Q: I am new to riding dressage, but am wondering how to adjust the noseband. Should it be tight or loose?A: It’s important to know the rules of competition in any discipline so you can apply them at...
Working gaits? Check! Rhythm and regularity? Check! 20-meter circles? Check! Whether you’re bringing along a green horse or just getting started in dressage, Training Level is your starting point.
Naturally you want to show at your best, so how can...
At Training Level, all trot work may be ridden posting or sitting at the rider’s discretion. So which should you choose? "When in doubt, post,” says U.S. Dressage Federation (USDF) gold medalist and leading sport horse breeder Ken Borden....
Riding outside most often proves to be one of the surest accelerants of dressage training. First, there is no better test of your dressage mastery than to take it on the trail. Asking for your horse’s responsiveness and skills...
In Part I of Dressage Mysteries Solved, dressage clinician, author and three-time Olympic coach Jane Savoie outlined the connecting aids required for putting your horse on the bit:Close your legs on the horse...
What does it look like when my horse is on the bit?Hindquarters: "You want to see active hindquarters and your horse stepping well under himself," says Savoie.
Back: Just behind the saddle, the back should look round, not...
Q: I do dressage with my very lazy, thick-skinned Friesian. He doesn’t respect my leg or whip. What can I do to get a better response?
A: There are classical training methods to address the situation you have with...
The half-halt is elusive to many dressage riders. Performed correctly, it remains nearly imperceptible to onlookers, while providing necessary balance and connection to the horse. Fortunately, this technique is not as complicated as it sounds.
American Grand Prix dressage rider...
Two happy campers, Kristin and Bellinger in the summer of 2014 after their first Prix St. Georges test at Virginia Horse Center. The pair went on to win the USDF Region 1 Jr/YR Prix St. Georges Championship that year....
World Cup winners Charlotte Dujardin and Valegro from Great Britain showing lovely canter work in their Grand Prix test that earned them five ‘9’s out of seven judges. The other two judges awarded them an 8 and an 8.5....
