The Eye of the Judge

Your dressage test seen from the eyes of the judge

I used to ride dressage tests in order to gauge my progress in training my horse and myself. I set a goal for myself on what marks I wanted and entered the ring focusing on my horse and what I wanted out of our partnership. Some riders would hum and haw in the warm-up ring about who the judge was. They would say, “she is very stingy with her marks; or she hates me and my horse”. I never really understood why they would say things like that.

For me, the judge was someone who could give me objective comments on my training progress. Someone who helped set a benchmark for the next phase of training. The best judges where those who took the time to add a couple of remarks to each mark they gave throughout the test. These remarks are GOLD nuggets of insight for future training.

I am thrilled to share with you that a very well renowned senior dressage judge from Denmark has agreed to share her view from the judge’s box with us. In a series of blog posts, I will share with you her GOLD nuggets, which I hope will inspire you to attend more shows and learn more on how to become a great rider and trainer of your horse.