Monday, November 12, 2007
Things Can Go Very Wrong
A successful rabbit show takes effort on the parts of every single person involved. It takes a club that has planned well and executes its part on time. It takes exhibitors who send in accurate entries and only make ear number changes that are necessary. It takes folks to get their rabbits on the table on time (and take them off in a timely manner, too) and it takes judges to use all of their skill to judge well and keep things moving along.
But things can go very wrong if one or more parties fails to do their part. Let's say that a judge is dropped off at the hotel with no way to get dinner and is picked up before breakfast. Who can blame a judge for being a little more grumpy than usual? Then exhibitors drop in whole new entries on the show secretary who has also made some mistakes in the paperwork. Now the show starts late and the judge is still hungry.
Paperwork is messed up and exhibitors aren't coming to the table. Or there are too many rabbits on the table. Now things slow down further. The judge is encouraged to speed up to make up for the lost time and misses DQs. Now exhibitors are angry. Folks leave without scratching their entries, causing more delays.
Things can go very wrong, very quickly.
And it's no one's fault in particular, but rather a group effort. Perhaps the person who picked up the judge at the airport was only asked to do that. Perhaps the judge should have put Friday dinner and Saturday breakfast in the bid, leaving nothing to the imagination. May the errors the show secretary made were because of confusing entries or simple miscommunication.
Exhibitors show up with cash in hand and expect to be treated as a paying customer. But judges are well aware that their pay for the day is very minimal. Even though it costs a lot to bring in a judge, most of that money goes to food, hotel, and transportation. Even if the judge is handed a nice pile of cash, a lot of that goes into the gas tank and for food while on the road.
The solution is for all of us to be mindful of the part we play in making a show a good show. When we see things are backed up, let's jump in and lend hand. When tempers flare, we can be the voice of reason. We can try to make an accurate entry, be on time, and listen for our class to be called. We can all do a lot to make a rabbit show go very smoothly indeed. All it takes is a little forethought and a little effort.
Laurie
¶ 11:30 AM
But things can go very wrong if one or more parties fails to do their part. Let's say that a judge is dropped off at the hotel with no way to get dinner and is picked up before breakfast. Who can blame a judge for being a little more grumpy than usual? Then exhibitors drop in whole new entries on the show secretary who has also made some mistakes in the paperwork. Now the show starts late and the judge is still hungry.
Paperwork is messed up and exhibitors aren't coming to the table. Or there are too many rabbits on the table. Now things slow down further. The judge is encouraged to speed up to make up for the lost time and misses DQs. Now exhibitors are angry. Folks leave without scratching their entries, causing more delays.
Things can go very wrong, very quickly.
And it's no one's fault in particular, but rather a group effort. Perhaps the person who picked up the judge at the airport was only asked to do that. Perhaps the judge should have put Friday dinner and Saturday breakfast in the bid, leaving nothing to the imagination. May the errors the show secretary made were because of confusing entries or simple miscommunication.
Exhibitors show up with cash in hand and expect to be treated as a paying customer. But judges are well aware that their pay for the day is very minimal. Even though it costs a lot to bring in a judge, most of that money goes to food, hotel, and transportation. Even if the judge is handed a nice pile of cash, a lot of that goes into the gas tank and for food while on the road.
The solution is for all of us to be mindful of the part we play in making a show a good show. When we see things are backed up, let's jump in and lend hand. When tempers flare, we can be the voice of reason. We can try to make an accurate entry, be on time, and listen for our class to be called. We can all do a lot to make a rabbit show go very smoothly indeed. All it takes is a little forethought and a little effort.
Laurie
¶ 11:30 AM
