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Post by gardenia on Jan 7, 2015 19:28:25 GMT
As someone who has been fortunate to qualify for both HOYS and Olympia with several different ponies over a good number of years - if your pony is good enough, irrespective of being a small or large breed it will qualify WITHOUT travelling the length and breadth of the country.
However, I personally think that the BSPS needs to look long and hard at the judges that fortunately for us competitors do give up their time to judge to know intimately the breed type and description as laid down for EVERY M & M breed. There will always be the question of personal preference - however if you can see an animal in front of you that is exceptional in type AND goes beautifully surely that has to be rewarded. I think MUCH more needs to be done on education - e.g. judging forums, evening discussions/debates and "get togethers" whether it is NPS or BSPS in order to openly discuss the pros and cons of each breed type and the CORRECT way of going. I am aware that for all of us time is at a premium but surely with the technology of today we can continue to educate in a positive way?
If we are not careful the kudos of qualifying for Olympia by being the "best" on the day is being lost. Surely, there is enough interest and support for both these competitions to make them BOTH the very best showcase for the wonderful M & M breeds that we are fortunate to have in this country?
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Post by Guestless on Jan 7, 2015 20:16:25 GMT
I think its harder to qualify for olympia than HOYS (not taking anyone's glory away that has qualified for HOYS !!!!!!!!!) now and the equines there were definitely all deserving and best of breeds were definitely excellent examples of each breeds! I'm not convinced. I think it's harder due to the fact you need to qualify for a semi final and then do well in them (unless a direct qualifier of course) but I'm not sure I agree it's actually more difficult. Certainly the classes I have seen that offer semi qualifying places have been a LOT smaller than HOYS classes and therefore I don't agree that Olympia is necessarily harder to qualify for - I think a whole lot of studying of class sizes, etc would need to be done before I am convinced. I do however think it is likely harder for a large hairy to qualify than a more lightly built pony.
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Post by bubbles1822 on Jan 7, 2015 20:47:12 GMT
It seems there are very few heritage qualifiers in the North therefore to qualify a fair amount of travel must be taken into consideration. The costs involved rule out many competitors. Also ,If you have a heavy breed it is possible given the preferences for lighter breeds in the Heritage champs , you would concentrate on qualifying for Hoys which is achievable financially for the normal competitor and has a wider split of Breed classes . Obviously it is then up to the judges. It may be easier to qualify for HOYS but a lot harder to achieve high placings. Not many hoys up north now either!! Spend the season on the M6, M62/a1
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Post by welshiegirl on Jan 8, 2015 6:38:31 GMT
I think its harder to qualify for olympia than HOYS (not taking anyone's glory away that has qualified for HOYS !!!!!!!!!) now and the equines there were definitely all deserving and best of breeds were definitely excellent examples of each breeds! I'm not convinced. I think it's harder due to the fact you need to qualify for a semi final and then do well in them (unless a direct qualifier of course) but I'm not sure I agree it's actually more difficult. Certainly the classes I have seen that offer semi qualifying places have been a LOT smaller than HOYS classes and therefore I don't agree that Olympia is necessarily harder to qualify for - I think a whole lot of studying of class sizes, etc would need to be done before I am convinced. I do however think it is likely harder for a large hairy to qualify than a more lightly built pony. Good point guestless! My section c is very traditional, stocky type, everyone calls her a he because she's so muscled and true to type they presume she's a stallion, however she moves very traditional for a c, no really leg action at all, she picks her knees up and moves forward from the shoulder not to any outstanding extent of a full blown straight leg action. so some judges don't like her because some of the 'newer models' have more leg action or aren't built as heavy, but comments from some judges and reading her breed description I would say she was true to type lol!!
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Post by clobo121082 on Jan 8, 2015 11:42:24 GMT
As we all know beauty is in the eye of the beholder. For me I have always and still do think Olympia is harder. Regardless of smaller qualifying rounds - semi final classes at the champs are huge and still draw the quality animals and you only get the one or two shots! Both the C HOYS winner, A Hoys winner from this year qualified plus the Overall HOYS ridden champ. Alongside this the previous years HOYS D winner etc etc so the judging can't be to off. Breed panel judges do judge the straight qualifiers but just because you are on a breed panel for section D's doesn't mean you are an expert on Shetlands - so how does being on one breed panel make you a better judge of other breeds? There is no sweeping all NPS judges know type better than BSPS or vice versa - you pick your judges on what you have experienced there are good and bad on both. My personal hate is judges who don't know how to use the mark system - and this seems to mainly come up in HOYS classes. Anyway as we all know you can never please everyone but i think there is a place for both x
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