Musings From the Judge's Box

Making An Entrance - Equitation Over Fences

2012-01-15T15:42:00.000-08:00

Being quite frank, I have to say that I do like when a rider enters the ring and makes a 'grand entrance' on the flat for an equitation over fence class. One of the best things to do is to catch the judges' eye the SECOND you enter the ring. Keep the judge looking and expecting more from you every time you enter the ring for any class but this post is on the 'presentation' entrance to an equitation over fence class.

To properly decide how to make your grand entrance you need 2 basic things....

where is the 1st jump in relation to the in gate?
does my horse and I do a fabulous sitting trot with impulsion?

If the 1st fence is coming towards the in gate, then you have plenty of space to cut across the ring on the diagonal at a sitting trot and wait to pick up the canter on the turn towards the 1st fence. That is a grand entrance.

In the course above we have the first fence going away from the in gate. The best 'grand entrance' for this particular course, in my opinion, would be to enter at the walk, immediately picking up the sitting trot between fences 8 & 9 then leg yielding left (or turning left depending on the distances) to the rail prior to passing fence 4 and just beyond fence 4, pick up the right lead canter, rate your pace and go directly to fence 1.

Now with the below course....do you circle prior to the 1st fence or do you go directly to it, keeping in mind this is an equitation (not a hunter) round.

Well, just my opinion, remembering there is no hard and fast rule.....I would walk through the gate and immediately pick up the right lead canter (rating the correct pace) to the first fence without circling. This would show confidence and skill that you could rate your pace for the entire course in the short distance to the first fence. Would that put you ahead of a rider who circles for the pace? Well if you were a tie on my score card, the one who took the short distance and pulled it off would have the upper 'hand'. They presented themselves with the most confidence and skill. THAT...is a grand entrance.

So remember whenever possible, in an equitation over fence class, present yourself in the best way possible, on the flat into the course. Is that just MY opinion? Yes! Is there a rule on this? No! The only rule that applies to the presentation on course is if there is a dotted line in affect or if the first fence is a trot fence and that is a whole other blog post!

Dress appropriately, shine your boots and present yourself on the flat when entering the ring for equitation over fences or an equitation medal. It can make or break your score!

Have a question about a particular course? Send it along and I'll show you what I would like to see, for a grand entrance and post it for everyone, names not mentioned of course.

Safe rides!

The Narrator

2012-01-10T17:46:00.000-08:00

One of the most important pieces of advice I'd like to give to parents and trainers who just cannot seem to keep themselves in check along the rail of a flat class....
Refrain from yelling change diagonals; change leads; sit a step; look up; smile; blah blah blah.....
The only thing yelling from the rail does, is point out to the judge (that's me), that your student or child is doing something wrong and I, the judge (that's me), should look to see what they are doing wrong.
This is my opinion and other judges may differ on opinion but for me (and many other judges), I will not count off for a wrong diagonal if it is changed within a stride or two. I will not count off for a wrong lead if it is immediately corrected unless I need a tie breaker for placings. I may write the back number down on wrong lead pick-ups in a canter/lope if they change directions and I want to see if they can 'cue' for the correct lead/the horse picks up the correct lead, but at a schooling show for sure, I may note it, but it doesn't mean I'll completely kick you out of the placings if you post on the wrong diagonal for a stride or two picking up the trot. It would have to be a dead heat with another rider in contention for placing for me to worry about a stride or two off the correct diagonal at the trot in an equitation class whether it's a medal or short stirrup division.
So my advice to trainers and/or parents yelling from the rail during a flat class.....

think twice about whether the rider needs your advice
remember this is a show (schooling or otherwise) and not a lesson
will your commands be heard by the rider or the judge?
maybe this could be a good learning opportunity for the rider (short stirrup and the like division).
how much does my voice carry?
will the world end if this rider does not win the blue?
does the tri-color ribbon mean more than the lesson to be learned by the rider?
are you more obnoxious than an entry that makes the judge wait 10 minutes for your trainer to be done in the other ring?
do wheaties get soggy in whole milk or skim milk?

Yep, that last one will really tell you if your yelling, is just hurting your rider more than helping regardless of the type of show.... schooling show and/or rated show and/or breed show and/or any show. Schooling show just means it is a show that is not sanctioned by a higher governing body. It doesn't mean every (or any) class, is a 'lesson'. Yes, it's a learning tool but as the 'rail yeller', please ask yourself

does the judge need you narrating your riders mistakes?
are you helping that rider or just pointing out their mistakes to the judge?

It's really not a big thing. It's a horse show; it's a ribbon; it's a title; it's series points; it's zone points; it's points towards an ROM or whatever; it's points towards a scholarship....it's what it is...a show. Let those students make mistakes and SHOW what they have learned.

Safe rides and best of show to everyone!!!

The highest and lowest of 2011

2012-01-04T06:39:00.000-08:00

The low point of 2011 was, by far, losing my 43 year old paint, Riffraff. I miss his loud alpha personality; I miss making him soup; I miss him cantering into the barn to eat and I miss him always being there, always. As we are experiencing a very cold snap here in Florida, I am happy to say, Riffys' blanket now belongs to his longtime friend and paddock mate, Miss Flower. She will have a big warm hug from Riffy every time it is cold. She is lucky and Riff would have wanted it that way. RIP Riffraff 1968 - 2011

The high point of 2011 was again, by far, the birth of my grandson, Bentley Michael. Ironic that it is the opposite of my lowest point in 2011.....circle of life and all that stuff. Bentley brings us all much joy and he's my first grand baby. I'm a Granny and that is good, very good. Welcome Bentley Michael!

Counting Strides Part 2

2011-12-15T06:30:00.000-08:00

I thought that I would just add this quick post about counting strides, while we're on the subject. Canter strides start at the back end. Not that I think anyone reading is stupid but sometimes those little details just aren't explained and I know there are a lot of riders these days 'going it alone' sans trainer. Notice the horse in the picture is at the beginning of his stride....with his right hind leg going first, what lead is he on? Just an added extra credit question....

(a) The sequence of footfalls when the left foreleg is leading: (1) right hind, (2) left hind and right fore together, (3) left fore (the leading leg) followed by a moment of suspension when all four feet are briefly off the ground.
(b) The sequence of footfalls when the right foreleg is leading: (1) left hind, (2) right hind and left fore together, (3) right fore (leading leg) followed by- a moment of suspension.

Therefore it's necessary to count when the moment of suspension is broken by the rear leg starting the next stride. When jumping, remember to start after your horse is completely over the fence. After the front end lands, then the back end comes underneath of them to start the first stride in that line.

Not that I think anyone reading is stupid but sometimes those little details just aren't explained and I know there are a lot of riders these days 'going it alone' sans trainer. Good luck and safe rides!

Training Vs Judging on Counting Strides

2011-12-14T12:52:00.000-08:00

I'm posting this topic as I had a trainer recently question my ability to judge a hunter equitation over fences class since I do not count strides while judging.

When training any rider to ride over fences it has always been a part of my curriculum to school riders to count fences. It helps them to start learning to see the spot they want at the next fence and it helps regulate pace without harping on it along with many other advantages. When a rider is ready for a bit more strategy, I also train them to ride a 5 stride line in 4 strides and in 6 strides regardless of their horse natural stride length. That is what I do when training.

When judging hunter and hunter equitation classes over fences, I do not always count strides. I do not assume if the horse/rider chip in at a fence, that they will finish long over the second fence if set in a straight line. Each fence gets a score separately unless it is a combination, in and out, etc. If a line is set to a 12 or 13 foot stride and calls for 5 strides, that is all based on averages and except for the occasional really bad spot or oddly strided horse, it's best ridden in 5 strides. A skilled rider riding a small mount through a line calling for an average of 5 strides, may very well ride that line without a fault, in 6 strides. They may ride it in 6 strides looking just as smooth and elegant as one who rides it in 5 strides.

So my reasoning of not counting strides on a hunter or hunter equitation course is really very simple. If it looks good and everything stays subtle, graceful and elegant, counting strides is only the job of the rider and/or trainer, not the judge. For someone adding a stride but the add didn't cause them to chip in, go long, drop a rail, etc and was unnoticeable in every other way, I do not penalize. Usually if a stride is added, there is another fault more prominent to address anyway. There is no language at this time in the USEF or AQHA rules, that mandates a certain number of strides be ridden in a line on a hunter or hunter equitation course. If you are judging and counting strides, it is your preference but not a requirement. If a line is set for 5 average strides, most likely it will be ridden in 5 average strides.

So next time you go to a show, local, regional, backyard or national and the course shows distances which reflect what is expected to be a certain number of strides, go for it. Be cognizant of the size of your horse and their stride length; listen to your trainer and count out loud if you need to, but don't expect the judge to be counting along with you. Have fun and safe rides!

RIP Argus and Ridge

2011-12-11T06:49:00.001-08:00

RIP Argus and Ridge. For those of you not familiar with the blog, "From Hell to Heaven: Saving Argus" it's powerful good reading. Argus has now passed away and the final post for his blog is up. I recommend going to the very beginning and reading all of the posts if you have not been following this blog. Argus' journey mirrors many a rescued horse' story but the bittersweet ending to this true story, is something beyond powerful. RIP Argus and Ridge.

FROM HELL TO HEAVEN: SAVING ARGUS

ARGUS IS A 18-YEAR-OLD THOROUGHBRED WHO SPENT NEARLY ALL OF HIS LIFE CONTINUOUSLY LOCKED IN A 12 BY 16 PEN, WITH VERY LITTLE HUMAN CONTACT. HE WAS FED STALE BREAD, LETTUCE, AND THE OCCASIONAL FLAKE OF HAY. HE WAS LIBERATED ON DECEMBER 8TH, 2007. THIS BLOG CHRONICLES THE AMAZING STORY OF HIS REHABILITATION AND NEW LIFE.

Open Horse Show Association

2011-12-02T05:55:00.000-08:00

For those of you not lucky enough to have a state organization that recognizes schooling shows (VHSA Associate side in Va is a really good one), there is a new organization being formed by some very reputable judges and great horse people. It's the Open Horse Show Association and right now they are running a special for regular membership, it's only $15. I'm going to sponsor an award and several others have already thrown their support in the ring too. Their website is not complete but they've been adding to it almost daily.

Please check it out at Open Horse Show Association
And something was brought to my attention a little ways back and I completely forgot to address it. No organization, author, training practices, farms, shows, registries and the like that I 'endorse' openly on this blog, has paid me with any form of renumeration, monetary or otherwise. Not that anyone thinks I have enough clout to pay me to post a great review of their book or show, etc but I did get an email with something along those lines in it. I haven't read everything but I've found some books to be really good and helpful so I pass along the suggestion. That's all this is.....my opinion and my interpretation of rules that horse shows use as guidelines. I don't always write about judging but then that's the horse show world. I judge, I show, I own horses. I do very little instructing and training because I like to judge better and don't want a conflict of interest to arise while officiating. That could be disastrous!
If you have something, a training aid, book, suggestion, etc, that you think could be of great help, please chime in! Oh and check out the OHSA if you show at local schooling shows.

A Show In Every State

2011-11-30T05:23:00.000-08:00

Well not that it makes much sense but it is something to do. I'm going to start my quest to judge a show in every state. I will pay my own expenses but will need help from many to find shows especially in western states. I will judge these shows free of charge and bring a small award I like to handout called the 'Judges' Choice'. I like to award this small trophy to an exhibitor that I feel has been an all around competitor throughout the day or one who displays sportsmanship 'above and beyond'. It's not usually associated in any way with points or the high point winner. If I don't have a stand out in mind half way through the show, I ask the secretary or others who help at the show, if they know of a worthy recipient. They usually do.
So that said, if you know of a show in your state, let me know. I judge halter, showmanship, western pleasure & horsemanship, trail, hunters & hunter equitation & jumpers. I have some limited experience with non trotters (not pasos), driving (reinsmanship, obstacles, pleasure) and miniature horses.
I will not be able to judge at shows that are not within an hour of an airport except possibly a few east of the Mississippi so if I turn down something it's because of a conflict or geography, please don't take it personally.

Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T06:33:00.000-08:00

Of course it's cliche and redundant but I have to say I'm thankful for....
My even keel rock of a husband, Capt Dan
My beautiful daughter, Sabrina
My new 2 month old grandson, Bentley
My one eyed wonder horse, Private Eye (PI)
My redheaded sometimes nightMare, Scotch Pine Zip (Belle)
My always quirky, always green Knight Flight (Jack)
My graceful, lovely pony, Le Petite Rose (Rose)
My aging but still a jumping bean purebred black dog, Dollimama
My serious and always on guard purebred black dog, Bear
My sweet and ever mannerly purebred Jackita (Jack Russell/Akita) Chloe
My ever thankful Pidesian (Pitbull/Rhodisian Ridgeback) Teddi
All of the experiences in life that led me to this point.
It may be cliche and redundant but I'm not sure I ever wrote it out like this.....
And thank you for reading my blog. Send me your questions or post them in comments and I will gladly help to answer them.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone and to those in other countries, have a fantastic day!!

Time and Again

2011-11-22T06:27:00.000-08:00

Well I suppose I'll just have to settle for being here time and again. My health is not exactly as it should be and strokes, heart attacks, etc, have sidelined me several times in these past years. So instead of apologizing for not writing in quite sometime, I'll just write as if there was no break in continuity and I hope it all works out.

I'd love to hear from other exhibitors, parents, judges and the like, about that one person that when you see them coming to the secretarys' table, you run and hide (especially if you are the secretary). I remember a few that really mellowed out towards their elder years but there was one that was horrid. He considered himself Adonis and gift to all pony hunter queens. His use of foul language to demean his students at the out gate was enough to make you want to crawl away or punch him square in the mouth!

I don't understand people who pay for that kind of 'training'. It's not training. I have always viewed this type of behavior as a safety issue. They shake the confidence and focus of their riders to the point the riders' usually turn in a much less than perfect performance which just brings on more berating and bad trainer behavior. These types of trainers can also leave an exhibitor thinking they did very well but the judge didn't like the color of their pony or some other such nonsense the trainer will convey to them in their infinite 'trainer' wisdom. It's hard to even explain your pinnings (placings) to a trainer such as this as they will not listen to anything you have to say. They ask the question but argue the judges' every answer.

These are also the ones that will come right to the judges' or hunt you down and ask really lame questions like 'why didn't my student win'? Well that's usually a whole 'nother Oprah show but I usually can pick that one person out that no matter what, you cannot please them and no matter what, you will not be able to avoid them that day either!

PS I have no idea about the horse in the picture or what the circumstances were but I thought it was cute and was hoping that the kids were just meeting on the roof of a barn so please do not chastise me. I don't know where the picture was taken; who the people were nor their circumstances.

Blog Award

2011-02-02T08:18:00.000-08:00

Okay, I wanted to go ahead and post the blog award from an 'anxious' reader, Silly Pony, who writes the blog, Diary of an Over Anxious Horse Owner Blog. Thank you bunches! Another great surprise! I appreciate being included in your blog reading.

There are some requirements to accepting this so I'll copy and paste that here and then go through the list.

1. Thank and link back to the person who awarded you this award
2. Share 7 things about yourself
3. Award 15 recently discovered great bloggers
4. Contact these bloggers and tell them about the award!

Okay, now seven things about myself...

I do not like to go shopping.
I have way more fabric than I'll ever sew.
I still prefer my old SLR 'film' camera to all the digital cameras I've owned.
It took me a year to figure out how to sync my bluetooth to my phone and use it.
I have blue eyes and my favorite color is blue. Coincidence?
I hate to sweep so I vacuum and there is no carpeting in my home (too many dogs).
I have always wanted to be able to sing but sadly I couldn't carry a tune if it only weighed an ounce and I could store it in a locket around my neck!

Award 15 recently discovered bloggers .... well I'm going to modify that just a tad..

Award 15 that I've recently read.....

Home On The Range - A small town girl living on her own on the ranch.
Love, From Arizona - The horse shoeing housewife
Brown Eyed Cowgirls
The Mustang Diaries
Oh Horse Feathers & Other Twisted Tails
Riding Instructor's Diary
Behind the Bit
Horse Book Reviews
From Racehorse to Showhorse
TB at X - An ex-racehorse learns dressage
Tacky Tack of the Day -A look at some good and bad equine equipment on the market today.
Mugwump Chronicles
Riding Aside
The Literary Horse
Cake Wrecks

Now to go contact and award these bloggers! ......

Author, Anna Jane White-Mullin has a new book out!!

2011-01-31T04:50:00.000-08:00

I just received this email and had to post the information!

I was reading your September 24, 2009 post, entitled "So You Want to be a Horse Show Judge," and noticed that you have my first book, "Judging Hunters and Hunter Seat Equitation," on your reading list. I wanted to let you know that I have a new book, "The Complete Guide to Hunter Seat Training, Showing, and Judging," that was recently been endorsed by both the USEF and USPC. Also, I have a new website, www. annamullin.com, that features a weekly Blog, Horse Articles, and Horse Videos. I hope you'll take a look--Best wishes, Anna Jane White-Mullin

I know I'll be getting a copy soon. I had no idea there was a new book from her. If anyone has read it, please feel free to leave a review in the comments. I love, love, love the first one! Her writing is in such easy terms, even a beginner or novice would easily understand and benefit from reading it.
Thank you Anna for taking the time to drop me a line!

Asking for Tips From Everyone....

2011-01-29T06:22:00.000-08:00

Question from a reader asks.....

Any tips on making white hooves look better in the ring? My paint has four white legs past the knees/hocks. I think painted black hooves look silly on a horse who obviously has naturally white hooves. I currently use clear hoof polish and a top-coat of spray shine. They're shiny, but they still show uneven color. I have heard that it's possible to "sand" the hooves to remove the darker areas, but I'm unsure of the safety of that practice. I've noticed his feet look perfect when he's turned out in the snow, but I've tried scrubbing and it doesn't seem to work well enough.

Personally I like the shiny white hooves and uneven coloring does not bother me at all. Depending on the coloring on the legs, black polish may just make your horse appear to be wearing clunky bell boots and could detract from the overall appearance. It could also make less than stellar movement stand out much more than it would otherwise.

I'm not sure about sanding the hooves except for the smallest of uneven nicks or a sloppy nail filing from the farrier but that's just me.
So anyone and everyone with a tip for this reader? Please feel free to chime in with your experiences and preferences!
Oh and as for white, I'm still using corn starch or baby powder so I know I'm way behind the times on that! LOL!

A Tale of Two Judges

2011-01-27T14:24:00.000-08:00

So many topics have crossed my mind at just the worst time for me to sit at the computer and write a post. Thank you for the award...I will pick it up and post here soon, I've just been busy and away for a bit. I'll get caught up. Anyway....
So I'm sitting at a hunter show and was told that another judge would be joining me as this show was 'double pointed' (I guess it was a make up for a bad weather day when the show had been cancelled). After a few hours of the beginner classes of various names, everything was going along fine. A few comments between us and we seemed to get along fine with the same regards for the performances in front of us. Then it was on to the greener horses and a bit more experienced riders and ponies. Still, our scoring seemed fairly on point together.
And then came the medal rounds. These were 2 phase medals for ponies and junior riders, junior riders on horses and amateur adults riding whatever they felt comfortable riding. Now this was not the ASPCA Maclay and the riders were, for the most part paired well with a suitable mount, save for a few that should have either rethought their ability or their mounts' ability to perform rollbacks and trot fences. Some had obvious major faults which makes it easier to pin in a class of 8. You don't have to be so nit picky about form and function if they ride a long approach as if they had been asked to 'gallop home' through the timers on a jump course!
So when it came to pinning this little class of 8 I had already given numerical scores. It was just a matter of calling in my results which I did. Then I noticed all the fiddling and tallying going on next to me. This other judge seemed to be adding up numbers and making notes and writing a novel. I didn't really understand as they were using a similar shorthand to mine up to this class. The other judge had not really been using numerical scoring for rounds but then it wasn't required and the classes were fairly small. Not hard to figure out your placings anyway. Still, they scribbled, fiddled, tallied....checked and checked another. Okay, I'm starting to think I must have missed something and looked back at my own card. No, nothing hard about this. A rollback ridden out wide as though it were just another long approach hunter fence....a halt to trot fence ridden as though it was merely a hesitation to a downward transition and then, pushing way too much with her seat so as to canter her mount a stride in front of the fence, late or no lead changes....easy stuff. Noticeably easy for anyone to score. Okay! Finally, the other judge has written the order of pinnings for the class and is calling them in.
WHAT THE HELL DID I MISS???? Did they just put my winner in sixth place and my sixth place as the winner? Did I call my placings in backwards, did I write them down backwards? I scrambled again looking at my card and my scores and my shorthand ticks, scrawls and hieroglyphics.....the other judged placed the EXACT OPPOSITE OF ME!! I was shaken for a moment because I hate making the mistake of pinning backwards or calling in a number and they announce it and you have to take it back (or war will break out amongst the 'rail yellars') and then someone in the ring is either humiliated or feels like they did better than ....so anyway I just went at it assuming it was me who had made a mistake. No, I could not find a problem at all with my pinnings, even after checking back numbers and the horse color (which I always note beside the back number just in case 2 numbers get confused or something ...i.e. fat paint pony or bay with pink shirt rider, something that makes them different from the other thousand bays...). So I'm thinking how in the world do I broach this subject without asking the other judge if they were blind or could I pick them up some glasses or perhaps a strong shot of whiskey? Well, lucky for me, they started announcing my placings first. Then the other judges' placings were announced. And then even though this mad scoring and my crazy dash to recheck and check, had all taken place in the course of maybe five minutes, the placings were now 'out there' and I was about to find out either from the other judge or oh no! No!!! War was breaking out all around the ring. They were lighting torches and storm clouds gathered. Flashes of lightening and loud grumbles of thunder were seen and heard gathering around the gate personnel and ribbon bearer! Suddenly the porta potty looked inviting so I ran. I did NOT want to know what I missed anymore I just wanted to be invisible and hopefully no one would push the porta potty over!! The 'blue smell' was overwhelming but the scary hoards of horse show moms and trainers were even more ominous looking after those placings were called. I still didn't know if it was my head or my counterparts, that they wanted. Slowly, after breathing through the very proper mongrammed cardigan I was donning for the day, I could take the smell no longer. I had to face this monster or that one, head on!! I peeked out the door.....the judges' stand was engulfed with people. People on horses had ridden up to it; show personnel were there; even the little girl who was the ribbon bearer (or passer outter if you may) was there but I couldn't see the other judge. I noticed a flash of metal in the mob. It was my clipboard...I recognized the stickers on it. Well, just gotta go over there now and try to scramble my way through this. Let's see....I could say the sun was blinding me, my glasses fogged up, my proper straw hat had too big of a brim, if that all failed I'll fain stupidity and start rambling incoherently. I know how these scenarios go and they never end well for at least one involved party. I didn't want to be that party and I still couldn't figure it all out.
Approaching the judges' stand, the other judge calls out my name to come over and I shot a glare from my eyes that would have put Satan on his knees for mercy!!! Judges' do not rat out the whereabouts of another judge when a raging mob of judge haters breaks out to question an entire pinning! (Remember that...) I slowly walked to the gallows of the judges' box. I felt the icy stares and the armor piercing finger pointing....what did I miss already!!!???? What is it I did?????? Climbing those three stairs to my fate was excrutiating. I plopped down in the really uncomfortable high directors' chair. But then, the clouds parted, rays of warm sun started pouring down on me like one of those movies where Moses parts the ocean! IT WASN'T ME THEY WANTED TO HANG!!!! Yes!!!! It was the other judges' blood they wanted, not mine!!!! Whew!
Okay, now I could do no wrong. But what did the other judge do???? Well I almost didn't care because at that point you would have thought I had just flown down from the heavens and was a golden ray of light in this dark mob.
The secretary asked for my card. I gladly pulled it from the box attached to my clipboard and turned it over saying that I could explain any of the writing on it to whomever needed an interpretation. Cool and calm I asked if there was a problem? The other judge asked to speak to me privately and I said well, what is wrong? (with a hint of cool innocence ). The other JUDGE asked me to interpret my card. What? It was only eight rounds over fences and a simple one direction trot and canter on the rail with some variances (sitting, posting, no stirrup work, yada, yada, yada, the usual stuff). I could relay almost every riders' performance from memory and I'm not a young person! So I did. I referred to my notes a bit and explained each round as though I was teaching a clinic.
The other judge then spoke. She said she did not know what I was looking at but that is not at all, what she had seen. So I asked her to interpret her placings. She refused to go through the whole line up saying that whatever I was looking at when I judged the rounds was not correct. She accused me of placing the winner who, in her opinion did not get one single spot to a fence correct and cut her corners off too sharply. Huh? My winner? My winner?
Okay, I could go on like this for hours explaining what happened in 'novel' fashion but it's getting dark and I need to get out to the barn....so long story longer.....
The other judge placed her riders by simply checking off whether or not they got a good spot to the fence. Or to simplify that ... the optimum take off distance in front of a fence in relation to the rounding over the fence and having an equal spot upon landing on the other side. Her logic was that if they could do that, then they must have ridden everything else correctly or they would not have found that 'spot'.
Okay, I'll admit it, I make note of a chip or long spot if I believe it was the fault of the rider and yes, it usually is but I also know that someone is NOT cutting corners when riding through an element called a ROLLBACK!! Yes. She did not know about rollbacks. She assumed the person riding to the second fence of the rollback while using the entire ring was more correct by riding it as a long approach. And if that isn't bad enough she also claimed that her placings were completely changed after the flat work. Huh? I rarely change or make drastic changes after the fence course to the flat. You may gain a little bit or lose a little bit in the flat work but you would have to be hanging off the tail or fall off completely to really have the flat make a huge difference in your score. Why is that? Because the course work is more complicated. The one who rides the course the best may not be your best 'no stirrup posting trotter' but they are most likely going to be in the top of the flat class.
What an experience! It was not the first time I have double judged and of course when you are learning you sit with all kinds of judges with all kinds of personalities, likes and dislikes but if you look back at them after the show, you usually have the idea of where they were 'pinning' from and getting their scores (even if you really didn't care for the view on politics or the fact that they would not speak a single word to you all day but we'll leave that to another post).
Anyway, I left that day feeling like a golden true blue judge. I was right and they were so very very wrong!! I actually found myself to be a bit obnoxious on the drive home that day. I knew it would not be long before I would judge again, and all things wonderful about me would be humbled once again!
The moral of this story? You just don't know what some judges' are looking for and even if they tell you, you might still not understand it.

To Braid or Band for 1 day show?

2011-01-17T06:20:00.000-08:00

"Another question: How do you feel about Braiding vs. Banding on a horse that's shown both HUS and Western during a one-day show? My trainer told me to do what was most appropriate for the discipline my horse was "better" at, stating some sort of psychology that the judge would be (for example) more forgiving of a less than perfect lope on a braided horse because the horse is clearly primarily English.... Is there any truth in that?"

Yes, I realize the western horse is not banded but it was a quickly found picture depicting two different disciplines.

My take on this is what your trainer told you to some degree. Braid if your horse is more hunter built; band if more western built. If you braid and show in halter and showmanship, please match your attire accordingly. Use a bridle if braided and a well fitted halter if banded for the halter and showmanship classes.
As for forgiving a less than perfect lope on a braided horse? Don't bet on it. If it's a pleasure class, it will be judged per pleasure standards and braids and bands won't matter. If it's a performance class such as hunter under saddle or western pleasure, again, it will be judged on the acceptable standards and the mane should have no affect on your placing. I say 'should' because there may undoubtedly be someone judging a show that could be biased to the turnout and weight it much heavier than I would. If you've braided or banded, most likely the rest of the turnout is going to up to showing standards so the style of the mane would not sway me one way or another.
The two links below are great, short tutorials on the subject of banding and braiding. I suggest you practice a lot. It's not hard to make great braid buttons or band but does take some practice to get it right.

How to braid a mane
How to band a mane

Pivots In Regards to Western Horsemanship

2011-01-10T05:50:00.000-08:00

Another question continued from the previous post....

"....is it still desirable to keep a planted pivot foot during a horsemanship turn, or is it more acceptable considering the increased speed to have that foot raise and lower in the same place or even have both rear feet changing position but keeping the hip more or less in the same place? ..."

It is not only desirable to keep the pivot foot planted, but it is the correct way to perform a pivot. When executing a pivot, also known as turn on haunches, it is never acceptable for the horse to raise the 'pivot' leg. That is the hind leg that would be on the inside of the turn. The front legs must cross in front. If you are going to execute the pivot with speed to maintain your pace throughout the pattern and your horse lifts the pivot leg, you will be counted off. That is another reason to remember that just because you can do one maneuver swiftly with precision, does not mean keeping up that pace throughout isn't going to cause you problems with other maneuvers you may still be finishing in training at home.

Most horses that are being trained for western classes that are not classified as speed classes (i.e. western pleasure, horsemanship, etc) usually learn the pivot in hand as it is also a maneuver acceptable in showmanship patterns.

Remember if the pivot leg lifts, it's a fault. To what degree it is penalized on the final score is up to the judge. If the front legs are crossing in the front and not behind one another and the pivot leg is only lifted once, possibly twice if the footing is grass or firmer ground (it's easier for a horse to pivot on loose footing, sand, sand clay, crushed stone, etc) I would probably only count down a point but that really depends on many other factors.

When practicing pivots at home, it is wise to use hoof and leg protection whether practicing in hand or under saddle.

More from this readers' inquiry yet come...!

Question on Western Horsemanship Patterns

2011-01-09T13:01:00.000-08:00

I recently received an inquiry with several questions to it. I'll break these down into the specific questions.

".... noticed that the patterns are being run much faster than I am used to,nearly at reining speed, and one included a roll-back. ...."

Okay, the easiest answer first. Yes, roll-backs are an allowed maneuver for horsemanship patterns per AQHA rules. It is not a required maneuver, just an element that can be included.

As for the speed of a rider executing the pattern... of course you want continuity between elements. Unless the pattern specifically states that you halt or hesitate going from one maneuver to the next, you should always try to transition smoothly. Which brings us to the speed of the overall execution. The only way to do the pattern with fluidity is the same for a hunter medal or any other equitation class. The pace must be maintained throughout. Speed in a horsemanship pattern is most definitely going to 'up' the degree of difficulty. If you can maintain that increased speed throughout the entire pattern, you are going to show that you can handle the higher degree of difficulty and probably gain a point to two on the overall presentation. But if the speed is not maintained through all maneuvers, your pace will suffer and the mistakes that you may make because of that, will count you down.

So that said, how fast should you execute the pattern? At the top levels which are the various breed sanctioned shows like AQHA's World and even Congress shows, you should be 'up to speed' for the pattern and maneuvers. Will it win you points at your state breed association show circuits? Yes,it should, because those shows are also judged by judges who are governed to use the same rules as the highest level shows within that breed association. Will speed which shows an increased level of difficulty win you points at your local non sanctioned shows? If you execute the maneuvers well with precision, it should as well. Just remember that increased speed needs to be maintained throughout all of the maneuvers otherwise the pace will suffer a half point or so casualty on your score and may also contribute to further mistakes within each element of the pattern, also placing your score lower.

You should not rush through any maneuver no matter how well you and your horse can execute said maneuver because you may not be able to maintain that level of speed throughout.

For reference the exact wording from the AQHA rule book regarding speed in western horsemanship patterns falls under the performance section which is judged on a ten point scale....

"the exhibitor should perform the work accurately, precisely, smoothly, and with a reasonable amount of promptness. Increasing speed of the maneuvers performed increases the degree of difficulty; however, accuracy and precision should not be sacrificed for speed. Exhibitors that perform the pattern sluggishly and allow their horse to move without adequate impulsion, collection or cadence will be penalized. "

See, the rules do not specify a time limit or minimum time allowed but the most subjective part of this, in regards to judging a pattern is the amount of points a judge will penalize you. Speed will undoubtedly open up a can of mistakes if you cannot perform well but on the same token, speed will influence a higher score if you can maintain it and perform precisely all maneuvers.

There is more from this same readers' inquiry but since I've already written a novel here, I'll answer those in upcoming posts. Feel free to discuss or ask for further clarification in the comments. I'm open to hearing all of your opinions and even direct experience regarding this topic.

Squirrel Evictanator!

2011-01-06T15:15:00.000-08:00

Okay, another off topic post but I wanted to share this little tidbit of info with others who may not know it. I surely didn't.
So I have had a problem with squirrels getting into the tack room and now the feed room. Nothing I have built, fenced in, painted with smelly or foul tasting stuff, nothing....has worked!!
It was time for our bug man to come out and clean the eaves of the house and put down the new 'barrier' spray for termites (we have them by the ton here in Florida year round.). I asked him if they dealt with larger pests, such as squirrels. He told me yes, I told him where and was given an estimate of $250 to have them eradicated and with a guarantee. I thought that was a bit expensive and how could they guarantee they wouldn't come back? I was told they would install what they referred to as an 'evictor' light which is a light that puts out random flashes and sometimes stay on for a minute or so just like someone switching a light on and off and sometimes a strobe effect. Hmmmm, I told him I'd have to ask my husband if we had the money for that and he went on to his next job.
Then I got in the car and drove to a party supply shop and bought 2 strobe lights that have little dials on them to set the pattern at random or noise activation or whatnot. For 2 of them, it was $30. I'm thinking of going into the 'squirrel eviction' business. There seems to be quite the mark up for profit.
I would think this could also work for raccoons, opossums, rats, bats (although I like bats here with our mosquito population), maybe even mice too. I would make sure that you put some weather stripping on the bottom of the door and make sure windows are blacked out somehow so it doesn't drive your horse insane.
So in case this has never been a problem in your attic or barn or wherever, you're lucky. For those who didn't know this, head to the party store to stock up for your next 'squirrel eviction' party.
An 'on topic' post is coming soon I promise. I've been busy being the squirrel evicta-nator!!

Off Topic ...

2011-01-04T14:11:00.000-08:00

Way off topic but I just had to write this, more as a reminder to myself than anything. When I come back to read it, if it still applies, I'll definitely make sure to use it. What is it you ask?
Lately I've been cleaning a lot. Getting ready to paint some rooms and put in new flooring and tile. I've noticed that when I clean, the other residents here clean more too. I know everyone has always heard about 'set a good example and blah, blah, blah'. This has never happened in my house. Never. Maybe it's the new year or something but I like this!
I'll be back with a new post on point soon. Happy New Year!

A Year ... Well 2 digits later

2010-12-31T19:25:00.000-08:00

First off I must apologize. I have not only been absent from this blog which I truly enjoyed starting and getting up and running. I love judging horse shows, hell I love horse shows! I love to show. I love to manage and plan and promote and announce and pass out ribbons and check entries..... I love horse shows! I love everything about them. The most rewarding part of a horse show for me now is judging them. Yet, for all the passion that I have for horse shows, I allowed my blog to become a part of the muck and mire that is so far removed from horse shows, we seldom, if ever see this side in a ring. I didn't allow my BLOG, I allowed myself to banter and bicker over this horse that tore me up when I first laid eyes on her. For the record, she is doing fantastic and still looking for her forever home. Please check out www.beautysequinerescue.org for more information.
I would like to go forward again with your questions and be a part of the insight on the subjective side of horse show judging as it is in some disciplines and possibly shed more 'black and white' light on inquiries that could be answered deep within a rule book somewhere you may not have known about.
So it is with great humility that I ask for a new following; some old, some new, some borrowed, and of course, some with a blue! I promise to keep myself on point for the topic of the blog in general. Comments for the most part will be left unedited unless in violation of blogger rules of course. I am, however, going to leave the bickering and bantering posts published. It is what it is and if one person learns from it, it has served a purpose.
On to 2011 and horse shows anew! Send me your topics, questions and anything you would like to ask about horse shows and the judging process. I'm thinking I may post on the topic of how someone becomes a judge in different disciplines and how to start the process of obtaining judges' cards. I do have a seminar to attend coming up in a few months. That might be a good place to start this blog over!

Set Up & Be Ready at Cone A

2010-01-18T16:22:00.000-08:00

Jan, what side is the proper side to stand when showing showmanship at the starting cone?

Such as if the Judge is on the off side (right) of the horse, is the left side proper, as to not impede the judges view? If the judge is on the nearside at the start of the pattern, is the off-side the proper side?

What if the pattern is a straight pattern, such as all of the cones are in a row, so the judge is standing in line with the horse at the starting cone, what is the proper side to stand on?

Well, this is a really good question because there is no written rule directly governing the answer. The only thing you must remember is not to impede the judges' view as you have pointed out and know where the judge is at all times. If you use the quarter method correctly, you will not go wrong on either counts. Note, although it is not required to use the quarter method, it is really the only way to ensure a correct showmanship presentation

NOTE FOR 4H - It is included in 4-H rules that the handler not obstruct the view of the horses hooves from the judge or ring steward. I do not know the origins of that rule but I would not think much of it. If you are aware of the judge and you are using the quarter method, at no time would you obstruct the view of your horses' hooves. This is a 4-H ONLY rule and I just wanted to make a note of it although it is fairly irrelevant.

So when setting up at the first cone, you are correct. If the judge is on the off side (right) it is proper to be on the left side. If the judge is on the near side, standing to the right side would be correct. When setting up for a pattern that will be performed in a straight line, and the judge is standing facing you maybe at the end of the line perhaps, then stand on the near side. This will make the lead off into the pattern more smooth since you will not have to cross back in front of the horse once you are approved to start your pattern. The least amount of movement is best since it will reduce your chances of faults. It is not incorrect, in this situation with the judge facing you to set up and then wait for the nod from the off side but that is an extra move and you could make a mistake when you cross over. Extra moves do not mean extra credit.

One thing I'd like to say here is that as long as a pattern does not call for a horse to stop and back up very near to the first cone, it is proper and very advantageous to move to the first cone, set up and be ready as soon as the exhibitor on pattern moves off the starting marker. This would be an advantage for you to take that extra second to set your horse up while the judge is observing the horse on pattern and not you. It's also nice to score a horse that has moved to the line up and then look up to see your next exhibitor ready, not setting up their horse.

Amber Hyder's Comments to Me

2010-01-15T14:02:00.000-08:00

After using the guestbook at Beauty's Haven Equine Rescue's website to post disparaging remarks about both the rescue and myself and then attempting to disrupt the webstore sales site that I set up to raise money for Beauty's Haven Equine Rescue, Amber Hyder has now taken it upon herself to try to intimidate me on my own blog. I guess the fuss over at Fugly's was not enough for her.

531371 (http://openid.aol.com/ffashashbrown) has left a new comment on your post "Who would interfere with fundraising for an equine...":

People need to stop seeing this blogger as a "godly" person! The only REASON why she is working at BHFER is so she can get that horse on her piece of trash property! Yall are seriously stupid for believing this psychotic woman! She doesn't need to have another horse in her hands- seriously.

531371 (http://openid.aol.com/ffashashbrown) has left a new comment on your post "I can finally sleep!":

$700 should be going towards fixing up your facility....your poor horses don't even have any grass to eat.

I think I need to clarify this once again, I do not WORK for anyone. I am a retired FAA air traffic controller who judges' horse shows.

I donated a beautiful bronze sculpture to Beauty's Haven which they recently auctioned off for $153. I do not have unlimited funds to give them although I donate what I can and help raise money for them. They are also a hard working family that takes very good care of so many horses including Amber Hyder's former horse. Everything I do for Beauty's Haven, I recieve no tangible items in return. I do however recieve the best intangible gift there is, the unconditional love from the horses that have been forgotten, unwanted, abused, neglected but still allow us to touch them, fix part of them that can be fixed. That is what I recieve for my 'work'. For now, that is my job. I have already adopted one horse from Beauty's Haven, fostered and trained one that was adopted out to be a great trail horse and raised much needed funds that they need to continue their work. I wanted to clarify that so that no one is under the assumption that I am compensated in any way tangible from any rescue organziation which I volunteer.

As for my horses, you are correct. It is winter, my farm is not big and our grass has gone dormant. January, the calendar says. I own a 42 year old APHA brown and white tobiano gelding. He has many ailments but wants for nothing. He could stand in a 100 acre pasture up to his croup and starve to death as he has no teeth and consumes everything from specially made soup.
I own a 22 year old thoroughbred with one eye. He raced two starts at Pimlico before shipping home to Virginia as he had lost the eye after his second start. He was retired and left to grow up until he was almost 4. One of the greatest and most vocal jumper trainers I've ever had the pleasure of knowing, saw the talent in this one eyed young horse. Mike Rowe trained Private Eye and he became a much loved and winning jumper.
I cannot forget to mention Belle. Belle is not lacking in the weight department. I find when I've been around the rescues and seen some new ones come in or large seizures such that the Horse Protection Association of Florida had this past Thanksgiving 09 of 56 starving thoroughbreds, that I come home and I guess to compensate for those with nothing to eat, I overfeed mine. That's usually about the time I put peanut butter on the milk bones for the dogs too! Oh but I digress.
I have also worked fundraising and have helped some satellite foster homes associated with the Horse Protection Association of Florida which is another great and well respected equine rescue here in Central Florida. Again, that time is volunteer time, I'm not employed by them and I recieve no renumeration whatsoever for my volunteer time.
As for another horse? Wow, with mine and my daughter's 2, one of which is the gelding we adopted from Beauty's Haven THREE years ago before I ever knew that Amber Hyder or the horse that she neglected even existed, I have plenty. I'm not in the market for another horse. So I won't getting any more horses probably my entire life. I am not a young person and I would not wish for my animals to be a burden to someone else when I leave this earth. I'm sure Lady Angelica will find a great home and I will help Beauty's Haven with her medical bills and continue to find ways to raise money for them so they may continue to pick up the pieces of these broken lives and put them back together the best they can (why didn't Amber give Beauty's Haven the money that caring people sent to her after she solicited money openly on a public forum and stated she had recieved for the care of Lady?) I did think of adopting her but that was before I realized this old mare with one ear is so sweet and loving that I believe we can find her a caring and loving permanent home. She may even have the disposition and temperament to be a therapeutic horse and we have three of those great facilities around our county also.
As for Amber Hyder's attempts to sabotage the fundraising webstore for the rescue, leaving disparaging remarks on a blog or guestbook, threatening to sue me for slander (in Florida that falls under the defamation law and you have to actually work to lose money, Amber), for all those threats, she still has yet to answer any inquiries that have been asked of her.
Really, Amber, no one has yet to believe your story but as we go on with this, so does it keep Beauty's Haven Equine Rescue in the forethought of charitable donors around the globe. Despite her efforts to discredit me, we have already recieved five paid orders from the Beauty's Haven Equine Rescue Boutique! Thank you to everyone! Even a kind thought or forwarding of the website to others helps out and so far I've found everyone here and on Friends of Beauty's Haven Equine Rescue on facebook has really done well in only 12 hours since launch!

One speical note I'd like to add.....this is for one person ...... I won't forget what lives to the west of here. If you stand by someone who would do so much harm to one innocent horse, what can this say about you? Maybe it says what everyone else has said. Hash browns burn easily if you leave the frying pan over the fire.

Who would interfere with fundraising for an equine rescue?

2010-01-15T02:13:00.000-08:00

Well, yesterday after many hours of work from myself and another volunteer we were able to set up a new webstore for Beauty's Haven Equine Rescue. I buy and make the items at wholesale cost and 100% of the profit is donated to BHFER.

Unfortunately this morning I find on my email where the former owner of Lady Angelica, Amber Hyder, took it upon herself to join the members area of that site and misuse yet another forum. So I"ve had to limit who can join the site. That really is sad as the members area would have been a very good marketing tool, not to mention the fact, that the sales from those items help pay for the rather large vet bills that Amber's former horse has incurred. I really should have set more security measures on the members page as I figured she would do this after using the guestbook on the BHFER website as her personal rant forum.

Now she decides to leave more remarks on the comments of one of my previous posts. No need to delete them as I figure everyone should just see her response. No doubt she'll keep cropping up like a poisonous weed in your horses' paddock.

So for now, I'll shamelessly plug the website another volunteer and myself set up to help raise money for Beauty's Haven Equine Rescue. Mention you saw it on my blog and you'll get free shipping through January 31. 2010. Beauty's Haven Boutique.

Wow So what have we learned from my last couple of posts?

2010-01-14T06:03:00.000-08:00

First again, I apologize for such a long abscence. I appreciate everyone who reads along.

To update everyone, Lady Angelica is doing well. She is healing and is such a sweet mare. We've had a terrible cold snap going on down here in Florida for the past two weeks plus which has taken it's toll on water pipes, pumps, horse blankets and caregivers. We just aren't equipped here to deal with cold snaps longer than a few days. Beauty's Haven Equine Rescue has not been without their share of cold weather problems but one fantastic thing about this cold weather has been that we have had virtually NO flies for the duration! With our weather, we have flies year round but with our daytime temperatures being barely above 50, it's been good. This has really helped to facilitate a healthy healing enviroment for Angelica's wounds.

Angelica thanks you for all your well wishes, prayers, healing white light and whatever other jingles and such that have been sent her way. She is estimated to be around 18 to 20 years old and is just the sweetest mare to work with on the ground. She stands well to have her wounds, including her ear cleaned and medicated. This has been a godsend as you cannot halter her or use a lead around her neck to keep her in place.

She loves walking around and visiting the other horses but in the evening she wants to be in her big box stall! She has a big shuttered window in the back of her stall where her gelding suitors come to visit. It's really quite endearing and she has come a long way in just about a month's time.

As for animal control in Dixie county, I just have to say that they are lacking greatly in managing this case. Almost ALL of the evidence involving the neglect of this mare, came directly from written word, spoken word and pictures from the OWNER, herself and yet they seem to be trying to figure out if this is actual neglect. It clearly falls into that catagory by definition of the Florida State law but then again, I've been made aware of the fact that the good old boy network does live on in Dixie, County Florida Apparently, although the animal control officer is seemingly new to the office, they are not new to Amber Hyder and seem to keep company with others closely associated to Amber Hyder, the former, neglectful owner of this mare. I've even tried to push them to pursue the skinny dogs also located on the property that I saw when I was there, if for no other reason than lack of mandatory rabies and county tags. Please feel free to use this link for the contacts to DIXIE COUNTY FLORIDA ANIMAL CONTROL Send them a snail mail, phone in a question, email them or whatever. Snail mail is nice because you can send it along and if a whole mail bag shows up, someone is going to have to answer to the volume of inquiries at least but that's just my preference regarding them.

So to the title of this post....what have we learned? Well, I learned that Kathy of the Fugly Horse of the Day Blog has featured Amber Hyder twice now in her blog. I was unaware of the first Fugly 'award' and someone brought it to my attention that because of Angelica's story, she recieved a second Fugly 'award'. I'm greatful to Kathy and the Fugly Blog for bringing a wide range of attention to Angelica's story and Beauty's Haven Equine Rescue. Donations are always needed and a kind word left in their guestbook is much appreciated also. Especially since Amber took it upon herself to use the guestbook for her own personal rants since this happened. The farther back into the archives we can push her ranting, the better.

I've also learned that I'm an okay fundraiser! I donated a bronze sculpture of mare and foal which we auctioned on ebay. That item brought in $153 which we were very excited to see. I have more items listed on ebay and 100% of the sale money goes to Beauty's Haven Equine Rescue directly! I will continue to list things as I come across them or whip them up from my sewing room. Please check out our latest sales and let me know if there is something you would like to see. I sew just about everything for horses from polo wraps, saddle pads and fleece sheets like the one Angelica is wearing in the picture above to western, english, fun show and barn clothing.

I've also opened a webstore called Beauty's Haven Boutique! At present time we can only list five items for sale so what I've done is to set it up so that you pick a blank item. T-shirt, sweatshirt, apron, and tote bags; then you go to the photo album and pick a design to have printed on your item; then pay securely through paypal ( you do not have to have a paypal account set up and linked to your bank account if you don't want that; credit cards, debit cards and echecks also accepted). Send your order and voila! Every penny over cost to make these items is donated directly to Beauty's Haven Equine Rescue!

Well I've learned tons more than what I just wrote but I think that's enough for today. I will be back to talk about types of abuses you may see in the show ring and how to handle them. I think that ties the saga of Angelica's story together with what this blog was originally inteneded and then maybe I can get my mind back on the judging track!

Again, thank you to everyone who picked up and posted this story on your blogs, sent donations, prayers, jingles, healing white light, good thoughts and everything in between! I was afraid I was beating my head against a wall and screaming in silence but you all were right there helping in your many ways too! I applaud your efforts and help. If I can ever be of any assistance and get a story out that you need to help with, don't hesitate to ask! The internet sure was powerful and LOUD in this case. For that, beautiful Angelica is alive today!

Merry Christmas to all and a small but powerful request

2009-12-24T19:59:00.000-08:00

Please go to http://www.beautysequinerescue.org/ and sign the guestbook. The owner of the mare that lost her ear has taken it upon herself to use their guestbook as a personal blog attacking me and the rescue. I have to say it's quite disparaging. Please even if you cannot donate, a kind word on their guestbook helps to keep their spirits up and continue the thankless job they do from day to day, even on holidays. That in itself will be a great uplifting gift to them and push the disparaging remarks of the former owner of the horse who sufferred so much, back into the archives. Thank you so much for reading about this mare and donating so much in this time when donations are not a high priority to many. I understand that buying a gift for someone special is more important so even if you cannot donate financially, a kind word left on the guestbook will be as important and appreciated as a monetary donation.
Merry Christmas and for those that have other believes, a happy and wonderful holiday to you. I mean to offend no one and with the scant knowledge I have for others that are not of the Christian faith, I wish everyone to be safe and do what is right in your hearts. Just remember the family that IS Beautys' Haven will be scrubbing the wounds of those rescued and tending to the sick and unwanted horses even on Christmas day. Their work should not go unnoticed and neither should these defenseless horses. So even a kind word on their guestbook is greatly appreciated.
I know this a blog about judging horse shows and I ask for patience as I navigate my way through this horrific ordeal. As a judge, I do not see this type of injury on a horse and I do not see these types of horse owners so it has been quite an ordeal even for me. Not that I did not know of animal neglect and of people that do not show the kind of perception to their horse as I see in the show ring. But this is beyond anything I've personally dealt with and maybe some of you also.
I wish everyone safe rides and fair judging for the new year. I also hope and pray that some of you will leave a kind word for Beauty's Haven on their guestbook. The words of encouragement and acknowledement of their work is worth as much as a monetary donation. You do not have to use your own name and you do not have to fill in the other blanks for the guestbook form to work. Whatever you feel in your heart about people who so tirelessly continue to work with recues such as Lady Angelica will be enough. Enjoy your horses and family on this Christian holiday if you are of such faith. Those that are of a different faith or different believe, I also wish you safe rides and a guidance in life that never brings you ill will.
Believe that Karma will enhance your life even by leaving a kind word of encouragment on an obscure website guestbook. It's not always about money. Sometiomes words can mean so much more. The continuance of rescuing animals in need by Beauty's Haven is of utmost importance.
Anyone that has any reservations about BHFER, please leave a contact. They are within driving distance although a ways out, but if you want any more evidence that what is shown on their website, I will be happy to oblige. They are a true rescue that considers kind words as much as a monetary donation.
Bless everyone that has helped bring attention to Lady Asngelica's story. If your blog doesn't deal with this sort of situation as mine did not, please consider posting it.
$300 that I was going to give to the former owner to buy Angelica to get her to medical treatment but gave to BHFER when they were able to retrieve the mare
Recent donations - 12/24/09 - girl scout troup in Michigan did a penny drive and raised $27 plus change for Beauty's Haven
Two neighbors of mine - 12/24/09 - $20 for peace of mind
Everyting adds up and if you want to consider a penny drive for any club or group, please email me for a penny drive packet that I'm putting together.
Sincerely praying and wishing and hoping that all is safe and well this holiday season for all
Jan

I can finally sleep!

2009-12-17T10:50:00.000-08:00

I would like to preface this post with an apology for my absence. I so hope and pray for all to have a great holiday season and a safe show season as well.

Now here is a short synopsis of what I have been doing lately and I would like to impose on everyone to please pass this story around as much as possible. Go to http://www.beautysequinerescue.org/ click on our horses, then rehab and read the story of ladybug. Donate through paypal or snail mail if you are able and please sign the guestbook. The owner of this horse actually had the nerve to sign the guestbook, her name is Amber and you'll see her entry there.

The picture is after the mare was finally negotiated away from this neglectful hoarder and her ear was removed. Notice her weight also

Finally....12 DAYS after this mare was attacked by dogs and the owner did nothing....yesterday the mare was finally saved. I tried buying her, bribing this crazy woman, anything to get that horse away from her. I have had people tell me to leave this woman and her beloved horse alone......I saw the mare for the first time on Dec 11, the attack happened supposedly Dec 3 and Dec 14 along with some law enforcement, the mare was brought to a safe haven and is getting medical attention. She lost the ear and this picture is the least gory one so I didn't make anyone sick.....I'm just on cloud nine because I just spent an hour with the mare!!! The owner actually said she would only let the mare go if I never saw the mare or had anything to do with her.....what a freakin' moronic woman!!! This mare got out but that lady still has more horses just as thin AND a dozen or so skinny dogs still on her property. I have not slept in days working on getting this terrorist holding the mare hostage to let her go. At one point she almost sold me the mare for $300 then upped it to $500, then it was a thousand as of Monday. When I went to viisit the mare, I gave the rescue where she is, the $300 and I'm going to see again on Friday and hopefully I can raise some more money for her care. If anyone has even a dollar to send please go to http://www.beautysequinerescue.org/ and donate through paypal and or snail mail. I want to rename the mare..her former owner called her ladybug and she's got way too much heart and just so sweet....I like Angelica but not sure. Anyone with fundraiser ideas, let me know.

I'm going back tomorrow, Dec 18 and taking a friend who is donating also. She's close enough that she wanted to meet the mare and she was also very helpful with dealing with the county officials of Dixie County Florida.

God bless everyone this holiday season. Safe rides and I hope to have an update. I know my blog is about judging horse shows and at the shows we never see things like this. This is my first time dealing with such low life horse owners and such a neglected pitiful animal. If all you can do is sign their guestbook and follow the story as it is chronicled there, that is greatly appreciated too. You can also cross post this to anyone and if someone can get it on Fugly, please do. If you're blog is not of this topic, consider posting it anyway. I'll give the mare a thousand hugs for everyone who is praying and sending her cyber well wishes!

http://www.beautysequinerescue.org/ Remember, read her story under rehab horses and please, SIGN the guestbook and tell 'em I sent ya! If you can donate, that is hugely appreciated. Everything, even notes are greatly appreciated and all are read.

PS I want to rename the mare Angelica and I hope she will eventually live on my little farm here with my big one eyed thoroughbred, my 42 yo paint and my baby of 10, Belle.

Part 2 of RailGal's Question - Traffic Jams

2009-11-25T06:28:00.000-08:00

My second question...is about flat classes. I often find people riding up my butt, so

to speak, and all jumbled around me. Is it alright to circle away from the jumble...and

if so, what is the best way to do this? Should we simply cut the arena in half, putting

ourselves on the other half of the arena, far from the jumble...or should we just make a

5-10m circle, and re-join the jumble at the back of the line? It's been suggested that we

should circle across the arena to be in front of the jumble...but then I find they just catch

up and I have to circle again...which in my mind, makes me look bad... or if I do a small circle

and rejoin the line behind the group, they seem to slow down and I get stuck...having to circle

again...again, in my mind making me look bad. How do you handle the on-the-rail jumble?

As this does happen often, it's a great question! If in fact I'm starting a class and exhibitors are jumbled, I'll ask the announcer to ask them, to spread out. Try to start by yourself. Don't assume if you are next to what you percieve to be the best horse, that you'll get noticed more. (I've actually heard trainers telling exhibitors to employ this tactic.....silly!)

If at sometime during the class, you find yourself jumbled up on the rail, please, by all means, feel free to circle out. Just as in driving a car, make sure you are not going to cut anyone off and as soon as you can safely move away from the other horses, do so. This is not a fault of any kind. Some riders are never taught class protocal and some just don't pay attention to where they are going. If you stare at the back of your horses' head to see if it's 'down', your attention is not on the class but rather on whether your horse will lose his head during the class..... I assume. Your horses' head is not going anywhere without you and if you have done some preparation and practice prior to the show ring, your horse will do what he has been schooled to do.

Cutting across the ring, shows a sign of greatness, not weakness. You are able to safely move away from the other horses and it's much more of a desirable trait than trying to change your pace to suit your fellow exhibitors. Besides, pace, whether in hunters or western pleasure is everything! Set your pace according to your horse and the type of class, then keep it.

If you chose to circle as opposed to cutting across the ring (depending on the ring size and where you're located within), make your circle large so you may not have to circle again and again. If you do not circle large enough, not only could it put you back in 'traffic', but it's more likely your horse will change pace or break gait.

Circling or cutting across the ring is never wrong. It shows proper ring ettiquette, safety and control. Don't compromise your pace to stay on the rail. If you do the latter, you're liable to end up staying in 'traffic' and the judge will miss the attributes you have worked so hard to attain.

I hope that clarifies things. I can and usually do state, that this is a subjective job and this blog reflects only my personal preference and interpretation of the basic AQHA & USEF rules. BUT.....along the same lines, there is no rule, only common sense when dealing with traffic jams in the show ring. Be safe, consistant and win or lose...do your best and be gracious!

First of a 2 Part Question - Handler Presentation

2009-11-25T06:11:00.000-08:00

I'm trying to stay up to date here so I'll post a few this morning. I recieved a very nice email from Railgal who has 2 questions. Since they differ in nature, I'll split it into to different posts. Here is the first question....

In halter classes...I was always taught to check over my shoulder to make sure the judge is paying attention. Basically...the "routine" we were taught was to walk to the rail (we were asked to walk to the rail and then trot down the rail away from the judge, rejoining the lineup at the end of the rail), check to see that the judge is watching, pick up our trot, and halfway down the rail, while trotting, to check again to make sure the judge is watching, and then finish the trot and take our place at the end of the lineup. Problem is...it's hard to maintain a straight trot when you're looking over your shoulder, and it seems rather repetative to me. Is it suggested to check over our shoulder to see if the judge is paying attention in the first place? Isn't the judges JOB to pay attention? What are your thoughts?

First off to say, I have seen this done more in showmanship classes than in halter classes. The only time you need check to see if the judge is ready or paying attention is at the beginner of your pattern or halter presentation. The judge will nod and you commence with your pattern (showmanship) or presentation (halter) as prescribed by either the judge or ring steward. When you are finished, watch for the judge to either nod again excusing you back into a line up which is appropriate for showmanship.

In halter a judge may watch you present your horse in motion the entire way around into the line up. Sometimes, I spot faults immediately, sometimes, I see greatness immediately, sometimes, I like to watch not only the movement in linear form (away or towards me) but also from the side view. I may watch you all the way into a line up during a halter class or I may make a few marks on my card and move on. Either way, it doesn't mean I've dismissed or disregarded your horse.

After all horses are presented and lined up, I'll do my 'walk arounds' for conformation and up close inspection. I usually set a score on movement and then combine it with a score for conformation while standing in the line up. I then will compare my scores and marks on the cards, re-evaluate my picks visually and then call in my winning line up to the announcer.

At no time during halter will I be looking at the handler unless they get in the way of seeing the entire horse. That's why (I also referenced this in an earlier blog post which I'll try to find the link to) I recommend in halter classes that you NOT do the showmanship 'dance' (i.e. Quarter Method). It's distracting to me to have you changing sides constantly. I'm really looking at the view of the horse.

You are completely correct to point out that if you are looking over your shoulder at the judge, you may not be doing your horse justice as I see it trot away. You may not stay straight and certainly if you are not on the rail, it could really inhibit a nice straight jog/trot.

You are also correct to assume it is the judges' JOB to be paying attention!! If in fact you see at any time a judge not looking directly at you, do not assume they have disregarded or dismissed you. Although your horse is judged on an ideal for his breed, he is ultimately compared with the other horses in the class. Sometimes, there is an obvious winner, sometimes, not.

In halter classes, it is best to move only side to side if you are obstructing the judges' view from any part of your horse. That whole looking over the shoulder thing with regards to showmanship, is also inappropriate, distracting and much of an oddity. Maybe they do this at beauty pagents while walking the runway, but remember it's a horse show and not a beauty pagent. If your trainer instructs you however, to constantly look back while moving with your horse.....
1. ...inquire as to how you can make sure to get a true steady straight line while doing that
2. .... ask why your trainer doesn't think the judge is paying attention?
3. ...Another point to ponder along the same lines is, let's say you are looking over your shoulder and decide the judge isn't paying attention. What would your coach have you do then? Stop? Holler? Change sides?

Look where you are going, not where you have been. You won't miss anything if you don't look back me!

Is it appropriate for someone who is not exhibiting a horse to approach the judge and ask questions?

2009-11-25T04:39:00.000-08:00

This question comes from the comments from yesterday's post. It is never appropriate for anyone except show officials (ring steward, manager, secretary, etc) to approach the judge directly. There are several reasons for this but the most obvious from a judges' point of view is the distraction. Sometimes we (judges) look as though we are not doing anything. In fact, keeping a running tally of our top picks, adding up scores, deciphering our own shorthand and even possibly running a class or eating a quick bite are all things that we may be doing without your knowledge of it. If you are not exhibiting, you should still use proper protocal for asking any questions of the judge. Go to any show official and they will either point you to the correct official or take your request and present it to the judge. The judge will then find the best time to take a moment to answer any questions. You may get a written response, a rulebook reference or possibly a moment with the judge directly. Another big reason not to approach the judge is bias. There should never be an implication on part of a judge towards a bias to one horse and/or rider or another. It is just inappropriate. Most all rulebooks address this situation and actually, I can't think of one that doesn't. USEF, AQHA, APHA, ApHC, POAC, FOSH, and the numerous other governing bodies address this directly in their rules.

Oops! Better late than never I hope!!

2009-11-24T05:20:00.000-08:00

Oh my~! I have overlooked a question in the inbox. I must apologize for answering this late and I hope you won't hold it against me. I'm certainly not playing favorites with the email for sure!! LOL! The question.....

Hi, I have a question for you, not sure if you've already covered anything like this in your blog or not (I haven't read it since it started, I only started reading it recently), if you have feel free to ignore this and point me in that direction. I'm not an experienced shower by any means (I've been to one local schooling show, with a horse I'd only been riding for a couple months after I switched barns). So this question can probably be explained from my level of inexperience. At a show is it ok to talk to the judge? Ask them about your flaws, or what you did well, etc? After the class is over, of course. I know debate and horse showing are not comparable, but one thing I remember about going to debate tournaments (I was at tournaments almost every weekend as a high schooler... Never did very well, but that's beside the point) you could talk to the judge any time you wanted, whenever you happened to catch them, and ask them about the round they judged you in. You could even ask them if they thought you'd improved since they last judged you, and half the time they'd give you a critique at the end of the round without being asked for one. Now, being a shy person, it would probably never occur to me to walk up to the judge and ask their opinion. But at my one show (very small local schooling show, there were all of six entrants in my divisions, 2'3" hunters and 2'3" equitation, and the show placed 1-6) the judge actually walked up to ME and told me she just loved my horse and that if it hadn't been for the refusal I'd have placed very well in equitation over fences. That refusal brings up another question... When you have a refusal and you have to retake a fence, do you redo the whole line or just the one fence? In eventing it depended on whether the jumps were 1 and 2 or 1a and 1b. If they were 1a and 1b you redid both of them, if it was just 2, then you jumped two. My refusal was at the second fence of a bending line, and being unsure, I just redid the second one. Thanks!

1. How, when and should you, ask the judge a question. Well I did kind of answer that in the previous post but since you wouldn't know that (I apologize for overlooking again)..... yes, you should ask the judge a question if need be. Now something I really do not like when I show or when I judge, is for a show manager to ask me to do more than a short bit of critique in any class. If the judge carries on conversations in the ring, giving critique on every little thing, that is a clinic and not a show. I don't mind sharing some information but just quick notes that stand out to me. If you want to ask the judge something they have not made verbal note to you about, then approach your ring steward, show secretary, show manager, the gate person, anyone associated with the running of the show is probably fine. They should then ask the judge for a moment to speak to you or relay your question to the judge. The answer to your question may be on the judges' cards but sometimes they are illegible or the class was just too small or too large to take notes (barring individual performances such as over fences and patterns). My notes are mostly in short hand & not always translated in an obvious manner. I would recommend that you never approach the judge directly unless the judge addresses you first. This is because if you approach the judge, they may be in the middle of judging a class and not need the distraction. As a judge, you also want individual requests so that there is no misconception of bias by the other exhibitors. I also suggest you make your request in a timely manner. After seeing a few classes of bays and chestnuts, I may not remember your lovely Plain Jane with the banded mane and I may not have made written notes on my cards. I too, find that at hunter shows, everyone wearing a helmet and hunt coat, looks the same. When they approach after putting up their horse, shaking out their hair and changing into a pair of shorts & tshirt, I have no idea who they are even if they say they were wearing a taupe coat with a melon ratcatcher riding a dark bay gelding. It's not a fashion show, therefore I don't really notice the outfits. You can even cover yourself in swarovski crystals and own a solid silver saddle and unless it blinded me, I would not take note. I hope after all this rambling that answers the question of how, when and should you speak with the judge. On to another matter.... when to jump the whole line again or just the refusal fence as related to hunters and hunter equitation courses. If the element is an 'in and out' which is one to two strides in length, of course, you have to jump the element again as it is considered one element and would be designated as an 'a' & 'b' fence with the same number. In a combination, faults are considered seperately but in case of a refusal, you do have the right to rejump the obstacle previous to the obstacle refused. Of course, you run the risk of taking the previous obstacle again and getting a less than desirable jump which puts you into the second obstacle awkwardly (NOTE: If you take the previous fence and then the refusal fence, the previous fence will not be scored again). I personally would take a huge liberty circle and come back to approach the refused obstacle as straight on as possible. Case in point...let's say there's a five stride vertical to oxer. Your vertical comes off very nice but your horse puts the brakes on for the oxer. Although much prettier to take the vertical and float into and over the oxer, it is not a guarentee that it will be the best approach to the oxer. If you gather your horse and prepare yourself, circle towards the inside of the ring, going around inside fences if you have to and roll out as close to the inside of the vertical as possible. Leg yield into the line and use seat, leg and artificial aids (crops, bats, spurs, etc) to take the oxer. I hope that answers your question and if there is need for any clarification, please do not hesitate to ask. Don't be shy! The more you show, the more you know, the less shy you'll become all around!

Question from the inbox.....

2009-11-24T04:14:00.000-08:00

WHAT THE ????????

Today's post comes from a question from the inbox....

Sometimes I'm at a show and I see something that just makes my head spin... and I wonder how in the world that just happened. Today was one of those days! I was at a local open show and I was observing the halter classes.

The stock type class had what I consider 4 "contenders" and then 5 "filler horses" that will place because they give out 8 ribbons. The winner was a buckskin, 2nd place was a bay, 3rd place was a chestnut, and 4th place was a dun. All very nice horses.

Next halter class was saddle type. The winner was a gorgeous Morgan and the rest were "filler horses", to include a couple ponies, and a really thin Arab.

Here's where I got confused.

They had a championship halter class, which they allow anyone to enter. No qualifying required. So our top 4 stock type horses were entered, along with the Morgan, and a few assorted saddle type horses and other stock type horses from the other classes.
The judge pinned the bay stock type horse first, the dun stock type horse second, the Morgan 3rd, a fat pony 4th, the skinny Arabian 5th, and finally our buckskin stock type class winner was pinned 5th.

What in the world? Why would a halter class winner go from 1st place to 5th place, placing below horses he beat in the previous class?
Thank you for your time!
~in2paints http://rlilbitofcash.blogspot.com/

Well, to start with, thank you in2paints for sending me the question. Just to reiterate, I'm only one judge and this is my opinion based on your information without actually having seen any of these horses. In any class, I attempt to judge what is there at the moment I see the horse.

In halter, if the handler has set the horse up well and I can actually get a good look at the legs, shoulder, poll to croup ratio, I love it. If the handler has not set the horse up to allow the best attributes of a horse' build to shine through or prepared in a shoddy manner, I cannot assume substance is there if I don't see it. This is one big reason that I don't like to arrive too early to a show and I don't like to watch warm up rings or horses on the sidelines. It's difficult but if you see a horse in the warm up area or practicing on the sidelines, it can influence your decision on how that horse may look or perform. In other words, it may be stunning in the warm up area, come in the ring and completely fall apart. I have that stunning horse in the back of my mind but I need to keep focused on what is in the ring for the time I'm judging.
Another influence to halter is preparation. If you have a horse with a long back and short neck, make sure you present the horse stretched forward from the shoulder, ears forward and possibly nosing out a bit. Rub some peppermint extract on your hand or wet a piece of candy and rub that on your hand. Practice setting your horse square and then stretch that neck and head. A shorter mane will also help a short necked presentation.
Now on to the question you've asked. How does the top call get the bottom of the barrel in the championship class. Well, without seeing this for myself, I can only assume that there was possibly a break down in the presentation of the buckskin stock winner. When presented in the stock class, he may have well been the best looking horse in the lot. Possibly when presented in the championship class his movement could have been off or not presented in a way that the judge could see it.
When you trot a horse in halter classes it needs to be directly to the judge and the judge will then step out of the way for you to pass. My personal preference is to also see a reaching movement. Even if good old Blaze is a champion western pleasure horse, I want to see his shoulder and hocks engage in the halter class. Move him off with a nice big sweeping stride. I can see his pension for small strided jog steps later when it is appropriate in the pleasure class.

There is also another way to look at this and that is to take another look at the other horses presented in the championship class. Quite possibly the buckskin stock winner was presented exactly the same and possibly the other horses were stepped up a bit in their presentations and the judge saw something more in them that he/she may have missed earlier. As far as condition, in reference to the fat pony and skinny arab, I cannot say exactly.

It is not always why did Blaze get first in one class and not the other but just as you thought of this, it's quite possible the handler of the bay horse may have thought the same thing. Why did the bay pin under the buckskin in one class and then move up to pin over him in another class? Without having seen this class, there are all of the scenarios in the world to consider.

Presentation in both classes
The judge saw something less of the buckskin in the later class
The judge saw more of something in the other horses in the later class
Preference or bias to a certain type or a certain breed on part of the judge.
Not judging within the confines of the snapshot you get in the class at hand
These could all be reasons or not the reason at all.

You said this was an open show. It would not be out of line to have asked either your show manager, show secretary or ring steward to either see the judges cards for any notes or ask a question of the judge. Make sure you approach this procedure with an open mind; ask the official of the show and then be respectful of the judge's comments. You may come away enlightened or you may come away still confused. I also would suggest that if anyone would like to request to see the judges' cards or ask the judge a question that it always be done through an official of the show, not directly to the judge and that your request be presented in a timely manner. I don't know how many times I've been asked about a horse or rider hours and hours after the fact. Sometimes, days or weeks after a show, I've been asked for tips, pointers and opinion. Usually only a few classes later, I will have deleted the info from my brain. Unless I have written notes, which in halter is not likely unless it is a huge class (then I just request to run it in heats anyway).
Now you are probably still confused but I hope I may have given you some insight on what MAY have happened at the show. I hope you are not discouraged by any of it and continue to show. It can be frustrating at times. Who here has not been baffled by the judging at a show? Show of hands please!
Raising my both of my hands, but of course, I was not judging those days! LOL!

Five

2009-11-18T07:08:00.000-08:00

Just five years old and already jumping what appears to be 2'9" or 3' oxers. This horse did not just start jumping like this at this height. The horse had to be started over fences much before his 5th year. Will his legs last until his 10th year? Fifteenth? Some would say depending on the breed, the horse could peak in performance earlier than other breeds but the argument I have with that is he is still in a high impact sport regardless of breed. It's akin to the Olympic sport of gymnastics where little girls start at birth, peak before puberty and retired from the sport at the ripe old age of 16 or so. Growing skeletons in a high impact sport, cannot develop while having to maintain such stress. But again, this is a society of 'get ' er done' attitudes and make a quick buck. I really do not believe that a 5 year old horse of this size should be jumping at this level. It's just too much stress physically and mentally. Will this horse be able to carry riders well into his teens or even twenties? I don't know but he's for sale if you'd like to buy him and find out.

Guess the age?

2009-11-11T06:36:00.000-08:00

USEF : Basic Rules for Hunters

2009-11-11T04:31:00.000-08:00

❚ Article 2423. General.

1. All classes must be judged on performance and soundness and when indicated,conformation, suitability or manners.
1.1 When a horse makes two faults at one obstacle only the major fault will be counted.

Article 2424. Soundness.
All horses must be serviceably sound. All horses beingconsidered for an award must be jogged for soundness with rider dismounted. (Exception:Under Saddle classes, unrated classes and classes at Local Competitions.) Horses that are not serviceably sound are ineligible for an award, including under saddle classes.

Article 2425. Conformation.
Quality, substance and soundness. Judges must penalize but not necessarily eliminate horses with structural faults, defects and blemishes (such as pinfiring) in areas which might impair their activity and durability. Horses must be stripped for conformation in any class in which conformation counts more than 25%. (Exception:Under Saddle classes.)

Article 2426. Performance.

1. An even hunting pace, manners, jumping style together with faults and way of moving over the course. Manners to be emphasized in Ladies and Amateur classes; brilliance in Corinthian and Formal Hunting Attire classes.
2. When the class is held in a ring, the performance starts as the competitor enters and ends when he leaves. When the class is held outside, the performance starts at any spot designated by competition management and ends at any spot so designated. If the start and finish are not clearly set forth, it is suggested that a judge consider the start approximately 50’ before the first obstacle and the finish approximately 50’ after the last.

Article 2427. Faults.
The following faults are scored according to the judge’s opinion, and depending on severity, may be considered minor or major faults.

Minor or Major Faults

Showing an obstacle to a horse.
Missing a lead change.
Kicking out.
Spooking.
Jumping out of form.
Jumping into corners of obstacles.

Major Faults

Knock down of any part of an obstacle.
Refusals.
Trotting while on course when it is not specified.
Bucking.
Stopping for loss of shoe or broken equipment.
Circling while on course.
Dangerous jumping.

Elimination

Three refusals
Off course.
Jumping a fence before it is reset.
Bolting from the ring.
Fall of horse or rider.

The following may or may not be considered as faults, depending on their severity and frequency.

Light rubs.
Swapping leads in a line.
Late lead changes.
Excessive show of animation.
Adding or eliminating a stride in a line.

General Rule for Judging Western Pleasure

2009-11-11T00:43:00.000-08:00

Since I've been talking about the standard rules from which most open shows are defined, I thought I should quote the rules here.
Western Pleasure AQHA Rules

"465B Western Pleasure (a) A good pleasure horse has a free-flowing stride of reasonable length in keeping with his conformation. He should cover a reasonable amount of ground with little effort. Ideally, he should have a blanaced, flowing motion, while exhibiting correct gaits that are of the proper cadence. The quality of the movement and the consistency of the gaits is a major consideration. He should carry his head and neck in a relaxed natural position, with his poll level with or slightly above the level of the withers. He should not carry his head behind the vertical, giving the appearance of intimidation, or be excessively nosed out, giving a resistant appearance. His head should be level with his nose slightly in front of the vertical, having a bright experession with his ears alert. He should be shown on a reasonably loose rein, but with light contact and control. He should be responsive, yet smooth, in transitions when called for. When asked to extend he should movee out with the same flowing motion. Maximum credit should be given to the flowing, blanaced and willing horse that gives the appearance of being fit and a pleasure to ride.
465B (e) This class will be judged on the performance, condition and conformation of the horse.
465B (l) Faults that will be cause for disqualification, except in novice amateur or novice youth classes, which shall be faults scored according to severity:

Head carried too low (tip of ear below the withers consistently)

Overflexing or straining neck in head carriage so the nose is carried behind the vertical consistently."

Mr Popular

2009-11-10T12:51:00.000-08:00

Someone please tell me why this is one of the most sought after hunter riders in a breed specific organization because I cannot find a reason on my own. I have seen this rider several times in the ring, live in action. 90% of the time over fences this is their position. The only thing that I've seen that they do differently at other fences, is to pinch with their knees and allow the leg to slide back . The heel is almost never down and they spur entirely too much. Roached back and close to a left side duck is usual performance from this rider. Leaning on the neck with no visible explanation for a release is also common from this rider. His eyes follow the rails as they go over them and again, that's par for the course from this rider. You will never, ever, ever see gloves on this rider.

With all that said, I'm still wondering why this is one of the most sought after riders in a breed specific organization? His position forces the horse to hang horribly in the front while making up for his weight being thrown over the shoulder but with an unforgiving hand. I don't understand it. I really don't. This is one of those things that just stump me. In front of me I find the horses losing good to excellent form over fences as victims of the rider. Yet he continues to catch ride on some of the best of the best. The trainers don't see it I suppose; the judges keep rewarding it; and it utterly astounds me. I guess this is one reason for my next post. This type of riding should not be regarded as a standard nor rewarded as outstanding. I just don't get it.

This is a rider which I have seen 'live' several times and not someone I'm just simply picking apart for any personal reason. I do not personally know this rider. I only know their riding ability and the fact that they are much sought after as a catch rider. It's just my opinion so please feel free to jump in and correct me. I know a ton of riders who are much better that would catch ride for free just for the shot at riding something great. Why this rider?

Follow up on today's post......A Baby Running the Show

2009-11-08T16:22:00.000-08:00

Well, I just thought and thought about today's earlier post. I know I tend to ramble on but I do have a bit more to say on this topic which was spurred by the first comment on the first post of today.

As much as I see wrong in today's open shows, I see just as much right. Those are the ones I reward. I know the rules, the standards for the baseline and through tons of practice, I believe I can apply them to the class at hand and rate them accordingly.

The biggest 'festival of ugliness and impurity' in my opinion has been big money thrown out there for people to win with the youngest of horses. You'll see plenty of 'wrongs' in the show ring but the worst of all, again, in my opinion, is the youngest of horses being harvested for the almighty dollar. These are not show cars to be fixed when their gaskets blow. A good horse, no matter how it is built, is a good horse for the long haul.
Case in point....I have a friend that has shown her mare in lower level dressage for over 15 years. That mare cannot move up past 3rd level tests due to conformation flaws but my friend and this mare still show. Still get excited about having a new judge assess them. She has done right by the mare by not asking her to pinch, pin, strap and sizzle up into 4th level or higher. She knows her mare is at her peak at 3rd level. Why continue to show her? They have fun together. The mare is physically and psychologically healthier staying in this niche. I believe she still scores in the 60's on occassion at the ripe old age of 24. This mare didn't get to that age and still be able to do 3rd level because she was started as a yearling and pushed into a high dollar futurity at the age of 2.

My personal opinion is that all classes for 2 and 3 year olds whether western pleasure or hunter on the flat (or under saddle as some ridiculous organizations thought it ought be named) should be banned. If high dollar amounts be paid out to anyone, it should be a reward for taking the time to allow the horse to mentally and physically grow into a specific discipline and performance. That's not to say that I do not think a 2 or 3 year old should never be ridden. It's how much and how high of an impact any horse should have to endure for the purpose of showing.
Many will try to equate the argument to the thoroughbred racehorse who is started as a yearling, raced as a two year old and sometimes retired by the age of 3 and usually by the age of 5 or 6. That argument doesn't hold much water for me since the entire industry of racing is based on money and the horse is a commodity. That is completely different from the show horse although a show horse can contribute to many bank accounts throughout its' lifetime. You must also know what happens to thousands of thoroughbred racehorses every year when their careers end. They don't all get to stand stud or produce foals for regenerating the racing industry. So again, the argument of the thoroughbred racing world in comparison to the show horse is again squelched. Another point to ponder is the early growing cycles of stock horses versus the thoroughbred.
I cannot ever see the justification of pushing a stock bred horse into the show ring to be rated on the standards of a mature horse. There are plenty of dollars to be had from a horse that performs well into his teens or twenties but what is to become of the horse asked to endure so much at such a young age? It is ridiculous to consider that this baby horse will move accordingly to the standards set forth for mature horses in certain disciplines. Equate that to asking a twelve year to conduct business at the executive levels of a fortune 500 company and you'll have your answer.
Ask Mrs Mom who sparked this very post. I'm sure she could share a few stories seeing as she is one of those who attempt to rehabilitate those mature horses who were asked to an adult's job when they were only babies.
I guess you could say that out of my pet peeves, those high dollar 'festivals of almighty ugliness' shows for the youngest of horses, are number one on the list of my pet peeves.

Standards of Subjective Judging

2009-11-08T07:57:00.000-08:00

For every discipline and every breed, there is an organization who sets the standard for the purpose of judging. Most western classes follow the AQHA (American Quarter Horse Associations) rules and stock breed registeries follow suit. For hunters, it's the USEF (US Equestrian Federation formerly American Horse Show Association or AHSA & they had a couple years calling themselves the USEA aka US Equestrian Association) that sets the standards. For reining there is the NRHA (National Reining Horse Association) and dressage has the USDF (US Dressage Federation). There are many other disciplines that are subjectively judged but we'll stick to the basics of open show classes being hunters and western non timed events.
For the purpose of judging, we have the standards set for hunters by going to the origins of show hunters. A show hunter is the condensed version of the optimum fox hunter. A horse that exerts minimum energy to execute a ground covering stride at all gaits and has impeccable manners thereby freeing up the rider's mind for the strategy of following the hunt.
As a standard rule, a horse that has high knee action, does not cover much ground in his rather vertical gait. The leg does not swing freely from the shoulder and this is heavily penalized. A horse that is inverted in his topline is not using his hind quarters to propel forward and thereby also inhibiting a forward moving, ground covering stride. Again, heavily penalized. A horse that twitches and flinches at garbage barrels and outside distractions has not the experience to calmly negotiate a course of even more unfamiliar obstacles. A horse that does not travel well in company, is definitely not a good example of a mannerly mount.
Unfortunately these types of horses are not always common at an open show. Breeding is not always selective and people end up with all shapes and sizes of horses that may well go the distance but not be optimum for the show ring. Should these riders even bother? Of course! Your horse may not fit the exact standards or even come close to an efficiently built hunter but consider that the other horses who show up on that day at that show, may not either.
You need to know how your horse measures up to the standards set forth for the hunter ring and go from there. Knowing major & minor faults from the USEF rules is also something everyone who shows hunters, whether a backyard type show or rated USEF show, should know. Sadly, reading the standards for hunters, rules and faults, is not emphasized by trainers and coaches or saddder still, some judges. There are plenty of riders that have never cracked a rulebook and it shows.
In today's society of 'get'er done attitudes, many organiztions have pushed the boundaries of when a horse should peak in performance. By that, I'm referring to the 2 year old and 3 year old classes, divisions and futurities of several breed organizations and even national awards. If you are jumping a horse that is less than 5 over fences in excess of 2' 6" (and I'm being generous with that height), how can you expect this horse to hold up in the long run. Maybe he looks gorgeous and has the mindset of a saint but he is not done growing. The high impact placed on his muscular, skeletal and neurological systems will most likely show symptoms of break down by the time he is 12 or so. So you're planning on selling him by then and if he achieves this award for the youngest of hunters, he'll bring extra zeroes along on that check from the buyer. He won't be your problem when he breaks down and by then you'll be long gone. This is just my opinion of course and only one short synopsis of yet another crappy standard being set up by big money to further push the imitation hunter out of the nest way too early. I say imitation because I cannot imagine seeing many (any) 2 year olds showing hunter on the flat (or under saddle as some organizations refer to it) correctly.
Then of course there are the monkey see, monkey do crowds that worry more about getting a horse' head to his knees, than engaging his hocks. Take western pleasure for example. Artificial doesn't begin to make a dent in todays models of western pleasure. There is nothing western nor pleasurable about it. READ THE RULES!! The standard for western pleasure is set forth by the AQHA and most breed groups and open shows, follow these rules.
A pleasurable western mount should have stride, in keeping with his conformation, that covers ground easily with minimal effort. A free flowing gait that is relaxed. The western pleasure horse should have a relaxed topline, keeping his poll fairly even with the withers; slightly above depending on conformation and never below. He should carry the bit willingly either on the vertical or slightly forward but never behind. He should possess the manners of a saint. When was the last time I saw this? Hmmmmm, it's been a while.
People get so over the top trying to get their horse to 'keep his head low' they miss the whole point. The horse gets stiff. The gaits become impure (4 beating lopes and 2 foot strides at the jog). The relaxation is so lost that some horses I see have created ways to please their riders, but become convaluted in their mindsets.
The standards that are not adhered to in training a horse for either western non timed events or show hunters can become so lost that the horse moves with the utmost artificial and imitation means. So what has all my rambling about standards accomplished here? Well, for one, you need to know how your horse measures up to the standards set forth for subjective judging.

So as a judge, you must know the standards. The baseline by which a horse is judged for a certain discipline whether open or breed specific. Then, as you watch the class at hand, you must incorporate the weight of a fault, also set forth by the rules of the guideline association. On top of that, you now have to decide if this horse is closer to that baseline than the others in the class. It takes alot of reading, practice and keeping up with the changes to be a judge. I do not think it is for everyone and I also think there are a few out there that could use a good updating seminar but that's coming in another post later on.
My point is that you should read the rules. Assess your horse by the standards of the discipline and/or breed. Know what the major faults are that you can fix by riding better or gaining more knowledge. Recognize that just because old Dobbin is fearless over fences, maybe he doesn't have the flat kneed, free flowing gaits to win the hack. Improve on his strong points. Get your points over fences, ride the flat the best you can and if the tri colors are to come your way, they will because old Dobbin nailed those courses.
If you are showing in western non timed events, i.e. pleasure, horsemanship, trail, etc.... read the rules. Know what is wrong and even if the one who keeps winning top call has the movement of a foreign robot from distant lands, rest assured you will come across a judge that knows their stuff. That robot will not live long and proper.
For whatever your opinion is on subjective judging, there are a thousand arguments for and against it. My advice here is to
Read the rules
Know the major faults
Don't compromise your horse' happiness and well being for the quickie award or because everyone else is doing it. There are plenty of shows, awards and programs to enhance your collection. Try a different circuit, association or discipline. You'll find your niche and keep your horse on his feet for more years than you can count on both hands and feet. If in fact you want an award or recognition, just because, then buy yourself a trophy online. There's Trophy Depot, Crown Trophy, Winning Ways East, Hodges Badges, and those are just a few that I read on the bottom or back of awards laying around the desk and mantle.
The show is not the means to an end but rather a rest stop on the journey.

I'm Back!

2009-11-08T05:03:00.000-08:00

I have to apologize to the readers of this blog. I have been out of town and very busy but I am back and have a ton of topics to write about!! Here is just a few that will be coming up in the next few days....

Judged on a standard or against the others in the class : which holds more weight?
There's a judge in the class!
A sought after hunter rider in a specific breed organization - why? why? why? What's the attraction?
Can breed specific organizations ever get it right by their own rules?
What to do when the judge sucks!
Why open status? I'm nobody's bitch!

Stay tuned.....I'm back!

Taking the top call .......

2009-10-29T01:29:00.000-07:00

So you enter the ring for your flat class. Let's say it's a pleasure class for judging sake.
You're now being judged at the walk. You take note that there are some really nice looking horses in this 'pleasure' class. Although your horse is obedient, he may not be the best mover. Most of the time, you place but maybe not so high as you'd like.

Trot please, all trot (or jog if your in western pleasure). Don't rush into it. Good. Nice departure. Here and there you take note of some of the other horses in the ring.

Canter, All Canter (or Lope if you're in western) Okay, gather yourself and make sure you're ready. Apply leg and yes! I got the lead!! You got all the transitions and even your diagonols and leads. Wow, you have a real shot at winning this class! What a great feeling! You take note that out of the corner of your eye, you saw a few wrong lead departures so your chances are really getting better.

Fast forward to line up and pinning. You're waiting in line for the announcer to call you for the blue. But wait!......Are you kidding me? What is this judge looking at! The horse I was right behind busted his lead in one direction. His pace set mine very well and he was a helluva mover but come on......he busted a lead for at least 2 or 3 strides before changing. This judge is blind and I may as well go home now!!

Have you been in this class? Unfortunately, from the back of your horse in a class, you cannot see everything that happens with the other horses.
The horse that picked up the wrong lead for 2 or 3 strides and then swapped, either flying or simple change, was a very nice mover. He definitely had the whole package. Quality gaits with transitions that showed excellent control. His expression showed calmness and his overall conformation was suitable for his job..

Your horse was good. Just because he falls out of gait for transitions, doesn't mean he's the worst. Of course not. Maybe your horse is not the best built horse around but he held a great pace and you did everything right!

Something to consider is that the horse you thought 'wow, he blew his lead so that's one less I have to beat' may just possess more ability that shows through.

In this scenario, the better horse has to get the blue. If a lead is blown and corrected within 2 or 3 strides, I make note of it for tie breaking purposes but that is not to say I have weighted that fault heavily for a better overall horse. I know that's hard for some people. Wrong lead through the whole direction, I would definitely have to discount much greater and they would forfeit the win. But you always have to reward the better horse. The most you can do is your best. Some judges would weight that blown lead more heavily, not taking in account the quick correction.

You may not always always agree with a judges' opinion. Our job as a judge is to reward the best horse in that class on that day.

Critique Today

2009-10-28T07:09:00.000-07:00

This is a critique of the rider as requested only. The setting is schooling and not a show.

The Leg - this rider appears to be pinching at the knee instead of riding with her weight in her heels. The leg has fallen back behind the girth and they have lost upper body balance. Either they were simply left behind on departure due to the inability of the weak leg or fell back into the saddle over the fence.. Either way, this rider is really in the way of the horse by being in the saddle over a fence. Though her heel is below her hip, the amount of bend in the knee and the lack of rising her weight out of the saddle, shows a weak leg a la knee pinching.

Hands - I'm not seeing a release here. It appears as if the rider was trying to balance off the rein and pull herself up into two point, using the reins. This simply jabs the horse in the mouth. Even if you get left behind at a jump, it is best to at least have enough independence in your hands to move them along with your horses' mouth. Impeding the horse with your weight on his back is hard enough but if you also are hanging off his mouth, depending on what bit is in there, your doing everything wrong. Grab mane if need be!

Eye - this rider appears to be looking at the back of her horses' head and not up to where she really wants to go. Her chin is tucked, her eye is down and her shoulders are rotated forward. Keep the eye up beyond your present jump and it will help to keep the shoulders and back in check also.

I don't want to go on and on over this rider's faults. I see many faults but it looks as though she is a novice so as not to discourage her too much, I just stuck with the basic aids. I did not include seat as I don't think this rider has much independence or experience.

I would suggest this rider doing a lot more ground work. Jumping is fun especially if you have a mount that just goes on about it regardless of what you do. But you can also end up discouraging a horse from jumping with so many faults. You can cause a loss of confidence in your horse also depending on his personality. Some horses take faults personally and this can greatly hinder what used to be a packer over fences.

You don't have to just driill posting trot and trotting in two point with no stirrups and extreme short (jockey) stirrups to build a leg although those are two definite ways to get a leg! Put out a series of ground poles approximately 6 feet apart. Get in 2 point and trot into the poles moving your hands forward and back to the rhythm of the strides. The distance your hand moves along the neck should not be extreme. Don't throw your hands forward, nor bring them back behind your shoulder. Once your hand is moving independently, it makes it easier to work on your leg. Another good thing is to post to the trot for 5 strides and then 2 point with half crest release for 5 strides (as long as your horse maintains a rhythm without contact.). This exercise will help you move from one position to the other. If you feel unstable in your upper body doing this exercise, you're probably pinching with your knee. Go back to walking in two point and the trot remembering to relax your hips and knees to follow the motion of your horse through the barrel.

Overall my suggestions would be to just leave the cross rails alone until you are able to trot and canter on the flat, moving through 3 point, half seat and 2 point with independent legs, seat and hands. That's not to say that this rider doesn't appear to have potential. Her mount looks willing enough from this picture. The rider has taken great care in providing her horse with leg & hoof protection. She has prepared her own appointments well with a helmet and body protector, boots and gloves. I do not know how long this pair has been schooling cross rails so my suggestions are based completely on this picture with no assumptions to the ability of either the rider or horse. Good luck, keep up your safety habits and always try to end on a high note!

When Disciplines Collide

2009-10-26T05:16:00.000-07:00

Well another weekend of judging over! I have again, a plethera of topics swirling around in my head but I've chosen this for today. First off, look at the clock and take note of the minute hand.

At many open shows, classes that are not over fences are just referred to as english. This usually brings out a hefty variety of saddles in the ring. When the show has English Pleasure, English Equitation, etc designated as classes, you never know what you're going to get. The only distinction you can possibly use in these classes are the judging designation such as pleasure, equitation, performance, etc.

English Pleasure was announced and in came two saddle seat riders, one side saddle rider and several variations of hunt seat. There was a western horse in english tack, a gaited horse ridden side saddle, kids on ponies, a big floating horse, 2 animated saddle seat horses (or were they) and a high headed, skinny minny looks to be OTTB. That is definitely a recipe for questions to the judge when I pin this class so I'd better be rather exact in my notes.

Here's the line up

Large dark bay, hunt seat rider, naturally large gaits, flat knees, nice carriage and obviously great natured pleasurable mount.
Large chestnut, saddle seat rider, well animated gaits, very light carriage and very well mannered
Gray large pony, hunt seat rider, nice carriage, a bit animated in the knees but moving out well, obviously well mannered
Large chestnut, hunt seat rider, obvious western horse in english tack, a bit animated but light carriage and well mannered
Gaited dark bay, nice flat & running walk, side saddle rider with a heavy hand, nice manners but rider doesn't keep it in gait.
Small pony, hunt seat rider, fast but small child rider had control. Didn't look too pleasurable but ok.
Thin, large dark bay, hunt seat rider, large strides, poor carriage, fast and high headed but flat kneed, with some problems with attention and manners (my guess it was an OTTB that was still very green to show and treed saddle)
Small gray horse, saddle seat rider, very spooky, rider has death grip on long shanked bit, rider & horse look scared.

I made sure to take note of the gaits, the horses' manners and their overall appearance of being a pleasurable mount with happy riders. Although I must say, hunters is my first choice to ride, show & judge. I cannot say that I am biased in a generalized pleasure class such as this.
I like to see the saddle seat horses show their animation and still be so light in their carriage. That is a very pretty picture. I love side saddle and on a gaited horse with decent flat & running walk, who wouldn't find that a pleasurable ride?

A big well conditioned, flat kneed hunter type horse with light carriage, good manners, ground covering stride without the aid of the rider's spur to keep the stride open and reaching? Well in this field of 8, I see it as the obvious choice for all day pleasurable hack. The rider wasn't over schooling, see sawing the reins or balancing off the reins. Good conformation supported the natural movement that the #1 horse had. Swinging from the shoulder, flat kneed, ground covering natural stride.... hands down my top pick.

Big red gelding with a nicely appointed saddle seat rider. This horse was well suited and trained for saddle seat. No heavy shoes or obvious scarring showed that he was a naturally gifted saddle seat mount and not something inhumanely manufactured. A victim of a bit too much leg from the rider during transitions which ended up being rather sticky going from the trot to the canter. I think the rider was a novice and just anticipated the gait changes a bit much. Once the horse went to the canter, she let go of the choke hold reins and the horse just floated along with really nice gaits. Just a tad fast but again, I think the rider just may have been a bit nervous. Otherwise, a great 2nd place. Nice to watch, looks like they are a pleasurable, mostly relaxed duo.

The gray pony was ridden by what appearred to be a happy and correctly positioned 'tween' aged girl. This pony was run up on by some of the other entries and never missed a step or batted an eye. The pony had a bit more knee action than I would like to see for a hunter style pony. A little long in the barrel which may have contributed to the knee not moving through from the shoulder, but otherwise, looked like a happy pair with good gait transitions. Okay .... that'll be my third pick.

Oh my! Small gray horse crow hopping sideways down the rail and about to collide with the little pony. I better call quick for a walk!! Wow, not such a great horse for a pleasure class and not looking forward to it coming back in the ring for safety sake but ... whew! Collision averted and if the rider would let the horse get off that choke hold long shanked bit just a little, maybe they'd have a snowball's chance....okay, I have the bottom of my list. You don't always work with first place down in order. This duo was not suited for each other at this time in their training and I'm not sure this horse was ready for a show environment.

Let's see, what's left that I haven't placed. This should not be too difficult as I have my first three placings and a definite last.

I have a western horse in english tack and the perverbial western rider in english habit, hunt cap, no harness, make up and eye down. Horses' stride is a bit short but they've a fair pace with nice manners on the horses' part. He too, was a close call victim of the gray crow hopper.
I have a possible VOR - victim of rider - side saddle rider on a walker of some sort who does a nice flat and running walk. I believe this horse has nice barefoot gaits for a walker or walker cross. The running walk is a gait that takes conditioning on the horses' part and this horse had a nice one but it's possible the rider was new to side saddle although the horse was well suited for it. They broke gait twice (that I saw) but no excessive speed, suitability and a nicely matched pair.
Small or possibly a large mini pony with small child on board. This pony gave a few head down upward hump backed jumps transitioning up from trot to canter both times. Not so mannerly but the size is suitable and rider does not seem rattled at all. Cute pair, pony stretching for the stride but rather fast, even passing the large dark bay. Doesn't look pleasurable to post that fast.
Thin horse, looks to be a thoroughbred and possibly just off the track. He appears willing or this rider would have not made it to the end of the day. Although willing, he doesn't seem to have any idea of what is being asked of him. Looks like they have some work to do. His nose is pointed straight out to evade that bit but he looks to be built well enough to eventually have a nice stride. He's looking all around and having some attention span problems which makes me think he's new to the arena but he's not appearring spooky. I see a good prospect for a nice horse with training and time. The rider also appearred a bit of a novice but had a good balance and didn't seem to be too rattled by her mount that was making his own path around the ring.

These are my remaining 4 horses to place, keeping in mind, it's a pleasure class. I think the skinny propect is, at this stage of his development, not a pleasure to ride and is excessively fast. They'll be good in the future but right now, all he can beat out is the crow hopping gray horse that I really wish would leave the ring. He had a few breaks at the canter and the pace went up and down depending on whether there was something for the horse to look at or not. I don't see volatilility and there's a lot of willingness on part of the rider and horse. Okay, he goes above the unruly gray horse but won't beat out anyone else in the ring.... I have my 7th place.

Just a note - This show only pinned through 6th place but having only 8 in the class, I'll place them all so as not to discount an opinion for any of them in case they wish to see my cards or ask a question.

Okay, 4th place isn't too hard. The western horse in english tack. Nice manners with a rider working way too hard for a pleasure class but nonetheless better than the 'breaking gait' walker, the 'funny fat mile a minute' pony and definitely over the skinny OTTB and gray crash about to happen horse.

Now what to do with the gaited and the tiny pony? Does speed and slightly bad manners (remember the small pony may have humped his way from the trot to the canter but was almost taken out by the gray crash waiting to happen without so much as a laid back ear, so the manners were not that bad). Hmmm, oh my, better make a command decision and be done with it. Breaking gait vs. speeding pony, breaking gait, speeding pony, break, speed.....I don't like speed especially in a pleasure class but this is a tiny pony in a ring with horses upwards of 16hh +. Breaking gait is a major fault but I believe this rider to be new to side saddle and therefore not keeping the horse in gait allowing him to drop down.

Wow, how long have I had them at the trot? Better call for the walk and line up.

Although breaking gait is a major fault, excessive speed should be weighted more heavily in any pleasure class also a major fault. So along with his speed and little hump backed canter departures, little pony gets the green with pink going to the side saddle walker.

As they exit the ring, there are so many things I would like to tell them. I sure hope that little girl on the little pony gets a chance to ride a really nice pony, just once. I applaud the side saddle rider for keeping the discipline alive while learning on a gaited horse that was highly suitable. I want the western horse in english tack to do well in western and the rider not to wear make up .... oh and get a helmet with a harness. It's not a fashion statement, it's a safety device. I want to tell the tall, dark and handsome winning horse that he is gorgeous and I would love to see them over fences. I want to tell the gray crow hopper to please go home and practice. Go out to some venues without showing as you are dangerous to other riders and you can get experience without going in the ring. Oh and please don't over ride that OTTB. He needs some down time off the track to grow, be a horse and by all means, eat. He looks like he's lost his muscling from the track but hasn't settled enough off his high protein diet to start gaining some weight. Go slow and be as willing to him as he appears to be to you, OTTB rider. Tween Suzie on the gray, keep up the good work. Hope to see you popping little jumps in short stirrup. Saddle seat chestnut with the 2nd place..... if you relax a bit and let your horse do what he has obviously mastered, you may have won this class. Go to lots of shows and then you'll relax and your horse can win in the collision of disciplines pleasure class!

I would like to have made those my notes on the card but I'm not conducting a clinic. I'm judging a show and with that, the next class is called in to the ring.

How many minutes ticked by? All of those thoughts and more ran through my head in probably five minutes of this class. Keep in mind, I'm writing in symbols and short hand without looking pretty much the whole time this class was floating and hopping around the ring. That's judging. Factor in some rather unseasonably cool breezes and cold coffee and that was my Saturday.

Yesterday's Comment is Today's Post

2009-10-20T07:00:00.000-07:00

One comment from yesterday I'm making the topic of today's post. If you didn't read it, .....

"You've covered how you feel about the rider's look, and the tack used on the horse, but I'm curious if any thought is given to the look of the horse in the class.

Where I used to show in my youth, you didn't dare show up without trimming your horse's fetlocks, ears, bridle path, and muzzle, or with a dirty horse. Basically, your horse was spotless.
Where I show these days, at least in the open shows, people pull their horses out of the pasture and haul to the show for a day of fun. Some of the horses are muddy and hairy, and it is quite obvious that no effort was made to groom the horses in preparation for the show."

Absolutely the horses turnout condition is taken into account where appropriate. Halter: judged on the conformation of the horse, sometimes includes color and / or pattern of coat but is heavily weighted on conformation. An ill groomed horse will downplay his attributes in the ring. If the coat isn't shiny and giving the appearance of health, that will detract. Consciously or subconciously, it will come into play. Grooming of the horse can actually shape it's appearance, enhance conformation flaws and distract them also. If your horse has a nice even topline with great proportions poll to wither, wither to hip but the mane is long and not drawn up in some manner of presentation, your horse may appear to have a shorter neck. A thick mane in the middle may give the appearance of a cresty neck which can indicate that he's out of shape or not in proportion to the standard of the breed he is representing. Grooming to enhance & downplay your horses' best and worst, is an art form. I will notice long toes even if they are painted with hoof polish and it, more often than not, will hinder your horses' ability to perform pivots in hand and under saddle.

Unless everyone at the show, shows up with no apparent preparation, your horse' turnout will definitely play a part. For one, a horse that is just caught up out of the field with no grooming and such, will most likely show that he/she hasn't been working for the classes under saddle either.

"I would expect a horse in this condition to be marked down in showmanship, but what about other classes? Would you give preference to the groomed horse? What about horses that are too thin?"

In horsemanship if the best rider that executes a pattern or works the best on the rail but has the dirtiest horse, they will still win. It is doubtful though, that someone who works and practices their riding prowess, is not going to pay attention to their horse' turnout. But if this turns out to be the case, the best rider takes the blue.
In pleasure if the best horse has engaged his hocks, is moving straight and light under the rider, has the best movement overall with true gaits, he will win without me taking into account that he has muddy hocks. Again, those that work and practice to win in a pleasure class are most likely to show up ready to go as will their horse.

I would hate to think that an exhibitor left a show thinking that the judge pinned a clean horse with poor conformation over a dirty but highly correct horse just because of coat polish, face oil, baby powder and black hooves. Those exhibitor's who gussy up their standardbred / welsh / shire cross that has the movement of a sewing machine with a needle stuck in leather, are trying to play up what few good conformation points that their horse possesses. It doesn't mean they should win if a beautifully built, natural moving quarter horse comes in looking like something just caught by a BLM helicopter round up in the dusty red rock valley unless the class is grooming and conditioning or showmanship. Then again, showmanship has a lot of other criteria i.e. execution of the pattern, presentation in the inspection, etc.

I split ties using the smallest of nit picks. There are always those tiny little flaws no one else may see. A halt that was a bit too short; a bobble on the backing steps; a shoulder dragging transition....something. There is always something, however slight, that will give me my order to place. When I pin a class, I know that if asked, I could give detailed reason as to why I placed how I placed and no, I was not on a 4H judging team.

If I have two horses that I just cannot decide who is first and who is second because they are both good movers, well built, with suitable riders who are showing them to there highest of abilities, what would I do?

I would split a tie using turnout as a mitigating factor only if I could not find any tiny flaw in 2 riders' pattern and rail work. Turnout of the horse does reflect on a rider and therefore I would give very low weight but consider the horses' turnout if everything were equal. I would like to think every judge could give good reasons if asked about their placings with reference only to the rules and expectations of the class (i.e. pleasure, halter, horsemanship, etc).

I wish I spoke for all judges but unfortunately, I have double judged with a judge who did take fancy clothes and silver things into account when placing. Those judges do exist. I suggest you be proactive with your chosen show series or club and try to find a resource list with fair and knowledgable judges.

I just noticed I left out the thin horse question. By thin, I assume that you mean, underweight. Working horses can be fit and may appear a bit thin but their condition is usually well defined by their performance and muscle. Now the underweight horse will never pin over a nicely kept but possibly poorly conformed horse. In this case, the lesser endowed horse would win over the underweight horse. Again, being underweight, can and will define the outline for that horses' conformation so it's most likely not going to come down to a well conformed underweight horse tied with a nicely conditioned but poorly built horse. If in fact, it came to that, the healtheir horse will win even if it's covered with mud and the exhibitor wore a burlap toga.

I hope that covers the question you asked. Please feel free to comment and ask for further clarification if I left something out. I am not a trained writer and therefore sometimes my thoughts do not come out the same on paper or monitor in this case.

Hava great day....the weekend is coming up....are you ready for the show?

Bling it on!

2009-10-19T14:00:00.000-07:00

Again, a million topics to post on went through my head this weekend. Again, I did not jot the ideas down but this one just crept into my thoughts and I think everyone, exhibitors and judges, has an opinion. This is mine.

Attire in the Western Show Ring
I'm asked all the time what I think of the amount of silver on saddles, halters and bridles. Many times I am within earshot, most likely on purpose, of people making comments about so and so's glossy lambskin and rhinestone outfit, gawdy and otherwise. Whether anyone believes or not, I do not judge a HORSE show as a beauty pagent. Unless you are wearing flannel pajamas, I am not staring at your attire. I do not care if you look like an easter egg or a bland dinner salad. Truly I am judging what I need to judge. Whether it is the conformation of your horse, your horsemanship and execution of a pattern or the movement of your horse for pleasure riding.
There are some tricks to make yourself and your horse hide or enhance specific areas. As we all know, dark colors can shed a few pounds for people. If you don't have the quietest hand, I'd say leave off the french cuffs. If your horse has a really nice looking face and expression, don't use the widest, heaviest silver donned halter you can afford.
I do get offended when I hear comments like, the judge pinned by the amount of silver on the saddles. Or, Ann had custom glossy smooth lambskin chaps with a matching shirt and little Suzie only had a plaid cotton shirt & jeans, so that's why Ann won. Give me a break! I can't even tell you what someone was wearing if it was a pleasure class. I can tell you who schooled too much in the class. See-sawing the reins and staring at the back of their horse' head looking as far from having a pleasurable ride as driving down a dirt road in a car with no shocks.
If you are riding an individual horsemanship pattern, I can tell you who knows the difference between an oval and a circle but most likely, I cannot tell you whether they wore chaps or not. Your attire is not what is on my mind even as I look to see the effectiveness of your aids and your position over your leg.
If you are wearing something so loud and so gawdy that it draws my attention to you, you better know how to ride! I look at everyone who comes into the ring. I may only look at a green unsuitable pleasure mount moving like it's in the starter shoot to run down a steer once to catch the exhibitor number but I will look at everyone.
I have to say, too much will draw attention but it will probably not be the attention you want. The most extreme example of too much that I have come across was at a western mixed class show. There was a woman who had a very nice horse which placed well in pleasure classes but it was very hard to see her horse. Why? She wore a cowboy hat that was completely adorned on the underside of the brim with rhinestones and there was a tiara around the crown of the hat.
When the show was over and I saw the woman at her trailer, I couldn't resist. I went over to her and asked what the hat was about. She said, she always wore that hat because she couldn't afford the silver saddles and crystals custom show clothing. I replied that she had a nice moving, suitable horse to ride, she only needed to meet the show attire minimum requirements. She asked me if the hat had helped her be seen and I said no, it kept my eye above your nice horse. Honestly, I don't know how she saw out from under that brim. It was blinding! Had she taken it off and held it towards the sun, a huge fireball would have pelted out and blinded me! She told that the hat did what she thought.....get her attention and she would continue wearing it. It had become lucky to her.
I think if she qualified and won a high point award from that series, that they buy her a hat in leiu of a trophy.
You can wear it but it doesn't make you a better rider. If you want to stand out, train your horse, practice your riding and you will stand out. If you want a lot of silver tack and crystalized outfits, that's fine. But you better have something to show if you really want everyone looking at you! So bring on the bling! Unless it blinds me, it won't change my decision and I doubt it sways any other judges' minds either.
Oh and next time you place or think someone else placed because of glitzy silver and AB rhinestones, ask your show secretary, manager, steward or whomever is halfway in charge of your show to please ask the judge for a moment of their time. I think you'll find out that no one else' tack or attire was the reason for the placings.

The above picture on today's post is from the 2006 American Paint Horse Association Vegas Horse Show. Ms. Thompson, the rider in the picture was riding in the gambler trail class. Her outfit was used as an example of extreme outfits but was perfectly appropriate for the venue and class she was riding. I thought ya'll might enjoy seeing it.

The Judge Did Not Get Top Call....

2009-10-16T15:41:00.000-07:00

What do you do when you want to cancel a horse show and it isn't for weather conditions? Managers work hard and plan everything for a horse show only to have it come to the entry closing date with only 4 entries. Maybe it's the economy, maybe they didn't plan it well enough in accordance to conflicting shows within the area, maybe they need to revamp their divisions or restrictions to widen their clientele range.
So, they put out the word. Posting cancellations on their websites, online calendar sites and send out the word in their email lists. It's hard to cancel a show when it isn't for obvious reasons like a typhoon or a blizzard. But I would like to offer this tip to all show managers when cancelling a horse show. Ad this to your checklist for cancelling.

CALL THE JUDGE

Yes, I showed up to judge a show on a very nice spring day. I had been booked for that show almost a year in advance. It was an annual show that was well attended from what I knew and had heard. Even if I had 24 hour notice, that is better than nothing. Sometimes I think because they have signed a contract with the judge to protect themselves from a no notice no show, they think that if the SHOW is cancelled, the judge will still require payment, partial or full, depending on contract requirements. Personally, I would not require any payment regardless of what a contract says, if I get at least 24 hour notification and depending on the circumstances, may waive fees even if it's less than a 24 hour cancellation. This particular show manager, did not even offer to compensate me for gas for driving to the show. I drove 210 miles round trip.
When I arrived at the show, the manager sort of hid from me, sending a child volunteer out to tell me they were just there picking up things from the showgrounds. I asked to speak with the manager and was told she was busy. HUH?????? So am I!!! I'm SUPPOSED to be judging a show!!
Finally with some pushing, I found the manager. I told her my mileage to the show and it seems I should at least be compensated for the gas to get there and that was being generous. Many judges' in this situation would demand payment in full.

So today's post is actually my venting after a few months of stewing about this particular show manager. I see where the show is being planned again for next season and they are already begging for sponsor money and have posted the judge they have booked. I would love to contact that judge to tell them my experience and to be wary but then I don't want to cause bad blood. It seems their returning clientele were not loyal to them last year and I don't want to sabotage any plans for their attendance in the future. Besides, every judge has to learn for themselves I suppose.

Blessings to all showing this weekend!

Send me a picture and I'll critique it in the fairest manner possible. Maybe that could be my next post!

2009-10-13T04:08:00.000-07:00

Photo Submission - Description from rider - In this picture, my horse, a 13 year old off the track thoroughbred, and I are schooling a fairly difficult grid for him. It was 3 trot poles to 3 bounce x-rails to a one stride 2'6" vertical to a two stride 3' vertical to a three stride 3'6" oxer. All strides were set a little short for him to encourage him to get a little deep and have to round a bit over the fences. He is very much a long and flat kind of jumper. The eventual goal was to compete at USPC Show Jumping Championships. The picture was taken in March while it was still a bit cold here so please excuse the extremely informal attire on my part and Jazz's slightly less than gleaming winter coat. katieandjazz.blogspot.com

is it okay to post the picture with your description (below) along with the critique on the blog? I just wanted to be sure about that before I posted. Thanx~!

Most definitely! Feel free to edit it or whatever if you think it would read better/be easier to understand.

I added the email dialogue so everyone would know I have permission from the rider to post the picture and her description of the work being done in the photo.
So that said, attire is not an issue, nor turnout of the horse. I was very happy to see an auto release. This type of release just isn't being taught these days and it is so much more efficient especially when working through some tough gymnastics. I'm so tired of seeing upper level hunters and riders using half crest and even full crest releases. So I commend the rider for having such a nice hand and auto release. Following well as you can see the straight line from the bit to the elbow. Her rein is merely an extension of her arm. I can see a little slack in the rein. Just a slightly shorter rein and you could have brought your arm a little more forward and not test your center of gravity to the nth degree. As with any release, you need to keep those thumbs up. Although your hand is showing towards an angle downward, it is not enough to keep your elbows in, which is why when you look at the photo, the elbow draws your eye to it. Ideally your hand should be parallel to the horses shoulder angle as seen from the saddle. When you are mounted, turning your thumbs up is fine for full & half crest release riders but the most efficient for auto release is to keep the hands apart the width of the neck and look down at your horses' shoulder. Position the hand with thumbs turning up and carry your hand parallel to the downward angle of the shoulder. It is so efficient and nice to see this technique in hunters or jumpers. By using the auto release you simply keep your hand following the motion of the horse and your horse is able to stay easily between your hands. Can you tell I really am partial to old school and the auto release? Well, it's not really old school. It's still the release that should be taught but I believe that as competition has evolved into something geared more towards a 'get it done now' attitude, it just isn't taught. You should be able to watch any national level medal rider come out and use the auto release on course and now time just isn't taken to do that. SO, I commend your use of the auto release, just shorten up a little on the rein so as to keep contact at all times over the fence. Get your hand parallel to the neck with thumbs on the up side.
Nice leg, right at the girth. You're neither falling behind or forward of the motion. The only tiny nitpick here which if it wasn't a still shot, I probably wouldn't notice is that it seems your iron is slightly forward of the ball of your foot. Not a huge problem but it has kept your upper body very conservative within the hip angle. For this kind of gymnastic work, you need the utmost of security and I would like to see you close that hip angle a bit more but I think I am seeing the correllation with the center of gravity due to the iron being set a tad forward.
Shoulders back and open..... I love it! A keen eye with chin up.....I love it! Freeing up your horses' back to work and show such a nice bascule off the departure is really nice.
Now I didn't see the approach but with regards to your horse not being square behind on departure.....and this is purely speculation... but it could stem from not having held medium contact in the rein to the fence. If you were not able to sit a stride into the base of departure in order to keep contact through legs, seat and hands, your horse can lose a tad of balance compensating, and come off with a less than square departure. Remember to ride the back end of the horse. Get used to knowing where the hind legs are in reference to your stride and departure.
Now I know some of this seems intricate, but being a picture of perfection means being an efficient, handy rider able to use small subtle aids to optimize their mounts best attributes. Sometimes I see trainers and parents only worried about the presentation if it's a hunter judged class. If it's equitation, they don't always understand that unless you are using yourself AND your horse to max efficiency, you are not the best eq rider.
That's why you'll see at upper levels of equitation, horses that are specialized as equitation horses. Just as stock horses are specialized for halter, pleasure, trail and what not, so are hunters. Not all good show hunters are good equitation horses and not all equitation horses are good show hunters. Jumpers is a whole different 'animal' and rarely is a horse good in the jumper ring and good in the hunter ring although a handy jumper can make a very nice equitation horse.
If you see everything in my critique seems directly related to what is going on in the picture, then you are ready to start adding the small details to finesse your equitation, thereby bringing out the best in your horse. If you don't, please feel free to ask for clarification.
Overall, this appears to be a nicely paired horse and rider working well within their abilities. If the rider tightens up their equitation a bit, the horse may also be tighter and more confident in the legs, giving a picture of more symmetry.
I'd also like to ask that no ill comments be left or I will have to moderate them. I was worried about doing individual critiques, but if we all play by the rules and understand this is for positive constructive opinion, use tact and diplomacy, it should be just fine.
Thanx for your submission and I hope my critique will help you. I mean not to offend you in any way and if you've a need for me to clarify anything I've said, feel free to ask.

Photo Critiques

2009-10-07T06:34:00.000-07:00

Okay, I said in the beginning of this blog, I wouldn't do individual critiques. I have had a couple of requests to do them so I will but here's a few ground rules and things to remember.

I am only one judge with only my opinion and interpretation of the rules.
I do not fancy myself as great as George Morris who does these in a regular column in Practical Horseman Magazine
I can only judge what is presented in the photo. I have no knowledge of what happens when the camera is not on nor do I know how long one has been riding, what level of training they are at or any knowledge of you mounts. Just what is in the photo is all I can comment on.
I would like if you comment on any of the posts that include a picture and critique, that your comments be constructive. If you see something wrong and comment on it, also include a solution to what may be wrong. No rider or horse bashing please.
Send your photo or video link to flyinghorse2@cfl.rr.com with a short synopsis of the class you're riding if it's at a show or what you are working on if it's a schooling shot and what I'm critiquing.... rider, mount or both.
Keep it civil and I think maybe we can all learn something new.

Here's Your Sign!!

2009-10-05T06:16:00.000-07:00

This is a post, I've been meaning to put out here but kept forgetting. I have seen several times, believe it or not, horses being shown with advertising on them. Once, when I called out a horse with a political candidates bumper sticker on it's flank, the mother of the rider told me her daughter recieved sponsor money in exchange for suiting her horse up with a bumper sticker. That is not acceptable 'equipment' for any ring. If you have a sponsor, let them know you cannot and should not do that. If you are lucky enough to get a sponsor of some sort, make sure you tell them you will pass out their business card, put a magnetic sign on your trailer, wear their t-shirt over your show shirt when NOT mounted, but no way will your horse wear a bumper sticker or the like. It's tacky, it's lame and I hope your candidates' sticker falls off and gets pooped on!
This is another one I've seen and although I've thought of it once in a while, I would never do it...... shaving or stenciling FOR SALE anywhere on your horse. Just don't. Ask the show to announce it when you go into the ring for your round; hang a sign on your trailer; post a flyer in the restroom of the show facility but don't humiliate your horse that way and draw attention you may NOT want.
Here's Your Sign...
FOR SALE, this horse that just swapped leads in front of fence 4 and cross fired his canter on the first change of direction.
FOR SALE, this lovely western pleasure horse with fantastic gaits, spooking at the garbage barrel.

Jumper Courses For Open Shows

2009-10-05T05:53:00.000-07:00

A few posts ago, someone asked about jumper courses for an open show. Here are 2 courses showing optional jump offs if they are needed depending on the rule used for that class. I also don't know if the show has timers or uses a marker and stopwatch so I didn't go moving the start/finish lines in the jump offs. The only fence that I would say should require an oxer (I know it uses more standards but ...), on course A, fence 8b and I would also make fence 2 a narrow. Set jumps 4, 5 and 6 with at least 5 strides and also 5 strides at least between fence 10 and 11.

This course shows the jumps still in the same position and slight movement for the start finish unless you just use the width of the ring with timers or markers & stopwatch. There is an option for a jump off depending on what rule you use for this course. This course also uses the jumps going in the same direction as course A except for fence 10 is jumped in the opposite direction. That is an invaluable time saver when setting up a course. With only one jump needing to be a 2 way directional, it's obvious that it would be a simple vertical.

Now, I am not a jumper course designer and these are only suggested courses based on a long history of experience in the jumper ring and also from building courses at a bazillion horse shows. With non sanctioned, schooling shows, you can modify things to fit your course or ring requirements. If your ring dimensions are more square or more narrow, or have a low spot, whatever, make sure you adjust the course to maximize the space you have to set up. Also take in consideration what standards, poles, panels, post standards for oxers, etc, you have to use for a course. After you set up a course, walk it. Walk it again and check all the lines approaching and departing a fence. Then have someone ride it before opening the course to your exhibitors. Get feedback and make any adjustments you need to before allowing exhibitors on the course. I also firmly believe that a jumper course should be opened for walking and then also opened to schooling riders' with supervision of course. At sanctioned USEF shows, you can only walk the jumper courses and they are never allowed to be schooled while mounted. But, we're talking about open, schooling, non sanctioned shows. There is a difference and trying to push rated show rules onto exhibitors that may not ever go to a rated show, is a bit much. Give everyone a fighting chance to school at your open schooling show and things will be much safer and more fun.
My intention with these courses is to show that a course (1) can be built with little or no movement of the start - finish lines between courses; (2) to show that you can have variety between courses without moving jumps; (3) to show you can have variety with very few fences needing to be jumped in both directions.
I may even post some hunter courses coming up soon as I am really getting tired of the same old figure 8. It seems that there are many good intentioned volunteers working for local clubs, 4H, etc, that use the same old outside, inside, outside, inside figure 8 hunter course most likely because that's the only one they know or think they can use. As a rider you should get a little bit of challenge, even at a schooling show.

The Show Must Go On

2009-10-02T11:04:00.000-07:00

When are you ready to show vs. when you are ready to show

Here is a snippet from an email I recently recieved....

I love the idea of your blog on judging. ......I felt early on that my instructor pushed me into showing..........I now realize I should have said no because I was inexperienced, nervous and the whole thing sent me backwards and not forward......there is a difference between a challenge and getting frustrated. So, I just said no to showing. .....

.....when are you ready to show and what someone should expect from their instructor. PS I have been volunteering .....and have learned a great deal from listening to the judges. It is a tough job.....

Well, this is better answered by instructors who coach at the shows so I hope I get some comments from them here also. I have coached students at many horse shows. Probably through a couple dozen different disciplines, styles and governing organizations, including IHSA (collegiate), USEF, AQHA, VHSA, 4-H and some really odd local show clubs as well. So I'll tell you my opinion on this and those instructors out there, please feel free to chime in. Your ideas may very well outweigh mine by a mile!

When are you ready to show? Well, it should be when YOU are ready to show. Okay, confusing a little but there are some things you can do to help you decide IF you want to show and IF you are ready to show. Your instructor can point you in certain directions but doing some prep work on your own will help you acclimate to the show enviroment.

Find a local show: ask your trainer, visit your local feed or tack shops for flyers, ask a friend who rides
Go to the show just to watch. Take note on what the attire and tack in use are and make sure to pick up local rules, entry forms and any other information they're offerring. Ask any questions that day so when you come back you are more prepared.
Take your horse to the show facility on a day they do not have a show. If this option is available, it is invaluable to being able to assess your horse' concerns about the facility and get knowledge of the layout on horseback.
If possible take your horse to the show on show day with no intentions of showing. It gets you both in the enviroment and you can address any issues your horse may have that day. It's fun to be there and there's no pressure.

So you've found the venue, local horse show series, visited on foot during the show, returned with your horse on off days (if that option is available).... you're next step is to talk to your instructor and make sure she coaches at that facility. Find out if anyone else from your barn shows at your chosen series. Even if you're in the same division competing against one another, you'll most likely find that they are happy to befriend you and even help you at the show.

If you get to the show, on show day, with your horse and for some reason, don't find it fun albeit a bit jittery....... scratch. If it makes you sick to your stomache, gives you a headache, raises your blood pressure or you feel any symptoms of anxiety, just scratch. You don't have to show to ride a horse. It's just an outlet for some on many different levels. Don't look at showing as though you have to move up through the levels and get better and better. I've seen some adults show in 2' divisions or walk/jog on the same horse for years and they are quite content to stay at that level. Don't look at showing like you have to not only climb the levels of the local circuit but go on to rated USEF or breed shows (i.e. AQHA, APHA, etc). You may very well be inspired to climb through the levels and find you love the comraderie of the competition. Or you may show for a series or even one show and be content having done it at least once.

What to expect from your trainer? Well, make sure you observe their style of coaching in the show enviroment. If you have a jeckle n hyde type instructor (they teach lessons like a lamb and go out to shows like a lion), find a friend at your barn or elsewhere, with show experience and ask them to take you. I don't advocate going around or over your trainer's advice but quite frankly I've witnessed some real nasty 'coaching' at shows even from some very big name trainers. If 'get your head out of your butt' is part of their coaching advice at a show, don't show with them. Trainers, instructors and even parents who tend to get mouthy at the shows, in my opinion, are a direct safety hazard. They rattle their students and invoke emotions that keep the riders' focus completely off the task at hand.

I would love to hear from some other instructors or students experiences to help this reader out! I love showing and as a judge I am keenly aware of what I say to any exhibitors at a show. I'm not going to insult little Suzie Q's equitation when she bounds over to me on a break to ask 'what did i do wrong?' I'm going to tell her what she did right and maybe add some subtle hints on improving her worst fault....instead of your hands were all over the place, say work on keeping your hands from posting with you when you trot. I want to see little Suzie Q continue showing. For me and many others, the show enviroment is like going home to a warm bed with your grandmothers' afghan every so often. But then again, you may have had a hateful old bat for a grandmother and your old home is now a freeway! LOL!

Waltzing In The Ring For Halter

2009-09-30T06:26:00.000-07:00

Today I wanted to throw out a post on a subject that I ask other judge's all the time and end up with as many different answers. It really comes down to preference and that's it. The showmanship 'dance' in halter classes. I'm not talking about the dance for showmanship but using that dance in halter classes.
In halter classes, I find the dance rather annoying. If you exhibit a horse in a halter class, your job as the handler is to make sure the horse is presented in it's best position.....and then stay out of the way so as not to obstruct a judges' view of the horse. The judge needs to see a complete picture and by casually using the half method (staying on the same side as the judge), that is quite enough of the dance without being a distraction. When you are animating your steps, holding the lead like you're serving tea, faking a smile from ear to ear, changing sides every few steps, you're just a distraction and I may even have to hunt down your exhibitor number because you've been dancing too fast for me to catch it.
So my preference for halter, is that you focus more attention on setting up your horse and doing what you need for that horse to look it's best. Stretching the neck up, down, whatever is best for your horse; getting the ears pricked up; keeping them from falling asleep, etc are things you can do while keeping the judge in your peripheral vision. Stay on the same side as the judge but not obstructing the view of your horse. You need to exhibit your horse safely, yes but doing the showmanship dance in halter is not necessary.

On an extra note when presenting a horse in halter.... general stock horse rules, including 4-H, do require you to walk/jog/trot directly to the judge. The judge will move out of the way or instruct something else if they want a different view. This means, walk/jog/trot the HORSE directly to & away from the judge. NOT YOURSELF. I don't care if you paddle out or have a weak ankle. I want to see how your HORSE tracks & moves. Although you cannot see if your horse is directly at and away from the judge but if you offset yourself left of the judge when presenting, it's a good chance I'll see your horses' movement as opposed to yours.

Top Ten Worst Pet Peeves - Hunter Equitation

2009-09-29T09:20:00.000-07:00

My blog is relatively young and it seems when I'm at a show or doing laundry, I can think of a thousand topics to add. Then I sit down to post something and I draw a blank. I want to keep adding new posts so I can keep readers interested, so please, if you've a topic, email me. Flyinghorse2@cfl.rr.com

Top Ten Worst Pet Peeves - Hunter Equitation
These are just my preferences and do not in any way mean that the judge you show in front of, will feel the same way. That's why judging hunters and hunter equitation is so subjective. Of course your performance will count immensely but if it comes down to one tiny fault against another who has a better turnout, the tiny fault with the better turnout will take top call!

1. Gloves - I don't care if they are the cotton pimple grip cheapies, wear gloves.

2. Jackets - Even when jackets are waived for heat, jackets are still most proper in the equitation rounds, wear it! Put it on just before you enter and rip it off after your class is finished. It's only a couple of minutes. Oh and make sure it fits. Hunt coats should ride just above or at the hip. You should not be sitting on it when mounted and when you try one on, stretch your arms out in front of you at shoulder level. Do the sleeves come halfway up to your elbow? Then the sleeves are too short. The coat is too look good while your riding, not while your standing in line at the concessionaire. Oh and if your mother tells you a blazer is the same thing, it's not and you will feel out of place if you wear one.

3. Shirt Sleeves - If you do decide not to wear a jacket, it is proper to have long sleeves. You take a short sleeve or sleeveless shirt to wear in hunter, pleasure, etc rounds and change into your long sleeve just for equitation. Western riders change complete outfits frequently for different classes. Hunter riders should think of doing the same.

4. Crops or bats. Not in equitation please. If your horse requires the use of a crop or bat, it is not ready for equitation. Spurs are fine and will help mask leg cues but crops/bats and usually used incorrectly forward of the girth.

5. Dirty boots. If nothing else is available, ask someone to wet a rag and at least dust them off. I don't ever notice anyone's boots unless they are dull & dirty.

6. Hair nets. Use them. Practice putting your hair up even if you have short hair, it will keep strays from flying around your head like a bee. Oh and please use the correct color. A dark net on blond hair is annoying.

7. Leg protection for your horse. It is acceptable for your horse to wear splint boots, heidi boots, open fronts, etc for equitation. Pink polos are a definite no-no as are purple glitter bell boots. Leave the spastic colors for home schooling. Try to get a color as close to your horse' leg color as possible so the leg protection is not a distraction.

8. Jewelry. Don't wear it. If you have small post earrings or a watch, that's fine. I've seen everything from dangling earrings to facial adornments and not only is it improper, it is unsafe.

9. Breeches. I don't notice if your breeches are side zipped tailored sportsman or hundred year old Harry Hall's that everyone in your barn has passed down. As long as they fit, I don't even notice such things. It's when they are skin tight, I cringe. Pass them along to the next smaller person and get a new pair.

10. No make up. When you sweat, it looks like your face is melting. I know that many who show in breed shows wear makeup in the ring but to me, it just is out of place.

I'm Dizzy, Where's My Box of Wine?

2009-09-25T17:46:00.000-07:00

I had to let this one out!! I went to judge a small open hunter show which was a fundraising event for a 4-H club. The kids of the club were left to run the entire show. I was told it was to give them experience and it was their club's money to use towards going to their district show next year. Well, that's all well and good but really kids cannot learn things unless they are taught. No adults stepped in during the many flusters and clusters of the day but I was all too busy on the walkie talkie. I even passed out ribbons at one point. I don't mind helping out but you cannot expect your judge to take on extra duties at your show.

So anyway, the beginner classes were all morning and then I noticed this course was posted for the crossrails and up to 2'6" hunter division. You were supposed to ride this same course for both rounds over fences and then ride the course again for the equitation rounds. HUH???? They said that was so people could improve each round because they already knew the course. HUH???? This wasn't a course. The jumps were nothing but post and rail so a 2'6" fence looked like 4' and even the crossrails looked lonely and unattractive. Please, some branches off a tree, some fake flowers stuck in them and poof, you have fill! Buy a few pickets and 2x4 and make some wings for your jumps.Trim your shrubbery at home and bring the clippings to the show if you have no other fill. I mean really? Really!!

There is no change of direction in this course to start with and I would think a horse would get dizzy!! Then there's the "jump it twice in each round" fence. What happens when someone knocks a rail on fence 3 and then has to come back to it (from a horrifically sharp angle) to jump fence 6 and there is no rail? There were plenty of those rounds and they told me that if it wasn't reset before the rider came back around again, just score it as if it were a ground pole. Well, that isn't quite fair to those that had come off that sharp angle and it was reset so they had to jump it again.

The classes were only $7 and I had given them a 50% discount because they were 4H. Those associated with the club thought it was great.....why? No flying changes? HUH????? I tried to refuse the course and was going to reset a few angles on the inside and then give it at least a decent chance but the one time the adults stepped in was when the club kids got grouchy about my idea. Okay, I let it go but if anyone was having unsafe rounds due to the course, I was changing it! Unsafe, due to ponies and horse not ready to even trot poles on the ground, which they left alot of, was not of my concern.

I'm booked for one more of their shows in a few months.....I may either send them my courses with some fill in ideas or find an excuse to cancel and refer them to someone trying to build some hours for their judging resume. Here's the course in question.......I wouldn't have ridden it and I can tell you watching every entry ride it three times, really tried my patience. I think I was just so damn dizzy, after the 32nd round, I couldn't see straight anyhow!

I think if you click on the course, it'll come up in all it's hideous glory. And yes, the ring was narrow and oval. I bet it wasn't 125 feet across and maybe 200 feet long......HUH????? The outside lines had no rhyme or reason as for distance so some got lucky with it and most didn't. Now, you be the judge........where's my box of wine!!!

So You Want to be a Horse Show Judge.....

2009-09-24T09:17:00.000-07:00

I have often been asked how do you become a horse show judge by competitors, trainers, parents, young and old. I thought I'd put some starter tips on today's post, since yes, last weekend I was once again asked this question. First of all, you must understand that judging horse shows is much harder work than you might think. A judge does not simply sit in the judge's box or stand in the ring and watch the pretty horses. There are some very definite skills required. Not only do you need to have a good eye from experience riding and showing the discipline you wish to judge but you also have to stay current on rules governing your chosen discipline. Then there must be very accurate and well learned symbols of shorthand that you can go back and recount minutes, hours and even days later, weeks sometimes. Here are some steps that I would see as the best way to progress to judging a horse show on your own.

Go to any show, rated, breed, local, 4-H, sit on the sidelines and judge the classes. Hone your shorthand skills and compare your placing with the sitting judge of the show. Go home and try to 'read' your shorthand notes. If you don't recall something, try making flash cards for your shorthand symbols and practice learning them. Some classes go on for hours; some cards stay open for the entire show. You must be able to go back and recount from your notes, what a particular exhibitor was marked. Even with numerical scoring, you must be able to recall what sets apart a couple of exhibitors who may have both been given a 74. How does split in the placings? If you go back and read their errors, you should be able to pick which 74 score was better.
Ask to apprentice at any and all local horse shows. USEF & Breed shows do not allow this but any show that is 4h, local club, etc should be just fine. Call the show manager/secretary and get their permission while asking for the judges' contact. Call the judge and inform them that you have permission from the show mgr/sec. Ask if they will allow it and any requests they may have of you. Make sure you get permission from the show coordinator AND the judge at least a couple days prior to the show.
Find shows that are online in video for entire classes in your chosen discipline. Practice judging from the video and remember, the judge only gets one view of things so if the camera is fixed in one location for the entire show, that is how the judge may have been able to see. Here's a link to some of the classes that are completely on the video from the Upperville Horse Show You can always note the time on the video and come back later to finish classes. Plus you have the advantage of instant replay, although you lose the advantage of knowing what the sitting judge actually tallied for the final score.
Read some of the good books already in print. If they're out of print, try amazon or ebay.

Horse Show Judging for Beginners: Getting Started as a Horse Show Judge by Hallie McEvoy
Judging Hunters & Hunter Seat Equitation: A Comprehensive Guide for Exhibitors & Judges by Anna Jane White-Mullin
Dressage: A Guideline for Riders & Judges by Wolfgang Niggli
Competing in Western Shows & Events by Charlene Strickland
Any State 4-H horse show and judging guide (Your Local Cooperative Extension 4-H) check the phone book
Judging halter horses (from the top down) by Ken Krieg
The Field Guide to Horses by Samantha Johnson and Daniel Johnson
Storey's Horse-Lover's Encyclopedia: An English & Western A-to-Z Guide by Deborah Burns, Lisa Hiley, and Deb Burns
Search the web for 4H publications. Most are free and downloadable.
Any breed specific and or discipline specific show governing organization rules. Most are free & downloadable.

Attend any clinics and seminars whether you are testing or just auditing. Some very good ones to attend are

Iowa Horse Show Judges Certification Clinic
North Carolina Horse Show Judges Certification Clinic
AQHA Judges Information
APHA Judges Information
USEF Information
USDF Information
FOSH Independent Judges' Association
There are tons more. Just base your search on your breed or discipline specific preference and chances are there is at least a 4-H seminar or clinic in your state. The above are just a few.

Until you can comfortably score and place a class of 12 or more in any chosen discipline specific class or show, don't attempt to bill yourself as a judge. You want to remember that most likely, you are the highest paid (sometimes the only paid) staff at the show; exhibitors are paying for a knowledgable, professional opinion based on breed and/or discipline specific standards; you should be able to recall exhibitor performances from your cards easily as you will be asked constantly at open shows and from the stewards at rated shows, what did I do right/wrong? what can I do better? etc. If you cannot state verbal reasons why you pinned a class in a particular order, then you are not ready to judge on your own.
Judging a show is hard work both mentally and physically. You must be ready for chapped lips, sunburns, cold winds, mosquitoes, rickety chairs, no chair, dusty rings, lousy food, no food, few and far between breaks, big blue plastic potties, cussing & fussing parents, trainers, exhibitors and even sometimes, managers. You need to be able to focus on the class or exhibitor in the ring while distractions constantly try to taunt your attention away from the performance at hand. Sometimes the distractions are accidental, incidental, all the way to the well planned purposeful. You have to be able to ignore being spoken to by one party, while you are attempting to judge someone else in the ring. You cannot stop judging because someone asks you a question, You cannot stop judging to go potty, get something to eat or drink, etc until you coordinate it with show staff. Above & beyond all you need to be able to state your reason based on rules and experience, why you placed classes. You WILL be asked. You can never lose your focus or temper. Local, open, schooling shows with/without pre entry can go on for more than 10 or 12 hours. You must be ready to fulfill your duties without fail, regardless. I'll probably write more posts on this topic but for now, this is becoming almost my own book......Guide to becoming a horse show judge!

Friday Prep

2009-09-18T06:58:00.000-07:00

As another weekend is upon us and another billion shows get ready for their exhibitors, I pack my day bag for 2 open hunter shows. I like to be prepared for anything but if I know the venue(s) I'll be judging at, I pack just for that location. In my bag always

various pens, various colors for my own entertainment and always with rubber grip
chapstick
my own preferred cards for marking rounds
cell phone on vibrate
brimmed hat & emergency visor
cough drops
headache medication of choice, just in case
compact telescoping umbrella (for those venues who provide no shade & rain of course)
small towel for those hot days; can also be used for neck warmer if cold
sketch pad (for shows who allow way too much time for trainer/rider/horse conflicts & lateness)
rule books for the appropriate show (always USEF, AQHA and then as needed APHA, WPSA, etc)
small digital voice recorder - for notes, thoughts, etc
bug spray
high SPF sun blocker
gloves (in case it gets cold)
ear buds and walkie talkie (in case the show doesn't have enough, I need access to the manager, secretary, gate person, etc)
batteries for above
whistle (for jumper classes w/ broken or no buzzer, I'm not using one that the show provides - who knows where it's been)
stopwatch (for jumper classes with broken or no reliable timers & second backup plan)
digital camera for snapping interesting observations of normal, inadequate or outrageous performances in & out of the ring
neck lanyard for holding any issued ID that may be required
and I always check with a website or secretary, for those shows with their own extra rules and descriptions of classes

Seems like a lot? Well it is I suppose but as a judge of many disciplines, traveling through many states, I find it better to be ready for almost anything.
For those going to show this weekend...... do your best; try your hardest; have fun & smile; learn something new; improve on the old; wear your helmet and be safe!!
Show Tip: I always prefer to see gloves worn in equitation classes. It gives a polished look and can detract from your boots if in fact you forgot to polish them!

Courtesy Circles

2009-09-16T07:09:00.000-07:00

Beginning Courtesy Circle Strategy
Courtesy circles are much more than a courtesy. I see all too often, people just simply doing a circle and then getting on with their course strategy. A courtesy circle at the beginning of a hunter course is an opportunity to pick up your intended gait, most likely a canter, and to start setting your pace for the course. It is a fault to pick up the wrong lead but if changed within short order of a stride or two, can be forgiven depending on the rest of the performance. Practice setting up a pace within that circle at home just as you would school other elements to improve your performance. Don't use the courtesy circle at the beginning of a course to school and show your horse the fences. Your horse will not think differently of a fence he went past when approaching it to jump later on. Use this opportunity to set up in gait and focus on pace. Pace is a huge part of riding a good hunter course.

Dotted Line
If you see a dotted line on a course diagram, make sure you do not cross that line when making a circle before or after the course. That is cause for elimination because you were ' off course ' . This is also somewhat discretionary on the judges' part. The dotted line must always have landmarks within the ring such as 'island' displays and/or jumps. Take note if a dotted line is in force or not. Be mindful when starting and ending your course.

Ending Courtesy Circle Strategy
A circle at the end of the course is also a good chance to show off your horse' movement. You should be well in rhythm by the end of the course transition down to a trot for the ending circle. It is a good way to show an open, fluid trot transition. The ending circle, while showing off a distinctive trot, can also show a well conditioned horse who has just finishsed a course with ease. While it is a rule to jog horses for hunter course awards at rated USEF shows, it is not a requirement, usually, at local, unrated shows. So again, another opportunity in the ending circle is to show that your horse just came off the course sound.

My Preference & Perception
I do not like to see riders coming to a walk but continuing to circle at the end of a course. What is the purpose of that? You are judged from the time you enter the ring until you exit while in a class with a course (not a flat class). If you walk out your ending circle, it shows me you or your horse are possibly fatiqued, possibly sore and hints at subtle arogance. As if you're sayiing you rocked the course so well with your impeccably perfect horse, you don't need to show all the way out the gate.

Opposite End of the Ring (Long Approach)
Although you are permitted a circle at the beginning and end of a course, if the first fence of the course is on the far side of the arena from where you enter and coming back to the direction of gate entry, start from the entry point setting up your gait and pace. Then go on to your first fence without circling. So many times you see riders entering the ring, trotting all the way across the arena and then circling in front of the first fence. That is not only a waste of time but if you pick up your gait and start setting a pace from the entry point, it's very impressive. If you pick up your gait and start setting your pace from the point of entry, circling could only prove hazardous by setting your pace back or even breaking gait. The same is true for a course that ends on the opposite end of the ring.

In summary, make every stride from the entry into and out of the ring, a chance to win. It is more useful to pick up your canter and start setting pace in a beginning circle rather than just thinking your circling as a courtesy. Then use the ending circle to show the condition, ease of movement down to the trot and soundness of your horse.

Jane Alone and her trusty steed, One & Only

2009-09-15T06:50:00.000-07:00

Why do some shows hold classes with one entry? Why don't all shows combine classes with less than 3 entries? Holding a class for one entry is a waste of time. Their performance shouldn't count for year end points and barring a DQ, they're going to get a blue ribbon. Some shows will combine and just about all of them have that clause on the prizelist "...management reserves the right to cancel, combine or split....". Unfortunately some of them with their 'own' set of rules a mile long and members who constantly check points, don't exercise that option.
If Children's hunter is 2'6" and has 5 entries and Adult Amateur is 2'6" and has 1 entry, how many entries should be in the amateur hunter class? If you picked six, you're correct! If you asked which amateur class, you need to focus more on your riding skills so you don't fear competition.
Most of the classes are the same. The courses are probably the same. The criteria to enter the divisions are basically the same other than age. The judging criteria will be the same. Just combine them. If the AA pins last in all the classes for that division and whines about not getting separate pinnings, then explain to them that competeing with themselves is not a show....... that is called schooling at home. If a class consistantly has less than 3 entries in your series, then it is not a popular class for your area and I suggest you drop it from future shows. It's a waste of time & money for the show although I consider it break time for the judge. I either practice holding my breath for the big blue closet or draw pictures on my cards. I hardly ever watch Jane Alone mounted on her trusty steed, One & Only. Jane is nuts for ribbons if she rides it. The only place I understand showing in a single entry class is rated and breed shows where points really mean alot more than just a ribbon.

When offerred a job, judging at any venue...

2009-09-14T08:36:00.000-07:00

...... there are things that I consider for comfort value only. After judging tons of shows, I know most all of the venues' good and bad points. Shows pop up everywhere there is an interest. Venues built just for shows, private farms, public stables, hay fields and backyards. One big thing I take into account is the restroom facility. If it's a big blue plastic closet, I know I'll have to go into dehydration mode for that show or book another show. I hate porta potties!
Here's a few suggestions to any shows using porta potties.

Ask your members to waive their year end awards in lieu of a septic and well.
Solicit sponsors and membership from local plumbing contractors; home supply companies that sell plumbing supplies, tractor and excavation equipment rental, well and septic companies, etc. Once you get them in the door as a member, exploit their access to any service or item to build that septic & well. They most likely will not like porta potties either. If they don't ride or have any interest in the horse show business, just ask them for a monetary donation. Make a big deal about helping to promote them to your members (i.e. banners, announcements, printed materials, etc). If $25 is all they'll chip in, take it and find a more generous plumbing supplier. Treat them like royalty and complain alot about the expense of porta potty maintenance and rental fees. If those subtle hints are not enough to nudge them in the right direction, get a bullhorn and just upfront ask for whatever they can do to help get rid of the blue plastic closet.
Charge a dollar usage fee for the plastic blue closet! You could just list your office fee as a porta potty fee. That might also generate future donations to build a real restroom. Even if it has only one toilet, one sink and is unisex. It will inherently increase the club's assets and spectators, exhibitors, volunteers, members, parents and the judges will thank you from the bottom of their ..... uh.....heart.