Scoring the Hunters…. what is an 80 anyway
Have you been watching a show and noticed some riders continue to win and place and others seem to do all right things but never place? Points are important and there could be a one point difference between first and second place.
Don’t throw points away
Judging hunters is not as easy as it looks, as a horse show judge some competitors lose points on simple things which can net you a first place ribbon or championship.
Number 1 thing a horse has to do?
The horse must get to each fence. This means:
- No refusals – Expert Advice to Avoid Refusals
- No popping chipping or hopping – Avoiding that Chip – Exercises to help erase that chip
- No rushing – Avoid the rush – Rushing your fences, can he be cured.
- Must get tot the right spot – Finding the Right Spot
A summary of the scores
Most judges award points or score hunter rounds based on a score of 100. Remember the horse with the best form over fences should win the class. So:
- 90-100 Excellent – good form, gets all the spots and beautiful turnout.
- 80-89 Good to Very Good/or an excellent horse with minor mistakes
- 70-79 Average/or a good horse with minor mistakes –
- 60-69 Poor or a below average performance with minor mistakes, no major faults
- 50-59 One Major Fault: Hind Knockdown, Adding astride in an In & Out
Very bad fence
Dropping a leg
Trotting on course
Cross canter – disunited canter
Wrong Lead - 40-49 Serious Major Fault: Front Knockdown, Refusal, Extremely dangerous jumping
- 30-39 Two or more serious faults
- 10-29 Very Unsafe and dangerous; but avoids elimination
- Elimination
I invite you to send me an email and share your experiences. You know, we all have unique experiences and sharing our stories will improve our showing abilities.
Some Judges do not award a series of points but use a ‘ladder’ system which rates one horse higher/lower than another. Either way, this will give you an idea of how some judges may judge.
Try these three powerful exercises to get strengthen your position.
