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Post by By the few on Feb 18, 2010 19:03:06 GMT
I have just read that the RoR are giving £2500 to the winner of the Ex-race horse class at Hickstead and £2500 to the winner of the SEIB Racehorse class at HOYS. I feel this is wrong for two reasons 1. It will encourage even more Professional riders to take part. I don't have an issue with competing against Pro's but I know lots or amateurs do. So this will discourage ordinary people from taking on an Ex-racer to show. 2. Non-showing people looking at the results will see a line full of Professional riders and think only Pros are capable of re-schooling Ex-racers. 4000 horses come out of training every year and they can't all go into Pro yards. We need nice competant amateurs to buy some of these horses. I also wonder the charities that take money from the RoR don't manage to compete some high profile horses.
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Smithy
Junior Member
Posts: 147
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Post by Smithy on Feb 18, 2010 19:45:22 GMT
I fully agree. Horse Charities are struggling for cash to do their basic work, TBs are changing hands for pennies and the meat man in this area is full to the brim with slow 2 year olds, and older racehorses that are no longer viable to keep. In this instance, the £5000 would be better spent on the basics rather than rewarding show classes. After all, everyone seems to forget that TBs have been shown off the track for many years, without any song and dance.
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Post by hollycane on Feb 18, 2010 20:40:17 GMT
I couldn't agree more. I remember when every hack class was full of ex-racehorses and every hunt had 3 ex chasers as staff rides. Although I am very encouraged by the amount of entries in many of the RoR classes and the fact that lots of them are from people who would not normally go showing, it's deeply disappointing to see the pros going for this as they have Irish Draft (Blue Chip) and coloureds. However if there is money and glory to be gained it is the job of a professional showing person to get out there and win it. Unless Amateur status is given to some of the classes it will be swept up by the pros as frankly they do it better. I would like to see more to be done to stop importing horses into the UK and full use made of these excellent and beautiful TBs we have here.
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Post by By the few on Feb 19, 2010 16:02:06 GMT
I have also noticed that Guy Landau is judging a qualifying round and then judging the final at Hickstead. RoR are really fussy about who judges their classes. I think they need to look at the rules as well.
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Post by thecremellosociety on Feb 19, 2010 20:49:08 GMT
We were asked to choose ROR or TARRA and told not to have both, so Chose TARRA though retained ROR Performance for Derby Only.
At Notts Derby we will be holding TARRA & A Perfomance Class equivalant of the ROR one.
Not sure quite what is happeneing, but the Chap thats doing TARRA at the moment the Admin side Mr Wilkerson seems very effective and is gettin the information on and updates really well, I would have like to hold both but ROR said no.
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Post by Helen E on Feb 20, 2010 19:07:04 GMT
Don't moan about it! Try and "up" your own standards and compete with "the professionals", it IS possible (look at Irene Susca and The Fieldmaster, won the HW Hunters at HOYS).
ROR is NOT an amateur-only series!!
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Post by bundle on Feb 21, 2010 7:58:10 GMT
Well Helen that probably goes for all showing but ROR is an organisation that runs for the few most definitely. Once big prize money is involved the professionals will want to win it - that is afterall their job. It is the same with whichever Racehorse organisation have the final at HOYS. As I am not a fan of these type of organisations - I better stop there!
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Post by coloured on Feb 21, 2010 8:37:50 GMT
Perhaps they are interested in raising the profile further. If pros compete in a class, it gets more coverage in the magazines, they DON'T always win, and would you rather not have any final at HOYS at all? There are plenty of other organisations who would like classes at HOYS and won't moan about it.
If you don't want to be a poor relation in the showing world, then you have to open up your classes to anyone who has the best horse.
Of course it is bloody hard to beat the pros at HOYS in ANY class. This is the pinnacle of the showing season, and the pros have been working ALL THEIR LIVES towards doing as well as they can. But there were PLENTY of amateurs highly placed last year in all classes.
You have to move with the times, get rid of the chips on your shoulders and spend the time that you spend on here working with your horse a bit more.
And yes - I am one of those amateurs. But I also realise that without the pros, showing would be the loser. And think about it. The pros were not born pros. (well, not many of them!). They were amateurs, who developed a talent for showing and are making the most of that talent. We are, at the end of the day, horse riders and backbiting and complaints like this towards sponsors are not doing any favours to our sport. I read stuff like this and think that if I were the sponsor of this class (and I do sponsor several shows) I would think "stuff it" and leave you all to get on with it.
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Post by By the few on Feb 21, 2010 8:51:07 GMT
I didn't start this thread to bash the Pro's.
My point is that RoR is a charity and I think giving £2500 to the winner of one class is an obscene waste of donated money. After all, the RoR classes got lots of coverage in H&H last year without throwing this sort of money around.
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Post by madrider on Feb 21, 2010 13:48:29 GMT
RoR and TARRA have been a catalyst in the way that many people have given a retired racehorse a home, and another chance. Also the competitions have changed some folks opinion of a scatty TB whose only pace is gallop, and can see, with schooling and retraining, this beautiful breeds talents shine in all disciplines. Having been indirectly involved in the grass roots rehabilitation of these wonderful horses, and witness to many, many ex racehorses go on to do a job, and excel at it too! I do try not analyse the politics. Just so happy thoroughbreds are less likely these days, to have their lives ended before they have even begun. here here ob, couldnt have put it better myself, have a karma
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Post by duster on Feb 21, 2010 17:06:04 GMT
Let's hope a true true amateur wins the money then! Not a pro, not a sponsor, not a judge. Then the money ought to encourage even more people to get racehorses going well. If the judges judge the horses and not the faces, even better.
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halfpass
Happy to help....a lot
Return of the Dame
Posts: 12,964
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Post by halfpass on Feb 21, 2010 18:21:02 GMT
Shoot me down if I'm wrong, but are these classes not sponsored by the SEIB.
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Post by Exracer Owner on Feb 22, 2010 17:11:02 GMT
I own two ex-racers and I have lost track of the number of different organizations that hold classes for these horses! I think £2500 is a bit excessive seeing as ROR is supposed to be a charity.
I have no problems with professionals taking part as at the end of the day they start off with the same sort of horse as everyone else - one that has been trained to go fast and to compete at top speed every time they leave the yard. It should, same as in normal showing classes, give the amateurs a right royal kick up the backside to go out and prove that they can be better than the pro's when the homework is done properly.
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Post by knight on Feb 23, 2010 20:20:57 GMT
I agree that it is a large amount of money (possibly too large!), and yes it will attract the 'Pros'. But the more publicity these charities get the better, its is a truly wonderful cause. I for one will be trying my level best to be that 'Am' to beat 'em all at Hickstead, I did it when I qualified and I don't plan on backing down at the final. Hopefully H&H and Showworld will start reporting on it more, so we can feel part of the whole showing community not just a silly little class on the outside...and how are we going to do that? Bring in the Pros.
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Post by mcmahon101269 on Feb 23, 2010 21:46:26 GMT
I work in the racing industry, but also show in my spare time. I think that the more publicity that Ex-racers have the better. I would not care if the queen herself was in the line up as for that amount of prize money you have to have a go. I also think you will find that the charities are not putting all the prize money up themselves i suspect the BHA will be involved somewhere along the way.
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