Module 1 · Lesson 1.1
In this lesson
What Behind the Bell™ is, what it deliberately is not, who is in the room with you, and how to get the most out of the year ahead.
Why this program exists
There is a shortage of Working Equitation officials in Florida, and there is no clear map for how to become one.
That is not a criticism of anyone. Working Equitation is a young sport in the United States. The people who built it here have been busy building it — writing rules, running shows, teaching riders, growing the sport. What has not existed yet is a well-lit trail for the person who says, quietly, I think I might want to do this.
Most people who have that thought never say it out loud. They assume they are not qualified, or they do not know who to ask, or they scribe at one show, enjoy it enormously, and then have no idea what the next step would be. Behind the Bell™ exists for those people.
What this program is
This is a twelve-module, year-long mentorship. It combines four things:
Self-paced study. You read, you work through exercises, you take open-book quizzes. You do it on your own schedule. There is no penalty for taking a slow month.
Community. A private group where you can ask the question you were embarrassed to ask at a show. This is genuinely the part that participants tend to value most, and it only works if people use it.
Monthly live sessions. Roughly two hours on Google Meet — study, case discussion, and open Q&A. Cases are where the real learning happens. Someone brings a situation from a real show and we work it through together.
Practical experience. Priority access to volunteer and shadowing roles at WEFL Recognized schooling shows and clinics, and a planned November practicum weekend in Florida with an S-level judge, combining a clinic-style education day with silent or shadow judging at a schooling show.
What this program is not
Read this section twice, because it is the most important paragraph on the page.
WEFL does not license or certify officials. USAWE is the organization that licenses and certifies officials, and we respect that boundary completely. Completing Behind the Bell™ does not make you a licensed judge, a licensed Technical Delegate, or a USAWE official of any kind. It does not shorten USAWE's requirements, substitute for any USAWE course or examination, or create any obligation on USAWE's part.
What it does is prepare you. When you eventually sit in a USAWE education program, you will not be meeting these concepts for the first time. When you fill out an application, you will already have an organized log of documented hours instead of trying to reconstruct three years of memory. And when a show manager asks whether you can handle the gate, you will say yes with confidence.
USAWE membership and any future Licensed Officials Program fees remain entirely separate from your Behind the Bell™ subscription. You apply for national licensing when and if you are ready — that decision is yours alone, and plenty of people in this program will decide that schooling-show officiating is exactly where they want to stay. That is a completely legitimate destination, and Florida needs those people badly.
Who is in the room with you
This first cohort is deliberately small — we are capping it at twenty-five, and we expect fifteen to twenty active participants. That is not artificial scarcity. It is the number at which questions actually get answered and people are not shouting into a void.
You will be alongside a mix of people: riders who want to give back, longtime volunteers ready for a bigger role, folks who already hold USDF credentials and want to add Working Equitation, and a few who are simply curious. Judge-leaning, TD-leaning, and "still exploring both" are all equally welcome. You do not need to know your destination to start walking.
How to use this program
Read in order, at least for Module 1. Later modules stand alone reasonably well. This one builds.
Do the exercises. Especially the Rulebook Scavenger Hunt. Reading about the rulebook teaches you almost nothing; hunting through it teaches you a great deal.
Post in the community, even when you have nothing clever to say. A group where four people talk is a group. A group where four people talk and sixteen lurk is a newsletter.
Come to the live sessions with a question. Any question. "I do not understand what a Technical Delegate actually does" is an excellent question and at least three other people have it.
Start your log immediately. Not eventually. Lesson 1.7 sets this up. Every hour you spend scribing, scoring, running gate, or shadowing is an hour that counts toward something — but only if you wrote it down.
Your first three actions
- Post an introduction in the community group. Who you are, your background with horses, what drew you here, and what role you are curious about.
- Download or bookmark the current USAWE Rulebook. You will be living in it.
- Put the first live session on your calendar: Tuesday, August 11, 7:00 PM ET.
Welcome aboard. Let's go find out what happens behind the bell.
Summary
- Behind the Bell™ is a twelve-module, year-long mentorship combining self-paced study, community, monthly live sessions, and practical show experience.
- WEFL does not license or certify officials. USAWE is the licensing body, and nothing here substitutes for or shortens USAWE's requirements.
- The program prepares you: knowledge, documented hours, practical exposure, connections, and mentorship.
- The first cohort is capped at twenty-five so questions actually get answered.
- Judge-leaning, TD-leaning, and undecided are all equally welcome. Schooling-show officiating is a legitimate destination in itself.
- Read in order, do the exercises, post in the community, bring questions to the live sessions, and start your hour log now.