So, the trainwreck is at it again, only this time he is taking on the state of judging. It was well known he was unhappy with his scores at the two recognized shows, not scoring above a 46.97% in three different classes between 2 shows (first show 3[SUP]rd[/SUP] and 4[SUP]th[/SUP] level; second show 3[SUP]rd[/SUP] level only).
Well, he has gone beyond his arm-waving, poor me attitude to now openly accusing the judges of corruption and politics in the ring. For those who want to read his latest directly, he had the nerve to actually put this out for all to see: https://nickperonace1.wordpress.com/…ey-effect-you/
“Carpathia (the 16.3h 10yr old Thoroughbred Mare I’ve been working with) competed up to 4th Level Dressage this summer. In our first test together we were at home and performed a musical freestyle to The Star Spangled Banner. It was a beautiful test, complete with a military representative holding The American flag. We scored in the 70’s and I was excited to compete her off the property at a recognized show”
Of course, not mentioning the fact that it was on home property and “judged” by his student who had just started dressage training.
Next he says (paraphrased) that Carpathia was an angel in the warmup but essentially lost it in the ring to distraction and the sound of the sand being kicked up into the plastic arena. He says OK, he was expecting a lower score, 50-52% and was amazed at the “awful” score of 43%. Now, remember, he was riding a fourth level test.
He states:
“Obviously I knew it wasn’t our best ride so I was expecting a low score, probably around 52-50%. Nope I was wrong, we scored a 43. But how could this be? A 43% is awful! Carpathia gave me beautiful Canter Half Pass, Extensions and I thought her Half Pass in trot going to the left was quite exceptional. Having a look at the test sheet, I could tell right away who the main culprit was: politics. My marks were ridiculously unfairly low. I received a 2 because my last halt was not square. I was scored a 3 because she came above the bit looking outside the ring during a Half Pass. The judge marked me down as a 2 because she changed late behind in a flying change. This is politics in the show ring.”
Apparently he never bothered to read the requirements of each movement and how each is scored at the level he believed he was riding.
“Keeping my head up, I courageously went back out into the show ring the very next month. We competed at 3rd Level (a level Carpathia can do blindfolded) and had a nice calm test. She was on point and I was extremely proud. Somewhere between 60-70% I was assuming the score would be. My jaw was on the floor for quite some time when I surprisingly received my score of a 46%. Get %#!* real! How could this be? Again I looked at the score sheet and again I saw unfair low marks, only this time the judge not only marked us down, but made up things that never happened! She wrote that I received a 2 in my Shoulder-In because my horse was throwing her head around. This is a complete lie and I have the video to prove it! She did not in any way throw her head around. She was round and light the entire test.”
The little snippet of vid he posted to “prove” these points was long distance and level low so no one could actually tell what he was riding. He said he got nothing but kind remarks and people assumed he got a high score, when in fact the few comments he received were, while not mean, were more of the "oh, OK’ variety as in “whatever you say Nick.”
However, this is the part that could likely get him into a lot of deep manure with the USDF:
“Then later the next morning I received a text message from a friend. She informed me that the judge had been corrupted beforehand. What had happened was that a handful of idiots solicited the judge with all kinds of hateful lies said about me online (read We Need To Talk Part 2 on my blog). I can only speculate that the same thing was done to the first judge a month earlier in our first show. I mean you’ve got to admit, receiving a 2 for not having a square Halt is a bit excessive don’t you think? That’s politics for you! Next summer we will be competing at the FEI level so there will be more than one judge, though I’m not expecting that much of a political difference and I’ll explain why. Judges have a predetermined concept in their mind of what they are expecting to see in the show ring. They are not judging you personally, they are judging you compared to what else they have seen that day. This is why sometimes you’ll hear about a horse receiving a 70% at one show and an 85% at the next. It has nothing to do with performance but it has everything to do with a predetermined idea. The judge not only is comparing you too other riders, but “who” those other riders are.”
I won’t copy and paste the entire article, people can read it for themselves, but, if this clown is trying to drum himself out of the dressage business, he is certainly going about it the right way. Personally, if he continues with these accusations against trained, certified and licensed judges, I am guessing it could lead to a permanent ban from all USDF recognized competition as both a rider and as a trainer, no matter how much of a “trainer” he might claim to be. He says he has proof of his accusations, he better make sure it is rock solid and provable. Show the test sheets, the remarks and the videos, which were professionally recorded, to prove the point.
He ends the article with this little gem:
“Forget who’s watching, because chances are the judge isn’t watching either.”
