What to do for a show...?

Question

My friend who has shown before told me that i have to put my hair in a bun, and keep it off of my neck (i'm riding western and speed classes) my hair won't stay in a bun and a website that i found said that it should be worn in a low ponytail. But here's another question. Can the judge use that as leverage between a tie? If they are debating between two people do you think they would place the one with the bun? Silly question i know, but i really want to be prepared as best i can. Thank You!

Answer 1

The devil is in the detiails, my dear.

Yes. judges will use even this minor detail as a tie-breaker.

Put your hair in a bun. Keep it off your neck. Use styling gell to keep it in place. I have naturally frizzy hair and styling gell works for me.

OR don't put your hair in a bun and see if you place.

Answer 2

The biggest thing about a bun over a ponytail is that if you are wearing your number on your back, then the ponytail (depending on how long your hair is), can obscure the number. And if a judge cannot read your number, it can mean the difference between placing and not. I personally use the winning numbers for showing. They go on each side of your saddle and are easy to read. This is a link to an example of the winning numbers:
http://cgi.ebay.com/WORLD-CLASS-EQUINE-WINNING-NUMBERS_W0QQitemZ260126037920QQihZ016QQcategoryZ1048QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
My hair will not stay in a traditional bun either, so what I do is buy that barrettes that have the hair net attatched. Put you hair in a ponytail, tuck it into the net, and you have instant bun that stays put. And you can get them at just about any tack store and ebay also has them. Check out this link for an example. http://www.sstack.com/shopping/product/detailmain.jsp?itemID=1722&itemType=PRODUCT&RS=1&keyword=bun
Whatever you decidefor your hair, just make sure it is neatly done. Good Luck at your show.

Answer 3

Hello!!

I got some helpful suggestions....

You can just put hair in a low pony tail but if you are going to a big show...bun is very important.

You should use a tie to look professional and know what you are doing....extra brownie points.

It depends on what the judge is looking for. Watch the younger class and the judge should place the class and find out if he likes the bun or not. If he does make sure that you you put in a nice and attractive bun. If a low pony tail brush you hair lots. Make it flow nicer in the wind.

You can go to the local farm supply store and buy Sullivans Final Bloom (yes I know its for cattle and horses) Its in a PINK arisol spray container...but it would give your hair the extra sparkle and smells lovely like sweet flower smell.

For speed classes wear what ever you want to wear as long it is appropriate. It doesn't matter if you put your hair up or not. Putting your hair up will make you go a little faster in the speed classes.

I hope this will help you out and best of luck in Pleasure and Speed classes.

Answer 4

I'll be the first to answer. I say a low ponytail or braided because if you show western and do speed events, then the ponytail will stay in. And the bun is more English type events. I've never had a judge mark me down points because my hair was in a ponytail. Judges are to look at the horse and rider as a whole, not the individual rider. If you ride with a hat/helmet in western, then the bun actually looks sloppy.
Good luck and best of luck

Answer 5

It partially depends on what breed and level you are showing at, but in general...

The most important thing is to look neat and well groomed. Your hair should not obstruct your number in any way, so avoid putting your number on your back. Your hair should also not be distracting in a pleasure class. So if your pony tail is bouncing, bad move.

For speed events, a low pony tail is fine. They judge you ONLY on speed. Your hair will never come into play.

For pleasure classes, a bun is really the best way to go. To get a nice tight show bun, start with a low pony tail. Then get a barrette with an attached bun net. Fasten that just above the pony tail and tuck your hair in the net.

Look at the girls that are winning and follow their lead.

Answer 6

There are no rules in any association books that I'm aware of (and I know APHA, AQHA and CEF) stating how a woman rider must wear her hair. Obviously if your hair won't stay in a bun, then that isn't the way to go.
The reason many women riders with long hair use a bun, or a low ponytail, is to keep their hair neat and tidy under their hat, and even more important, to stop their hair from bouncing and making their horse appear rough to ride. Find a way that does that for you, and you will be successful.
My hair is normally fairly short, either shoulder level or shorter. A bun wouldn't be an option of any sort for myself. And to be honest, I have shown at Open, 4-H and now Paint level, (And I've watched AQHA shows this month locally) and very few riders are wearing buns, anyhow, especially in Western. I would suggest you look around at your next show and see what is in style in your area, and then follow them chosing something that will work for your length and style of hair.
When I Western Pleasure or any Western class, I choose to curl my hair under and to keep my bangs very simple. You don't normally see your bangs anyhow as they are often pushed up under your cowboy hat or helmet, so there is no use flipping them or curling them alot! Then I use a hair net to keep my hair totally still when I ride. I use a fine hairnet, the simple cheap ones you can buy at any drugstore. I have some of the heavier hairnets, that are made out of brown thread type material, but I often use them for English, not Western. (Your hair looks a bit different under an English helmet compared to a Western hat, this is just a matter of preference for me and it probably doesn't matter what sort of hair net you use, as long as it keeps your hair neat and tidy and doesn't show too much.) If your hair is really short you probably could get away without a hair net, and if it is long enough that bobby pins can keep it pulled back and tidy, then you also might not need a hair net. Some riders, especially youth riders, use the heavy duty hair nets called snoods, which are basically nets that fasten into the back of your hair with a big barette, and keep your ponytail or bun gathered neatly. Most of the time adult riders do not wear them for Western classes hear, I would wonder if the cowboy hat would rub on the barrette.
Short hair can be a bit tricky to help keep your cowboy hat on your head when you ride. To me, keeping my hat on is much more important than whether I have a bun or not! Many riders have tricks that work for them to keep a hat in place. Some people use bobby pins that go through their hat band and into their hair. Many use hairspray or toupee tape on their forehead to help stick the hat on temperarily. Some use a bit of foam insulation on the hat band to give the hat some better stick.
And lastly, will a judge place one rider over another if they have a bun? No, I don't think so. But there is no doubt that a rider that looks professional, knowlegable, neat and tidy will automatically appear to be more experienced, and that can give them an edge!
In timed events all bets are off! Timed events are not subjective such as Western pleasure and equitation and your hair doesn't matter one bit as long as you can see through it!
Have fun and do what works best for you.

Answer 7

The bun is the neatest, most professional looking way you can do your hair at a show, in my opinion. I don't know why your hair won't stay in a bun but you can put it in a ponytail, I know I have a lot of layers in my hair and my buns don't look neat when I do them, so I get a bunch of bobbypins and do the best I can, and then I put a hairnet over it to bring up any loose ends (a hairnet that matches my hair color, of course). I then bobbypin the hair net in, and it results in a neater appearance.

Also.. it really depends on what class you are riding in, but if everything (horse and rider) is equal and tied in a class, but one rider has her hair up neatly with no loose ends and one has a messy ponytail flopping around.. the neater person WILL win.

Answer 8

When I had long hair and showed, I always had a barette that had a net under it. I think I found it at my local western tack/clothing store. I would put my hair in a ponytail and then stuff the pony tail in the netting. When the speed events came up, then I just took the barette out. Since the barette was above the ponytail holder, and all the hair was in the net, it looked fine.

Answer 9

I have several large (clasp) barrettes with a tidy colored bow and concho. There's an elastic net pouch attached to the bottom of the barrette. The pouch forms your ponytail into a neat little bun.

I bought them to keep my hair off my neck on the trail, but they are made for showing.

Someone with more show knowledge than I might know what they are called. I think they can be found in the Bedford tack catalog: www.bedfordtack.com

Answer 10

your hair should be neat ,a low pony tail often will cover your number if worn on your back and looks sloppy bouncing around when you are jogging or loping, if your hair wont stay in a bun put it in a ponytail and try tucking it up under your hat or helmet and use bobby pins to secure any fly aways