Then there are the changes. If a flying change is called for and the horse breaks, changing leads through a few steps of trot there is no flying change shown so the score could be very very low for that movement.
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No, the letter said that he hadnât paid for the award âfrom its inceptionâ. That means from the start. No fees were paid by Nick ever.
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He would never understand how valuable volunteering is for the equine world, itâs how pretty much EVERYTHING gets done and run and how people âgive backâ to the world they love. All those folks you see at horse shows, running around, opening gates, pencilling for the judges, picking up poles, picking up poop, picking up score sheets and running them back - theyâre all volunteers, giving back, having fun, making friends, and learning all the while.
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Didnât he declare in his book that he DID pay every year but COTH also corrupted DAD and thatâs why they didnât ever cash the checks? I mean, I would give you a page number to reference, but âŠ
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Was there a trophy or something that he maybe had to have made/buy?
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There is/was. There are photos of himself and his family crying over it because of the great honor of being prize givers at DAD.
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Thanks. He probably considers buying that all he had to do because heâs unfamiliar with protocol along with everything else
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Part of the story of how the Chevy trophy idea was formed âŠ
"What a blast from the past it was driving down some of those driveways I once knew when I was freelancing. I got in touch with my old friend April, who was a prominent person within the horse community, and competed regularly at Devon. April asked about Chevy, "Whatever happened to that beautiful Appaloosa you used to ride? I informed her of the events that followed with getting a bad score at the schooling show and later selling him. âHe was an amazing horse, Nick, and you did an outstanding job with him. Not many trainers could have done what you did. Have you ever contacted the USET or a major competition like Devon for any type of recognition?â asked April.
The thought never crossed my mind. I told her I was done with horses, but she wouldnât take no for answer. April gave me the cell phone number for the CEO of Dressage at Devon. âHere, take this. You deserve your day Nick and so does Chevy.â I thought about what she said on my drive home. I gave it a few days and then I came up with an idea.
I called the CEO of Devon and let her know how I got her number and who gave it to me. We then proceeded to have a lovely conversation about dressage and, of course, who Chevy was. I told her that Iâd like to sponsor a memorial trophy for my old friend and she was enthusiastic about the idea. She asked me to put together a portfolio about Chevy, so she could present the idea to the board. They would need to vote on it and, if approved, the trophy would be presented."
Bolding mine, as is this 
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Have you ever contacted the USET or a major competition like Devon for any type of recognition?â asked April.
The thought never crossed my mind. I told her I was done with horses, but she wouldnât take no for answer. April gave me the cell phone number for the CEO of Dressage at Devon. âHere, take this. You deserve your day Nick and so does Chevy.â I thought about what she said on my drive home. I gave it a few days and then I came up with an idea.
It wasnât even Nickâs idea. It was Aprilâs and he STILL couldnât openly state it. Nope, it had to come from within his mind - not some womanâs!
Iâm a little surprised he didnât later call the CEO at 11 pm when he was informed that due to lack of payment since inception (so two or three years?), the whole thing was going to be dropped. Maybe sheâs one of the people who found themselves fending off skeevy people between Christmas and NYE?
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I think thatâs very likely.
By the end of that test the judge was no longer going to comment every time the horse was hollow, lacking engagement, lacking impulsion, and not on the bit. Halts were likely through the walk, which combined with the above may well get you a 2 from some judges at Third or Fourth, especially if the halt itself was unsquare.
However weâve seen him post awful photos from the tests that he thinks proves how âlight and roundâ the horse was, so we know he doesnât understand the requirements of the level and how the movements are scored.
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I find it boggling that someone horsey enough to have the CEO of DAD in her phone would even remotely consider NP enough of a rider to do anything other than buy a ticket and go visit the show.
Then again, if it IS true and NP submitted a portfolio of Chevy to DAD for his trophy, and they did their due diligence on him and STILL decided this was a good idea, itâs completely on them. If they didnât do their due diligence, then theyâve got no-one to blame but themselves.
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I think itâs worth remembering that like all successful charlatans and con men; Nick has the ability to be charming and persuasive when the situation calls for it.
We are all now alert to the inconsistencies and deceptions, but if you look at his history as we know it, and as presented in his book, he is often successful in persuading people AT FIRST. In most cases, people start to see the truth fairly quickly, but he does, in fact, still have some loyal followers. One of the rules of the con is that once people have taken the bait, they WANT to keep believing the con.
The whole story about the interview with Golden Gait Farm - I couldnât have bullshitted my way into the interview and onto that horse! Most of us couldnât.
Nick can be charming when he needs to be. I can imagine him approaching Devon with his sweet story about honoring his childhood horse and that they wouldnât particularly care that he had no credentials and resume. And what great PR to award a trophy to the high-scoring non-warmblood!
It was only when he refused to pay for the continued sponsorship that they looked closer and discovered that he was all hat and no cattle.
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Heâd likely be a trainerâs nightmare student, and I imagine heâd end up being asked to leave a clinic partway through. Either because it would become very obvious very quickly that he was in the deep end and couldnât swim, or because he copped attitude when the clinician got exasperated with having to interrupt the flow of the clinic for the nth time to explain her instructions. Then heâd go braying all over the place about the clinician being âunfairâ and âignoring himâ for people who were wealthier, or had ârented schoolmastersâ.
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I donât think he knows what that means.
Remember he says he told someone his âbusiness planâ.
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This is something that absolutely needs emphasising to any newbie to dressage. i.e. that the first movement is judged in the entry, the procession up the centre line, the halt itself, the transition out of halt and the turn at the end of the line, and this includes (according to the directives) straightness, balance, acceptance of the halt, regularity, tempo, freedom.
Iâve found that when discussing dressage with those who havenât done a test before, that they focus on just the key word without understanding everything that contributes to a particular movement. A particular example would be one person who looked at the UK tests and decided theyâd start at Elementary level because their horse could do a leg yield.
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What I donât understand is that he is h### bent on giving us all clinics and lessons.
If he refuses to take lessons, why does he want to give them?
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How else is his genius going to be recognised? After all heâs closed off the competition avenue.
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I have given lessons and been employed as an instructor. I have never once thought it was because I was a genius.
Genius would be putting up online YouTube of your riding and getting no negative comments.
Oh thatâs right he even had negative comments for Charlotte Djardin. :headbang:
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I think you should propose a Suzie Q Nutter award at DaD. Definitely.
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