Judges Funny Comments

[OrangeAndLemon]

One seen on facebook advising heavy horse owners to show in heavy horse classes rather than general horse classes. She came 4th in the class and was told her horse was a very unusual colour for a Percheron...she didnt mention to the judge that the horse was a perfectly normal colour for a Suffolk.

 

[npage123]

'Unconventional entry' when my sister panicked at her first ever dressage test and entered as soon as she heard the bell - unfortunately she was just going past B at the time.

Sorry but LOL !!

I hope your sister is able to look back and laugh about that one and are still enjoying dressage

 

[attheponies]

Not showing but got told off for neck reining in a dressage test - have taken up western riding instead!

 

[Bubblewrap]

A few years a go I took our old TB x to a Charity show, after being rung up by a friend who was running it and in a panic about lack of entries. I looked at the schedule and he didn't really fit in any of the classes and then saw Riding Club Horse. Perfect - he's a horse and we do Riding Club!
The judge was a very old man and his comment was "nice horse but in the wrong class!" I said surely as a member of a riding club this was the perfect class, he then shoved the 1st place rosette in my hand, I was the only one in the class, and went off muttering!

 

[dominobrown]

I once got "what a pity your pony was so inattentive to your aids today!" which was a polite way of putting it! As he's called Spook, we also get lots of comments about his name - luckily 90% of he time he doesn't live up to it, albeit that seems to disappoint some judges!

Is he a dark bay ex racehorse by any chance?

 

[Quadro]

Last week, in the hunter/sports horse youngstock class, judge said that my horse did not have enough bone to be a hunter (no she is a sports horse), then went on to say that she wasn't turned out as a hunter (no she is a sports horse....) and they said that hunters should only ever have plaited tails...................

 

[shortstuff99]

If I had that written on a test sheet, I'd lodge a formal complaint.Judges comments are supposed to be constructive- not the sort of thing a gang of 12yr olds would say to each other.

That judge was rather notorious for it! She even came to find me after to tell me again how terrible she thought it was and how dangerous she thought my horse was but banged on the hut window when I finished my test sending my horse careering across the arena to tell me to leave faster? If she thought it was so dangerous why do that???!!! My horse can just decide not to play ball sometimes and I have to finish tests otherwise she can be silly for the next one thinking she can finish early.

 

[Highflinger]

Being told my pony was "the best Dales the judge had seem in a long time "- I was in a Welsh section D.......

 

[tatty_v]

Is he a dark bay ex racehorse by any chance?

Sadly not - he's a very white Connie X! I would LOVE a bay - so much less cleaning!

 

[OldieButGoodie]

Not a judge's comment but a fellow competitor who was showing a pure bred arab. Looks at my connemara and asks "Is he an Arab?"

 

[iknowmyvalue]

Oh so many funny comments from dressage judges (mostly with my first pony, who was a total monkey in the dressage arena! and a few from Rosie who liked to throw some interesting shapes during tests and didn't believe in walk)

"Nice jump over boards!" after pony decided during our canter circle that he'd drop his shoulder, take off down the arena and jump the boards to nap to the gate.

"Inattentive and musical" on a different test, after he spent the entire test going around like a giraffe, completely ignoring me, and calling loudly for an unknown friend (he'd never met any of the other horses there in his life )

"looked rather keen to get on with the XC today" in a test where the dressage was right near the start and warmup for XC, and Ro ploughed through the test like a train and didn't really want to do anything except canter.

Many variations on "patiently/quietly ridden", "well sat", "pony did not make your life easy today"...

From a friend "buck not required at this level"

XC commentaries are also a great source of amusement for my spectators, I never seem to hear them, but I always get told afterwards

With Rosie they were usually a dramatic understatement with something like "a confident jump over..." when she'd throw herself at things and then take off about 2 strides out with a huge and very enthusiastic leap. We also had "making rather speedy progress around the course, we'd like to remind competitors that this is not a race", though that was fair comment, we finished nearly 2mins quicker than the optimum time and I had absolutely no brakes

Henry normally gets comments like "slow progress round the course today" and "well persisted by the rider"

 

[benson21]

My very first dressage test had the comment, 'neither horse or rider should ever consider dressage again'!!

 

[windand rain]

highlands seem to have an identity crisis Hazel was commented on as a bad example of a welsh section B and her daughter a bad example of a welsh section c Both have been in hand champions so not really a bad example of a highland at the end of the day. Dressage score was nice balanced test with great rhythm shame she didnt like the flowerpots (spooked violently at each marker)
ODE dressage judge said "I didnt think you would come back after the first time" she had cleared off at speed from the arena when her young jockey went to apologise after she did it for a second time

 

[Snowfilly]

My very first dressage test had the comment, 'neither horse or rider should ever consider dressage again'!!

That's awful! Guessing there was a hell of a performance behind the comment but what a nasty thing to say.

 

[Hoof_Prints]

"Entered at A, left at C"... a very difficult horse who I bought as a project and kept for myself! Too quirky to sell on he was lovely, but despite schooling to Elementary at home , couldn't get round a prelim without exploding at a competition!

The most interesting one was a 6 for a move I didn't even do, I completely forgot it until the end of the test.

 

[nikicb]

With my old mare at a RC champs..... "rather extended halt at X" - she went down the centre line at the beginning, halted at X, then proceeded to do the longest wee in history. It worked in our favour though as the next 10 horses wouldn't go anywhere near X!

With current mare, Lady Inchcape wrote..... "not being terribly helpful today" - totally true and I love the honesty from a very well respected judge!

 

[Mule]

Not showing but got told off for neck reining in a dressage test - have taken up western riding instead!

Brilliant

 

[Mule]

My very first dressage test had the comment, 'neither horse or rider should ever consider dressage again'!!

That's encouraging:eek3:

 

[Mule]

If I had that written on a test sheet, I'd lodge a formal complaint.Judges comments are supposed to be constructive- not the sort of thing a gang of 12yr olds would say to each other.

Agreed

 

[yhanni]

"Tactfully ridden"!

 

[shanti]

Once at a local show two judges were loudly conferring while we were waiting to be placed. When they came to me the older judge said ''lovely horse, shame about the rider'' I was horrified as everyone heard!. He was right though, I was terribly over-horsed at the time lol.

 

[TwyfordM]

"I would have placed her higher if she hadn't glared at me and given me evil looks for the entire class...."

Unfortunately she has a bad resting b**** face...

 

[Denbob]

This is one of my favourite threads on here! My first dressage test ever (and my boys!) and the judge said "lots of potential - turnout leaves something to be desired"

My first attempt at plaiting ever, and he'd also managed to knock his forelock one out by scratching it with his hind foot while my OH was holding him for me to pee. Still came 5th out of 12 with a respectable 62% though so not a bad first go!

 

[ElectricChampagne]

I love these too.
My best one was when my fella at is very first dressage show, (and our first ever show together, he was only 4 at the time) got wonderfully over excited and forgot about his brakes and took off happily cantering at speed around the arena. Thinking I wouldn't be able to stop him and desperately trying to keep him inside the boards I circled him, and tried to keep smiling. We ended up having to do 2 circles, with his big floppy ears flopping all over the place as he was delighted with himself.

Judge comment was - love the extra circles - nicely controlled, can't give you any marks for them!

 

[Crackerz]

XC commentaries are also a great source of amusement for my spectators, I never seem to hear them, but I always get told afterwards

With Rosie they were usually a dramatic understatement with something like "a confident jump over..." when she'd throw herself at things and then take off about 2 strides out with a huge and very enthusiastic leap. We also had "making rather speedy progress around the course, we'd like to remind competitors that this is not a race", though that was fair comment, we finished nearly 2mins quicker than the optimum time and I had absolutely no brakes

Henry normally gets comments like "slow progress round the course today" and "well persisted by the rider"

This part could be talking about my now retired pony hahahaha!

 

[Crackerz]

Once at an affiliated show:

Judge: 'You know why i had to drop you from 1st to 3rd obviously' (after a foot perfect show and lovely inhand section)
Me: Just looked baffled
Judge 'Well obviously his big splint!'

After class i jump off Frankie Dettori style thinking he had grown a blemish between tacking up and the class, he hadn't, obviously! He was and still is blemish free!

 

[ycbm]

This morning.

I circled ten metres right at G and ten left at D, as I did two weeks ago doing the same test. These should have been between D and X and between X and G but I had learnt the test slightly wrong and the judge last time didn't spot it.

So, I circle 10m left at D and all is fine, circled 10m right at G, right in front of the judge, and the bell rings.

You didn't circle, said the judge. Come up the centre line and do the circle.

I was so banjaxed by her comment that I did what she said, and circled again at G.

Bell rings. She gets out of the booth and comes and says 'you missed the circle'.

This time I said 'I've just done the circle'.

'Well I didn't see it'.

'But I just did a circle left just in front of you..

'Well it should have been between X and D'.

'Oh, you mean I did it in slightly the wrong place?'

'Yes, do it again'

My brain was so scrambled from being told twice that I hadn't done a circle that was feet from the judges box that I then tracked right instead of left, and gave up.

 

[Haphazardhacker]

I remember a show where the judge came in late and was so busy nattering to the steward as we all went inhand across the diagonal that I didn’t want to interrupt and say “good morning” so I just smiled. We’re new to showing and this was a low level riding club show. The judge barely said a word to anyone as we did the individual trot up bit then she placed me right down the line. In the next class we must have had a bit more of her attention as she asked so many questions about her and was really very taken with her and we won, she then asked if we had any other classes coming up as she was a pleasure to watch. I was thinking well no sadly I was in the previous class but you didn’t seem to like her then.

Showing is a baffling discipline sometimes but it’s all we can really do as she has old injuries that wouldn’t stand up to cantering for example so we can’t do much but like to get out and about and to be honest as long as we get out and have fun then what judges say doesn’t really matter to us.