There were so many beautiful golden steeds here today, that I was at about 150 shots before I knew it! If you would like more pics than what you see here, please shoot me an email and I'll gather them up for you (leahroehl@yahoo.com). Enjoy!
After our exhibitors arrived and unloaded their horses, they began prepping for their classes. Halter was the first class on the list, so the horses needed to be groomed, trimmed and shined to the max! The judge is looking for conformational correctness and will rate them against the breed/color standard. Clear as mud? Basically, the judge is looking for the purtiest horse in the class, according to what the purtiest horse SHOULD look like....now that we are all completely unclear now.....
Once the golden beauties were ready for their moment of glory in front of the judged, at the judges cue, they enter the arena and walk towards him...the judge checks each horse over, and watches the horses movement for anything out of the ordinary...waddling, skipping and dilly-dallying are highly undesirable movements, and handlers will be penalized accordingly....just kidding....just sounded more exciting then "they walk to the judge"....
as they pass the judge, the handler will ask the horse to trot away, again exhibiting the horses movement for the judge to evaluate...
finally, they line up head-to-tail for final inspection..you will notice the handlers doing their best to make sure the horses are standing 'square'. That means that all 4 legs are straight under the horse and position at all four corners of the horse equally, like a square? Clear as mud? Good!
The horse should be alert and showing at it's best...this is not always an easy task, if the horse is distracted, tired, or otherwise preoccupied with other matters (like where the grain is)..... 
This horse on the other hand....he stayed up too late last night....notice the lazy ears....poor sleepy pony! I think he'd rather be napping.
Another thing the judge is looking for, in your breeding mares and stallions, are purty pearly whites! Yes, teeth are important too! A good even 'bite' mean less health and feeding issues down the line...take this gorgeous mare for example...SMILE! 
After the 'in hand' classes were complete, lunch was served by Sara and her father, Scott...they had lots of yummy food and drinks available for everyone all day...Thanks guys! 
With a full tummy, we moved on to the 'under saddle' classes. These are riding classes, and exhibitors must show to the judge at the walk, trot, and canter in both directions. The judge is looking for movement in line with the standards set forth by the national association...we had some beautiful English riders showing today...
Ummmm, yeah..I really can't explain this one...
At the end of the day, everyone went home happy...The Palomino Association in Virginia (VPA) is a small club. What they lack in numbers, they make up for in hospitality tho...When they aren't competing against each other, they enjoy hanging out, sharing stories, and having a lot of good honest fun with each other...I have enjoyed my time in and around this club very much...
At the end of the day, everyone went home happy...The Palomino Association in Virginia (VPA) is a small club. What they lack in numbers, they make up for in hospitality tho...When they aren't competing against each other, they enjoy hanging out, sharing stories, and having a lot of good honest fun with each other...I have enjoyed my time in and around this club very much...Happy Trails,
Leah
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