Helen wrote that "even if this is your very first show,if you have a SUPER-STAR,the handlers will be falling out of the trees..." Well,I just want to respectfully say that the chances of a newbie walking in with a "super-star" are slim to none...super-stars are hard enough to come by,and they usually stay with their breeders or go to KNOWN breed-people. (understandably) I mentioned in an earlier post that it is hard for the newbie to first GET a good (not super-star,but competitive) dog,and then to compete for a top handler when there are other,much more "known dog people" with a dog of equal merit. WHO the dog belongs to also counts. I was simply saying there are several "hurdles" a newbie has to surmount,not the least of which is the cost of it all ,and many do give up in discouragement . But there are those of us that are attempting to hang in there. Jean ============================================================================ POST is Copyrighted 2004. All material remains the property of the original author and of GSD Communication, Inc. NO REPRODUCTIONS or FORWARDS of any kind are permitted without prior permission of the original author AND of the Showgsd-l Management. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. ALL PERSONS ARE ON NOTICE THAT THE FORWARDING, REPRODUCTION OR USE IN ANY MANNER OF ANY MATERIAL WHICH APPEARS ON SHOWGSD-L WITHOUT THE EXPRESS PERMISSION OF ALL PARTIES TO THE POST AND THE LIST MANAGEMENT IS EXPRESSLY FORBIDDEN, AND IS A VIOLATION OF LAW. VIOLATORS OF THIS PROHIBITION WILL BE PROSECUTED. For assistance, please contact the List Management at admin@xxxxxxxxxxxx VISIT OUR WEBSITE - http://www.showgsd.org ============================================================================