I tried very hard to keep mine intentionally vague, including the gender of the judge. I’d say unless you were with me in the booth, only one of the stories i shared might identify the judge and only if you’d scribed with that judge at some point. Hell, two of the four I shared were about me or the judge, not at all about the rider.
I’ve done some scribbing at schooling 2-phases. Normally I can spell but while scribbing, I end up questioning myself especially when I have to write rhythm, I’m like, “I used to be a good speller, what the hell’s wrong with me!” :lol:
I remember at one really small schooling 3-phase I scribbed. The judge was busy writing the comments from the previous rider when the next rider came trotting in on their little pony. I was shocked and said to the judge “uhhh uhhh <judge> we got a situation here, incoming rider!”. The judge politely stopped the rider, explained they needed to wait for the bell. Just as the judge finished explaining the pony dropped his head to graze (grass ring) and the poor kid got pulled over and rolled down the pony’s neck to the ground. Oh dear! 
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Scribed for eons for just about every dressage judge there is. I will never ever forget the first judge, Max Gaywyler. Best start in scribing I ever got. Only one thing would I mention, in my experience, write legibly both the numbers and the comments. The scorer will appreciate number clarity. The riders can comprehend the comments. I thank Mindy Hall from 5th grade for making me learn how to write cursive like the handwriting books taught, way back in the day. And, in my experience, the judge is riding the test with you…
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I loved scribing for Max! He had a great eye, and would give me a clinic during the ride. ‘Watch the shoulder in here - that will tell you how the half pass will be’ ‘I knew that change would probably not be good after seeing how he handled the half pass’ Quite fun. That wouldn’t happen these days.
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Normally I can spell but while scribbing,…
If you say so. But it is normally spelled “scribing”.
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Just an fyi, for some folks it should be “scribbling”. I count myself in that minority of volunteers. 
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Once when I was scribing there was a big time rider at the show with a string of young horses they were starting. In one of the training level classes one of them went into a wild bronc spree and we breathed a sigh of relief that the rider stayed onboard. As she was leaving the arena and passed our stand the judge commented to her, “that was exciting” and we all chuckled.
At another show a young horse would not turn the corner and very politely jumped the chains to exit the ring. The rider turned him, gave him a smack on the bottom and made him jump back into the ring to finish the test. The judge was gracious and continued to score her movements even though she was eliminated. Her comment at the bottom of the sheet - ‘good recovery!’
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I do love when people are brave enough to get through the job and finish it, despite the fact that they already know they were eliminated. It does teach the horse that the job needs to be finished. Sometimes watching the babies does make for an exciting day!
I could regale you with dozens of scribing stories. Some of them so unflattering that I wouldn’t be able to tell you the judge’s name. But there was the time that I was scribing for the late Trip Harting. He had an awful case of the hiccups. When the runner came to gather the tests, I whispered to her, “Bring me 2 sugar packets from the coffee area!” She did and I told him between rides to eat one of the sugar packets all at once. He was dubious, but pretty desperate to get rid of his loud, constant hiccups. The cure worked (it really does!) and he thanked me profusely.
There was another time when (I won’t name the judge, also now deceased, but you’d know the name for sure) I was scribing for a 3rd level class. I had mentioned to the judge that I was thinking of doing the L program. He extolled the virtues of the L Program and then said, “Here - judge this class.” I was appalled, but the first horse was on the centerline, so I tossed out a number after he saluted her. He said, right! Now tell me why. I did and wrote his comments (not mine) down. I “judged” the entire class. Boy, what an education! Of course, when I was wrong, or couldn’t justify the mark I’d given, he corrected me and told me why. It was an amazing experience that I cherish. Someday if you give me enough beer, I’ll tell you who it was. I was extremely fortunate.
Then, there was the time that a very knowledgeable and well regarded judge (who shall be nameless because this was SO unprofessional IMHO and she’s still judging), had me complete a crossword puzzle for her in a newspaper during a 2nd level freestyle class! I didn’t know if I should refuse, she WAS judging me at that show too. She kept saying, “I’m so bored!” “OMG if I see one more 10m circle, I’ll scream!” …and stuff like that. I will tell you this - I was so angry about this behavior I made it a point to never show under her again. And if you are on this forum, madam, be it known that I have repeated this story, including your name, to everyone I can think of around in my part of the country. You should be ashamed.
Another time, not scribing, but the rider in the ring. The judge had apparently had too much to drink on the lunch break and passed out off and on as he judged me. I had a nice Dutch mare at the time and while it was not beyond the realm of possibility that I could have won the class as I did, it seemed very unlikely since in the middle of the test, on the first canter depart she threw her head in the air and bolted. Par for the course for this mare, but not exactly going to get me the high scores, you know? Well apparently, he slept through my test and woke up as I trotted down the centerline for the final salute. He nodded back and turned to the (mortified) scribe and began to talk. I didn’t want to even pick up the test because so much of it had been messed up by my horse’s misbehavior and also because I had seen this judge with his face on the table for most of my test. But I got 72% and won the class. It was SO not a 72% performance. LOL.
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“At another show a young horse would not turn the corner and very politely jumped the chains to exit the ring. The rider turned him, gave him a smack on the bottom and made him jump back into the ring to finish the test. The judge was gracious and continued to score her movements even though she was eliminated. Her comment at the bottom of the sheet - ‘good recovery!’”
I feel for that person! I had an ex-hunter that I was retraining for dressage. In our very first training level test, he did the same thing. Saw the chains, figured it was the only obstacle in the arena and headed for them to jump! I managed to keep him in the ring and finish the test, but it was a near thing!
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One of my scribing pet peeves is judges who complain about doing their job, particularly when it comes to judging lower level classes. I get that they may be “boring” but the grassroots riders make up the bulk of show competitors and if you hate judging them, maybe you shouldn’t accept the assignment to judge a small national show.
One stands out in my memory for complaining bitterly how unfair it was that she got “stuck with” the First-Third Level classes two days in a row. Now this is Canada, and we have Bronze, Silver and Gold divisions, often at the same show. Bronze is generally where all the less experienced riders are. In the Gold division (which she was judging) First-Third classes are full of pros with their very nice, very fancy young horses, and the occasional very good amateur. Really not painful to watch at all. But she “already had to sit through all their crappy rides once and doing it again makes me want to blow my brains out.”
Same judge repeatedly made horrifying comments about how “fat” certain riders had become, asking me what had happened to them, hated any unusually coloured horse, screamed at the poor test running kid for taking too long to fetch her coffee, and two mornings in a row did not bother to pick up an updated copy of the order of go, and refused to refer to the one I provided for her. She insisted on using the one she had received on the first day of a three-day show, and got flustered/ peeved every time I let her know we were changing to a different test if it didn’t match up with her list. Twice she stopped a ride because she was still looking at the wrong test, even though I had provided her the correct one.
I swear my tongue was swollen from having to bite it so many times that weekend!
On the other hand, I have scribed for so many wonderful judges who shared their knowledge, tried to help educate my eye, made me laugh, encouraged all the riders, and answered questions during breaks. They make up for the few bad apples. I have one favourite who I scribed for several times over the course of a few years. He would try to slip in funny comments just to see if I would automatically write them down. Things like “Hat large,” “Pony fat,” “Rider exhausted.” etc.
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This horse was a complete character. Rarely took anything seriously and the rider had an absolute blast with him. He finally matured and she ended up doing very well with him. I wish I could remember more stories about him. I do remember once after a rain storm he jumped the puddle at X and land in a square halt. Nobody could keep a straight face at that one.
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So earlier in the thread I mentioned I hadn’t scribed in eons so of course that tempted Fate. Shows have slowly starting opening up again in my neck of the woods and a friend asked if I would scribe at the schooling show she was putting on Father’s Day. There are no funny stories to share other than it was a lot of fun. The judge was happy to be judging, the riders were thrilled to be out and about again, and the whole vibe was awesome. It sure felt a LOT like when I first started showing in the 1980s, when things were less fancy and stressful.
That’s all. I just wanted to share a little bit of recaptured horse show joy.
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I am glad you enjoyed it. I scribed that same day and also had a good time. The judge was really easygoing, and I learned quite a bit. I will definitely start scribing more often. I do need to learn some short hand.
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