Alyth show 2009

The Alyth show took place on the 20th June 2009.

I had not previously taken a horse along to the Alyth show but this year decided i would. As there were no classes which i could enter my stallion into i decided to take Elbrich who is my eight year old mare. She was entered into the in hand class for horses of 4 years old and over.

Elbrich behaved very well in her class but was only placed 5th. The judge of the class informed me that she thought the mare was “very beautiful” and that her “conformation and trot were stunning!” and that the reason for the mare being marked down was because the judge was “unsure if the horse could be a hunter”
The two problems i have with this are that firstly it was not a hunter class so whether the horse could be a hunter or not was completely irrelevant.
Secondly, even if it were a hunter class there is no way that the horse should have been marked down purely because she is a Friesian. Being a 17hh sporthorse who is fit and athletic she is more than capable of hunting.

After speaking to the secretary and her agreeing that the horses in that class should not have been judged on hunting suitability Elbrich was given the 1st place rossette but this meant very little after such a shambolic judging in the first place. It is a great pitty that what was meant to be a fun day out ended up being so dissapointing as i am sure the show was a success in every other way.

This does enphasise that unfortunately a lot of judges are still completely unaware of how to judge Friesian horses.
I now plan to contact shows around Scotland and try to create some classes for Friesian horses for 2010. Anyone who is interested in competing with a friesian in Scotland please do get in contact with me as the show organisers will not create a class unless they have a good idea of the interest such a class could generate.