Tell me again how competitive dressage is all about the horse’s welfare? A huge increase in prize money to well over $650,000 (€523,000) with a $200,000 CDI5* as a highlight of Florida’s Global Dressage Festival…
The incomparable Bettina Drummond continues to speak up and add useful bits of insight to the horse world. This time she’s talking about riding horses as an artistic pursuit vs riding for competition. Intro: “Today’s…
In the beginning of my journey into Dressage, there was confident talk about the longevity of the Dressage horse. It was generally accepted that the Dressage horse wasn’t expected to reach Grand Prix until they…
My neck gets sore just watching. It is only during a poorly developed (read spoiled) walk that Edward Gal allows any freedom of the neck to his horse, and during the rest of the ride he keeps him round, round, round. Keep in mind that not only FEI rules but also Classical Dressage Masters have noted that the position of the horse’s face should be anywhere between 45 and 90 degrees depending on the horse’s individual conformation, this horse is well beyond 90 degrees.
Despite the FEI’s ruling that Rollkur is a banned practice, and instead has favored the use of LDR (Low, Deep, Round), there is plenty of evidence to the contrary that hyperflexion is a norm for competitors. The World Equestrian Games, hosted in Kentucky this year is already proving the perfect grounds to spot the practice in person.
Even if you strictly ride western and loath the sight of any english discipline you can benefit from incorporating the fundamentals of Dressage into your riding and training habits.