horse and exhibitor are to walk, trot, turn or back. Patterns may be made more difficult by having changes of gait in shorter distances, by requiring more frequent or tighter turns, or by asking the horse to turn in place, pivoting on its hindquarters for two or three revolutions.
An exhibitor is not allowed to touch with the horse during a class. An exhibitor should treat each part of the pattern as a separate task leaving the maneuvers crisp, as opposed to sloppy and run together. An exhibitor should appear confident and happy; ultimately selling themselves and their horse to the judge by acting in a confident and professional manner.
Finally, the exhibitor has to set up the horse and the judge will walk around the animal, as if it were being judged for conformation. However, the judge is actually watching the exhibitor and evaluating the grooming, cleanliness, style and turnout of the entry. The exhibitor must move from one side of the horse to the other so that they do not interfere with the judge's line of sight, yet the horse must stand perfectly still, alert, with its ears pricked forward even when the exhibitor moves around. The handler must be particularly smooth and quiet when moving from one side of the horse to the other, yet move quickly and watch the judge at all times.
There are two standard styles used by exhibitors to stay out of the judge's way: the "half system" and the "quarter system." The half system is the simplest, used by beginning exhibitors at small shows, though technically legal even for most handlers. In the half system, the handler simply remains on the side (the "half") of the horse opposite that of the judge; when the judge is looking at the left side of the horse, the handler stands on the right, and vice versa.
The quarter system is a bit more complex but also more common. In the quarter system, the handler stands on the side opposite the judge when the judge is looking at the front of the horse, but when the judge moves to look at the hindquarters of the horse, the handler then moves to stand on the same side of the horse as the judge. The reasoning behind this method is that it is a bit safer in case the horse is startled by the judge being behind it, and it is also easier for the exhibitor to see the judge. Though technically a handler would be judged equally for using the half system or the quarter system, an exhibitor using the quarter system correctly will gain more points because it is a bit more complex.
Judges may ask exhibitors to pick up the feet of the horse, or to part the horse's lips and show the judge the "bite" of the horse's teeth. At some shows the judge may ask the exhibitor questions about the parts of the horse, horse management, the age and breed of their animal, and so on. The exhibitor is expected to provide a correct answer in a polite, confident and professional manner.
The winner of a showmanship class is usually determined by a formula that varies by the organization that sanctions the show, but usually counts grooming and cleanliness for about 40% of the score, and the pattern and handler's showmanship for about 60%.
Read more about this topic: Horse Showmanship
Famous quotes containing the word exhibition:
“A man’s thinking goes on within his consciousness in a seclusion in comparison with which any physical seclusion is an exhibition to public view.”
—Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889–1951)
“Work, as we usually think of it, is energy expended for a further end in view; play is energy expended for its own sake, as with children’s play, or as manifestation of the end or goal of work, as in “playing” chess or the piano. Play in this sense, then, is the fulfillment of work, the exhibition of what the work has been done for.”
—Northrop Frye (1912–1991)
“The hardiest skeptic who has seen a horse broken, a pointer trained, or has visited a menagerie or the exhibition of the Industrious Fleas, will not deny the validity of education. “A boy,” says Plato, “is the most vicious of all beasts;” and in the same spirit the old English poet Gascoigne says, “A boy is better unborn than untaught.””
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)