2015 Front Range Exceptional Equestrians Show

I was able to judge the horse show for the Front Range Exceptional Equestrians again this year at the Larimer County Fair in the Budweiser Events Center.  I've been judging this show for several years, it is one of my favorites for the season.  FREE is a therapeutic riding program here in the Fort Collins area, with riders of all ages from young kids to retired adults.  All the riders have special needs and come to this show to demonstrate what they have learned and accomplished over the year.  The horses are saints, it is a very difficult job to be a therapy horse.  They are able to accommodate riders who struggle with balancing on their backs, who sometimes act in unpredictable ways.  The horses are so steady and responsible, it's hard to believe they are the same species as some of my hot youngsters that I jump on here at my ranch. 

Because of their challenges, some of the riders have a team of people assisting them with their courses.  There is a trail course (this year a medieval theme), a riding skills class, and a game/timed event for each group of riders.  There were a couple great costume classes, too.  I judge the riders based on the sheet given to me at the beginning of the show that details what each rider is currently working on.  Some of them use sign language to command the horses, some have made a great accomplishment by sitting up in the saddle without a side walker holding them.  Some of the riders can walk and trot around independently, some of them are just happy to be mounted on a creature and sitting taller than all the other people around them, a different view from the wheelchair the rider normally occupies. 

 
Because there is such a variety within each class, I put the most effort into preparing my comments for the riders.  The riding skills class is done with all the horses walking around the perimeter of the ring, and I take detailed notes on each rider as they show me they can walk, trot, halt, back, and turn their horses around.  When the riding skills class is finished the riders all line up facing me and the audience, and I take time to speak with each one individually.  I make sure to tell each rider that I watched their ride very carefully, and I tell them something that they did well in the class.  I try to find something in their ride that I know they have been working on from my data sheet.  The ribbons get forgotten and the day passes, but riders always remember when a judge told them they did something well.