| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| alan |
Posted - 24 Aug 2010 : 10:41:36 PM
We took our homebred 3yr old colt for an assessment as an endurance horse. He got a Higher 1st Premium Grading. Its the first time we have ever done anything like this & found it to be very useful. Has anyone else done the BEF this year & how did you get on? |
| 12 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| flash arabs |
Posted - 25 Aug 2010 : 8:06:22 PM
hi, i took my 3year old colt to triley fields, and had a great day i found it very useful and my youngster did really well acheiving a higer 1st premium the highest endurance score of the day. i will definately take youngsters in the future. |
| Amy87 |
Posted - 25 Aug 2010 : 3:39:30 PM
Hi Alan,
I'm the owner of Ashsham Amir 
Was nice to meet you and Gina yesterday and your lovely stallion. They both did really well. It was our first time at the futurity and it was nice to get other peoples opinions of him. It was also good experience for him and he behaved impeccably. I couldn't of asked for any more, he was such a good boy.  |
| alan |
Posted - 25 Aug 2010 : 2:50:14 PM
I would just like to point out that our same horse stood 8th out of 9 at the British Nationals this year which takes me back to another thread "BNC Malvern". I always thought that the in hand classes were to show the best of breed. The vets comment about our horse was that he was the best she had seen all day (out of 66 horses!) & that he had as near perfect conformation as you could get (he scored 9 out of 10). It probably wouldn't hurt for some of our "modern" show horses to be assessed in this way. |
| Esther |
Posted - 25 Aug 2010 : 12:32:49 PM
I did give some quite detailed (and hopefully constructive) feedback afterwards about my feelings on the whole thing and apparently EGB are sending out a questionnaire to all the EGB entrants to get more feedback.
At the moment I'm thinking that I will take Wolf back next year, but to a different venue and without his fieldmate. Hopefully he will display less fury and more ponciness. He can do poncy, too.
It's a difficult one with endurance horses as they do come in so many different shapes and sizes. The things that Wolf was marked down for as 'negatives' are partly what attracted me to him as a potential endurance horse for hilly rides: his square, leg at each corner half-cob frame, and the underlying (but containable) welsh/arab fire. Oh well.  |
| fiona dillon |
Posted - 25 Aug 2010 : 11:54:16 AM
Many congratulations to Alan, Esther and Dot - you've all done really well with your youngsters.
I took my two year old gelding, Sakr, to Alsager and got a Higher First premium which I was thrilled to bits with. I have never done anything like it before and had serious butterflies beforehand.
He was very good and got good marks from the vet, 8.75, and the nutritionist, 5. The panel gave him 8.75 for frame (a little deep in the body, good saddle position - good for me with my long legs!); 9 for his walk; 8.75 for trot but unfortunately he didn't show his canter very well at all as he was far more interested in the lady with the video camera and, like Dot's youngster, he isn't particularly worried if I run at him, so got 16. Attitude 8.5 - a little clingy (camera lady again!) and could be more bold but switches off easily (good for vetting). His total mark was 8.54 which I was delighted with.
It was a good experience overall and I now know what is involved should I decided to have another go next year.
Sadly, the photographs were not brilliant but I'll probably get one anyway just as a keepsake. |
| Dot |
Posted - 25 Aug 2010 : 10:39:52 AM
I took my two year old colt to Solihull 1 and we came back with a irst Premium but was not enamored of the process.
Vet score was 7.5 which every other endurance horse seemed to get.
Comments on sheet were a mixture of accurate and unhelpful, without explanation. I used to think rounded joints was a good thing prior to this now not so sure.
The blurb said acquired blemishes would not be marked down yet my boy was marked down due to an amount of proud flesh on a fetlock joint which is not attached to any of the underlying structures. none of the judges felt his fetlock so had no way of telling if it would affect the horses performance in future. Will happily admit that he did not extend in canter as me running at him is not scary enough to make him do so just a game we have played since he was a foal.
Personally I am not sure I would do it again with anything other then a 3year old. |
| mogwai |
Posted - 25 Aug 2010 : 09:51:46 AM
Congratulations Alan, what a fabulous result!
Ester, your boy deserved so much better. What a fabulous little lad he is, and he looks so smart!
well done! |
| alan |
Posted - 25 Aug 2010 : 09:41:30 AM
Esther you have had us crying with laughter at the picture you painted of your boy doing 1,000 mph spraying poo like an out of control muck spreader, if it's any consolation we go with the vets comments and think he is a cracker. We have checked the scores and our boy ended up highest points 3 yr old all disciplines and is currently 5th place all ages all venues in endurance.Congratulations to Ashsham Amir's owners who was best 2yr old and scored an amazing 8.73 he is a very smart Prince Sadik son and is stood 4th at all venues all ages endurance. |
| Esther |
Posted - 25 Aug 2010 : 08:08:49 AM
ps Congratulations Alan |
| Esther |
Posted - 25 Aug 2010 : 08:08:05 AM
Rather than type it all out again, I took my arab x saddlebred x welsh yearling to ArenaUK. It wasn't entirely successful... This is the report I did for our local newsletter:
How Not To Do Futurity
I said before I went that I was mainly interested in the vet score and that I wanted a nice photo...well.... I'm laughing about it now....
Vet: Really rated him, and said that he would make a superb little endurance pony or indeed do anything else we wanted him to do, that he had lovely paces and that he would climb mountains all day for me. We ended up with one of the best vet scores of the day. We also went back afterwards to thank the vet and assistants and the vet remembered us and said that we had a really cracking pony who she liked a lot.
Nutritionist: Said he was in perfect condition at the moment but we would have to watch his waistline in future (that'll be the welsh....)
Panel: Didn't rate him as much and said he was a bit croup high and too square in his frame, which then affected his paces. We ended up with the second worst score of the day, which I didn't think he entirely deserved but with hindsight probably wasn't helped by the fact that he:
a) Desperately needed a wee
b) Went around with his head in the air sticking his tongue out at the judges: http://www.greenlees-equine.com/photo5751712.html#photo
c) Could hear his fieldmate screaming for him from the stables, so the minute I let him off he tried to leg it back there... Whereas everyone else has poncy sports horse photos, Wolf is a blurry legged ball of gallopin' fury
d) Continued to show off his furious gallopin' and motorbikin' rather than his trotting and cantering
e) Sprayed runny poo over the edge of the arena, narrowly missing the spectators at the bottom end.
The only positive comment on his sheet from the assessment panel was 'Excellent turn of speed'. Learnt lots, not least that I have a pony with an evil sense of humour and that the numpty human needs to learn to present him better. However, I'm very chuffed with our vet score and the vet's comments about him. And although he was off on one he was actually very good - loaded and travelled well, stayed in a strange stable, walked and trotted and stood when asked in hand, and despite the furious gallopin' he was very easy to catch.
We did get our good photo (thank you very much Mr Greenlees) What do you reckon? Does anyone fancy taking this on in a racing finish?
http://www.greenlees-equine.com/photo5751728.html
Esther |
| Callisto |
Posted - 24 Aug 2010 : 11:32:26 PM
Congratulations |
| templars |
Posted - 24 Aug 2010 : 10:57:29 PM
Huge congratulations Alan
I've never had the guts to do a BEF class but I do dream of doing it ...(main thing that puts me off is me hauling this bulk round dressed in white - I'd look like an escapee from Caspar the Ghost or a Hollywood B movie!!)
I know Nicky (posts on here as nn) goes with her younstock and has good success and I believe one or to others do as well.
You must be so proud of him xxx |
