NAN 2013: A Message from your Registrar

Good day all,

So…who is ready for NAN 2013?!? It's quickly approaching!

Just wanted to pass on some information for those that are currently planning on making the journey to Harrisburg, PA.

NAN Cards: Please please please fill out your NAN cards properly. Please ensure that class name matches the show results for that the card, that you have your model name printed correctly and most importantly, that you put YOUR name on your NAN card! If you have purchased a model that came with NAN cards and you desire to enter that model at NAN please ensure that you put your name on the other side of the card as is indicated on the card. Failure to do so makes that NAN card invalid.

If I receive any invalid NAN cards, your entry will be scratched and your NAN card(s) will be returned to you in your show packet. If you have missing NAN cards, your entry will be scratched.

I'm hoping to get NAN Registration open by the second week of April so now is the time to get prepared.

With regards to NAN Registration, I'm making some changes. This year you will ONLY send me NAN cards and if not paying via PayPal, payment. You will NOT send me anything else. No entry forms, no Code of Conducts, nothing that is NOT a NAN card or payment.

For those that will be joining NAMHSA please send your membership form to the Membership Secretary, Danielle Miller. Her contact information can be found here: http://www.namhsa.org/contacts.htm PLEASE do not send me your membership form. I will only have you do it again and send to Danielle. You may combine your NAMHSA membership payment along with your NAN fees however as has been done in the past.

Due to Indy NAN's very tight registration schedule please keep an eye on your email inbox. If I have queries I will need for you to respond as soon as you can please.

With regards to Code of Conducts, you and your helpers will sign those upon packet pickup. So again, please DO NOT SEND THEM TO ME.

Please don't hesitate to contact me with any queries about registration.

Clear skies,
Jim West
Registrar, NAN 2013

Easy-Peasy Make Your Own Scale Poles

This week's Feature Friday post is courtesy of Leah Koerper.  Leah is a customizer and tackmaker, and likes to DIY her way to success.  Please visit Leah's blog at http://shoestringstable.wordpress.com.  Thank you Leah, for allowing us to feature your tutorial.

 

As far as prop making goes, making ground/jump poles is just about as simple as it gets. It’s a great started project because it’s easy and because a set of poles gives you a lot of options for performance events. I’m making these for use in trail and gaming classes, but they have a myriad of uses in set ups.

Here’s how I went about making my new set of poles.

First, materials. Poles are really just dowels that have been cut and painted. You’ll want to make sure you buy the right size dowel for your scale. For 1/32 scale (Chips/Stablemate) I’m using 3/16 inch diameter dowels from a hobby store. Before you go, you’ll want to calculate how many pieces you need. They’re generally sold in 36″ lengths. I wanted my poles to be equivalent to 12′, which in 1/32 scale is 4.5 inches. I increased that to 5” just to be safe, multiplied that by 8 (the number of poles I wanted) and got 40 inches. So I bought two 36″ pieces. To do my scale conversions I used this handy scale calculator.

In addition to poles, you’ll need sand paper, a saw or Dremel, masking tape, and acrylic paint. I also used sealer (Krylon) and Play-Doh (an idea adapted from Friesian Fury Studio’s post on using Play-Doh for masking).

Next, you’ll want to measure out the poles on the length of dowel.

 

I left a bit of space between each poles length so the Dremel would have room to cut. You wouldn’t need to leave so much if you use a hacksaw (and/or aren’t such a klutz like me).

 

You end up with poles a little over the intended length (in my case, 4.5 inches). If your poles are close to that, you can probably just move right on to sandpaper. Since mine each had several millimeters to lose and I had the Dremel handy, I used that. You have a lot more control with the Dremel when you can cut straight down, instead of at an angle as you have to do when cutting a long piece. That allows you to get a lot more precise and get the pole just a hair over the goal length.

 

Then a bit of sandpaper on the ends will take off any roughness and get them to a uniform length. You might want to sandpaper the whole piece, depending on how rough your dowels are. Keep the ruler handy so you don’t overdo it and end up with a pole that’s too short (I just plan ahead for failure and start with extra poles. I need seven, so I’m making nine).

 

Once your poles are all cut and sanded, it’s painting time. Poles come in just about any color or combination that you can imagine, but mine are going to be a relatively staid blue and white stripe.

I start with doing a layer of white. I do half a pole at a time, and stick the unpainted end in a lump of Play-Doh to dry.

 

Once those are dry, simply paint the other half. To make the stripes, I taped off the areas I wanted to remain white and then painted blue over the exposed white. There are a lot different striping styles out there, but you will want to measure out the taping if you want the poles to match.

This is blue tape with blue paint, but hopefully you get the idea. The ends and middle of each poles are taped up to keep them white.

You may need to do a couple layers of color. Try not to put it on too thick or it’ll look funny later. Once you pull the tape off, you may need to redo some of the white where it bled through or the taping was off. And then you’re done!

 

For longevity and durability, you may want to seal the poles with a matte fixative. I did mine using the same Play-Doh base technique, one half at a time. For some scenes, you might want old weathered poles. Handily, they’re pretty easy to make so you can create a whole arsenal in different colors and conditions, a pole for every possibility!

Thank you again, Leah, for permitting us to share your pole-making prowess!

Show Holder Tip: Prepping your NAN Cards

This week, Amy Peck is sharing her expertise as an experienced show holder, and as NAMHSA's Show Membership Secretary. 

What I do when I receive the NAN cards for my show...

As a show holder, you should have your show's NAN cards within a couple of weeks of your show. If you do not have your cards by then, please contact the Show Membership Secretary (SMS). Currently, most shows are receiving their NAN cards within 60 days of sending in their show application. 

When you open the packet, inside will be the NAN cards for your show and a sheet of paper outlining some of the responsibilities of holding a NAN-qualifying show, including the date the show results are due back to NAMHSA. Please read the included sheet!

The cards are usually rubber-banded by color.

 To make it easier for me the day of the show, I get a ziplock bag for

each division and a copy of my classlist. 

 I count the cards for each division, and label the

ziplock bag with the division name. 

 When I am finished, I have all my divisions separated and ready to go! 

This is a good way to confirm there are enough NAN cards for the show, plus a few extra. If you are short cards, contact the SMS as soon as possible. If it is before the show, additional NAN cards will be labeled and mailed to the show holder. If it is after the show, you will need to keep track of which classes did not receive cards, the qualification winning model names, owners and addresses. Contact the SMS immediately after the show with the information of cards needed and cards will be mailed to the show holder for disbursement.

Thank you, Amy, for your tips on organizing your NAN cards!

Guest Post - TB Horse Racing Set-ups - The Basics

This week’s guest post is by Region 6 Representative, Jackie Moore.

One of the wonderful things about this hobby is the opportunity to learn so much about so many different breeds of horses as well as different disciplines in Performance.  One of the downfalls is that it is so difficult (if not impossible) for any one person to know all there is to know about every breed and every discipline.  Some disciplines are so specialized, that the only way for anyone to know about its nuances is to actually have competed or worked in that discipline.  Nothing is more aggravating than being one of those people that have specialized knowledge in a specific discipline and seeing set-ups with blatant faults earning NAN cards and championships.  But, again, we routinely ask people to judge set-ups when they most likely do not have specialized knowledge in that specific discipline.  That is just the nature of the hobby.

Well, I happen to be one of the people that has specialized knowledge in Thoroughbred horse racing.  I spent close to 12 years of my life working in the industry - starting out on farms breaking babies and exercising lay ups, and moving on to working on the racetrack as an exercise rider, jockey, and assistant trainer.  So, I have actually ridden Thoroughbreds in races and saddled them before races, giving me specialized knowledge about racing tack that the average hobbyist does not have.

So, I will apologize ahead of time for the length of this post, but I hope that you will take the time to read it, especially if you routinely judge Performance.  You never know when you might be faced with a racing scene, and wouldn't it be nice to know if what you are looking at is correct or not?

First, let's discuss the scene itself.

Thoroughbred racehorses in the US run races counterclockwise.  So, if you have a set-up where the horse is racing or galloping out after the race, the inside rail should be on the horse's left.  If they are going back to the winner's circle or warming up before the race, the inside rail should be on the horse's right (in general).  I know this seems like common sense, but, if I hadn't seen a set-up where this was incorrect, I wouldn't have mentioned it.

The inside rail is generally a narrow board or tube supported by posts which are either angled out or curved out so that the support post itself is on the inside and the rail is the farthest thing out into the track.  This allows a jockey to be able to roll under the rail and avoid being trampled.  The inside rail will never be a thick wall supported by thick posts that are on the same plane as the rail.  This is because if a rider or a horse were to hit one of those posts at racing speed, they would most certainly be seriously injured, if not killed.  The furlong poles are also well inside the rail, not right on the rail, for this same reason.  Some racetracks have what is called a safety rail.  A safety rail has a flat covering (usually metal) that covers the rail's support posts.  This is so that, if a rider falls and hits the rail, the covering helps absorb the impact, the rider can't land on top of or be thrown into one of the posts, and the rider will be thrown into the infield rather than back onto the track (and under horse's hooves).

Here's the rail at Belmont:

And Saratoga:

This is Turfway Park when they were re-surfacing the track and installing a safety rail (the gravel you see on the track is the base layer):

Now, let's move on to tack.

Racing bridles are slightly different from regular bridles.  The crownpiece and throatlatch are separate pieces and go through separate slots in the browband.  The noseband (when used) is separate from the bridle and is not run through a slot in the browband.  The noseband would be placed on the horse first and then the bridle put on over the noseband.  The bridle crownpiece is a long strap that goes from the right side of the bit, over the horse's poll, and attaches to a cheek piece on the left side - there is no short cheek piece on the right side of the bridle.  The cheek piece and crown piece attach to the bit with buckles.  Bridles can be brown leather, white leather, or nylon (or plastic coated nylon) in any color.  

The bits used are most often some type of snaffle with a loose chin strap (similar to a curb strap on a Western bridle, but loose).  This chin strap serves two purposes: it keeps the bit from being pulled through the horse's mouth, and it gives the grooms a way to control the horse while leading without interfering with the rider's reins.  You will often see the grooms run a lead shank through the chip strap or just lead the horse to the track by holding on to the chin strap.  That way, they can control the horse without just pulling on one side of the bit, and the rider still has the use of both reins.  

The reins attach to the bit by either loops or buckles and have rubber grips.  The reins that attach to the bit with buckles have a metal core in the part of the rein that goes around the bit ring.  The reins are very long - the rider will tie a knot in the reins to make them the length they want - and are quite a bit wider than reins you see on show bridles.  Blinkers, when used, are placed on the horse over the bridle and then the sides are tucked under the bridle's cheekpieces before fastening.

Some photos:

 

(Yes, the nylon bridle above has the throatlatch 

on upside down, in case you were wondering…)

Racing saddles are pretty much just an aluminum or composite half tree, one billet strap on each side, a flap, a seat, and stirrups.  Saddles can be leather, but are generally clarino - a synthetic leather that looks like patent leather and comes in every color of the rainbow (and is easy to maintain).  Saddles can be various sizes.  Jockeys will generally have three saddles of various sizes and will use each saddle based on how much weight their horse has to carry in each race.  Small saddles can weigh less than a pound while larger saddles can weigh up to five pounds or more.

It takes two people to saddle a race horse.  The trainer or assistant trainer stands on the horse's left while the jockey's valet stands on the horse's right.  Most trainers will place a damp chamois on the horse's back at the withers first - this helps keep the saddle from slipping.  The saddle pad is placed over the chamois and the numbered saddle cloth over the pad.  Yes, pads are used - they are generally just a piece of saddle-shaped foam, but they can also be a rubber material of different weights.  The numbered saddle cloths are very long.  They are placed over the pad with the excess length up near the horse's neck.  The excess is then folded back over the top and the saddle will be placed on top of the part that is folded back.

The saddle is attached with two girths that are made of strong elastic.  The girths are traditionally white, but can be made in colors as well.  Some trainers will use a girth channel under the girths to protect the horse and keep the girth from slipping.  The girth channel can be foam or rubber.  The undergirth has a buckle on each end and is attached to the saddle's billet strap.  The excess billet strap is pulled out towards the flank of the horse so that the excess strap is not under the overgirth when that is put on.  The overgirth has a buckle and keepers on one end and a long strap on the other.  The overgirth is placed across the saddle, just behind the stirrup leathers, with the end with the long strap on the horse's left and the end with the buckle on the horse's right.  Both the valet and the trainer pull down on the girth, the trainer hands the strap under the horse's girth area to the valet, who feeds the strap through the buckle.  The trainer then buckles the girth how they want it, and the valet takes the excess strap and feeds it through the keepers, folding the excess back down and tucking it into the keeper to make sure it doesn't come loose.

No, the excess stirrup leather of the saddle is NOT put under the overgirth.  This is an error I see often.  I think it must come from people looking at pictures of saddled racehorses and seeing the billet strap pulled out toward the horse's flank, and thinking that is the excess stirrup leather.  Trust me, you do not want anything extraneous under the overgirth.  Plus, your jockey has to be able to adjust their stirrups.  As a matter of fact, some jockeys will adjust their stirrups to the longest they think they may need and then cut off the excess.  They will pretty much only adjust their stirrups a hole or two here and there, depending on the horse.

The numbered saddle cloths are standard colors for each number.  This makes it easier for the race caller and the spectators to follow the individual horses in the field.  Even major stakes races generally use the standard colors for each number.

The standard colors are:

1 Red cloth, white number

2 White cloth, black number

3 Blue cloth, white number

4 Yellow cloth, black number

5 Green cloth, white number

6 Black cloth, yellow number

7 Orange cloth, black number

8 Pink cloth, black number

9 Turquoise cloth, black number

10 Purple cloth, white number

11 Gray cloth, red number

12 Lime cloth, black number

13 Brown cloth, white number

14 Maroon cloth, yellow number

15 Khaki cloth, black number

16 Copen Blue cloth, red number

17 Navy cloth, white number

18 Forest Green cloth, yellow number

19 Moonstone cloth, red number

20 Fuchsia cloth, yellow number

21 Light Purple cloth, navy number

Some photos:

Well, again, I apologize for the length of this post, but I thank you for your attention in reading it all, and I hope the information will help both entrants and judges.  Feel free to email me privately if you have any questions.

Jackie Moore

Region 6 Rep
region-6@namhsa.org

Thank you, Jackie, for sharing your expertise with us! 


Photo credits: Tracks and nylon bridle, Google image search.

All other photos courtesy of Jackie Moore.