Yearling Show is tomorrow ...

[GinTalking]

Here's my Seeking Daylight baby, Playfully (aka Maggie), although she's not such a baby any more. I've been working on her every day for about a month. She's not perfect, but at least her overall appearance will be nice.

I took my camera because half the time when I show up in the morning, she's lying down. She goes on the exerciser every morning, gets a bath and then lies down and snores for 10-15 minutes. Today she was up and eating hay so no lying down photos. Damn. She doesn't get up even if I sit on her. I have to really coax her to get on her feet. Silly girl.

She walked right on the trailer again ... as she has since the second day of schooling ... so let's hope tomorrow she doesn't decide to be a cow and give us trouble. Thought I needed to get a conformation shot of her even though she's wearing her barn halter. That kind of takes away from the whole look, and it wasn't sunny this morning, but who cares. After the show, she'll just be turned out again where all this prettiness will go straight to hell.

I'm not expecting to win or even 'hit the board', but the experience is worth a ton.

Whoa, I must have uploaded the wrong size. They look soft (they aren't). Ah well, you get the idea.

[mariasmon]

She's pretty, Gin!

[second_glance]

She looks really fine, Gin!

What will she be expected to do at the show?

[GinTalking]

What will she be expected to do at the show?

Well, the first hurdle is getting to the show in one piece. Then from the barn to the ring. You hope no one gets loose in the ring.

Basically they make a turn or two, at the walk, around the ring and the judge watches them and I imagine gets an overall impression. The judge tomorrow is Cary Frommer, the woman who sold Trappe Shot at Timonium. Then each horse walks toward the judge, stops, she'll look at them from both sides and then watch them as they walk away.

As everyone knows, this is a very subjective situation. Not all judges like the same things so there have been horses chosen as the overall Grand Champion that people liked and some that people weren't all that crazy about. Basically, the best approach as an exhibitor is to just take your lumps.

Someone from the Horse Breeders' is out there with the judge and keeps their notes. Any reference to the horse's breeding on the halter plate is not allowed so the judge essentially is doing this strictly on what they see now, how they envision the horse will mature, what they can live with and what they can't ... no hints as to sire line though. Traditionally, there are horses who usually do well ... Malibu Moons, Two Punches, Rock Slides, Not For Loves.

The winner from each class goes into the Championship Class. The classes are split so that January/February foals are not competing against May/June foals ... at least not until they go into the Championship Class.

There is a bonus for any horse who enters the ring who wins the most money as a two year old or as a three year old. That's the best thing about the Show. Losers can end up taking home a decent bonus at two and three. A few of the horses you'd have heard of who either won a class or was a Champion/Reserve and also won the bonus are Declan's Moon, Ready's Image and Grand Champion. Horses who didn't win or maybe didn't even get a ribbon, but who won a bonus later on based on their earnings are Magic Weisner, Heavyweight Champ, Urbane, Not For Silver, Cherokee's Boy, Safely Kept and Dixie Talking.

The judges over the years have been Max Hirsch, Humphrey Finney, Sunny Jim Fitzsimmons (1933-1942), Bobby Frankel, Bill Mott, Nick Zito, Jack Van Berg, Woody Stephens, Jonathan Sheppard, Buzz Chase, Mack Miller, Horatio Luro, Shug McGaughey, Lucien Laurin, Billy Turners, Sid Watters, Allen Jerkens ... it's a big deal.

Our entries are down this year though because of the unsettling situation here in Maryland ... fewer foals so fewer yearlings. But the winners have come from big farms, little farms, fancy stallions and not so fancy stallions.

[Dusty]

She looks good Gin - Good LUCK!

[tracy]

sounds like a fun Gin. Good luck tomorrow. She is a very pretty Girl.

[GinTalking]

Maggie was fourth. It was the class they used for the Amateur Judging and several people said afterward they had her first which just means they didn't win the contest since the judge didn't love her as much as some others did.

Several people commented on how good she looked and when people who sell horses for a living stop you to take a look and say how nice she is .... well, it was worth the effort just to know people liked her and she was pinned.

She rode down to Timonium nicely, but she was about to throw a fit in the stall so we held her outside for a little bit and then in the aisleway until it was time to change into the bridle and take her up to the ring. She behaved. Didn't do anything too trashy. And then walked right on the trailer when it was time to go home.

It was about a million degrees out there. All in all, not a bad day.

[second_glance]

Sounds like a pretty good day, Gin! (Aside from the gawdawful heat.)

[GinTalking]

Sounds like a pretty good day, Gin! (Aside from the gawdawful heat.)

I can't really complain about the heat. We were only out in it for about an hour.

Poor Cindy, Brian and Cary Frommer were out in it for all six classes. At least we got to leave once our class was over. :-)

It seems as if this weekend is always wicked hot.

[mariasmon]

Glad it went well, Gin. Are you planning to race Maggie or sell her?

[GinTalking]

Glad it went well, Gin. Are you planning to race Maggie or sell her?

Testing, testing .... can't believe I typed a reponse and I got a database error AND it didn't even give me a chance to copy my post so I could post it later. Bummed in Baltimore!

I guess it works so let's try this again.

I probably should sell her, but I'm afraid that the time put in for the sales prep, plus the entry fee and then the fees charged by a consignor would be much more than I'd get for her. I'm not crazy about going into a deal knowing I am going to lose money.

She's not perfect, but when she came off the trailer, an agent stopped to look at her. I said, "what do you think of her front legs?" and he said something like, *she's a little straight and her knees aren't perfect, but nothing that would bother her as a race horse*. Those are the two things we knew going in.

She's by Seeking Daylight .. not exactly an in-sire, plus he's dead so he has no chance of even improving his sire record. Lordy, how horrible would it be to get 'no bid'. I've seen way too many horses not get a bid, but realistically, who wants to sell a nice looking yearling for $1,500. Pinhookers wouldn't want her because she's not perfection. I'd have to hold my breath that someone from Maryland bought her and that MD racing survives so I could at least earn some breeders bonuses.

Actually, there were at least three consignors who went out of their way to tell me how nice she was so I know she makes a nice presentation ... but you can't deposit opinions into your bank account. :-)

[GinTalking]

I just realized I didn't post a shot here of her in the show.

[GinTalking]

What's the sizing on the photos for this site? These are awful. I think I do 80 dpi and the width is 600 pixels.

[TBird]

Coming along late...(sorry we've been away )

Gin, she is lovely! And I'm glad she behaved so well for you at the show. With yearlings you never know, LOL. I hope she earns some bonus money for you down the line.