As I left balmy Florida to weave my way on planes and trains to Munster, it occurred to me that not even the Germans want to be in Germany in January. Sure enough, it was -10 degrees centigrade and snowing off and on. Well, at least it wasn’t rain sideways.

The occasion was an FEI seminar covering the training and judging of dressage horses, aged 4 to 6. The attending judges could take an exam at the forum’s conclusion, which would allow them to judge the young horse classes in FEI-sanctioned competitions.

Both the method and concept of judging young horses differs a great deal from the way judges normally operate: Three judges officiate together, and they discuss each horse as it performs. Then they give five scores, one for each gait, one for submission and one for overall impression.

After the judges have agreed on the final scores, and before the horse leaves the ring, one judge will give a summary over the microphone to explain to the rider and the spectators how they arrived at the specific numbers. A full set of decimals can be used, which is handy to define exactly where a horse fits in the order of things.

The philosophy of judging young horses differs slightly from our general path as well. There is less emphasis on precision and accuracy. A young horse can be forgiven some tension and shying, and exact riding from point to point is not as important. Instead, even more of the focus is on the training scale and the proper education of the young horse.

What’s being judged is the quality of each basic gait, starting with the rhythm. If all’s well in that department, and the horse is reasonably relaxed, we assess the elasticity, the contact, the suppleness, and straightness or lack thereof.

Finally, we look for the horse’s talent for collection–the tendency to elevate his forehand and shift his weight to the hindquarters while remaining in balance.

In the last two marks, the judges also consider the rideability of the horse, his responsiveness to the aids and willingness to perform what their rider’s asking.

Finally, we take a moment to look into the future and evaluate the horse’s talent and ability as a future dressage prospect. Naturally, the way he’s ridden and presented plays a large part in the last two scores.

All these points have to be discussed and decided while the horse is performing, since the scores are announced immediately following the ride. As you can imagine, three judges, used to making up their minds independent of each other, do not always agree, and things can get interesting in the judge’s box at times. In general, though, all the judges see the same thing, and if not, the compromise usually leads to the correct score.

But the system is very popular with the audiences. They receive instant feedback on the performances, and whether they agree or not, at least they know what the judges were thinking.

Some 80 participants from 16 countries, which included a number of trainers and several breeders, were treated to lectures each morning and live demonstrations in the afternoons for two days. In her usual upbeat manner, Angelica Fromming, a prominent German judge and educator of judges, reminded us that the training scale we follow today is based on the principles of the systematic training program as proposed in the German Reitvorschrift, (Manual of Riding), which saw the light of dawn in 1912. It’s meant as a means of orientation for the riders and a diagnosis for the judges.

Mariette Withages (chairman of the FEI Dressage Committee) and dressage judges Christoff Hess and Dr. Dietrich Plewa guided us through the principles of judging in general and the judging of young horses in particular. One of their points was that the Young Horse Championships shouldn’t be considered an end in themselves, but should serve as a worldwide talent search for dressage prospects. And, of course, it’s also a display window and sales promotion for breeders and trainers.

Our own Dr. Hilary Clayton made a most fascinating presentation of what actually happens when a horse is in motion, making us aware that what our eye observes is not necessarily what occurs. (So much for “judging what you see”!)

It’s impossible to review all Dr. Clayton’s information here, but I will pick a few of my favorites: She showed us how “movement” is created by the horse’s hooves pushing against the ground, and how the direction of the movement is in opposition to this force. In the so-called “stance phase,” the body rolls over the grounded foot, one leg at a time.

Moreover, our obsession with the hind leg may be just a tad exaggerated. Although it is true that the hind legs carry more weight as the training progresses, Dr. Clayton showed that the front legs also push harder on the ground and literally elevate the forehand. The trained horse has a shorter arch in the stance phase of his front legs, which rest shorter on the ground and touch it in a straighter frame.

So, as some of us trainers might have suspected, it’s not all about the hind legs!

Another little gem: We have been carefully taught that in the medium and extended trot, the front foot should land where it’s pointing. In reality, though, the foot hits the ground in front of (farther ahead of) the place where it’s pointing, but our eye just cannot “catch” it.

Whenever we judge horses in hand, we learn that we’re not that well equipped to accurately predict how a horse will move when we view him standing still. Dr. Clayton confirmed some of our suspicions. She showed how smaller angles of the bones in the hip and hock joints make for better compression and faster push off the ground. Those are things we cannot easily assess from watching a live horse, complete with flesh and muscle to disguise the angles of the joints.

The live demonstrations on day 1 took place at the Westphalian Equestrian Association, and we were treated to some wonderful horses, such as the 5-year-old champion Damen Hill, ridden by Ingrid Klimke. Yes, that was a treat! The second day we were at the German National Olympic Training Center to view and discuss another set of youngsters under the leadership of three O-rated judges: Withages, Stephen Clarke of Great Britain and Dr. Dieter Schuele from Germany. The three generously shared their impressions of the horses, which were deliberately of varying quality to enable us to use the entire scale.

FEI officials’ initiative to create a special showcase for our developing horses has already become a success story, and each year the excitement generated by the championships increases worldwide. Polishing the skills of the judges is just one of the facets of the program and certainly one of great importance.