Friday, February 17, 2006
The Great Balancing Act
I would like to go to a nice restaurant, have a wonderful steak dinner, great service, and pay $3.50 for it. Wouldn't you? Of course you would. But you wouldn't expect that, would you? Of course not.
I would like to go to a great rabbit show in a wonderful temperature controlled setting, with nationally acclaimed judges, and great prizes and pay $2.50 per rabbit. Wouldn't you? Of course you would. But you wouldn't expect that, would you? Or do you?
I'm a pie-in-the-sky, head-in-the-clouds, why-not sort of gal. I've had unrealistic expectations out of life for the last 44 years. The upside of that is I've never felt limitations in life and have been willing to strive for almost everything and have accomplished much. The down side is that I don't always have a grasp on the true limitations that do exist and I can be disappointed or frustrated when I find out about them the hard way.
I've always functioned best when there is someone in my life who has a firm grasp on reality. I may get frustrated with their seeming inability to see possibilities. At home, that person is my husband Andrew. In my former career, it was my best friend Doug. These days, it's Paul Dvorak who was until recently the treasurer for the club I belong to (he's now club secretary). He has been, and I'm sure will continue to be, the cold slap of reality in my face, to which I have to reply, "Thanks, I needed that!"
Before joining a club and being part of that side of a rabbit show, I had no idea how much it costs to put on a show. Now I've had a reality check in the form of judge costs, airline tickets, motel rooms, supplies, sanction fees, show report software, and all of the rest. It's amazing that any show happens at all with all there is to consider!
Paying judges reminds me a lot of when we used to have a nanny/housekeeper. The cost for hiring her was enormous for our family. But the salary she made was very modest for the work she did. And so it is with judges. The cost to the club and the show is enormous, but judges aren't getting rich off of what they charge.
I think that our club does a marvelous job of balancing all of the different wants and needs of the exhibitors. We work off the cost of our space rental by presenting and staffing a week-long rabbit educational display at the fair. We try to balance our judge list by having some flown in and some local judges, some we have fairly often with some we almost never have in our region. Our members volunteer to build some of our awards, increasing the value we can give on our budget. We try to balance useful awards with the occasional trophies or cash back. You pay less than you would to attend our shows because of a lot of hard work on the part of our members.
We certainly cannot be everything to everyone. That's why it is wonderful to have different types of shows in the same general region. I love mega-shows. I love picnic shows and small laid-back shows. Just about the only thing I do not like is repetitive shows with the same judges within a short span of time.
Clubs are having to raise their prices and it's going to cause some complaining. But before you weigh in on the side of the complainers, take a moment to ask yourself whether you want the club to lower the quality of the show: less variety of judges, less desirable facilities, less desirable awards.
And I have to say that we should all want clubs to make a profit when they put on a show. Yes, a profit. Here's why. If a club breaks even every year, they don't have funds to front the next year's expenses. They don't have any money to take any risks with. They can't obligate themselves to a huge airline ticket to bring in the top judge for your breed. And if they have a bad year (a snow storm, hurricane, conflict in show schedules, for example), the club could simply fold.
I can't end this BLOG without saying once again, if you don't belong to a club, join one. If you belong but aren't active, jump in and contribute. It is very rewarding and can be a lot of fun. And it's a great way to make showing rabbits as good as you want it to be.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry
Holland Lops Of Distinction
Precious Pet Rabbits
Pet Rabbit Care Information, Quality Pet Rabbit Breeders, and Rabbit Fun
¶ 10:55 AM
I would like to go to a great rabbit show in a wonderful temperature controlled setting, with nationally acclaimed judges, and great prizes and pay $2.50 per rabbit. Wouldn't you? Of course you would. But you wouldn't expect that, would you? Or do you?
I'm a pie-in-the-sky, head-in-the-clouds, why-not sort of gal. I've had unrealistic expectations out of life for the last 44 years. The upside of that is I've never felt limitations in life and have been willing to strive for almost everything and have accomplished much. The down side is that I don't always have a grasp on the true limitations that do exist and I can be disappointed or frustrated when I find out about them the hard way.
I've always functioned best when there is someone in my life who has a firm grasp on reality. I may get frustrated with their seeming inability to see possibilities. At home, that person is my husband Andrew. In my former career, it was my best friend Doug. These days, it's Paul Dvorak who was until recently the treasurer for the club I belong to (he's now club secretary). He has been, and I'm sure will continue to be, the cold slap of reality in my face, to which I have to reply, "Thanks, I needed that!"
Before joining a club and being part of that side of a rabbit show, I had no idea how much it costs to put on a show. Now I've had a reality check in the form of judge costs, airline tickets, motel rooms, supplies, sanction fees, show report software, and all of the rest. It's amazing that any show happens at all with all there is to consider!
Paying judges reminds me a lot of when we used to have a nanny/housekeeper. The cost for hiring her was enormous for our family. But the salary she made was very modest for the work she did. And so it is with judges. The cost to the club and the show is enormous, but judges aren't getting rich off of what they charge.
I think that our club does a marvelous job of balancing all of the different wants and needs of the exhibitors. We work off the cost of our space rental by presenting and staffing a week-long rabbit educational display at the fair. We try to balance our judge list by having some flown in and some local judges, some we have fairly often with some we almost never have in our region. Our members volunteer to build some of our awards, increasing the value we can give on our budget. We try to balance useful awards with the occasional trophies or cash back. You pay less than you would to attend our shows because of a lot of hard work on the part of our members.
We certainly cannot be everything to everyone. That's why it is wonderful to have different types of shows in the same general region. I love mega-shows. I love picnic shows and small laid-back shows. Just about the only thing I do not like is repetitive shows with the same judges within a short span of time.
Clubs are having to raise their prices and it's going to cause some complaining. But before you weigh in on the side of the complainers, take a moment to ask yourself whether you want the club to lower the quality of the show: less variety of judges, less desirable facilities, less desirable awards.
And I have to say that we should all want clubs to make a profit when they put on a show. Yes, a profit. Here's why. If a club breaks even every year, they don't have funds to front the next year's expenses. They don't have any money to take any risks with. They can't obligate themselves to a huge airline ticket to bring in the top judge for your breed. And if they have a bad year (a snow storm, hurricane, conflict in show schedules, for example), the club could simply fold.
I can't end this BLOG without saying once again, if you don't belong to a club, join one. If you belong but aren't active, jump in and contribute. It is very rewarding and can be a lot of fun. And it's a great way to make showing rabbits as good as you want it to be.
Laurie Stroupe
The Nature Trail Rabbitry
Holland Lops Of Distinction
Precious Pet Rabbits
Pet Rabbit Care Information, Quality Pet Rabbit Breeders, and Rabbit Fun
¶ 10:55 AM
