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2019 Judging Contest
Meet the Official – Will Taylor How did you get involved in the swine industry, and how has that influenced your educational and career paths? Who has influenced you the most throughout your life? What is your favorite pig that you have either judged or shown? What do you hope people notice most about you? What is your favorite sports team? If you could describe yourself in one word, what would it be? What is your favorite vacation spot? What is your all-time favorite show? Last song you listened to? Last movie you saw? What's something you enjoy doing that doesn't involve livestock?
2019 final Point Standings **If you notice any errors in the points standings, please contact us at updates@thenoveldesigns.com to notify us of any corrections! Thanks!** *Updated 1/9/20 - Final standings through class 11
Judging Contest Classes
I like the Grand Drive Market Hogs 2-1-4-3. It’s the belted gilt’s combination of elite proportions and the right kind of muscle that lend to her having the quality it takes to win big shows. She’s incredible in her head carriage, and fresh and athletic in her look. Then, she lays a round rib cage and muscularity on loose and flexible running gear. Now, the blue barrow is the other one in contention. He’s an elevated, dense-made barrow. He drives at you with a powerful jawline and incredible width of chest then opens genuine into his body. It's just unfortunate that while creating this muscular and stout image, we've compromised some of his agility and range of motion. He’ll pitch forward in his blade, and I’d like to lengthen his hip out just a bit. Regardless, he's still the more functional one on bottom. His hip and rear leg read with more flex and reach while his pliable, heavyweight design provide him with a basic market hog look. Sure, the blue gilt brings an aggressive turn out of the back of her blade and drops round into her lower rib. But past that, she comes with the most concerns. She’s the flat-footed, short-necked gilt whose rear skeleton has limited her ability to reach, plant, and drive with the same level of comfort. I'll keep her 4th.
Class 2 - Yorkshire Breeding Gilts I like the Yorkshire Gilts 3-2-4-1. In my mind, the 3 gilt does the most ideal job of combining a trend-appeasing look with the broodsow basics of body, skeletal quality, and muscularity. She proportionally matches her feature with a fresh, youthful and pliable body shape, yet most importantly lays it on a comfortable and athletic running gear. Now, the 2 gilt offers an incredible rear joint that provides for the most dynamic range of motion and what further justifies an impressive skeleton is the fact that it carries that much power. But from the side, I’d like to change the crest of her neck, blend her better behind her shoulder and clean up the base of her throat. And then in my intermediate decision, I still like 2 over 4. She drives at you bold in her chest, opens with a fresh and incredible shape out of the back of her blade. Then turns and drives away with the kind of muscularity, I want to see in the next generation. Yet, what separates the pair is 2’s ability to do all that with the more exciting and comfortable angles. Now, the 4 gilt offers a more powerful jawline and wraps a bolder and denser forearm. But, I need to tweak her up front. I’d raise her up on her pasterns to paint a more elite picture from the side. And then in my final decision, functionality allows me to go 4-1. 4 reads incredibly bold and sow like in her feature, and I’ve always seen the roll she has to her rib cage and fuller lower heart facilitate more durability in the crate. I realize that 1 is tall fronted and lean, but she’s the negative result of continuing to elevate hogs in their design. Rigid in her angles, flat in her rib, and flat pasterned. She’s fourth, thank you.
Class 3 - Hampshire Barrows I like the Hamp barrows 2-1-3-4. With quality in all different kinds, I’ll use the one that redefines the breed from a skeletal quality and agility standpoint. The 2 barrow is what I want to stand for in terms of angles and athleticism. He's the proportional, elevated hog that drives with authority and comfort but still doesn’t sacrifice the fresh market hog turn to his blade and boldness to his center rib. Now, there’s no way around it, the thin belt is unrivaled in terms of density and feature. He's huge in his forearm, opened up and powerful in his chest, while maintaining the same stoutness and muscularity as he goes away. But to be critical of a good one, and it makes sense that the shorter-hipped barrow gets straighter about his rear leg and doesn’t offer the same flexibility. Regardless, I still love the elite show barrow pieces he has in the middle. He has the extra mass, dimension, and durability that’s needed to be ultra-competitive in a big ring. That’s not to take away from 4. His ability to pair that much natural spread and crispness of back shape with elevation make him an intriguing hog at the backdrop. But in a class where the top two put together so many intangibles, it becomes easier to pick holes. I love seeing show barrows tall-fronted and dense, but not at the expense of making them upright and rigid. The flat-footed, short-necked one will stay 3rd. Yet even so, he still dominates the bottom. His square, fresh look starts at the top of his blade and maintains that muscular advantage into a dynamically-shaped upper rib cage. Sure the 702 barrow is stout skulled and pliable in his lower rib. But that alone simply doesn’t counter his faults. He’s the straight-bladed, off-balanced, plain one that stays 4th.
Class 4 - Yorkshire Market Hogs I like Yorkshire Market Hogs 4-3-2-1. To me, the lone barrow in class needs to win. His advantages start as he comes at you. Wide-chested, heavy-featured, and broad in his skull, yet as he transitions to the profile, you realize he brings the most open and robust rib cage and still offers the right kind of muscle shape and power. Tie all that together, and he’s the stout, genuine market hog to start with. I realize critics of the Yorkshire breed will argue that 4’s pasterns are a concern, and 3 is quite a bit more upright there. But in my mind, that extra set and elevation starts to be a detriment. She comes straight in her knee and blade and gets more rigid out of her rear skeleton.
Class 5 - Crossbred Breeding Gilts I like the Crossbred Breeding Gilts 2-3-1-4. In my mind, the logical place to start is 2. She offers incredible density of feature, a stout yet functional look, and pairs it with a comfortable runnin’ gear. Her foot size and body shape portray an incredible sow look, but her length and angles allow her a neat show ring presence. After the class winner, the challenge heats up, but I opted for 3 next. Her freshness of shape and overwhelming spread out of the back of her shoulder are incredible, but I want to intensify her bone work and soften her lower body.
Class 6 - Duroc Barrows I like Duroc Market Hogs 4-2-3-1. In a class that presents some challenges, I still opt to start the 4 barrow. And in my mind, there’s one word that brings him to the top – freshness. He’s stout, yet youthful about his head. Bold and dense about his forearm and blade, and then, works trim and right from there back. And as he turns and drives away, he provides the right kind of muscularity. Now I’ll admit, if you want to tie to the deepest-bodied barrow that is no doubt 2. But in my mind, he has to be cleaned-up in his neck, toned-back in his condition, and raised-up on his front feet.
Class 7 - Hereford Gilts I like Hereford Gilts 4-3-2-1. In my mind, the 4 gilt needs to win, because she casts the most maternal image in this class. Her blend of elite angles, captivating presence, and ability to have enough bone and feature to match the mass above her incredibly clean joints label her as the proportional brood sow. Now, I think 3 has unbelievable pieces to offer the Hereford breed. The density and shape to her forearm is complimented by unbelievable shape and spread to her upper rib cage. I just wish she was able to match the spread she has to her upper skeleton with a touch more lower rib and fill.
Class 8 - Crossbred Market Hogs I like the Crossbred Market Hogs 4-1-2-3. Simply put, 4 best covers the basics of a productive market hog, and yet does it with the extras. He starts by driving at you with a powerful view, transitions to a profile that has elevation, and the pliable-centered barrow counters his muscularity with great density of feature. Now, I realize that 1 has incredible freshness and does it with a stouter skull and jawline. I love the shape and expression he has to his upper skeleton, and as he goes away, he’s equally impressive in the turn to his outer hip and stifle. But honestly, I need to expand his forerib and soften his lower body.
Class 9 - Berkshire Gilts I like the Berkshire Gilts 3-1-4-2.
Class 10 - Crossbred Barrows While there is discussion amongst a quality top pair, I opted to start 1. That barrow is wide and opened up in his chest and the big-forearmed, stout-featured barrow actually has a more relaxed angle to his shoulder blade. I love how he has a dynamic shape to his rib cage, yet still progresses into a stout and muscular view going away. Now, I’ll be the first to admit 2 is cleaner-necked and fresher-headed, and I love his elevation. But, realistically, he does that by being more upright in his blade, and I’d actually like to see him a notch rounder in his body shape. Yet in the intermediate decision, I like 2 to beat 3. Simply put, the bigger-footed, stouter-jawed barrow has substantially more range of motion and stability to his rear joint. I realize I’m giving up an immense amount of depth of rib, a productive market hog look, and quite a few pounds by putting 3 third, but I have to have them more relaxed in their angles and intense in their feature. The bottom offers an interesting, yet polarizing debate. In my mind, pounds still drive profit and that dictates the 3-4 placing. 3 simply offers a more pliable rib, a more dimensional look, and more total red meat yield. No doubt, 4’s freshness, quality, and giant hind leg demand attention. I, personally, just couldn’t find enough quantity to get this barrow off bottom. The pounds light, more immature barrow will stay fourth.
Class 11 - Duroc Gilts I like Duroc Gilts 2-1-4-3. And in my mind, the 2 gilt represents an immense amount of quality. Big-footed, dense-featured, and still pliable centered, it’s that combination of attributes that allow her to check off the brood sow basics. But add in near ideal proportions, a long level hip and a genuine running gear, and she becomes a pretty exciting breeding piece. Now, that’s not to take away from the 1 gilt. Her ability to tie a longer and more refined head and neck out of her blade, read fresher and more aggressive in her muscularity, and actually open wider at the base of her skeleton are interesting. But, she’ll read more upright in her front end, roll out on her rear toe and her inability to counter the extra power she has with the overwhelming body of my class winner, will leave her second.
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