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I'm not sure of the best way to do it.  But, trimming to even out the topline, or give your dog a clean outline, is definitely not cheating!!  It's showing your dog to the best he can be on the day. 

I wouldn't be surprised if GSDs were trimmed up and neatened a whole lot more than just "evening out" rough spots.   Anyway, you can be sure that others in the ring are neatening up their dogs.  Your dog will look coarse compared to them.  So you have to play the "game" to level the playing field.

I might strip it, instead of cutting it, but I don't think it's cheating to even his hair up. You aren't covering a flaw, just removing a small amount of fluff.

Thanks!

To clarify this is UKC, grooming is very minimal.  In the past he has always had one of the best if not the best coats (he naturally has a very healthy, shiny, coat that is not too tight or too fluffy), I just want to fix the "bumps" so it doesn't distract from the topline.

  For the tail bump, fluffing it up is probably a better way to go than trimming it. Volumizing shampoo can help, as can a force dryer. Then right before you go to the ring, brush it up again then very lightly brush the guard hair down.

I fixed the tail bump last night, actually trimmed the hair a bit b/c it's a cowlick, the hair curls out and up.  I was told I could "train" the hair to lay flat if I brushed it a certain direction every day but that's too much fussing.  Now I just have to work on the other bump, which is bump and not a cowlick (the hair is going the right direction it just stands too high).

Liesje, try asking on the UKC message board.  My take is you really can't trim anything but the hair on the pads, but I could be wrong. 

Liesje

I fixed the tail bump last night, actually trimmed the hair a bit b/c it's a cowlick, the hair curls out and up.  I was told I could "train" the hair to lay flat if I brushed it a certain direction every day but that's too much fussing.  Now I just have to work on the other bump, which is bump and not a cowlick (the hair is going the right direction it just stands too high).

 For the other bump, you could probably just thin it out. I like to use Mars Coat Kings or the cheaper equivalent (such as: http://www.petedge.com/product/Grooming/Grooming-Tools/Combs-Brushes-Rakes/Master-Grooming-Tools-Strippers/subsubCategoryId/483/pc/190/c/214/sc/276/45282.uts). You can also use the thinning blade of thinning shears to pull excess hair out.