USEF Consider Friesian Rule Change December 17, 2010
Following is the rule in its current form:
FR 101a. Part-Bred Friesians must have at least 50% pure Friesian blood and one pure blood Friesian parent (exception: horses that have competed in any Friesian and Part-bred Friesian Division class at a Federation licensed competition prior to January 1, 2006.)
Following is the proposed rule change:
FR101 a. Part-Bred Friesians must have at least 25% pure Friesian blood and one purebred blood Friesian parent within two generations of the competing horse (exception: horses that have competed in any Friesian and Part-bred Friesian Division class at a Federation licensed competition prior to January 1, 2006.)
FHANA Members may ask why we, the FHANA Board have a position on an issue related to Part-Bred Friesian Horses in competition. As the original steward of the Friesian Horse in North America, the FHANA Board feels very strongly that any competition in which the competitors are less than fifty percent Friesian damages the integrity, grandeur, and value of the Friesian horse and by association the Friesian name. FHANA believes that the USEF rules committee seriously consider the potential damage to the Friesian Breed by labeling any competition with horses twenty-five percent Friesian and seventy-five percent something else as detrimental to the Friesian breed and spectacularly detrimental to competition when labeling it as a Part-Bred Friesian category. As the largest and most respected Friesian Association in North America we are obliged to speak out when we feel the Friesian breed and its name is being damaged. We believe that this rule change dramatically damages the recognized Friesian breed. The FHANA Board believes that any competition in which the horses have as little as twenty-five percent Friesian blood cannot be and should not be listed as a Friesian competition.
We, your FHANA Board, therefore call on our members to contact Ms. Joyce Hamblin at the USEF to voice your opposition to this rule change. (The rule to reference and Ms. Hamblin's contact information is listed below.) We adamantly believe that any competition that is listed as a Part-Bred Friesian Competition must have a minimum of fifty percent Friesian blood. We encourage our members to speak up as our voices are required to protect our horses and our Association.
We thank you for taking your time to read and respond to this urgent request. Please contact Ms. Hamblin immediately to register your opposition to this proposed rule change. For the sake of our Friesian horses, their reputation, our Association, and truth/accuracy in competition please call today. You can also comment on the rule change by clicking on this link: http://www.usef.org/_IFrames/RuleBook/RuleProposals/PRCChater.aspx?chapter=FR. All Comments need to be submitted by January 2nd, 2011.
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