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 Extreme Veteran
Posts: 534
 
| Wasn't sure how to exactly word this. I know most of you here are hard core 100% competitors, Saddle series, Award Series, WPRA Sanctioned, Jack Pots etc. But for those of you that kinda game for fun at Playday's, Gymkhanas, small point series/award series.
I only do playday's and small award/point series at the moment. I have two mares and have recently got them going decent even though its quite late in the year. That and I cannot exactly afford to spend 20/50 to enter a jack pot, or nomination fees etc for bigger deals and not have a good chance if winning my money back. I know its a gamble either way with small or big. My horses aren't ready for that kinda hard competition yet and I am totally fine with it. I just wanna get them hauled and out and about.
Is competition, competition where ever you find it? What I am meaning is. Down here we have people who know they can win, have automatic horses who can definitely run with the big boys and girls and pull of a win. But they decide to come to these small playday's(which is basically a gymkhana??) small award and point series. Where there is literally maybe a high of 50 people turn out and most are kids or adults who are just starting out. But they bring their finished horses who can run with the big crowd and come in and beat everyone...
Now PLEASE don't think I am a sore loser or stuck up I am all for the fun etc. I'm proud of my girls either way. I was trying to word this the best as to not be so rude or stuck up sounding. I know it doesn't really matter either way, I supposes. But I was just wondering if it kinda bugged any other small gamers when bigger players come in and knowingly know they can beat everyone.
Edited by RacingTheArabian 2015-11-30 7:42 PM
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  Witty Enough
Posts: 2954
 
Location: CTX | Nope, wouldn't bother me one bit. We regularly get big wigs on our small jackpots.... NFR qualifiers, American qualifiers... Big futurity jockeys....
I run against myself every race, try to do better every run....
And guess what.... they can have an off day, they can hit a barrel and be out of it....
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 534
| cranky B4 10am - 2015-11-30 7:45 PM
Nope, wouldn't bother me one bit. We regularly get big wigs on our small jackpots.... NFR qualifiers, American qualifiers... Big futurity jockeys....
I run against myself every race, try to do better every run....
And guess what.... they can have an off day, they can hit a barrel and be out of it....
I never really thought of it as running against myself! That's actually a really good way of thinking about it. |
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 Toastest with the Mostest
Posts: 5712
Location: That part of Texas | I can see how it would be disheartening, especially when you are starting out and those small wins mean so much. Bad news = you're getting trounced and it's not as fun. Good news = if you do beat them by chance, you've done something pretty cool and to possibly brag about. Additionally, by competing against them, you'll know when you have a good enough horse to move on to some of those bigger rodeos and win back some money because you'll be in the competition. Until then, keep your chin up and keep working towards your best run. |
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 Extreme Veteran
Posts: 456
Location: SW MO | RacingTheArabian - 2015-11-30 7:40 PM
Wasn't sure how to exactly word this. I know most of you here are hard core 100% competitors, Saddle series, Award Series, WPRA Sanctioned, Jack Pots etc. But for those of you that kinda game for fun at Playday's, Gymkhanas, small point series/award series.
I only do playday's and small award/point series at the moment. I have two mares and have recently got them going decent even though its quite late in the year. That and I cannot exactly afford to spend 20/50 to enter a jack pot, or nomination fees etc for bigger deals and not have a good chance if winning my money back. I know its a gamble either way with small or big. My horses aren't ready for that kinda hard competition yet and I am totally fine with it. I just wanna get them hauled and out and about.
Is competition, competition where ever you find it? What I am meaning is. Down here we have people who know they can win, have automatic horses who can definitely run with the big boys and girls and pull of a win. But they decide to come to these small playday's(which is basically a gymkhana??) small award and point series. Where there is literally maybe a high of 50 people turn out and most are kids or adults who are just starting out. But they bring their finished horses who can run with the big crowd and come in and beat everyone...
Now PLEASE don't think I am a sore loser or stuck up I am all for the fun etc. I'm proud of my girls either way. I was trying to word this the best as to not be so rude or stuck up sounding. I know it doesn't really matter either way, I supposes. But I was just wondering if it kinda bugged any other small gamers when bigger players come in and knowingly know they can beat everyone.
When I was first starting barrel racing I went to probably 5 showdeos and then my mom put me in the junior rodeo circuit that was booming at the time. I was in no way ready and neither was my horse, but when I placed I was over the moon. It wasnt much fun at the time and yes it could be really discouraging. HOWEVER I am so so glad I did it because it made me want to get better- it gave me a goal. Sure sometimes it could bug me. But now I see the "big girls" and I'm always at the fence to watch and to learn. I see them and sometimes yes I may be "bugged" but I view them as what I want to be- what my goal is. Good topic to bring up OP! |
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 Worst.Housekeeper.EVER.
Location: Missouri | My niece spends three weeks with us each summer and loves riding. Her goal this year was to enter a race, so she worked very hard and I brought her to a fun show/playday. I'm not at all familar with the scene and was so thankful that my friend was there to help me out. However, I was grateful to have somewhere for her to go and have fun in multiple events. She had an absolute blast!
My friend did enter her open horse that was coming back from an injury.
I thought it might be somewhere to take my colt so as not to be too embarrassed.
But, other than those circumstances, I can see where it would be uncouth to run an open horse, especially if it happened enough to change the atmosphere of the event (fun family night to competitive jackpot barrel race.)
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 Good Grief!
Posts: 6343
Location: Cap'n Joan Rotgut.....alberta | Not at all as i feel you are only.as good as the people you are competing against....m |
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 Fact Checker
Posts: 16575
Location: Displaced Iowegian | mruggles - 2015-11-30 9:03 PM Not at all as i feel you are only.as good as the people you are competing against....m
^^^^ THIS.......you really are only as good as your competition........It gives you a goal to succeed.....And the victory is much sweeter when you do..... |
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I AM being nice
Posts: 4396
Location: MD | I see this from a lot of different angles. As a kid who is out there trying to do the best you can with what you have, it can be disheartening to have someone come in and blow your doors off. The thing about it is though... that's life. There will always be people that have more than you do. Those people may just come to the local game show and have fun and have no interest in going to anything bigger. That is their choice. I also feel that situations such as this teach us a lot about who we are as individuals. If you just want to go have fun and do your best and feel as though you are doing well and progressing, that should be reward enough. If you're the sort of person who wants to be the best, let it light a fire underneath of you to work just that much harder to become the best rider and trainer that you possibly can. Develop the horses that you do have to their utmost potential. That may mean that when they're as good as they can be, you sell them to someone else to learn the ropes on, take that money, buy yourself a horse that has the potential to be better and you start the process all over again. This time though, you'll have those tools that you acquired in training those first horses to aid you in making the next one even better. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 534
| I've got a mare who I totally think has potential to go far in the barrel pen. My other one is just for fun, but she'll be a competitor too, just not as good as my other mare. If I can get my good mare to show the speed she can pull off out of the arena, in the arena and around the cans I think i'd have myself a barrel horse. But the trick is getting her to realize she CAN run inside the pen lol.
Edited by RacingTheArabian 2015-11-30 9:29 PM
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Meanest Teacher!!!
Posts: 8555
Location: sunny california | when I was a kid I had a very fast pony that could run with the fast horses. I did not ride agains the kids at the playdays. I ran with the adults so the little kids could have a chance. I agree with the OP. i have taken finished horses to playdays and made them go slow, to settle them a little. lets face it the ground is usually terrible, why tear up a good horse for a playday? sometimes I have brought a young one. for atmosphere. please have some respect for your ability and your riding level and at least ride against people that are close to your level.
I would not expect 1st grader to keep up in Math Analysis.
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The Advice Guru
Posts: 6419
| Nope don't feel that way
You are only as good as your competition, if the pro horses come, you can either learn something from observing them, and you will pull your socks up to do better then before.
Secondly, I believe having the pro horses show up is humbling, teaches people to be a good looser. |
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 Own It and Move On
Location: The edge of no where | WrapSnap - 2015-11-30 9:12 PM I see this from a lot of different angles. As a kid who is out there trying to do the best you can with what you have, it can be disheartening to have someone come in and blow your doors off. The thing about it is though... that's life. There will always be people that have more than you do. Those people may just come to the local game show and have fun and have no interest in going to anything bigger. That is their choice. I also feel that situations such as this teach us a lot about who we are as individuals. If you just want to go have fun and do your best and feel as though you are doing well and progressing, that should be reward enough. If you're the sort of person who wants to be the best, let it light a fire underneath of you to work just that much harder to become the best rider and trainer that you possibly can. Develop the horses that you do have to their utmost potential. That may mean that when they're as good as they can be, you sell them to someone else to learn the ropes on, take that money, buy yourself a horse that has the potential to be better and you start the process all over again. This time though, you'll have those tools that you acquired in training those first horses to aid you in making the next one even better.
 This.....
If someone's outrunning you and you know you can do better.....then get to work. Life isn't fair - a fair is where they show cows. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 534
| MS2011 - 2015-11-30 9:48 PM
WrapSnap - 2015-11-30 9:12 PM I see this from a lot of different angles. As a kid who is out there trying to do the best you can with what you have, it can be disheartening to have someone come in and blow your doors off. The thing about it is though... that's life. There will always be people that have more than you do. Those people may just come to the local game show and have fun and have no interest in going to anything bigger. That is their choice. I also feel that situations such as this teach us a lot about who we are as individuals. If you just want to go have fun and do your best and feel as though you are doing well and progressing, that should be reward enough. If you're the sort of person who wants to be the best, let it light a fire underneath of you to work just that much harder to become the best rider and trainer that you possibly can. Develop the horses that you do have to their utmost potential. That may mean that when they're as good as they can be, you sell them to someone else to learn the ropes on, take that money, buy yourself a horse that has the potential to be better and you start the process all over again. This time though, you'll have those tools that you acquired in training those first horses to aid you in making the next one even better.
This..... If someone's outrunning you and you know you can do better.....then get to work. Life isn't fair - a fair is where they show cows.
Omg I love that xD! 'A Fair is where they show cows.'. I know in time I will beat people. I haven't done to bad so far. So thank you :). |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 1062
Location: Probably On the Road to the Next Barrel Race! | when I am put in the position of running good horses at playdays, because we need a confidence run or whatever, I exhibition. I think it's tacky to come in and take the gamer's prizes. Why would you want t o do that when you can just exhibition? So yeah, it bugs me...I was a playdayer once, and appreciate that kind of thinking. |
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 Not Afraid to Work
Posts: 4717
| No it wouldnt bother me... we have a similar organization up here in MN but its a pretty big deal (WSCA)... many barrel racers also compete at these game shows. We have actual fun shows here too which are much lower caliber. WSCA shows are playday events, many have a jp barrel class with added money. And there is a big year end show many qualify for. I prefer these shows over barrel races because I like the other events. I do a few bigger barrel races a year but I mainly enjoy these WSCA shows. I get to do a few different events and still run barrels w/chance to pickup a check, they are inexpensive and my niece can go and compete in the pony class.
I would say my gelding is a 2D horse on a good day, 3D on an average day against tough competition. I have friends who show WSCA who have solid 1D horses. Just because someone has a good horse, doesnt mean they shouldnt do what they enjoy. I enjoy the playday shows for my reasons I listed above, just doing barrel races and rodeo isnt for everyone. |
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I just read the headlines
Posts: 4483
| kwanatha - 2015-11-30 9:28 PM
when I was a kid I had a very fast pony that could run with the fast horses. I did not ride agains the kids at the playdays. I ran with the adults so the little kids could have a chance. I agree with the OP. i have taken finished horses to playdays and made them go slow, to settle them a little. lets face it the ground is usually terrible, why tear up a good horse for a playday? sometimes I have brought a young one. for atmosphere. please have some respect for your ability and your riding level and at least ride against people that are close to your level.
I would not expect 1st grader to keep up in Math Analysis.
I so agree with kwantha. When I was good, I never WANTED to go the playdays and small shows. It didn't mean much to me when I won if I was at one of those shows. I would rather place running with the big dogs than win against less competition. That being said, I have seen a girl that only ran at those shows and if you showed up and weren't on your game, she would durn sure beat you. She and her horse KNEW that pattern and were hard to beat. She loved it when the tougher girls showed up and she beat them or ran right with them. I kinda pulled for her.
Now, though, I am not competitive at any level. I am working on it, though.  |
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 Serious Snap Trapper
Posts: 4275
Location: In The Snow, AZ | We have a little gymkhana series in the summers. It is the only series we consistently have here. Every now and then We get an actual jackpot. But other then that, I have to travel at least a couple hours to make a run. So I enjoy the practice that the local play days give me. I "won" this past summer. Got my first buckle ever. My mare and I can run mid 17's when we get it right. But that's not typical. Lol. But I am proud to have competed with the people that I did. Everyone has good runs and bad runs and I am just as likely to knock a barrel as the next person. We all just do the best we can. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 695
Location: Windoming | Yeah, it always amazes me that you have to have a $50,000 horse to win a $15 jackpot................................Personally, I wouldn't run a horse of that caliber, but people do it here all the time. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 669
Location: Central Texas | CrossCreek - 2015-11-30 10:49 PM
when I am put in the position of running good horses at playdays, because we need a confidence run or whatever, I exhibition. I think it's tacky to come in and take the gamer's prizes. Why would you want t o do that when you can just exhibition? So yeah, it bugs me...I was a playdayer once, and appreciate that kind of thinking.
I think along these lines. I don't understand why some finished barrel racer is going to a playday when exhibitions at jackpots/4D's are available. If I needed to make a practice run on my horse or a horse in training I would seek out those avenues. I wouldn't feel right about coming in on my seasoned barrel horse and doing that to a group of people who are enjoying a different type of horse activity. Of course there's the possiblity they could kick my butt! |
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