[gardankoi]

Just in, Enjoy :)

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less work more koi,

Dan Phillips

[gcuss]

OMG those are some NICE fish.

There's a few in there that are worth switching to a life of crime so I can afford them!

Thanks very much for sharing those photos. I can't wait till the ikeage.


The second four step kohaku (15th fish down)... look at the body on that fish! And the beni looks like a pillow it's so soft...

This post has been edited by gcuss: 01 July 2009 - 10:42 AM

[showmeashowa]

nice looking crop. 6" already and it's only july 1st.

those showas are impressive. :worthy:

[kntry]

gcuss, on 01 July 2009 - 10:41 AM, said:

OMG those are some NICE fish.

There's a few in there that are worth switching to a life of crime so I can afford them!

Thanks very much for sharing those photos. I can't wait till the ikeage.


The second four step kohaku (15th fish down)... look at the body on that fish! And the beni looks like a pillow it's so soft...

ROFLMAO, I already have 1st dibbs on that one! :rasp: (I'm keeping my fingers and everything else crossed!)

I can see it now, I'm going to have to knock you down and climb over you to get to the fish. You like the same ones I do. :worthy:

[bryzkoi]

The first 4-step ain't bad either - nor is the 3-step immediately following! A very nice batch of kohaku.
Thanks for posting those Dan,

Bryan

[gcuss]

kntry, on 01 July 2009 - 12:18 PM, said:

ROFLMAO, I already have 1st dibbs on that one! :rasp: (I'm keeping my fingers and everything else crossed!)

I can see it now, I'm going to have to knock you down and climb over you to get to the fish. You like the same ones I do. :worthy:

Hmmm, guess I'd better keep quiet about the other two that would look GREAT in my pond... (after a few seasons at Purdin of course)

And you'd better swing hard and with conviction when you go to take me out Sandy... Cause if I'm still conscious, I'm all over that one!!

(we pretty much RULE in the koi picking department... :2tu: now if I could only get a couple more jobs so I could rule in the koi PURCHASING department... :doh: )

[LouAnn]

DO YALL NEED A REFEREE? I CAN DO THAT. NICE FISH

[koicop]

bryzkoi, on 01 July 2009 - 12:42 PM, said:

The first 4-step ain't bad either -

If I recollect correctly, that one was snapped up by Dick Benblow (as per his thread on Bito).

[C Langston]

Now that is a bumper crop of OMG Tosai, Purdin is setting the bar really high this year.

The Kohaku look wonderful, but those Showa......they already have WOW factor.

c

[bryzkoi]

Too early to tell with those Showas I think. Looking at the kohaku patterns on them, quite a few have menkaburi, and the sumi just isn't showing itself yet. Pretty risky at this point.

Bryan

[showmeashowa]

3rd and 4th showa please!

i'm not a big fan of the beni on the entire head either. like to see some white on there.

just my preference.

i like Dick's kohaku. that is some perk!

[kntry]

Bry, those Showa are only 2 months old. I don't know when the Sumi really starts to come up but they're very young. I was just there the last week in April helping to cull them.

[Greg Freeman]

A post on NI by Tom Lansing. What are your thoughts??

Here I go again...................
Posted by Tom Lansing (Lansing) on 7/4/2009, 11:34 pm, in reply to "Re: Early look at Purdin Koi Farm 2009 tosai, 6" at 3 months"
98.165.36.92

Years ago I posted my opinion of Domestic Koi Breeders and overall I was never impressed, I'm still not. Now that I think about it, I had a lot of opinions to include Koi Judges and those weren't very kind either, generally speaking. There are exceptions of course to both Domestic Koi Breeders and Koi Judges and I once said that I could count on one hand the number of U.S. Koi Judges who I thought actually had the knowledge, experience and expertise to accurately judge a Koi Show and I'm not afraid to name them. At that time and remains today, my list included JR, Art Lembke, Steve (I can't spell) Childers, Ray Jordan, Bob Winkler and a few others. I would suppose they're are some new people who I don't personally know and haven't seen judge any shows, so my list could be expanded?

Back to the topic of this thread. While I know for many, going to Japan will never become a reality, it should be everyone's goal if you're the least bit serious about the hobby and seeing first hand what a good koi looks like. Nowhere on the planet will you learn in one week about Koi appreciation then trying to judge a Koi that was bought at PetSmart and the picture posted on a website under Judge My Koi.

I note the deafening silence of any comments from any Koi Judge on these Koi posted at the Koi Shack location? I'm not singling out Scott Purdin and I've seen some of his older Koi which are nice. One of the problems with message boards are a lot of people can't handle criticism even when it's constructive criticism. Some people just want to be nice and rather than give a straight answer they remain silent. What I did see were comments from some who thought these Tosai were simply spectacular and they would do anything to get one. Are these people learning anything by the experts remaining silent because they don't want to be thought of as mean?

I'm going to give "my" opinion of these Tosai posted on Koi Shack. Let me get right to the point, 80% of these Tosai wouldn't make the first cull by Toshio Sakai. 15% wouldn't make the second cull and the final 5% will end up at one of the many back yard Koi dealers which sprout up almost weekly here in the U.S. I mention Toshio Sakai only because over the years, I've been to Japan 16 times and literally spent weeks learning from Mr. Sakai. That would be the Sakai in Isawa Onsen, home of some of best Koi in the world along with some of the worse wine in the world. I've been to the All Japan Show 6 times and dozens of other Koi Shows throughout Japan. Does that make me an expert, no and outside Gosanke, I'm totally ignorant as to what's a good Utsurimono, Bekko, Ogon, Koromo, etc., but I do know when I see a good Gosanke and I also know when I see a shite Gosanke.

So, I want some of you Koi Judges, both the ones I mentioned above and others to give your opinions of these Koi Shack Tosai, in particular, the one-step Kohaku's. Where's Skinny Art Lembke? Art tear yourself away from the Goldfish for a minute and lets hear your comments. Mike Pfeffer, I see you and I want your opinion. Mike is like me, we never had any desire to be Koi Judges but have both been to Japan many times and we know of what we speak.

Having said all of the above let me make this clear. Domestic Koi Breeder's are a very important part of the Koi Hobby around the world, especially here in the U.S. They're are good one's like Scott Purdin and a few others. Even the bad ones have their place. What I find truly pathetic but comical are the "experts" who make statements like the Domestic Koi Breeder's are "catching up" to the Japanese Breeder's and how JR's bet is at risk. Anyone and I do mean anyone who think's that is just ignorant. Not only are the Domestic guys not catching up but they fall further behind year after year. Again, if you haven't been to Japan you'll have no idea what I'm talking about. JR may lose his bet but it will only happen when three hack Koi Judges Show up and all the guys with the good fish stay home as it appears is happening more and more?

Just my opinions.

Tom Lansing

[koicop]

Thoughts? I'm thinking every forum is unique and you should have left it on NI. :)

Best wishes,

[PapaBear]

I think Tom sets the bar incredibly high... which is precisely where it belongs :yes:

[C Langston]

With all due respect to all parties, pushing the pursuit of true quality, and size limits in koi keeping is what being an advanced koi hobbyist is about. This is a board for advanced koi hobbyists, right?

At the domestic level, to appreciate and acknowledge the breeders who consistently seek to produce koi that fit the niche’ for hobbyists who are developing their taste, skills, their appreciation which is something that deserves praise (not to be confused with settling and not pushing forward). If koi hobbyists here in the states were satisfied with pond grade, Mart grade….there would be no market for koi in the next level (and I do personally believe there is a respectable market for consistently well bred domestic koi).

I do NOT believe there are koi snobs, I do believe people will purchase koi in keeping with their level of resources, accessibility, and the level of appreciation they have chosen to define for themselves, which will continue to evolve at a personal level for many years.

As a serious hobbyist for over nineteen years now, I can tell you that I still can not go to Japan to hand select koi for myself and I may never be in a position to. I will walk past a “Mart“ or typical garden center, I will pass on the anon-E-bay seller, what resources does that leave for the a long term koi student who is not at the top level?

I have to do my homework even to find suitable sources that are domestic, or those koi dealers who are committed to the highest level of customer service to their clients and will listen to what I want or need and can be delivered at a mid-range cost…………*shrug* that is my world.

I would bet my britches that I’m not alone in that “gap” category. That being said, I will support domestic breeders who have the vision, commitment, the sheer tenacity to keep pushing themselves, their businesses and take note of what those breeders let pass thru their outgoing gate, and if the quality exceeds what many of us otherwise could acquire.

There is a huge number of koi hobbyists that look toward advanced hobbyists/koi judges/ breeders who are willing to be direct, honest, willing to give their “experienced” opinions, being able to critique a koi, understanding that many of us want to hear something other than “Oh that’s a nice fish”…..which means there is little or nothing positive to elaborate on so that we may learn even more about our koi.

Perspective changes with latitude…………

Hats off to Purdin and those in pursuit of higher quality domestic koi.

c

[PapaBear]

Amen to that sista :thumbsup:
Recognizing niche's and giving them each their own proper level of respect is on the money.
The sad little *Mart Mutts even have their place, as they provide a needed outlet for tateshita a domestic breeder doesn't want his name attached to, but still needs to get something for to help pay the electric bill. Entry level fish for the newbie who can't tell the difference yet, but might hang around long enough to care if they catch "the bug".
Our "level" of appreciation for each niche should be appropriate to the fish at that level, moving from mutts to pond grade to intermediate domestic upward to high quality domestics/moderate quality Japanese imports, and then to the highest level of GC quality Koi. I think Tom's point really boils down to not lowering our vision of excellence toward something less.
Purdin is not Yagenji, but he is striving toward it.
Brady is not Dainichi, but he still aims at it.
Matt is not Momotaro, but he is moving in the right direction.
Richard is not Sakai, but he has a similar vision.
The list goes on for a bit longer, but each of these breeders and their domestic peers will admit to a man that while they are excited by what they are producing and refining each and every year they still only HOPE someday in the future to be able to truly rival their Japanese mentors. But they have not arrived and they know it. Their own honesty in that regard is admirable, and we should be equally honest with our level of "praise".
If a new member had posted these pictures of some new Koi he just bought from an unknown breeder what would the responses have been?
Go back and look again and honestly ask yourself that question as you do.
A few are clear enough to see nice translucent skin texture.
A few have interesting pattern potential.
Most would have gotten "boring pattern", "to fuzzy to say much", and "bad picture angle" comments, and I think we all know it.
Projecting our expectations into our evaluations does none of us any good, and is a bit of a disservice to the breeder.
I've only heard good things about Purdin and his Koi. I hope his efforts rock the Koi world.
In this group of PICTURES I only see 3 that make me smile.