Showmanship

by: Sandy Jirkovsky - Trainer and Judge

Exhibitor

Clothes should be neat and clean—this includes your boots!!
Buy the best hat you can and have it shaped professionally.  One good neutral hat is better than several colored poor quality hats.  Straw hats are acceptable from Memorial Day to Labor Day.  Felt hats are always acceptable.
Chunky soled boots are frowned upon in the showmanship.  This is a dress up class and they are inappropriate.
Wear colors that compliment your horse and yourself. 

Make sure your pants are long enough but not so long you are stepping on the hem.
Avoid panty lines and pants that are so tight you can hardly breathe!!!
Makeup should not be overdone but enough to add some color to your face.
Long hair should be in a pony tail or bun.   Hair spray any flyaway wisps.
Jewelry should be tasteful and not bounce when you move.
Gloves are optional and are becoming less popular.  If you do not wear gloves, make sure your nails are clean and manicured.

Horse
Preparation for your horse begins weeks before actual show time.  Grooming everyday will help produce a shiny hair coat. Routine worming will also help your horse’s hair coat.
Bathe your horse the night before showmanship.  Use a clean sheet if it is not too hot to help keep him clean.  Pick his stall before you go leave the show grounds for the evening to help avoid manure stains.
Manes should be pulled and thinned to about two inches in length.  Band your mane the night before and use a slinky to help keep the bands lying flat.  Use bands that match your horse’s mane if you are not a great bander—you can use white on a dark mane if your bands are excellent and your horse has a good topline through his neck.  Bands should be equal in size and lie next to the horse’s neck.  Practice this at home so you don’t get to the show and find out this is much harder than you thought!
Clip your horse’s bridle path, under his jaw, ears, eyes, and muzzle a day or two before the show.  Clip any white markings about a week before the show.  Clip dark legs two weeks before the show using large blades such as a #10 blade.  Bridle paths should only be about two inches.

Try to get your horse into the arena so he can get used to the surroundings.  Practice the pattern if possible.  If the pattern is not posted, just practice showmanship maneuvers in various parts of the arena.  If the pattern is posted just practice it a couple of times so your horse doesn’t anticipate when the actual class is being judged.
If your horse is a high energy horse, longe him early in the morning before you prepare him for the showmanship.  Afterwards clean his feet and use a clear polish—black polish is not legal for Appaloosas.
Make sure you let the polish dry before you put him in his stall so shavings do not stick to his feet.
Brush any dirt off your horse—brush out his tail.. Add finishing touches of oil or highlighting product to his eyes, muzzle, inside of his ears about 5 minutes before the class.  Fly spray right before entering the arena and wipe your horse with a clean cloth right before entering the pen to eliminate any last minute dust.

Equipment
A clean leather halter is a necessity.  Silver is a good feature but not as important as a good fitting halter.  Ebay is a great place to purchase used show halters at a good price.  Make sure your halter fits your horse.  The throat latch piece should fit snugly under the jaw and the nosepiece should fit snugly around the horse’s nose.  The crown (the piece that goes behind the ears) should not be slid down his neck.  Leather and silver should be clean.   Color of the leather should complement your horse.  The three choices are light, medium and dark.  
Chain lead shanks are acceptable.  Use whatever your horse is comfortable with and what you have practiced with at home.  If you use a chain it should not be too long—no more than four inches from the end of the halter to your hand.  Chains can be over the nose or under the chin.  Run the chain under the chin and then up the off side of the halter.  Do not coil the lead shank around your hand.

Class procedure
Practice walking, trotting, stopping, backing and turning.  Practice transitions and practice going straight.  Set up a marker and trot straight to it as if it were the judge.  Practice stopping a safe distance from the judge so you can judge your distance.  Ideally, at least an arm’s length from the judge is the correct stopping point.
Practice trotting past cones and stopping with your hip at the cone so you can learn to judge your distance.  Practice trotting tight circles both directions and practice backing a serpentine around cones.  You need to be able to control your horse’s body as you back.
Practice setting your horse up for inspection and know your quarters.  You should be on the opposite side of the judge if he is in front of your horse’s withers and on the same side as the judge if he is past the withers.  Wait for the judge to commit to a side if he is at the back of your horse before you bounce around from side to side!  Practice moving from side to side until it is a smooth, natural movement.
Remember to be aware of what your horse is doing during inspection.  Scan your horse with your eyes as you are doing your quarters instead of just staring at your judge.  If he moves a leg—fix it.  This will show the judge that you are at least aware that your horse moved.
Your horse should be set up squarely.  This takes practice and you should be able to have your horse set up within 5 to 10 seconds.  
Your horse should stay in the same frame for all maneuvers.  This takes practice , practice, and more practice.
Learn your pattern the night before if possible.  If not get the pattern as soon as it is posted and walk through it a few times without your horse.  Study where you should be in conjunction with the cones and where your position should be for each maneuver.  Do not do what the person in front of you did if it is different from the pattern you have studied.  They may be having a bad day and might have forgotten to engage their brain.
If you have been doing your homework at home you will be ready to go show.  Be confident but do not overshow.  You are there to show your horse—not yourself!

Note to parents
Be encouraging to your children when they are showing.  There are many variables involved that they may have no control over and criticism from you at this point just makes matters most.  Focus on something positive that happened during their pattern.  Everybody knows when things do not go well and being reminded of the mistakes doesn’t serve a purpose at this time.  Wait until practice time at home and go over the parts of the pattern that were a little rough.  Horse showing can be great family fun and will  help teach your child self discipline and responsibility.

Note to youth
Appreciate the help your parents are trying to give you.  Remember they have made a lot of sacrifices to get you to the show and it doesn’t hurt to say thank you.  Don’t punish your horse if you are the one that made a mistake.  Remember the good parts of your pattern but work harder on any maneuvers that weren’t as good as you had hoped.  Good luck to all of you.  Showmanship can be enjoyable and rewarding!