It’s a shame about dressage. Or at least to me it is.
I always thought of it as such a “pure” thing; such a “beautiful thing; harmony in union.”
For me, Dressage was practiced by those who wanted “art with horses.”
It was for horsemen and women who wanted to take a horse to his maximum performance ability, suppleness, flexibility, balance and grace. It was a work of art between a rider and a horse, and that is all that it had to be.
It was, but it is no more.
Dressage: a noun, French, originally meaning “basic dressing.”
The basic dressing was applied to all horses and at all levels and that was the extent of it. It was done with any horse that a nobleman (and only noblemen could afford both the luxury of a horse and the time to develop its gaits, grace, balance, suppleness and flexibility) saw fit to ride.
The idea originally was not to compare horses, but to enjoy the development of a single horse’s unique talents.
One horse and one rider, being all they could be.
And that was the original goal.
Then disaster struck; dressage became a competition.
One of my most admired dressage authorities, Waldemar Seunig (he attended the French Cavalry School at Saumur and the Spanish Riding School at Vienna and from 1922 to 1930 was the Master of the Horse at the Court of King Alexander of Yugoslavia; he was the coach of the successful German Olympic Team.) says this about perfecting the art of dressage: “it is the practical, creative artist, the equestrian genius, who is fused with his horse into one unit, who makes its will his own, and who proves that there are no limits to art.”
Great thinking….and he could do it…and many in the 1600s, 1700s, 1800s could do it……but by the 1900s competition had corrupted that simple idea of dressage for the sake of dressage.
Seunig was not only an equestrian competitor, he was a judge of international competition. He too was corrupted, and winning became more important than dressage.
But in the 1950s and 1960s, dressage was still defined as training, exhibition riding or horsemanship in which the horse is controlled in certain difficult steps and gaits by very light movements of the rider. The horse is to be relaxed and the performance is to appear “effortless.”
Light and gently and subtle were the key words for dressage riders such as Colonel Alois Podhajsky, Jessica Newberry and later Reiner Klimke, a world champion and winner of 6 gold medals in 5 Olympics (1964 to 1988)
When I see pictures of Podhajsky and Newberry riding, or I watch Klimke ride, I see a horse that is relaxed and appears to be performing effortlessly. I see a rider not strained or stesssed or rigid, but in a beautifully balanced position with a willing partner.
It’s a shame about dressage.
When I see upper level riders today, the art is gone.
Don’t misunderstand me. It is not that I am not in awe of the performances they achieve. They are getting more from their horses than the past masters did. (Of course, the horses they are riding have evolved along with training knowledge and techniques.)
What I see in today’s advanced level dressage are horses performing phenomenally; they are giving every ounce of effort they have to give. They are reaching new heights in suppleness and flexibility.
And they are unhappy, tense and showing the exertion needed to respond to their rider’s demands. Nothing about it appears “effortless.” It is not light or gentle or subtle.
I watched a video of a horse score the highest dressage score ever recorded.
The maneuvers were fantastic and the accomplishments of the horse should be applauded again and again.
But the horse hated every minute of that performance; the tail wringing and swishing and twirling and shaking, the ears back, the face knotted with tension.
It wasn’t the art I had hoped it would be…it was man forcing his will onto the horse in the name of competition.
Oh, for the original idea of any horse being helped to reach his potential, with no intention of ever comparing one horse to another.
It’s a shame about dressage.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Sow's Ear Won't Make A Silk Purse
“You can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.”
My mother told me that years ago, and while I’ve tried on occasion (intentionally or unintentionally) to prove her wrong, my efforts always proved her right.
Every horse can do every movement of every exercise of every discipline!
That is a fact! While every horse can do everything, no horse does everything well…..proving, that if you want a silk purse, don’t start with a sow’s ear.
I’ve started with a lot of sow’s ears….for various reasons; bought her at an auction, she was cheap, she was pretty, needed another horse, looked athletic, was sure I could fix her problems.
But a sow’s ear is a sow’s ear; it is what it is.
Thank goodness; knowing that makes your horse choices so much easier.
What do you want? Do you want a silk purse, a race horse, a jumper, a dressage horse, a western pleasure horse, a roping horse, a trail horse, a driving horse, a hunter under saddle or a racking horse?
If you want a silk purse….start with silk.
If you want a race horse, start with one bred to be a race horse. If you want a western pleasure horse, start with one bred to be a western pleasure horse. Want a jumper? Start with a horse bred to be a jumper. You getting the idea.?
Today, there is a pedigree to suit every desire. Examine the pedigree. If the pedigree isn’t filled with the “discipline” you want to pursue, skip the horse. Keep looking until you find a horse with a pedigree that screams, “I’m bred to be the kind of silk purse you want.”
Okay, finding the right pedigree is a good start. Now you have to be sure the horse is “built to do the job.” It’s a funny thing about equine genetics (or genetics in general). Sire and dam don’t always reproduce their most desirable traits. And in some cases they don’t reproduce a foal with the conformation traits necessary to perform well at the discipline the sire and dam found so easy.
Start with “body type.” There is the draft horse, the sport horse, the endurance body type, the stock horse type, the hunter type, the dressage horse.
I don’t care what anyone says, or how many exceptions there are to disprove the rule: get the body type best suited to perform at the work and discipline you have in mind. If the pedigree says, “Yes,” and the body type says, “Yes” then you’re in excellent position to take the next step.
And the next step is “balance”. Balance is about the only conformation trait you’d like to see in any horse for any discipline. (The forehand, back and hindquarters are each just about 33 per cent of the total body.) After balance, you’ve got to start looking carefully at various proportions and angles—how long is the neck, how sloping the shoulder, how steep the croup, how short the cannons, how high the stifle, how low the hocks, how straight the hind leg, how are the front legs positioned, etc. etc.?
Looking at each part of the horse, you must determine how the conformation you see is going to affect the horse’s movement. Knowing how he’ll move, you can decide just how good his chances are of becoming the silk purse you seek.
Know this: start with the horse that has the best chance physically to be the kind of horse you want, and you’ve got about a 40 per cent chance of getting what you want.
Know this: the horse’s mind is going to control about 50 per cent of your success at getting a horse to perform at the level you want. A horse can have great conformation, great talent, great pedigree, but if he doesn’t have a great mind you’re going nowhere!
Know this: about 10 per cent of getting the silk purse you want so much is going to be in the training. Training is not rocket science, but it does take some knowledge and talent. The more of both, the better.
Just as you sought the silk for the purse, seek out a “purse maker”…not a “carpenter”. And if you are going to do it yourself, you better become an expert on silk purses.
Finally, hope for a freak. All champions are freaks; but that’s another story.
My mother told me that years ago, and while I’ve tried on occasion (intentionally or unintentionally) to prove her wrong, my efforts always proved her right.
Every horse can do every movement of every exercise of every discipline!
That is a fact! While every horse can do everything, no horse does everything well…..proving, that if you want a silk purse, don’t start with a sow’s ear.
I’ve started with a lot of sow’s ears….for various reasons; bought her at an auction, she was cheap, she was pretty, needed another horse, looked athletic, was sure I could fix her problems.
But a sow’s ear is a sow’s ear; it is what it is.
Thank goodness; knowing that makes your horse choices so much easier.
What do you want? Do you want a silk purse, a race horse, a jumper, a dressage horse, a western pleasure horse, a roping horse, a trail horse, a driving horse, a hunter under saddle or a racking horse?
If you want a silk purse….start with silk.
If you want a race horse, start with one bred to be a race horse. If you want a western pleasure horse, start with one bred to be a western pleasure horse. Want a jumper? Start with a horse bred to be a jumper. You getting the idea.?
Today, there is a pedigree to suit every desire. Examine the pedigree. If the pedigree isn’t filled with the “discipline” you want to pursue, skip the horse. Keep looking until you find a horse with a pedigree that screams, “I’m bred to be the kind of silk purse you want.”
Okay, finding the right pedigree is a good start. Now you have to be sure the horse is “built to do the job.” It’s a funny thing about equine genetics (or genetics in general). Sire and dam don’t always reproduce their most desirable traits. And in some cases they don’t reproduce a foal with the conformation traits necessary to perform well at the discipline the sire and dam found so easy.
Start with “body type.” There is the draft horse, the sport horse, the endurance body type, the stock horse type, the hunter type, the dressage horse.
I don’t care what anyone says, or how many exceptions there are to disprove the rule: get the body type best suited to perform at the work and discipline you have in mind. If the pedigree says, “Yes,” and the body type says, “Yes” then you’re in excellent position to take the next step.
And the next step is “balance”. Balance is about the only conformation trait you’d like to see in any horse for any discipline. (The forehand, back and hindquarters are each just about 33 per cent of the total body.) After balance, you’ve got to start looking carefully at various proportions and angles—how long is the neck, how sloping the shoulder, how steep the croup, how short the cannons, how high the stifle, how low the hocks, how straight the hind leg, how are the front legs positioned, etc. etc.?
Looking at each part of the horse, you must determine how the conformation you see is going to affect the horse’s movement. Knowing how he’ll move, you can decide just how good his chances are of becoming the silk purse you seek.
Know this: start with the horse that has the best chance physically to be the kind of horse you want, and you’ve got about a 40 per cent chance of getting what you want.
Know this: the horse’s mind is going to control about 50 per cent of your success at getting a horse to perform at the level you want. A horse can have great conformation, great talent, great pedigree, but if he doesn’t have a great mind you’re going nowhere!
Know this: about 10 per cent of getting the silk purse you want so much is going to be in the training. Training is not rocket science, but it does take some knowledge and talent. The more of both, the better.
Just as you sought the silk for the purse, seek out a “purse maker”…not a “carpenter”. And if you are going to do it yourself, you better become an expert on silk purses.
Finally, hope for a freak. All champions are freaks; but that’s another story.
Wadds reveals secrets of winning in Competitive Longe Line Course
World Champion “longe line” trainer Gord Wadds, reveals his winning system step-by-step in the newest www.HorseCoursesOnline.com course: Competitive Longe Line Training.
One of the fastest growing competitions in the horse show world, Competitive Longe Line combines the elements of a conformation class with the disciplined movement of rail performance. Wadds’ expertise at “picking them, training them, and presenting them” has earned him the title “King of the Longe Lines” around show pens all over the nation and in Canada.
Competitive Longe Line covers: Choosing the Prospect; Pre-school; The First Training Session; Following the Game Plan; Moving Out of the Round Pen; At the Show. Students work with Wadds one-on-one by e-mail and will get his expert opinion as to how they are progressing when they submit videos for review.
Wadds reveals some of his “special” techniques in the new course. “It’s all about showing off the horse’s grace and athleticism at the walk, jog and lope,” he says with a knowing grin. “There are some tips and tricks to making it happen.”
The course can be taken for full college credit as an elective in the Breyer State University Bachelor of Science in Equine Studies degree program, or it can be used for credit in earning a Professional Certification as a horse trainer or riding instructor in the Equine Studies Institute program. For complete details on both programs, visit www.horsecoursesonline.com
Wadds says some of the most important concepts for students to master are the “perfect circle”, “the inside track”, “the how and when of the reverse” and show time “grooming.” To see a course description and outline visit: www.horsecoursesonline.com/index/index_longe_line_description.html
Students may start the course at any time and work at their own pace, and while a “yearling” is preferred, they may use any horse while mastering the techniques being taught. The course provides an excellent foundation for any horse which will go on to rail performance.
One of the fastest growing competitions in the horse show world, Competitive Longe Line combines the elements of a conformation class with the disciplined movement of rail performance. Wadds’ expertise at “picking them, training them, and presenting them” has earned him the title “King of the Longe Lines” around show pens all over the nation and in Canada.
Competitive Longe Line covers: Choosing the Prospect; Pre-school; The First Training Session; Following the Game Plan; Moving Out of the Round Pen; At the Show. Students work with Wadds one-on-one by e-mail and will get his expert opinion as to how they are progressing when they submit videos for review.
Wadds reveals some of his “special” techniques in the new course. “It’s all about showing off the horse’s grace and athleticism at the walk, jog and lope,” he says with a knowing grin. “There are some tips and tricks to making it happen.”
The course can be taken for full college credit as an elective in the Breyer State University Bachelor of Science in Equine Studies degree program, or it can be used for credit in earning a Professional Certification as a horse trainer or riding instructor in the Equine Studies Institute program. For complete details on both programs, visit www.horsecoursesonline.com
Wadds says some of the most important concepts for students to master are the “perfect circle”, “the inside track”, “the how and when of the reverse” and show time “grooming.” To see a course description and outline visit: www.horsecoursesonline.com/index/index_longe_line_description.html
Students may start the course at any time and work at their own pace, and while a “yearling” is preferred, they may use any horse while mastering the techniques being taught. The course provides an excellent foundation for any horse which will go on to rail performance.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
New online course can rev-up dressage scores
No matter how good you are now, you can always add ways to Rev-up Your Dressage Scores.
Tammy Fifer, www.horsecoursesonline.com dressage instructor, gets down to the nitty gritty with you about what judges are looking for, how they score, problems that cost you points and how you can correct them. Then she gives you tips from some of the “tops” in the field on how to “rev-up” those scores.
Students work one-on-one with Fifer by e-mail, getting answers to questions and help on how to tackle individual problems that crop up from seemingly nowhere. Five lessons in the course each have quizzes and assignments to help the students master the techniques for improvement.
Students can take the course and be awarded a “Certificate of Achievement” or participate in the www.horsecoursesonline.com Professional Certificate program or the Bachelor of Science in Equine Studies degree program.
Rev-up Your Dressage Scores lessons include: What Judges Want to See; Placement in the Ring; “How-to” of Straightness; Movement of the Horse; Common Faults and Fixes, Plus Top Rider Tips.
Students can start the course at anytime, work at their own pace, and there are no completion deadlines. Fifer will critique videos sent in by students (http://www.horsecoursesonline.com/videos/forehand_turn.html) and explain how to improve the exercise. www.horsecoursesonline.com offers 28 equine study courses and is the world’s leading provider of online equine curriculum for colleges and universities.
Tammy Fifer, www.horsecoursesonline.com dressage instructor, gets down to the nitty gritty with you about what judges are looking for, how they score, problems that cost you points and how you can correct them. Then she gives you tips from some of the “tops” in the field on how to “rev-up” those scores.
Students work one-on-one with Fifer by e-mail, getting answers to questions and help on how to tackle individual problems that crop up from seemingly nowhere. Five lessons in the course each have quizzes and assignments to help the students master the techniques for improvement.
Students can take the course and be awarded a “Certificate of Achievement” or participate in the www.horsecoursesonline.com Professional Certificate program or the Bachelor of Science in Equine Studies degree program.
Rev-up Your Dressage Scores lessons include: What Judges Want to See; Placement in the Ring; “How-to” of Straightness; Movement of the Horse; Common Faults and Fixes, Plus Top Rider Tips.
Students can start the course at anytime, work at their own pace, and there are no completion deadlines. Fifer will critique videos sent in by students (http://www.horsecoursesonline.com/videos/forehand_turn.html) and explain how to improve the exercise. www.horsecoursesonline.com offers 28 equine study courses and is the world’s leading provider of online equine curriculum for colleges and universities.
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