ANYONE AT NATIONALS? Largo Race Winner?

[PasoPerson]

Can't help it. Been dying to know who won the Race this year. Poor Ed couldn't try to hold onto his title, so now I'm just soooooo nosey and want to know.

[motorgypsy]

Ed was in the race afterall but was defeated. The winner was a very nice buckskin from Tennessee with a really nice fast gait and I don't think he broke gait at all. His rider took a victory lap at a fast gallop. Sandy's Bronce was also very impressive and was second or third and again I don't think he broke gait at all. It was a good race with several very good largo horses competing. They held two heats at noon and took the top 8 for the finals.

[ErinC]

how come I could not see a " country pleasure class "
on the class list?

I want to know how Eddie and Debby Rampsey did?
A BIG AL son.

Eddie was in the Largo race too.
????????????????????????????????????

[CarolU]

Erin, they did have Country Pleasure...and Trudy told me a Big Al son won, but I'm not sure if it is the same horse you are talking about.

[pnalley]

I saw the Tennessee Dun in the 1st heat. What an awesome horse. It really had a nice largo, was in gait and never broke! Since the Coral breds seem to dominate this event, I would love to know the breeding on the winner.

We need to get his owner/rider posting here :D !

Bronce was amazing. You could see that about the 1st 1/4 of the race
(1st heat) he wasn't sure what was going on. But once he realized Sandy wanted speed and the terrain was flat, he got his little Paser Feener butt in gear ;-) People in the stands were talking about him, he made quite an impression.

Nancy (motergypsies) was in the first heat. I swear I thought she was a little girl in the race! She has such lovely equitation and is so tiny on the horse, I truly thought she was an equatation rider that went in the class for fun

The manegeent switched the largo race around again. They actually had 12 horse (I think it's great they let more in). When they announce the heats, we saw lots of people heading towards the arena, and when the heats were over we saw loads of people leaving the arena

So the race seems to be drawing some folks to the arena!

Please excuse my spelling, my computer decided I can-not edit anything unless I reboot and I didn't want to loose this post.

[ErinC]

did you see the class posted on the class list?
or is that like the largo not an offical class so it is not listed?

[CarolU]

Erin, they did have Country Pleasure...and Trudy told me a Big Al son won, but I'm not sure if it is the same horse you are talking about.

Opps, I was wrong, it was a John Henry son that won, not a big Al son.

[ErinC]

o cool I bet it was a neat class to watch ...

[Laura S]

I've been watching for country pleasure too. why would they not post the results of that class? I thought it was an official class.

[CarolU]

Country Pleasure is a regular class, it's results should be posted. Are you sure you are looking at the right day?

The Largo Race is entertainment. It is not a regular class and does not need to be posted.

[LynnG]

is that like the largo not an offical class so it is not listed?

For me a class at the Nationals that crowns a National Champion should be an official class in the rulebook, and entries need to qualify with points during the year. It would give it more credibility as an official class, and regional shows may start offering it more....and well not seen as just entertainment.

You can have it as a race...or as a class (like the KY Mountain Pleasure horses do)..... walk, pleasure gait (fast), speed gait (fastest).

[Laura S]

I guess the country pleasure class was Saturday and results not posted yet! :shock:

[Boyd R]

Ed had a rough start in the race and It would have been nice to see him and the winner go one on one. Or have gotten out in front together I think they would have been nose to nose the entire race.

[ErinC]

http://www.pfha.org/includes/html/2006.show.results/SAT.2006114.asp

[SandyMM]

I have mixed feelings about the largo race being pointed and a 'real' PFHA class... If it was - you would not be able to see Bronce in the ring/largo race. PFHA and USEF rules prohibit blind horses in competition. Amazing that aerc (endurance) will allow him to compete over the roughest of trails, but he isn't allowed in a flat level 90% empty show ring... :-P Go figure....

Bronce actually got slammed pretty hard at the start of the finals and came out swinging anyway... I am _so_ proud of the heart that little horse has... He comes by it honestly, too.... he is bred for speed and accurate gait... I am very lucky to have him.

[motorgypsy]

Paula what a nice thing to say!!! Thank you!

Miss Chinook was having her "diva" moment - actutally diva week - and would largo anywhere but in the arena but at least she behaved and did everything I asked her to do - well - except largo!!!! :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:

Lula gaited really well and behaved very well but for some very strange reason decided to walk anytime a horse came up behind her. As soon as the horse passed her she'd start to largo again. Kind of hard to win a largo race that way but Kyle was very pleased with her anyway!

Bronce was amazing as always.

We prefer that the largo race be a demo so it will be fun and attract a diverse group of participants who don't care about show ribbons. Show classes are expensive and more stressful. I would prefer a different penalty for breaking gait though. Stopping is hazardous and breaks the continuity of the race. I'd almost rather see "three breaks and you're DQ'd or something like a time penalty for each break. We'll have to put our thinking caps on.

We had a fantastic time!!!! What a great bunch of horses and people all in the same spot at the same time!!!!

[PasoPerson]

Oh great! Thanks guys for all your info. I once again lived vicariously through all your descriptions. God bless -

[britzlove]

Don't worry Paso Person-I have LOTS of pictures of the Largo Race! It was the highlight of the show in my eyes-truly as a spectator.

Everything that's been said I agree with. Everyone had so much fun, the energy was sooooo contagious! I didn't see a frown in the place, certainly not on any of the riders.

Congratulations to all in our little group that were represented!!!!!! I was so proud to just know those awesome horses and riders!

I also think there were some issues that could be tweaked a little, but it should remain an exhibition so it stays fun. It was AMAZING!

I'll get everything I have up as soon as possible..17 rolls of 35mm and about 450 digital pics are gonna take me a little...I promise though!

Brittany

[Pasogirlz]

Don't worry Paso Person-I have LOTS of pictures of the Largo Race! It was the highlight of the show in my eyes-truly as a spectator.

Everything that's been said I agree with. Everyone had so much fun, the energy was sooooo contagious! I didn't see a frown in the place, certainly not on any of the riders.

Congratulations to all in our little group that were represented!!!!!! I was so proud to just know those awesome horses and riders!

I also think there were some issues that could be tweaked a little, but it should remain an exhibition so it stays fun. It was AMAZING!

I'll get everything I have up as soon as possible..17 rolls of 35mm and about 450 digital pics are gonna take me a little...I promise though!

Brittany

I didn't bother to take many pix myself....I figured Britz had the horses covered...and Barb had the other entertainment pix to be had. :lol:

[PasoPerson]

Oh goodie! Thanks britz - I'll be looking in the next few days. Oh goodie, oh goodie!

[Barbwire]

Check out this mare that was in the race! Lori, who is she again?

http://gallery.pethobbyist.com/data/65061largo_race_mare_bb.jpg

[DSDECKERT]

The energy in the arena for the largo race was amazing, that alone (in my opinion) was the highlight of the show!

After the race finished, Jerry announced to the crowd that Bronce (who came in 2nd I believe) - was stone cold blind. Every single person in the arena was cheering....

I have to admit, when I watched the largo heats, I couldn't help but cry watching Sandy and Bronce - it was truly amazing.

[Pasogirlz]

Check out this mare that was in the race! Lori, who is she again?

http://gallery.pethobbyist.com/data/65061largo_race_mare_bb.jpg

White Star's Fiesta.
She has kicked my butt in the open Pleasure Mares class many times.

[KAB]

Andrea Sante,trainer at White Star Farms.Never find a nicer lady!!!!And she loves to trail ride and camp so she shows the horses at many jobs..............Great paso ambassador.................

[paso5]

Eddie or Eduardo owned by Debbie Ramsey came in 2nd place in the largo race- they did not announce it becuse they were confused (the judges ) and could not keep track of it. I t is a shame that they did not announce it and couldn't keep track- the proof is in the video of the race and the third place winner had to tell the stewart that Eddie was second not him!!


I saw the Tennessee Dun in the 1st heat. What an awesome horse. It really had a nice largo, was in gait and never broke! Since the Coral breds seem to dominate this event, I would love to know the breeding on the winner.

We need to get his owner/rider posting here :D !

Bronce was amazing. You could see that about the 1st 1/4 of the race
(1st heat) he wasn't sure what was going on. But once he realized Sandy wanted speed and the terrain was flat, he got his little Paser Feener butt in gear ;-) People in the stands were talking about him, he made quite an impression.

Nancy (motergypsies) was in the first heat. I swear I thought she was a little girl in the race! She has such lovely equitation and is so tiny on the horse, I truly thought she was an equatation rider that went in the class for fun

The manegeent switched the largo race around again. They actually had 12 horse (I think it's great they let more in). When they announce the heats, we saw lots of people heading towards the arena, and when the heats were over we saw loads of people leaving the arena

So the race seems to be drawing some folks to the arena!

Please excuse my spelling, my computer decided I can-not edit anything unless I reboot and I didn't want to loose this post.

[Terry Wallace]

What a gorgeous mare...
So much for the myth some perpetuate....that "Pinto Pasos don't gait" !!! :D

[Pasogirlz]

Which horse was Eddie on?

[SandyMM]

I think there is some confusion over ED the horse and ED the rider. Ed the horse was ridden by Luis? Ed the rider was riding the same horse he rode for the last 2-3 years.

More confusion happened when horses pulled up when the winner finished, but may or may not have competed 6 laps. Don and I did another lap - to be sure we had completed the correct number of laps. The judges never actually called us in - I had to ask - repeatedly - in both heat race and final if we were done. In the first heat race, there were a number of horses who were lapped - or about to be lapped - when the winner was pulled over, so it made the finish very confusing.

In the _heat_ race, there was some confusion over over the 2,3,4th places. I just knew Greg and I needed to be in the 1st four to make it to finals - and we were.

In the finals, all the judges cared about was 1st place, so I don't think they paid any attention to who came in what place after that and were calling people in - whether they completed the right number of laps or not.

Frankly, the biggest victory for me/us was just getting into the ring with Bronce!! Never breaking gait - in heat or final - and flying low along the way was the icing! It was a blast!

[Pasomom]

I know in my video, of the first heats, I reviewed the one Don was in, and counted that he did 7 laps. I believe he probably came in second in his frist heat because he was never called down for breaking gait, and most everyone else was. In Sandy's heat, she never broke gait, however Pete and Greg had the crowd laughing, as they would try to get Greg to make the stop for breaking gate.....It was pretty halarious watching everyone and the crowd really had a great time. Very entertaining! I wish I could have been screaming with everyone else, but I was so busy trying to video the whole thing. (Video will probably be all over the place, as I was trying to watch and video at the same time! )

[paso5]

HI Erin Eddie and I did well even though we did not place in Country Pleasure we had a fantastic ride with not mistakes..
Eddie got 2nd in the largo race even though they did not announce it- and they tried to mix it up- he was second!


how come I could not see a " country pleasure class "
on the class list?

I want to know how Eddie and Debby Rampsey did?
A BIG AL son.

Eddie was in the Largo race too.
????????????????????????????????????

[paintedhorizon]

Man, I was listening for that and didn't hear it! It was really hard to hear what they were saying into the microphone anyway.


After the race finished, Jerry announced to the crowd that Bronce (who came in 2nd I believe) - was stone cold blind. Every single person in the arena was cheering....

I just loved the whole thing! But I do agree, stopping after breaking gait can get dangerous, especially if someone is right behind you!

[PasoPerson]

More confusion happened when horses pulled up when the winner finished, but may or may not have competed 6 laps. Don and I did another lap - to be sure we had completed the correct number of laps. The judges never actually called us in - I had to ask - repeatedly - in both heat race and final if we were done. In the first heat race, there were a number of horses who were lapped - or about to be lapped - when the winner was pulled over, so it made the finish very confusing.


Why only 6 laps? To go a mile it takes 8 laps. Whizzer Baker drove it in his truck one year to make sure. He went right down the middle of what would be the width of the race track.

He and Kathy Jernigan (hubby & wife for those who don't know them) were great Show Management / Secretary / whatever. He had the Race down pat and would explain to the judges and lap counters how it went.

[Heidi]

For breaking gait...how about pulling your horse to the far outside (maybe the arena wall) before you stop?
That would get horse/rider out of traffic and incur a fairly large penalty in time taken to get to the wall, stop and get back to the race in gait.

[SandyMM]

stopping after breaking gait can get dangerous
As a racer, I have to say that after the initial start - which was 'interesting' and involved one horse crossing over in front of 3 others in the finals - _nobody_ should ever be tail-'gaiting' any other horse. If you're faster and coming up behind, you should pass. If you get passed, and the horse cuts you off, you need to move over yourself. Rearending another horse is just like driving - only an alert 'driver' in the back can prevent a crash - regardless of who's at fault. There's a lot more _disadvantage_ than advantage to 'drafting' in a largo race!

I'd like to see horses that break repeatedly get pulled to the center to let the relaibly gaited horses race. I think I'd also like to see horses who get lapped pulled from the race - otherwise it really muddies up the finish. Although they may be fast, if a horse can't _maintain_ an accurate gait, they are not helping the cause. (And this doesn't mean they can't largo or aren't great/smooth/accurate/fast outside the ring, but spectators need to see consistent gait in the ring - just like they're _supposed_ to be seeing in the various classes). Unfortunately, all this would require race judges who can 'read' accurate gait and be willing to enforce the rules for pulling someone who breaks gait.

I've been to several shows with largo races and most were a fiasco - horses breaking all over the place, often with 'judges' who didn't have a _clue_ how to determine gait - or lack thereof. In one race, the eventual winner cantered and did non-gaits for over half the race. A little horse that I watched in a heat race - and was _never_ out of gait - was pulled by another 'judge' later on. All this lets some people who enter largo races think that the fastest time from point A to Finish is more important than gaiting - especially if you can get away with cantering, ignoring calls to stop, stopping only occassionally, and cantering some more.

If the horses who broke _repeatedly_ (and I would give them 3 strikes even in 6 laps) were sent to center ring in races, the largo race would be a better forum for this long-ignored (in the showring) facet of the Paso's versatility and the best ambassadors for accurate fast gait would be better showcased.

Another point to consider in races is how to accurately count the laps. If you haven't been in a race, you have _no_ idea how difficult it is to count to 6 or 8.... I got to _3_ in both the heat race and the final before I gave up (ok, I just plain _forgot_ what lap I was on!), and only came in after doing an 'extra' insurance lap in both races. I'm sure the judges could get volunteers - one per horse - to just count laps! It can make you crazy when the winner is called in and everybody - including lapped horses stop and pull in too - regardless of laps completed... There was a good bit of confusion over that!

[Mellifluous]

Here is an idea: :idea:

Forget about all of the stopping stuff, it is a pain in the butt for the riders and horses. How about a 2 or 3 stike system. If you break gait that amount of times, your watcher calls you on it and you must safely pull your horse into the center of the ring and are effectively out of the race. Same thing when a horse is lapped. Ideally with this sort of system and with heats being run, no horses should be getting lapped in the final race and only those that can gait consistently and reliably will make it into the final race.

[CarolU]

What we did in Las Vegas worked pretty well, if you were out of gait, you fixed it. If you stayed out of gait you were DQ'd. That's pretty simple.

[motorgypsy]

OK Mel and Michelle - sounds like you guys are the point people here. How about putting a poll in APF asking people who either have enetered or would consider entering the largo race their opinion on these essential items.

Penalty for breaking gait

Tack

Attire

comping stalls

prize money

number of laps

time for heats relative to the final race

Miscellaneous

[motorgypsy]

I like being sent to the rail for a full lap if you break three times or three breaks and you're out. The problem arises with the definition of breaking gait. Is one hop breaking gait or must it be a full four beat in canter? What do you guys think?

[paintedhorizon]

That's what I was thinking too. 3 strikes and you're out. The announcer would call the rider and they would have to come to the center and wait out the rest of the race.

Here is an idea: :idea:

Forget about all of the stopping stuff, it is a pain in the butt for the riders and horses. How about a 2 or 3 stike system. If you break gait that amount of times, your watcher calls you on it and you must safely pull your horse into the center of the ring and are effectively out of the race. Same thing when a horse is lapped. Ideally with this sort of system and with heats being run, no horses should be getting lapped in the final race and only those that can gait consistently and reliably will make it into the final race.

[motorgypsy]

Now as far as being lapped - they deal with it in stock car races and with enough judges they can deal with it but hopefully with better breaking gait penalties noone will be lapped.

[paintedhorizon]

I don't think letting back in would be a good option. Then you go to the whole "losing count of laps again". We're trying to make it easy for PFHA and not have to have that many judges.

Would they allow regular ppl to be the gait watchers????? That would be a big help too.

As far as breaking gait, IMO, breaking gait is breaking gait. No matter how many strides, but again, once a proposal is written up, we'll get everyone's opinions on it on numerous boards before submitting, HOWEVER, if you don't respond and you don't like something, OH WELL! LOL

[SandyMM]

Penalty for breaking gait
stop, otherwise a running horse that doesn't stop could have an advantage

Tack
any tack

Attire
any attire including jeans

comping stalls
don't care, but thank goodness they comped ours at Nationals since sales were _dismal_ for most vendors!

prize money
don't care

number of laps
at least 8

time for heats relative to the final race
I would say last half of the show in the mornings before the first class when the ring is groomed

Miscellaneous
pull out lapped riders