Who does dressage?

One of the things I love about dressage is that done well, it really is for everyone: every horse, every rider. See, what I consider dressage tends to differ from other people's definition of dressage. To me, dressage is good riding and training based on classical principles that is done for the horse and for the horseperson. Call it a sport or an art or a hobby, but I think if it's done well, it's dressage.

I haven't met a horse yet who hasn't benefited from correct schooling. Granted, I'm not very old and there are hundreds of thousands of horses I haven't met, but the premise is the same. Each horse progresses differently and has different limits, and just like the horses, we have limits, too. Maybe that's why I think competitive dressage is different from real dressage. Many competitors don't think that slogging along in the basics or bringing an untalented horse to the best of his potential is fun, because you're not winning and you're not moving through the levels. But you're learning and you're improving and to tell you the truth, there are lots of horses out there who need good riding.

So whether you're a sixty-year-old beginner or an eight-year-old girl or anywhere in between, whether you're riding an off the track thoroughbred or a pony or a warmblood or a mule, in my opinion, dressage is for you.

For a look at the horses I do dressage with, go here:
www.happyhaflingers.com

I think the name of that farm says it all. Above all else, we and our horses should be happy :)

The allure of the frame

I was teaching a lesson the other day to a horse I'd started earlier in the year and his owner. They did well, especially considering the owner's new to dressage and new to riding her four-year-old. She had taken some lessons in the meantime, and while she realized the error of the other instructor's teaching, I am continually amazed at the importance others put on arbitrary elements. Mostly, the head and neck.

Is his nose on the vertical? That is the biggest question in the minds of many dressage riders and instructors. Even if they preach to be classical dressage enthusiasts, there they are, futzing and playing and seesawing because obviously if the head isn't right, nothing is right.

I don't believe in putting a headset on a horse, and I dislike the words "frame" and "on the bit." People tend to be visual creatures, so we believe what we can see -- the head and neck. Too often, the back and hind end and suppleness are ignored, swept under the desire for a horse who looks nice.

That's the thing about dressage. It's not always pretty. But it is systematic, and the result of conscientious, careful work is a pretty picture. That doesn't mean one method works for every horse. It doesn't have anything to do with the tack or equipment or even the goal for which a trainer is working. Dressage is good training, regardless of the rider. In my mind, good training is that which benefits the horse, which the horse is happy to participate in, and which is done for the horse's well-being.

Whatever else dressage is, it is not a headset.

Why we're here

So here it is: the lame first post of my blog, as I imagine all first blog posts are. But really, what do I know about blogging. That's not what we're here for.

We're here for the dressage.

I am not a competitive dressage rider. I have no money nor desire to compete. But I do dressage anyways, and while everyone talks about their competitive goals and moving through the levels, I tend to play with the horses, finding routines and exercises that improve them and me at the same time. I set goals, I accomplish them or I don't, but I try not to stress about the whole thing. It's the journey, right?

Yet for so many it's not. It's about the scores and the ribbons and the fancy warmbloods, and I feel that the reason we're all here is being forgotten. I have nothing against the scores and the ribbons and the fancy warmbloods, but I want something more.

And I don't think I'm the only one.