Okay, first let me say I know it will never happen (cost too much and take too much time) but I really think it would be better if these steer and heifer shows have at least three judges. After they judge/score the class, they would average the results and place them in order of the average score. I think you would have less people complain about the results because it isn't one person's opinion/less subjectivity. Maybe one could utilize a local college judging team to reduce the cost. Just a crazy thought I had during my 4 hour drive this morning.
Team of Judges Better Than One Judge
- Thread starter Sambosu
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simba
Well-known member
We have some purebred shows that have panel judging. I love it, it just seems a lot more fair. At Agribition there's an all breed jackpot female show with 5 judges. And at Farmfair there's bull calve & heifer calve shows with more than one judge. They actually don't take as long as you'd expect (unless you happen to get a judge that really loves to take thier time) because there are no reasons, the placings are just displayed.
That is interesting to hear that shows with numerous judges/panels exist. Too bad these shows are way too far away for my family to attend. Maybe I need to work on setting up a show with a team/panel of judges and see how things go.
justintime
Well-known member
You aren't the first to come up with this idea, as 2 and 3 person judging has been around for quite awhile. The problem is that it takes a long time to conduct a show and the results can be all over the map. Usually two judges place the class and the third judge acts as the tie breaker if it is needed and they rotate doing this role. Some breeds at the major shows thought they had finally come up with a method of judging that no one could argue with, but it seems almost all of them have moved back to the one person judging. Real big shows oftentimes will have a main judge and an assistant judge who places the bottom end of the class. Usually the main judge decides where the bottom break starts.
twistedhshowstock
Well-known member
Yeah, I was gonna say this isnt a new concept, I wasnt there, but I am prettysure there was a 3 judge panel for the Open Angus show in Louisville this year. Some classes moved just as swiftly, others got pretty long because the judges couldnt agree on which ones should go where. I actually heard there were some pretty heated arguments between the judges. As chambero said though, you cant make a fool proof system out there. People who do well under those systems will sing its praises all day long, while others complain about how they got robbed. Just like any show, how often do you hear the people winning complaining. Its always the people that got beat raising a stink, and they always had the better calf, everybody outside the ring told them that.
No matter what kind of system you use, the better cattle will always end up at the top. They might be switched a place or two but they'll still rise to the top. Same goes for the hair argument with steers in Texas. Hair or no hair the same families still find their way to the top. The only time I could see using two or three judges is when you have huge classes. Houston uses two judges for pigs because there will be 80-100 in a class. Not sure about goats and lambs but I think they do too.
simba
Well-known member
The type of panel judging that I like the best is when each judge places the class first to last, then the placings are displayed and totalled. The animal with the lowest score places first, second lowest places second and so on. This is probably the fairest way to judge a show. It's also more fair and way quicker than the judges having to discuss the class and come to a consensus (because we all know that the most stubborn judge will always win the argument).
jaimiediamond
Well-known member
I know this is another species but in the Arabian halter world there are 5 judges who score each animal. The top and bottom score are dropped and the points are combined the horse with the highest amount of points is the winner. This process actually takes very little time and has improved the quality of the halter horses winning as type isn't the only consideration. Another note is the judges are not to communicate with eachother until all the cards are handed in. All the judges scores are available for viewing. I think it could easily be applied to any type of show stock 
firesweepranch
Well-known member
At our big district fair, big money is paid to the overall champion female down to 5th place. All first and second place females in each breed come back for the supreme drive. They use three judges that judged the different breeds the week previous and combine their placings to get the top 5. It does take a long time, but it is fun to watch.
RidinHeifer
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We do this at most of the larger, regional or national horse shows. We take 2-3 judges. They each take their own individual placings. those are then totaled to get an overall placing. We usually do the most points as the winner. It doesn't really get lengthy anymore than it would with one judge in big classes. I personally prefer this system because there are 2 or 3 more sets of eyes to pick everyone apart and there would be a little less politics wwithin it...yes they will still be there though! I don't see why stock shows don't really do this other than the costs, but it offers a lot more of a chance...ie-say judge bob Hates your calf, you probably won't go to a show he's judging, but if there are a couple more judges besides "bob" you might go since there are two that don't necessarily hate your calf
i think they do something like this at the maine jr nationals for the she's a lady futurity deal. at least as far as i understand from how someone tried to explain it to me. i've never seen it as it always is the same week as the shorties.
jaimiediamond said:I know this is another species but in the Arabian halter world there are 5 judges who score each animal. The top and bottom score are dropped and the points are combined the horse with the highest amount of points is the winner. This process actually takes very little time and has improved the quality of the halter horses winning as type isn't the only consideration. Another note is the judges are not to communicate with eachother until all the cards are handed in. All the judges scores are available for viewing. I think it could easily be applied to any type of show stock
