'You be the Judge' with Kate Beadel

Talented horsewoman Kate Beadel has been riding, educating and training Thoroughbreds for more than 20 years in conjunction with high level eventing, showjumping and a career in the racing industry.

How would you place these three horses in order for a career in Eventing/Showjumping?

Scroll down the page for the Kate's answer!


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WINNER
This filly is potentially a really lovely eventing type. She has a great length of rein, her neck comes out of her shoulder beautifully and she has a lovey soft eye.

I think she would feel really nice to sit on, with a lot of horse in front of you.

She has good knees, nice short cannons so less pressure on tendons.

Good hocks, nice sloping rump, and although she’s still a little weak behind, she’s only 3 and hasn’t had very much conditioning work yet.
She is slightly straight behind, but has a potentially good second thigh, and a good forearm. She has a lovely deep chest, which you would hope means good lung capacity and nice endurance. A lovely sloping shoulder too, so she should have a scopey stride.

My main concern with this filly’s conformation is her gullet, it looks quite thick from the photo, which can sometimes lead to breathing issues down the track.
Overall, I think she will develop into a classic eventing type, with good conformation for jumping and galloping, and I have her as my top pick.

SECOND
At first glance this boy was my top pick. Really beautifully uphill and looks like he’d carry himself in a nice frame naturally. In fairness to the other 2 horses, he’s travelled many more miles so is much more mature and established in his growth, muscle and strength.

He has a lovely strong back end, nice shoulder and a good length of rein. I would like to see a little more muscle development and topline on his neck, but depending on how he’s been worked this could probably still be developed.

However, he has long cannons and pasterns, which will be putting a fair amount of pressure on tendons and ligaments, and if I’m looking for a horse that is going to withstand top level eventing, that’s a bit of a concern. His feet look quite flat in this photo, and he’s lacking a little bone considering how solid his body will potentially be with different feed and work. His joints have done lots of miles.

Considering he’s had 38 starts, he’s obviously pretty sound, but as for confirmation as a future eventer, I have him as my second pick.

THIRD
This filly looks like she still has a bit of growing to do. She looks a little weak behind, but she is only 3yo, so still has a lot of filling out and maturing to do.

I really like her upper body structure from her shoulder to her rump. She has a lovely topline, and strong forearms.

I am not a huge fan of her legs however, as she is a little pinched behind the knee, and has long pasterns which don’t really appeal to me if I’m looking for a future eventer. She is very straight behind, and her hocks look quite weak.

She’s also quite upright in front, straight shoulder and her feet look a little boxey. Her neck is under developed and short, which would suggest she may lack a bit of scope and length of stride. She might be found wanting at the end of a 10 minute gallop cross country.

Going from what I see in this photo, I have her as my third pick.

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Story from Horse Deals magazine June 2017

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