It's a breed judging week here at the Friday judging clinic! This week, we're evaluating a mini breed class.
My full credentials can be found on my About Me page, but as a quick refresher, I've been involved in real horses for over 20 years, in the hobby since 2008, and showing model horses in some capacity since 2015.
This week, we're looking at an OF Breyer Mini Thoroughbred class. As always, the first thing we need to know is what are we looking for? Unlike most breed registries, the Jockey Club does not have a specific breed standard for Thoroughbreds. Foals are eligible to register based on their parents, so long as certain conditions are met (both parents are registered, foal was conceived naturally and not through AI or embryo transfer). That being said, there are still ideal characteristics to look for in a Thoroughbred's conformation. They're bred for racing, so their form should follow function.
With this in mind, these are the characteristics to be looking for:
- Small, expressive head with a straight profile
- Long slender neck, prominent withers, deep chest
- Long sloping shoulders
- Sloping and muscular croup
Standard taken from Rousseau, Élise. Horses of the World. Princeton University Press, 2017, p 48.
Like with our Quarter Horses, there can be some wiggle room in the body type. A race fit Thoroughbred is going to look different from an active stud, or a Thoroughbred in a second career.
The Entries:
 |
| Thoroughbred stallion |
 |
| Thoroughbred mare |
 |
| Thoroughbred mare |
Take a minute, evaluate how you'd personally pin this class. Okay, you ready? Scroll down for how I'd pin it ↓
The Placings:
🥇1st: Horse B - G1 Thoroughbred Mare
In first place, I'm pinning the G1 Thoroughbred Mare. This is partially personal bias coming into play here, as I firmly believe the G1 sculpts by Maureen Love are some of the most correct in the entire Stablemates lineup. As far as ABCs go, she's right on the money. Her muscles and skeleton are where they are supposed to be. As far as breed standard, she checks every box - small expressive head with a straight profile, long slender neck, prominent withers and deep chest, long sloping shoulders and a sloping and muscular croup. She's a little thicker, but she's not meant to be race fit. This model in particular has some condition issues consistent with the time period she was produced (some extra plastic along her seams, etc.) but she has lovely shading for a vintage model.
🥈2nd: Horse A - Walking Thoroughbred
The Walking Thoroughbred is my second place. He's a nice example of a race fit Thoroughbred. Like the G1 Thoroughbred Mare, he checks the boxes of the breed standard. What knocks him down in the placings is he falls into the same issues you see with the Traditional mold Carrick, where his pose gives the appearance of his legs being different lengths. He does have lovely shading, and his issues are minor. Under most circumstances, I would have no issues pinning this mold in the Thoroughbred class, depending on what else is on the table. It's very much an example of "these two horses are both correct, but personal preference." Shading and condition of an entry can very much make or break it. If my choice were between a badly rubbed G1 Thoroughbred Mare and a pristine, well-shaded Walking Thoroughbred, I would have no problem placing the Walking Thoroughbred over the G1.
🥉3rd: Horse C - G2 Thoroughbred
In third place, we have the G2 Thoroughbred. I do admit to loving this mold (I have nearly a complete conga!), but she has some biomechanical issues compared to the other two. Take a look at her shoulder in this picture, then compare the muscles to that of a real horse in the same pose. Horse's muscles don't work like that. She's a lovely sculpt otherwise, with a nice head and feet, but for me I cannot look past her odd muscles. The mold can still have a place on the table for collectability purposes, and depending on what else is on the table might snag a breed placing, but to me there are stronger Thoroughbred sculpts in the Stablemates lineup.
How did your placings align with mine? Remember, they don't have to! Judges can have different opinions, and that's what makes model horse showing fun.
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