Oh I see. I haven't seen a grooming contest before, thanks for the idea. The way you describe it, you really need a lot of concentration and presence of mind. mostly how many minutes on a contest? Base on your grooming experience, what breed are hard to groom?due to their behavior.
Most grooming contest and shows are only open to the trade, because of the wholesale vendors, etc. Yes, it takes alot of practice and concentration to compete. Times are allotted according to breed and or size. A standard poodle gets 2.5 hours, a kerry blue terrier 2 hours, and smaller dogs 1.5 hours. Every show has their own rules but they are along this line. This is only for the clipping/ scissoring. Bathing and drying and brushout is done immediately prior to the class start. The judges prejudge the dogs, then when they are done, everyone starts.
Contests are actually very big. There are 3 levels of expertise, with the top level vying for points for Groom Team USA, which is like the Olympic team. They compete at the World Competition every other year for Gold, Silver and Bronze. They took silver last year. Groomteamusa.org is the website. I have missed the top ten by one and two points the last few years. Lol Just outta reach.
Dues to behavior the most difficult dogs to groom? Hmm..there are so many. Lol Golden Retrievers, labs, lhasas and big hairies like samoyeds, bernese, newfs etc. Goldens and labs are great dogs at home, but they are usually out of control on a grooming table. Lhasas are cranky and the big hairies are tons of work and usually dont get groomed often enough to be very tolerant of the process. Wrestling a 90+ pound beast as its trying to launch off the table or out of the tub is a challenge.