Originally Posted by
triplev123
WARNING- RANT COME WAFFLE FOLLOWING...
On the size thing Troops...taken in isolation IMO it's all such a subjective wank and I say this because I reckon there are so many variables beyond just that which a simple height measurement indicates.
Even then I'm also rather dubious about some of the stated sizes. You've only got to go through many of the sire guides and see how many of them are said to be 15.2/15.3. How many of you ever get in the yard and measure them? Does it matter anyway? I've looked at a heap of stallions over the years and I've never once done it. I just use the old peepers. Not a lot of science & certainty involved there admittedly.
For example, there's 16h & plain old hulking & there's 16h & powerful/athletic...and similarly at the other end of the scale there's 14.3h hands & solid/muscular & there's 14.3h & built like the bastard child of a greyhound that had stuck one into a pipecleaner...and of course in between there are all forms of variation on a theme.
Also, it seems that this discussion is virtually always based on the size of this stallion or that one but it seems nobody ever really talks of the size of their mares in relation to the stallion/s being discussed, this despite the mares playing at the very least an equally important role in the outcome.
Personally I don't like small mares & especially if they're small & also finely built &/or short coupled and unfortunately I've learnt the hard way there.
On the other hand I don't mind smaller stallions but only if they're also powerfully built/solid with it and if they also had a very good length of stride. Similarly I don't mind big horses as long as they're not really heavy built/boned along with it & again just as long as they had a good length of stride relative to their size.
Mares wise, I like the long barrelled mares, ones that look like they've got an extra set of ribs to most horses and I like to see a mare with the hindquarters of Florence Griffith-Joyner and the walk of one of the ladies that ply their trade nightly towards the Kings X tunnel end of William St. here in Sydney.
It's also the Gospel truth that there are a number of sires at stud in both AUS & NZ who's widely advertised size would bare little or no resemblance to reality should someone view them with the naked eye and those that stand them know this too btw. There are horses advertised to be 15.1 that are closer to 14.2/14.3 and there are horses advertised to be 16h that are significantly bigger than that, a couple that I know of are easy closing in on 16.3.
Don't believe the hype. Go look at them yourself if you can or if not then take the advice of someone you can rely on to see them in much the same way as you do.
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