May 21, 2018

WPCSA Spring Show

Last weekend, Connor and I attended our first Welsh Pony and Cob Society of America show in quite a while.  I have to say, it's weird to pack for a show and not bring a saddle.  There are WPCSA under saddle classes, but we chose not to do any of them this time and just show in-hand.

They've redone the covered at the Hoosier Horse Park and it looks AMAZING compared to what it looked like in seasons past - although the new footing is DEEP (this is typically a rodeo ring, so not sure if they care like the Dressage folks would)

Showing this horse is so fun these days.  He doesn't even scream anymore at shows, even when he's all by himself overnight:



Although he did have one "moment" where something scared the bejeezus out of him and he skittered sideways, stepped on me and then scrambled backward as fast as he could go while waiting outside the show ring.  He's a weird one to be sure, but THAT was a really unusual move for him.  I had flashbacks to hanging onto horse kite racehorses in high school for a second.

We ended up taking first (out of 2) in the Section C/D class and reserve champion (out of 3) in the all sections/all sexes WPCSA championship class.  Small classes for the WPCSA, but that's what happens out here in the heartland.


I know it's not our primary goal in life as riders, but if you get a chance to support your breed organization by doing in-hand classes ever, take it!  It's fun and it helps support the breeders too.  In addition to earning points for himself, Connor also earns points for his sire and I think dam too when he shows in WPCSA-sanctioned classes.

The next WPCSA in-hand show at the Hoosier Horse Park is the last weekend of August, and showing the in-hand classes only takes a couple hours of your Saturday morning (we were home by 11am!).  Classes are $7/class and there's more than just Welsh classes there, since it's held in conjunction with the Indiana Saddle Horse Association Shows.

Hope to see some of you out there next time!

11 comments:

  1. That's so awesome! I wish there were breed shows anywhere near me, but to get to any of the Andalusian shows I have to go to Wisconsin (8+ hours) or Texas (12+ hours)... blegh.

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    1. IDK how motivated you are to do it, but that's how we would be here if it wasn't for the efforts of a few local breeders. This show is actually just a few WPCSA classes held in conjunction with a local all-breeds english/western show, since we aren't really big enough to be able to afford an entire show of our own. It ends up being an affordable way to get small sanctioned classes.

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    2. Not that motivated 😂 mostly because the breed association is...shall we say, difficult to work with. Ha.

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  2. Sounds like a fun show! I bet it's fun to be around other people who love the breed as much as you do. =-)

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    1. Definitely! It's unlike the other horse shows I go to, where Connor and Kelly's Ffergie are the only two Welsh Cobs, ever.

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    2. I'm sure a lot of people couldn't even guess what breed he is at dressage shows!

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  3. I didn't know you earn points for the sire and dame! Thanks for sharing - would love to do this with Ffergie.

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  4. Holy cow that is cheap! Our breed shows are plenty, but expensive. Sadly the cobs miss out on points since the classes are not full. I love the people at Welsh shows though.

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  5. Wish we could have been there. Stupid truck!

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  6. Breed shows and inhand are quite fun! Congrats on the placings :)

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  7. What a cool opportunity! I've never had a breed of horse that people show in hand, so I'm completely foreign to the process.

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