The 2018 SHOW Judges Seminar will be held Saturday, February 24 in the Hall of Fame Club inside the Calsonic Arena on the show grounds of The Celebration. The seminar will begin at 8:00am and conclude at noon. This is a mandatory requirement for all currently licensed judges and any new applicants wishing to become licensed by SHOW. In addition to those looking to renew or gain a license, any owner, exhibitor or trainer is welcome to attend the training to gain a better understanding of the judging requirements, standards and procedures.

The format of the seminar will differ slightly from previous years. Jennifer Bingham, chair of the judges’ committee, will open the session by introducing the members of the judges committee, explain the role of the committee and detail how the committee handles complaints that arise prior to sending along their recommendations to the SHOW Executive Committee, who makes any final decisions. This includes both judging violations and rule clarifications that arise from complaints received from interested parties.

Dr. Doyle Meadows, former CEO of the Celebration and accomplished Quarter Horse judge, will address the attendees regarding overall judging etiquette, professionalism and best-practice methods for judging, no matter the breed. Dr. Meadows is a valuable member of the SHOW Judges’ Committee bringing experience and independence to the committee.

Instead of a classroom lecture type setting the members of the judges’ committee will review issues that arose in 2017 and talk personally about the situations they encountered as part of their judging and reviewing the complaints that have been submitted over the last couple of years. This will be an open discussion with new applicants and existing judges invited to participate and share their experiences in order for all to learn from those real-life situations in the ring. The judges committee has begun the formation of the list of topics and is open to additional suggestions existing or prospective judges may have.

The session will end with the renewal test and a separate flat shod test. The format for the test has not been decided as the committee is weighing a couple of different options. “The purpose of the seminar is to keep the judges aware of real life situations and rules that we face as judges, encourage them to be confident and quick and decisive in their decisions. We also want to encourage the judges to be accountable for their decisions in placing a class or excusing an entry for a violation,” said Bingham.