I love riding the extended trot on my dressage horses. When I ask my Grand Prix dressage horse Alina to move into an extended trot as she straightens onto the diagonal, it feels like it is her idea—a controlled explosion with maximum confidence. An extreme combination of fully loaded carrying and thrusting power, the extended trot is absolutely fantastic to ride.

While Alina’s rectangular shape makes her well-suited for the movement, her extended trot is the result of a training framework that builds flexibility and impulsion in any dressage horse. When I first met Alina four years ago, she was a Young Rider’s dressage horse with plenty of fire and a great work ethic. I bet that as she developed better looseness and carrying power, I could channel her desire to go while we developed her ability to collect and extend. It was a gamble that’s now paying off in the extended trot.

In schooling for the extended trot then and now, we focus on exercises that require a lot of thrust from the hindquarters and collecting exercises that require her to carry more weight on her hindquarters, hence playing the two ends of the spectrum. As a result, her range has widened to achieve an extended trot that takes your breath away.

Here are some training techniques that will help you safely expand your horse’s range and teach him to perform the extended trot as if he’s thrilled to show off his ability to do what the Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI) refers to as a lengthening of his steps to the utmost of his capability.

Working Gaits with Integrity
As the cornerstone of dressage training, the working gaits create the basis for developing the qualities and reactions needed for collection and extension. I focus on creating and maintaining my horse’s flexibility, rhythm and impulsion as I warm up in working gaits. I want to feel and reward natural enthusiasm for work, and spending time in the working gaits really helps.

One of the integral ingredients in producing extension is impulsion. The following simple daily warm-up will help set up any horse—from Training Level to Grand Prix—with the all-important desire to go forward and stay relaxed while doing it. It includes schooling simple upward and downward transitions on circles to teach the horse that every transition should have a basic level of carrying and thrusting power. Try transitions by following these steps:

1. Establish your 20-meter circle in a steady, active, rhythmic working trot. Make sure the shape of your circle is correct. This forces you to control the horse’s lateral balance. If you make a wishy-washy circle, you give him permission to fall in or off the track. Anytime impulsion goes left or right instead of straight through the horse’s body, you lose forward power, like a garden hose full of holes. Control and channel all of your horse’s power in a specific direction. Also make sure you have the correct bend, which starts with correct flexion. Crest muscles should be positioned so that they fall to the inside and you can see the horse’s inside eye. His jaw should be loose and accepting of the bit.

2. As you prepare for an upward transition to canter, think about riding with the lightest-possible aids. I know that my horse is truly in front of my seat when it takes next to nothing to change gears.

3. Switch from rising to sitting trot by putting weight on your inside seat bone and whispering “canter” with your inside leg.

4. As you canter, gently increase the swing of your seat, backed up by your leg, voice and whip (if needed), to achieve a prompt increase in the volume of your horse’s gait.

5. Transition back into working trot with the use of your outside rein. Half halt while maintaining flexion and bend to the inside. Continue to encourage and reward enthusiastic forward motion without loss of rhythm.

Continue with these transitions while adding changes of direction until your horse is loose, warm and happy in both his desire to go forward and in his willingness to wait on your downward transitions. There is some magic in this simple exercise to freshen the lazy horse, relax the hot horse and loosen the back and neck structure of all horses.

Coil the Spring
Once your horse can make seamless transitions on the circle in a good rhythm and maintain a relaxed posture, the rest of your session should include any of a limitless number of exercises that build both thrusting and carrying power. Any exercise that you choose based on your horse’s current level of training should incorporate a sense of “coiling the spring.” Here is one way that I do it:

1. Frequently check that the horse has the desire to go forward in an instant. I do this by deliberately swinging my seat while imagining that my horse is increasing the volume of his movement. As I think “forward,” I let my fingers “breathe” and allow for slight lengthening of his frame. I follow through on my original driving aids with an invisible aid, using my upper calf, lower leg, spur, voice and whip in that order. When your horse understands this aid sequence, his sensitivity to the more subtle aids increases, and he helps you by being self-propelled.

2. Check the collecting aids. The basic collecting aid is the half halt. For me, that’s closing my knee and thigh, stabilizing my back and seat, vibrating my fingers and thinking that I want my horse to coil back toward his hind legs. The important point here is that my horse reacts by shifting his weight over his back into his croup and closing the joints of his hind legs. Just as with the driving aids, I must follow through on the collecting aids. If my horse doesn’t react clearly and efficiently to this initial aid, I do three things: Repeat the original aid and, if need be, promptly make a stronger aid. Second, make a downward transition. Third, transition to halt.

By reinforcing my horse’s willingness to promptly expand and contract (like a rubber band), I increase his sensitivity to both aids and I expand his range of motion between collection and extension, coiling the spring.

Extended Trot Transitions
This is one of my favorite exercises for developing great collected–extended–collected trot transitions. The idea is to use your horse’s natural desire to please and his ability to anticipate. I learned it from dressage icon Conrad Schumacher about 15 years ago. It’s a very simple exercise that rewards a horse for beginning to explore the outer boundaries of his range.

1. Start out in working trot, tracking on the long side of the arena.

2. Walk at the letter before the corner, maintaining a good bend.

3. Promptly make half a walk pirouette to the left, which turns you back to the same wall, facing the other way.

4. Using the lightest-possible aids, straighten your horse and transition back to the working trot.

5. Before you get to the corner, transition to walk and make half a walk pirouette to the right. Stay on the long side, heading in the other direction.

Jan Brink and Briar

There is something to be said for successful dressage horse breeding. Dressage Olympian Jan Brink rode the Swedish Warmblood stallion Briar in a long and consistently successful partnership at the international Grand Prix level. Jan Brink and Briar participated in three Olympic Games and eight World Cup Finals. Jan Brink and Briar won four medals at the European Championships and have been Swedish champions seven times. As the breeder of this world famous stallion, Hans-Yngve Göransson has received much attention for dressage horse breeding. At his Dalhem stud farm in Fuglie, outside of Trelleborg, the southernmost town in Sweden, his dressage horse breeding program continues with the same methodology that has proven successful for decades.

The Dalhem Method
Göransson’s philosophy is to let horses be horses. He firmly believes that box-stall isolation is bad for the mentality and strength of the growing horse. “Young horses that are isolated and treated so carefully so that they won’t get hurt are being killed with love instead of letting them be horses,” he says. “They are always worked on perfect, flat footing. Everything must be just so. They are like hothouse flowers. Take them out into the real world and they may wilt.”

At Dalhem, all horses live outside on grass 24 hours a day until the winter weather becomes too harsh.

The farm produces about 10 foals a year. After weaning, the youngsters are divided into groups by age and sex. During the winter, each group comes into the barn and shares a large communal stall, as is common in many European studs. During their time inside, they are handled, separated from the group and the older ones are free-jumped several times a month. “This gives us a chance to evaluate them not only physically but for temperament and trainability as well,” says Göransson. Groups are turned out simply by opening the right combination of gates. “This is a big time saver as opposed to turning each youngster out individually.”

Young stallions are kept together until they are 3- or 4-year-olds. “Naturally, the stallions play and have nicks and scrapes, and some people don’t like that,” says Göransson. “But they really use their bodies and become well-muscled, developing their joints and tendons. Plus, they get good socialization. The uneven ground helps them develop balance and strength. Of course, if there is any serious fighting then they are separated.”

The young horses are brought in and separated when they are started under saddle and go into work. When the youngsters are ready to show, it is in moderation. “When Briar was young, we only did about three competitions a year,” says Göransson. “I think the young-horse competitions we have these days are good, but one needs to look at the individual and his growth to determine if it is right for the horse. It is too easy to get caught up in going from one show to the next, especially with a talented horse for which things are easy. You must pace him so as not to burn him out. Too much too soon will kill the spirit of the horse.”

Göransson believes in a variety of work for his horses and includes galloping on a racetrack and jumping, even for dressage horses. This variety is especially important for upper-level horses that already are quite skilled. “It’s more a matter of keeping them fit but not bored,” explains Göransson. He tells how Brink regularly worked outside the ring with Briar, and it kept the stallion guessing. One day, he might go into the ring and just warm up, jogging for 10 minutes or so. On other days, the pair would do intensive ring work. Still other days would find them riding outside in the woods. “This way, the horse never knows what he will be doing in the ring—a light, relaxing jog or some heavy work—and he doesn’t associate the ring with constant hard work.” Göransson believes in getting young horses outside and having variety in their work.

Breeding a Champion
Göransson grew up on a breeding farm and has been involved with breeding horses all his life. Briar was the culmination of a lifetime of careful bloodline selection based on competition results. The line that produced Briar started in 1926 with the importation of the East Prussian mother line that produced the mare Diana (also the grandmother of Amor, an important stallion in Dutch Warmblood breeding). That mare line was then crossed with such Swedish luminaries as Drabant and Gaspari to produce the mare Medea, purchased from Flyinge, the Swedish State Stud, by Göransson’s father in 1971.

Looking to add some elegance to their mare, the Göranssons chose the imported stallion Illum by Hanoverian foundation sire Der Löwe xx, a Thoroughbred. “At the time, there was a strong nationalistic tendency in breeding,” says Göransson, “and we were heavily criticized for using a foreign stallion and a half-Thoroughbred as well.” The resulting mare, Mickaela, became one of the foundation mares of Dalhem’s modern breeding program.

In choosing a stallion for Mickaela, Göransson looked to the Swedish stallion Krocket. “This was in the early 1980s when the fashion was to use stallions from abroad,” he notes. “This time we were criticized for using a Swedish stallion. Krocket was fantastic, a really good stallion,” he remembers. “Eddie Macken was jumping him in the warm-up at Falsterbo as a young horse before he retired to breeding, and everyone stopped what they were doing to watch. He was so impressive.”

Krocket was a grandson of the imported Hanoverian stallion Utrillo, who was one of the top producers in Sweden. He also had Thoroughbred blood on the dam’s side. Unfortunately, Krocket was not used much by other breeders. Göransson believes two factors led to this: “It was at the turning point where shipped semen was becoming the standard, and the owners of Krocket only stood him for live cover.” Also, Krocket went straight into breeding instead of having a competition career, so many mare owners never saw him. Both of these factors caused him to lose mares, and he never had much impact on the Swedish breed as a whole. But for Dalhem, the stallion produced two mares that Göransson kept for his program. One was Charis, the dam of Briar. For her, Göransson chose Magini, a local stallion he had been watching for several years. Magini, a Utrillo grandson, had good gaits and jumping ability and seemed to stamp his offspring. Briar was the result of that breeding and the rest, as they say, is history.

“Frequently Briar is [criticized] because he is a Swedish stallion,” says Göransson. “But if you actually look at his pedigree, you will see he is a truly international horse with a mixture of Swedish, Hanoverian, Trakehner and Thoroughbred blood.” Briar is now approved by the Hanoverian, Oldenburg and KWPN registries, among others, and he has 10 approved sons in different registries. He breeds more mares abroad than in Sweden. In 2011, he stood in the Netherlands so he could be more accessible to Europeans during the recession. Standing in Holland means an easier and less-costly process for customers. Briar is also one of the few stallions whose fresh semen can be shipped to the United States from Europe (Tailwindsfarm.com).

Following the Trends or Not
As a longtime breeder, Göransson says he is disappointed in what he calls “the fashion” in breeding. “Breeders want the new young stallions from the stallion shows, and they breed to a handful of the high-scoring stallions at the approvals even though they are totally unproven in sport. It’s sad that the top stallions in sport do not get as many breedings as the current hot young stallions. Many times the top stallions at the approvals with the flashy extended trots are not seen in sport, at least at the higher levels. The stallions that don’t score quite as high are often the ones who are successful in sport.”

It was a successful 2009 show season. Tonico do Top won the Prix St. Georges Championship at the BLM Finals and the U.S. Dressage Federation’s All Breed Andalusian Championship at Intermediaire I for his successes in the FEI dressage ring. I remember people applauding after this baroque horse's I-1 test in the famous Dixon Oval at Dressage at Devon. They seemed intrigued by this baroque horse. It was a wonderful moment for his owners and me, his rider and trainer. It reminded me how far he had come since his days as a parade horse in the Brazilian jungle.

The Adventure Begins
In 2006, my clients Linda and Joe Denniston decided they wanted to own a Lusitano that I could eventually show at Grand Prix and that they could later stand at stud. I was excited to be part of their dream, and the search began. We looked at endless videos of Lusitanos in the U.S., Portugal and Brazil. I was hoping to find a horse that could do a single flying change, had three good gaits and an extended trot. Finally, we came across a video of a stallion in Brazil. Tonico do Top was at Sucandi, a Lusitano farm owned by the Pass family. He was 15.3 hands and had just turned 7 in October. He had a big extended trot and did some flying changes. The canter looked passable, the basic trot was without any cadence and the walk was poor. But there was something about this shiny chestnut that fascinated us. Brazil is a long way to go just to look at one horse, so I requested more videos that included different views of the walk and canter to get a better idea about his natural movement, particularly without a rider. It was clear there was a lot of tension in his back when he was ridden, and that did not help the situation. I knew I would be able to improve the trot, but the canter and walk had to be respectable. His walk concerned me the most; I could see it had a good rhythm but no overstride.

Linda decided that the two of us should fly to Brazil, and the people at Sucandi promised there would be many other horses for us to see. We noticed an inviting photo on their Web site of a swimming pool and a table with delicious-looking drinks with umbrellas. We decided the trip would be worth it, no matter what happened. So we left on a cold December afternoon on a 10-hour overnight flight to Sao Paolo. Florian and Roberta Pass promised to pick us up from the airport in a bulletproof car, which did not boost my confidence.

To my surprise, Florian and Roberta were not old weathered horse people as I expected but a young couple who had gotten into horses through the interest of their daughter. Florian had moved from Germany but was not involved in horses there. We drove straight to their beautiful farm, which is set up like a bed and breakfast, framed by an incredible variety of flowers in every color and with exotic scents. The barn was a U-shaped concrete building with about 30 stalls, and a grass courtyard in the middle. During the day the horses were tied in their stalls secured by a metal bar.

We learned that Tonico was Brazilian-bred, born Oct. 8, 1999 (our fall is springtime in South America). He was sired by Emetico out of Jandaya do Top. Her sire, Babel, was chestnut and passed on the color. The breeder, Tonico Pereira, named the pretty foal after himself and sold him at a yearling auction. In 2004, Roberta and Florian found him in the jungle, where he was used in religious parades. At Sucandi, he was ridden and used as a breeding stallion.

When we approached Tonico in his stall, I had a shock. He had a beautiful neck and shoulder, but his back, although correct, was lacking any muscle definition. He gently sniffed me all over, and even though I meet new horses all the time, this was special. We saw all the stallions presented in-hand in the courtyard. None moved very well on the slippery grass. They acted like geldings—all except Tonico. He came out of his stall like a king, telling the world about it, but never once did he trouble his handler. It was a beautiful sight, and I was hooked, hoping he would leave the same impression under saddle. We saw many horses and then, finally, Tonico was brought out. As predicted, there was tension and no stretch in his topline and no straightness. The flying changes were rather voluntary, but we didn’t watch long. I wanted time in the saddle.

The First Ride & Evaluation
Trying a new horse is like trying to find a common language. Was Tonico willing to talk to me, could he listen and would he try to follow my requests? His attitude struck me right away. I was impressed that, despite the tension, he was completely willing to listen, and he tried to figure out what I was talking about. I used some systematic exercises that showed him black and white, what reaction I expected from my leg, my seat and from my hand—and he understood! I could straighten him more and help him to balance, which in turn, really helped him to relax. That was the initial goal and all I could accomplish the first day.

We had a lovely dinner with Florian and Roberta, the perfect hosts. They even provided some German wheat beer to make me feel at home. (I am German but have lived in the United States for more than 20 years.) That night, we happily fell into bed since there was no sleep the night before.

The next morning it took a while to find a snaffle bit I wanted to ride with, and Tonico’s saddle was less than desirable. Since he had no back muscles, the saddle sat straight on his withers. I finally borrowed the daughter’s children’s jumping saddle, the only one narrow enough not to hurt him too badly. I spent a lot of time with Tonico working on his basic gaits and still felt happy about his willingness. My challenge of asking for counter canter without allowing him to escape with a flying change to the true lead put a considerable amount of pressure on him, but he never got upset. He just kept on trying. I wanted to address more collection, as in half steps or pirouettes, but he was clearly not ready. Still, I could feel him collecting on my seat and gathering himself for transitions and half-halts. To carry a whip was not possible—obviously there were too many negative associations.

When I came to the ring, I saw a gentleman teaching. I learned he was Orlando Farcada, at one time, the most successful dressage rider in Brazil. At 70, he still competes, and he trained one of Sucandi’s horses with the intent of making the last Pan American Games team. I was curious to watch him train, and we set up a time to visit his farm the next day.

In the afternoon there were more horses to evaluate. These were youngsters, and we watched them free school in the ring since Linda was also thinking of buying a young filly for her breeding stock. There were two colts and a yearling filly from one breeder that stood out because of their warmblood-like movement. The filly was bay and already tall. Soon, a decision was made to bring her home to Linda’s Cedar Rowe Lusitanos. Bora-Bora is now 16.1 hands, quite beautiful being ridden under saddle.

The day did not leave a minute to spare. Between riding or looking at horses and talking with our wonderful hosts, who shared our meals, there had been no opportunity for Linda and me to discuss what we were thinking about Tonico. All the other horses I rode did not interest me to the degree that he did. We finally stole away on a walk, admiring the orchids, and weighed the pros and cons. His walk was still very short; I saw only two steps with more promise of length. I was really not able to test the collection the way I would have liked to for a Grand Prix prospect. I also wanted to test him in the double bridle. But all of that would not have been fair at his stage of training and with his lack of strength in his back. Despite all that, I was falling for him (not very professional, but true).

Before we begin, I want to be clear about our goals for this work. This article will teach you to feel how your horse reacts to pressure and stretching in a more in-depth way. I will give you the tools to assess what feels normal and what does not on a regular basis. What this article will not do is turn you into a do-it-yourself professional masseuse. I don’t expect you to identify each and every muscle by name by the end or professionally assess and treat all of your horse’s muscle problems.

Consider this an unmounted variation of what you are already striving for every time you ride: connecting completely with your horse. Imagine the harmony between a top horse and rider during their best rides. My goals are also to improve the horse’s performance, but the most enjoyable and rewarding moments are when I completely connect with him in the process. Another similarity between massage and riding is that you can use a professional massage therapist as you do your dressage trainer for the work we are discussing—at certain points, it might be helpful to work with him more frequently to get a better understanding. Other times, your therapist might come in to give a tune-up to your horse and give you a more in-depth look at how things are going or provide more profound physiological results. When you do have him out, don’t be afraid to discuss your horse’s status. Ask for personalized tips on how to work on your horse between sessions, related to what your horse is currently dealing with. In the end, all of the information you gain will only add to your toolbox and make you more aware of how you can help your horse.

Develop a Game Plan

The goal in all of this work is to explore your whole horse from head to tail. Take your time on this, and don’t be afraid to ask a massage therapist or vet if you have questions. From the first time you do this, you are learning more about your horse and also identifying possible red flags to keep an eye on. As you prepare to start your first massage on your horse, you will need these items:

1. Your hands—make sure your
fingernails are clipped!

2. A hoofpick with a blunt handle that you will use in a specific exercise.

3. Any curry combs you might have in various sizes and shapes that will be used in various ways.

4. A printout of an outline of a horse from multiple angles and a highlighter pen. Many massage therapists use these during their sessions to mark/highlight when they hit a reactive point.

Here is how to use your tools: Put your horse in a location where you are most comfortable grooming him. You can try the crossties or, in my opinion, proceed more safely in his stall (where he’s probably most comfortable and calm). I almost never work on a horse outside his stall. But with regard to making this choice, and throughout these exercises, you must use your best judgement as a horseperson. Remember, all horses have the potential to bite or kick as a reaction to palpation—even your sweet, middle-aged gelding who has never done anything wrong. So be cautious and prepared.

Step 1—Familiarize yourself with your pressure techniques: Let’s begin work at your horse’s neck. This is a great place to first practice all your pressure techniques because it is not threatening and you are in a relatively safe place.

Start with pressure from the pads of your fingertips. Using the pads of your fingers, apply a superficial (light) pressure to your horse with a
supporting second hand over the first. Layering your hands allows them to share the workload and prevent stress on your fingers. Make sure that any time you use your fingers on your horse, your fingernails are not digging into him.

Using the notion that the horse’s muscle fibers generally are in the direction of the hair growing over them, apply your pressure in the direction of his neck hair with your finger-pad pressure.

As you start to work with your horse, notice how he responds to this superficial pressure. Try applying more pressure so you gradually build to a medium and then a deep pressure. It is important to interpret your horse’s reactions from your massage and this begins with knowing what to expect. When your massage feels good to your horse he will give you subtle signs. He might start to lean into your pressure and try to groom you. He might extend his muzzle out and start to groom the wall. You might notice his breathing getting softer, his heart rate slowing or a general feeling that your horse is more supple to your hand.

On the other hand, if your horse feels pain or soreness, the signs are usually more obvious. He might move away from you, start to get an uneasy look in his eyes or tense his body. In more extreme cases, he might try to bite, kick, rear, strike or buck. Additionally, his muscles might start to spasm.

As you notice him have any type of larger response to certain pressure, it is most important to know that just because a horse is reactive does not mean he is sore. For example, while he might react to being touched on his neck (or later, on the rest of his body) that does not mean he is in pain. Soreness is pain that the horse feels in a specific activity and it needs to be addressed. While a sore horse will be reactive, a reaction to touch doesn’t mean that point is sore. When you get a massage and a point hurts, that is reactive. If it doesn’t affect your everyday performance, then it is not sore. What you can do with this information is notice how your horse reacts on either side of his neck. Does he react much more when you apply superficial pressure on the upper part of his neck, or on the left versus the right? Take that information and don’t assume your horse is sore, but do note the difference. If you are concerned by the reaction, you can always call your vet to ask for a professional opinion. Regardless of what you feel, mark your printout with your highlighter to note reactivity.

Now that you are more familiar with using the pads of your fingertips, it is time to try out the heel of your palm as well. In the same direction of the hair, place the palm of your hand against your horse’s neck. Use the side of your second hand (in the shape of a fist) on top of the first to apply a medium amount of pressure to direct the first hand. This reduces fatigue and stress on your hands to use both together. Does this different pressure get a different reaction from your horse? Do you get more reaction when you go across the hair? This is a good time to start to see what feels best on your hands because not all techniques are best for everyone (or their horses).

Now try another type of pressure that can be superficial and heavy: thumb pressure. Apply your thumb to your horse and hook your other hand around it in a supportive way. By sharing the pressure with both hands, you can support that one finger and dictate the amount of pressure more easily. Again, note any reactions from this type of pressure and what is most comfortable on your hands and your horse.

Step 2—Apply your pressure techniques to the rest of your horse: Working your way down to your horse’s shoulder, continue trying out the various techniques for applying pressure. Note how your horse reacts and write it down on your printout.

The introduction of deeper pressure in the shoulder area might be the first place you see some bigger reactions from a horse that is currently in work. Some people are quick to say that if you put deeper pressure in the left shoulder, and he steps away or starts to move his skin as if a fly is on it, then he is sore. Sometimes a horse’s skin will move if your pressure is too light (and tickling him) or too deep. Either way, it is irritating him. Just because the left shoulder is reactive does not always mean the horse is sore and needs medical attention. However, what it always means is information. Perhaps performance has not been affected yet. By massaging your horse frequently, you will learn to understand what reaction is typical in your horse and what is new and probably represents soreness.

Return to your superficial pressure techniques as you work your way to your horse’s torso and toward his tail. In the case of the rib area, the pressure technique you choose should be very superficial and refined in how much area you are covering. Thumb pressure is a great technique to achieve this.

Now work your way over his back and down to his hind end. As with grooming, don’t massage as hard in the less-meatier areas like the shoulder. Notice how your horse reacts to pressure with and across the hair (muscle fibers).

Step 3—Use your tools: Return again to your horse’s neck for safety’s sake and try your grooming tools. They can give you a new way to apply pressure and might feel easier, especially if you have hand or wrist problems.

The curry comb: There are two ways to use the curry comb:

1. Use the edge as an extension of your fingers to give you a deep pressure.

2. The curry used flat, as during grooming, can give a more shallow pressure. This is a good approach to create compression (straight, repetitive pressure without leaving the horse) and friction (pressure across the muscle fibers and hair). Try different curry combs because a plastic one with short teeth can give a very different feel from a rubber one with long teeth.

Now continue on to other parts of your horse’s body, excluding his legs. The rule of thumb is don’t use pressure where you wouldn’t curry your horse. Trust your gut and your years of experience around horses to know where you can apply various amounts of pressure and where it is safe to stand around your particular horse. Always err on the side of caution.

The hoofpick: Consider the blunt end of the hoof pick instead of your fingers only when asking for a low-back flexion (when you apply pressure in a line down your horse’s hamstring to ask for him to lift his back). Apply the pressure gradually and avoid abrupt pressure. If you are not familiar with asking for a low-back flexion, I highly recommend having a vet or massage therapist show you this exercise in person.

Once you have a general idea of how your horse reacts to various types of pressure, keep track of changes over the course of several days and weeks on additional copies of your printout. For example, when you apply flat curry pressure to your horse’s right shoulder on the third day, do you notice him react more sensitively than he did on the first day? Maybe your horse seemed reactive in his back when you applied palm pressure the first day, but now he is not. The most important thing is you are taking note of his typical reaction and how it changes. From that point, you can use that information to see how that translates to his being sore. Maybe he is reactive (steps away, tries to bite or kick out, flinches, etc.) because you are pressing too hard. Perhaps he was just at a long show or demanding clinic weekend. Does the reactivity continue the next day? Don’t be afraid to call your vet and talk about what you are feeling. Communicate with your massage therapist, trainer, barn manager and farrier, etc. as you start to identify information they can help you with. The key is to know your horse better than you did before and connect with him in an even deeper way.

This article was originally printed in the December 2011 issue of Dressage Today. To gain up-to-the-minute access to all Dressage Today has to offer, consider subscribing.

For example, long periods seated such as at a computer or in a car create imbalanced patterns across the hip joints from muscle and ligament tightness, and lack of use (weakness).  The seated pelvis is being trained to be static, and is prejudiced against correct movement because of the muscle imbalances and lack of stimulus from holding a seated posture.  The pelvis that is physically pre-disposed to ineffective muscle engagement and movement, puts the rider at a disadvantage for their ride.

The human body is designed to work best in balance.  The human body seated on a horse has optimal biomechanics, when the correct muscle chains act at the correct moments, with correct force to support the rider’s skeletal structure and support the desired movements.  The rider’s body has less chance of responding correctly when it comes to the ride with imbalances or pre-disposed tendency to incorrect muscle engagement.  Common examples are often over-engagement in areas such as the hip flexors (pulling the leg forward) or lack of engagement in the lumbo-pelvic area.

If the rider’s lower back extensors and lateral stabilizers (gluteus medius on the side of the hips) have been overloaded or stretched all day and inactive from prolonged seated postures (chairs, car), they will not engage correctly during the ride to support the rider’s hips and spine for correct posture.  Of course, posture for a rider must be understood as posture-in-motion or dynamic balance because of the constant micro-adjustments which occur to maintain self-carriage on a moving horse.

Lack of stimulation to important postural stabilizers causes the reaction ability of the muscles to be reduced.  The neuromuscular connection is weakened.  Neuromuscular connections can be thought of like electrical impulse connections or even more simply like a cell-phone connection.  A connection with interruption or interference creates ‘packet loss’ on the phone call- you can only hear every other word.  Weakened or broken neuromuscular connections are similar.  Your brain can even forget to recruit some muscles.  “Move it or lose it” really is a fairly accurate common expression that applies to training.

A disconnection or lack of correct engagement of stabilizers in the rider’s pelvis can result in issues such as difficulty with leg aids, a collapsing lower back, weakness in lateral movement and even an overactive low back resulting in back strain and pain.

Unfortunately, it is not good enough for your horse to ‘hear’ intermittent signals from your seat.  Intermittent engagement of stabilizers in the pelvis also leaves your spine unsupported, and your back at much greater risk for a strain injury.  If the muscle has insufficient stimulation, it will atrophy.  So, the goals of training postural stabilizers are two-fold:

1. Wake up the muscle area- re-establish a strong neuromuscular connection.
2. Build endurance and strength so that your body can respond to the demands of your ride with ease.  You should never have to think about maintaining posture or applying muscular force during your ride.

Training the stabilizers in a rider’s pelvis helps pre-condition the rider’s body to have the capacity and ability to do the right things.   You can improve your seat by using groundwork to prepare your body to carry and use itself more appropriately when you are in the saddle.

Even if you ride several hours every day, you can greatly reduce your risk of strain injury by including some groundwork in your schedule.   Groundwork designed for humans, balances the human body best.  Just riding does place demand on your body which does create some strength.  However, it is very common for riders (especially professionals who spend many hours in the saddle a day) who do not have their own conditioning exercises, to experience significant strain issues over time.  In effect their body has had to work overtime to absorb the motion of an animal at least eight times their body-weight, for thousands of repetitions.

A rider interested in bringing maximum self-carriage to their ride, avoiding injury and prolonging their riding career should do some ground training.   Riding is a sport that can be engaged in right in to senior years, and riders can improve their entire life.  This means that a rider can be improving technically, at an age when their physical preparedness for sport is actually reducing due to the normal aging process which reduces suppleness in ligaments and causes muscle fibre atrophy.  Riders over 40 should definitely be engaging in supplementary exercises to strengthen the muscles that stabilize the pelvis and spine, so that the riding itself does not actually wear your body down.  Most riders want to be able to ride as long in life as they possibly can.

Even though concepts of biomechanics and neuromuscular connections can seem complicated, the great news is that it is actually fairly easy to help your body create the right muscle engagement to support a better seat and spine position.

Three easy exercises that have multiple benefits and help in these areas are the single leg hip-hinge, side plank and side leg raise.  Because riding involves a lot of endurance (sustained engagement of muscles during various exercises), it can be especially beneficial to do these exercises as isometric.  In simple terms, get into the exercise position and hold the position.  When holding the positions for up to 60 seconds is easier, you are ready to progress to more advanced versions using balance challenging techniques that further stimulate your core and prepare you for stabilizing your pelvisand spine in dynamic motion such as you must do on the horse.

Hip Hinge

The hip-hinge creates correct muscle firing patterns in your gluteals (seat), core area supporting your lower back, and hip stabilizers.  The primary area strengthened is your gluteals, with additional strengthening for the thighs.  Even though the torso tips forward, keeping your core engaged and your spine neutral creates strength and correct engagement for the muscles that support your lower back in the upright riding posture.

Start: Step back and lower your weight into a mini-squat, with your seatbones poking backward.  Keep your chest and head up so that your back ‘hinges’ as well.  Keep most of your weight in the front leg, and keep your back flat.  When you are starting out, make the movement very small and repeat a dozen times, daily.  As you get stronger, you can increase the number of repetitions, but only do them every other day.  You can also build stamina by holding the position for several seconds before releasing and repeating.

Advanced Version:  Introduce more balance challenging elements such as standing on a cushion or Bosu ™ or raising one leg in the air.

Add a side plank: The side plank primarily strengthens lateral stabilizers in the torso and hips.  It also improves strength in the overall core area by engaging your transverse abdominus- the deep inner core muscle that supports your torso like a natural corset.  Side planks have the added bonus benefit of strengthening the shoulders, which is especially helpful in injury avoidance for women. Lie on your side with your knees, hips and shoulders aligned (knees bent).  Lift yourself up onto your elbow, maintaining alignment from your shoulders-hips-heels.  Progressions could include a full leg side plank, or raising yourself up onto your hand.  Work your way up to being able to hold the plank with good alignment for 60 seconds before introducing additional variables and challenges to your core control.

Advanced Versions: Add a destabilizing surface at your feet or shoulders using a cushion, balance board or other balance device. Or, add a side leg raise: The primary focus of this exercise is the gluteus medius (hip area) which factors in to supporting strong leg aids as well as symmetry in the saddle from left to right.  Performed with correct alignment from shoulder to hip to heel, the side leg raise engages all the postural core muscles used in maintaining nice upright alignment in the saddle.

Heather Sansom is the author of rider fitness ebooks Complete Core Workout for Rider, and a regular columnist in several equestrian publications including Dressage Today. EquiFITT.com offers rider fitness clinics & workshops, Centered Riding® instruction, and convenient distance eCoaching for riders anywhere.  Subscribe to receive free monthly Equestrian Fittips, and download rider fitness eBooks at:  www.equifitt.com/resources.html

Unlike competitors who transition from Third Level, Test 3, to Fourth Level, Test 1, the younger rider who moves from the Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI) Junior tests to FEI Young Riders dressage is basically going straight from the equivalent of Third Level work to a higher Fourth Level dressage test. All in all, that’s a very big step up both in technical difficulty and in the test riding itself. The major difference is that the FEI Junior dressage tests are a bit nicer and more straightforward while the FEI Young Rider dressage tests require a horse to be able to collect more for the level of control needed during the movements, especially the difficult exercises like the tempi changes and half pirouettes. Some riders find that the most difficult part of moving to FEI Young Riders dressage comes from assuming that a horse with high-quality gaits, who scores well in the Juniors, will be able to handle the transition immediately. You cannot assume that a horse that does very well in the Juniors will naturally score well in the Young Riders. As I mentioned earlier, the preparation required to make a successful move to FEI Young Riders dressage is not any different from preparing to move from Third Level to the upper Fourth Level work. It is just more condensed. Whether you are an FEI Junior or adult Third/Fourth Level rider, I have included an explanation of what you need to focus on mastering and common mistakes most people encounter as they prepare to make the move to Young Riders/FEI.

To make this step up as fluent as possible, most of the work needs to be done at home. If your goal as an FEI Junior is to do FEI Young Rider dressage after your Junior career, you want to keep that goal in mind and be working toward it even as you still ride Juniors. Riding exercises that are required in the Young Rider tests, providing you and your horse are ready, will give you a sense of where you stand in terms of reaching your goal. Remember, you will not stay a Junior forever.

Before we break apart the larger movements, I want to talk about the need for more collection, bend and preparation. These three qualities are going to be important throughout your entire test and will prepare you for success in the parts we will be discussing later. One of the first things that make a difference is the need for more collection. This is essential because in the Young Rider tests the exercises come at you quicker. There is less room between them, therefore less room to set your horse up for the next movement. The horse has to be even quicker on the aids, and the rider always wants to think ahead. Here is one thing I see happen a lot in tests: A rider feels a movement went wrong and he thinks about it too long so his mind is not on the next step. That is easier to get away with in the Junior tests since you have more time to get back to business. In the Young Rider tests, if you dwell on the last exercise for even a moment, the next one will already be there.

Not only do you have to be mentally prepared, but your horse also needs you to be thinking about preparing him much more. Take the bend, for example. In the Junior tests all the exercises that ask for the horse to show bend are proceeded by exercises that will set him up for it: The half circle prepares for the shoulder-in or a half pass in that direction. In the Young Rider tests, they either come out of a straight line or require a change of bend shortly before a shoulder-in or a half pass.

In terms of transitions, the Junior test is more progressive. For example, there are no extensions to a tight corner with a halt immediately after. The maximum requirement is an extension to a walk (although some feel this is more difficult depending on the horse).

Flying Changes

The biggest difference between the levels is the canter work with the introduction of the half pirouettes and the flying changes (most importantly, the introduction of the tempi changes every three and four strides). The single changes in the Junior tests come after a half pass to the centerline, which is a very good setup since the horse is already pushed away from the leg he changes toward, and the half pass usually will collect him. But the Young Rider test is not so forgiving. Not only do you need more preparation for the flying change, you also need to do multiple changes. When you start training the tempi changes, it is important to understand what makes them more difficult. I expect every horse coming from Juniors to have a clean change. This is essential. The most important question is what the horse does before, during and after that clean change. A lot of horses tend to slow down or speed up. With a single change, the rider can get away with this and still have a clean change. With the tempi changes, the rider will lose control over the canter stride and feel that he or she is not ready for the next change. This is one of the main reasons why people can have problems with tempi changes. Let’s go into this a bit further.

Common Mistake 1—Slowing Down: If you horse slows down before a change, it is likely that you will lose impulsion. This mostly happens in the stride just before the change. After four strides and another change, if this happens again, you will lose even more impulsion. By the time you’re at your last changes, there is a fair chance that your horse will not change cleanly or is so behind the aids that he will add an extra stride before the next change. Even if your horse is good at making changes and you manage to get all the changes in the right amount of strides, your horse will be behind the leg and on the forehand when he reaches the corner. In the case of the Young Rider individual test, the half pirouette comes after the changes of lead every four strides. If you come out of the tempis with your horse on the forehand and behind your leg, you will be in trouble in the limited amount of time you have to set up for the half pirouette. Again, thinking ahead and preparing are essential for success.

Common Mistake 2—Speeding Up: On the other hand, if your horse speeds up before, during or after the change, he will get longer with every change. It is easy to imagine what will happen in the tempi changes. They will be late behind toward the end of the line, and it will be more and more difficult to place a change every three or four strides as the horse gets longer. Even if all of that doesn’t happen, you still have to ride an extended canter after the three-tempi changes in the individual test. Getting back in time to turn at A with a horse that already started the extension too long will be a challenge.

The fix for both of these common mistakes is to make sure the canter stride (in terms of impulsion and speed) stays the same before, during and after the single change before you move on to tempi work. When you start riding multiple changes, continue concentrating on the canter rather than the number of strides between changes. Start with riding the next change only when you feel you have control of the canter and can successfully make another change. It’s the lack of control that causes problems rather than missing the count every three or four strides. Remember, most riders have learned to count to four much earlier than they learned to ride a proper upper-level canter.

Common Mistake 3—Straightness: Another problem with the flying change is the straightness of the horse or rather the lack of it. Most, if not all, horses have a preferred side to bend toward. With flying changes, this easily results in swinging the quarters in or out during or after the change. Eventually, the hindquarters get out too far to make a change possible. This also accounts for the fact that most horses find it more difficult to start the changes on one diagonal than the opposite one (the right diagonal tends to be the more difficult one on which to start the changes). A good way to check this is to ride changes on the inside track on the long side. This gives a better sense of straightness and direction than on a diagonal, where you more easily go left or right of the letter you are riding toward and thus lose track of the straightness of the horse.

Common Mistake 4—Poor Rider Position: As for the position of the rider in riding changes, one could probably elaborate beyond the length of this article. But, it is worth discussing the most frequent mistakes, which are getting in front of the movement and/or exaggerating it. Getting in front of the movement is readily accomplished since it is easier for a horse to change by getting higher in the croup. Then he doesn’t have to bend his hind legs in the change. When this happens, the rider is pushed up, forward and out of the saddle. Most people allow that or even stand up in their stirrups to enable the croup to come up in an attempt to follow the horse. By bringing his hind end up, the horse shifts more weight onto his front end, which we obviously don’t want for reasons of losing balance and control.

Making too much movement in the changes by swinging your body in the direction of the change is another common fault that is often made. Your movement gets bigger than the actual movement of the horse. So instead of going with the horse’s rhythm, we end up against it, unbalancing the horse rather than balancing him.

The fix, in both cases, is to remember that the closer we stay to the horse and the more we stay in the saddle, the more difficult it is for him to bring his hind end up or for our position to become too exaggerated. You will invite the horse to make a nice forward change that is in front of you rather than ending on his front legs. Looking forward, instead of down, and sitting up and staying back will help this.

Pirouettes

The pirouettes are introduced in Young Riders. This is quite a big step up from the Junior tests, probably bigger than the tempi changes, in my opinion. Pirouettes require a lot of collection from the horse and take the biggest effort strength-wise, perhaps even more than piaffe or passage. To make a good pirouette, you have to be able to collect and bend your horse. If the canter is too big, the horse will not be able to gather himself up in time to sit and turn. So here, too, you need to focus more on the canter stride than on where you want to ride the pirouette.

One of the most common mistakes made in riding pirouettes is to turn ahead of the horse. Most riders have the idea that they have to help the horse turn, which makes them turn their horses around before they are ready. The result is that the riders get ahead of the movement, unbalancing their horses and making it difficult, if not impossible, for them to make a pirouette.

It is my experience that if you have collected the horse correctly, the easiest way to get to a pirouette (or the beginning strides of it) is to have the notion that if the horse is balanced enough to do it, you can use your own balance to get him to start. When you have your horse sufficiently collected, put your weight and outside leg slightly more back and put more weight onto your inside seat bone. An easy way to shift the weight is to look over your shoulder in the direction of the turn. The horse will be inclined to stay under the rider’s weight, once he is collected enough. When this happens, if you give him one or two strides to gather up even more, you will feel him start to turn underneath you rather than turn to keep up with you. You make the setup and you let your horse find his balance. When he starts to turn, you can relax in the rein and that will make him collect even more. At first, try this exercise at the walk. You will clearly feel the inside hind leg being picked up and put down once the horse starts to turn underneath you.

There are several effective ways of working toward a pirouette: You can start on a circle and spiral in, putting the horse slightly in haunches-in or shoulder-in, depending on his straightness. Or you can ride straight into a corner and make the horse back off the wall to get a quarter pirouette. No matter how you approach it, when you let him make the pirouette by using your weight, he has a better chance of succeeding.

In all movements, our position in the saddle is an essential part of the total balance of our horse and ourselves. The more we realize the influence of how our balance affects the horse, the more effective we can be in our aids. You can only control the movements of the horse successfully when you follow them. If you’re not with the movement, you are by definition against it. If you want to make the horse respond to your aids and be obedient, you first have to be in a position where it is possible for him to do so.

Remember that the one who wins the competition is the one who accumulates the most points at the end of the test, not the one with the flashiest extension or half pass. Being able to control the horse’s balance and being aware of your own influence to that balance will give you the control needed to ride accurate tests. Earn points by preventing mistakes in accuracy. You should know the strengths of your horse and accept that there will always be some elements where a 5 or a 6 is a very good mark, just as a 7 or an 8 is for the others. Trying to improve an exercise that a horse is not good at during a test will sooner lead to mistakes than improvements.

This article was originally printed in the November 2011 issue of Dressage Today. To gain up-to-the-minute access to all Dressage Today has to offer, consider subscribing.

About 90 percent of dressage riders are female according to the U.S. Dressage Federation (USDF), so it is no wonder that breast cancer awareness and breast cancer fundraising have become hot topics in our world. Champions of the cause—from individuals to multimillion-dollar corporations—are creating charity organizations, products and events at an incredible rate. Here are just a few examples of how members of the dressage community are helping to support breast cancer research, awareness and treatments: the Purina Pink 50 Campaign, The Challenge of the Americas, the PVDA Ride for Life, Dressage for the Cure at the Peak, Dressage for the Cure, SSG® Riding Gloves for Hope or Smartpak’s SmartPink™ - learn more about each:

The Challenge of the Americas (COTA) has taken the charity dressage event to a new level. In addition to acting as a fundraiser, it has helped expand the base of spectator-friendly dressage events and brought together members of the sport’s community. This annual Florida event features freestyles by some of the top riders in the world, a Grand Prix quadrille and a formal sold-out formal gala. COTA brings the who’s who of dressage together for low-stress, exhibition-style performances. “Each year, the challenge and gala bring in more people and more excitement, and it is so important that we acknowledge and help in the fight against breast cancer,” says Mary Ross, founder and chairman of COTA. “This is a disease that affects so many lives, and I am so proud of the impact we are able to have as we raise money for the Foundation.” Since its inception, the event has raised over $1.2 million for the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. “My mother, who died of breast cancer, was my inspiration for this event,” says Ross, “I wanted to do something extraordinary in her memory. I am so thankful to each person who has helped transform the challenge from a luncheon performance with three horses into the international exhibition it is today.”

The Potomac Valley Dressage Association’s (PVDA) Ride for Life in Maryland also started with humble beginnings. Breast cancer survivor Pat Artimovich organized a one-day recognized show in 2004 to raise money for the Johns Hopkins Avon Foundation Breast Center in Baltimore, Maryland. In the past seven years, the show has grown to a weekend-long event with a Saturday evening Dancing Horse Challenge (involving upper-level horses and riders performing to music) and gala. Despite the weakened economy, the horse show is famous for filling up fast. Competitors bring funds they have raised, similar to a walk-a-thon, and the sold-out gala, charity auction and Dancing Horse Challenge donations have helped raise more than $315,000 to date.

On the other side of the country, the two-day recognized dressage show in Colorado, Dressage for the Cure at the Peak, also continues to grow from small beginnings and big ideas. Started in 2005 at a barn in Littleton, Colorado, the show was the brainchild of Donna Baxter to give a friend “something to live for” after her cancer diagnosis.

“The concept came to me the night I heard that my best friend, Renée Coble, a fellow dressage enthusiast and instructor, was diagnosed with Stage III breast cancer,” says Baxter. “I had recently relocated due to work and wasn’t there with her when she was diagnosed. The prognosis wasn’t great from the start and, since I was alone, I consoled myself the only way I knew how: I went to the barn. On my way there, I came up with the idea of having a dressage show. The proceeds would be donated to a breast cancer fund/charity of Renée’s choosing.”

At first, it was just a local Rocky Mountain Dressage Society (RMDS) show. Today it has grown so big that it has moved to Colorado Springs, becoming Dressage for the Cure at the Peak, and is now a qualifying competition for the North American Junior Young Rider Championships and the U.S. Equestrian Federation’s Young Horse Program. Since its first year, the event has raised more than $50,000.

Baxter explains, “As Renée was going through her breast cancer treatments, she realized there was a niché that was being overlooked. She discovered that middle-income women and men faced with the same ailment were having to chose between getting treatments and providing everyday necessities for their families like food, shelter, utilities and day care. She decided to create her own fund to help those individuals cope and survive.” Hence, Renée’s Friends Fund (RFF) was born (reneesfriendsfund.org). Since its inception, RFF has provided more than $323,000 in financial assistance to people facing the challenges of living with breast cancer.

In 2011, Dressage for the Cure at the Peak moves to the Colorado Horse Park and will now fund the non-profit support group Sense of Security. Dressage for the Cure will return as an additional fundraising dressage show in the area. It will continue to support RFF. Both Sense of Security and RFF provide local breast cancer patients with everyday living expenses while they are in treatment (senseofsecurity.org).

These events have grown the spectator-oriented angle while other fundraisers take a different approach, encouraging one-on-one and grass-roots participation.
For example, 10 percent of the proceeds from the sale of Smartpak’s SmartPink^™ line of horse wear (clothing, halters, etc.) goes to support the cause. So far, the total exceeds $50,000 (smartpakequine.com).

SSG^® Riding Gloves for Hope donates $2 from each pair of gloves sold in the country of purchase to breast cancer charities (ssgridinggloves.com/hope-glove).

Feed company Purina recently encouraged equestrians to “think pink” during its 2010 Purina Pink 50 Campaign to raise awareness and support for breast cancer research. It hosted 50 equestrian-related fundraisers for the cause around the country and produced limited-edition pink feed bags, donating a portion of the proceeds (purinamills.com/Pink50).

Thanks to the tireless commitment of people, groups and companies, breast cancer fundraising and awareness have grown exponentially within the dressage world. Certainly, many of the philanthropists involved in equestrian-related efforts focused on ending breast cancer will continue to provide support in every way they can until a cure is found. Until then, we are likely to see more spectacular fundraisers crop up as members of the dressage community continue to grow as a family and work toward fighting this disease in every creative way they can.

Anatomy of a Donation

By Lillie Shockney, RN, BS, MAS

When donations are made to promote breast cancer research and awareness, where do they go? In the case of the PVDA’s Ride for Life, the funding comes to us at the Johns Hopkins Avon Foundation Breast Center in Baltimore, Maryland. Here is how the funds (in excess of $300,000) have helped:

Partial funding for a breast surgical oncology fellowship. This certifies a general surgeon to be a surgical oncologist and within that specialty, a breast surgical oncologist. The specific funding from the Ride for Life was dedicated to quality-of-life research. In 2008, Dr. Anna Voltura was the recipient and spent one year at Hopkins. Afterward, she returned home to New Mexico and opened a breast center and served as the director of the breast program, specializing in underserved women in that region. By the end of 2010, the number of women she had operated on exceeded 800. This year, Dr. Eman Sbaity is the first woman to be placed into a breast surgical oncology fellowship with the goal of learning how to diagnose and treat breast cancer in Lebanon. No reconstruction has ever been done there, and she is currently learning those techniques to be able to provide patients with a whole silhouette after mastectomy surgery is performed. She is also learning how to do core biopsies and clinical breast exams and communication skills with patients.

Some $2,000 was used as supplemental funding to cover travel expenses for me to go to the Middle East and conduct educational programs for doctors with breast cancer patients. Breast cancer is the leading cause of death for women in Arabic countries. Currently, the mortality rate is above 85 percent, and most are diagnosed in their 30s and 40s.

Supplemental funds from the PVDA Ride for Life have been used to enable formal studies on the quality of life for those in the final stages of breast cancer. Additionally, we have been conducting retreats for these women since 2008, and this funding has helped develop programs to ease their physical and emotional pain—making sure that wishes are known, documenting them, teaching how to get closure with family, friends and oneself as they approach the end of their life.

A survivorship care program also has received funding. It teaches nurse practitioners, primary care physicians and gynecologists the long-term care needs of breast cancer patients. This is essential because, as of 2010, the number of cancer patients diagnosed exceeded the number of oncology specialists needed to treat them. The shortage of oncology specialists is anticipated to be between 41 and 48 percent by 2020.

Fundraising Tips from the North Carolina Caravan for the Cure

By Tanya Horning

To date, our breast cancer fundraising group, called the North Carolina Caravan for the Cure—seven equestrians and six supporters—has raised more than $25,000. Here are four steps we followed that can help any equestrian fundraising group, large or small:

1. Form a group that shares a goal. It doesn’t matter who is involved as long as they have passion. We came together as one team and had a lot of fun, even though the riders came from different farms and backgrounds (eventing, catch rider, dressage novice, U.S. Dressage Federation and Pan American Games gold medalists).

2. Ask friends and family to donate to your effort.

3. Host an event to raise money. For example, our group hosted a Fix-a-Test Clinic and Fun Day. This event included good food, a silent auction and shopping opportunities. The day was a lot of fun for all the horse people in attendance.

4. Solicit corporate sponsors for donations, advertising and support whenever your fundraising might offer the opportunity. For example, at any event there are many wonderful chances to advertise (in a show program, with ringside banners or by sponsoring awards with logos) and at the same time support a worthy cause.

This article was originally printed in the March 2011 issue of Dressage Today. To gain up-to-the-minute access to all Dressage Today has to offer, consider subscribing.

October 2, 2011 -- Even a downpour couldn't dampen my enthusiasm for Dressage at Devon, though it seems as if I've spent an inordinate amount of time over the last few weeks photographing dressage horses in the Northeast's never-ending rain.

My husband asked me the other day, not altogether joking, "When did we move to Seattle?"

It was unfortunate that one of the strongest bouts of precipitation came during Adrienne Lyle's ride on Wizard in the Grand Prix Freestyle, the show's highlight, but this rising combination shone brightly anyway. They achieved a score of 74.275 percent (with judge Wim Ernes of the Netherlands marking them as high as 76.875 percent) to edge last year's winner, Catherine Haddad Staller on Winyamaro.

That white-faced chestnut who looks like a giant adorable pony earned 73.950 percent. The ride was highlighted by a one-tempi tour that Catherine performed using only one hand on the reins (so slippery from the showers that she had to use football players' stickum to keep holding them securely.)

Catherine Haddad Staller rode an impressive series of one-tempis on Winyamaro using only one hand.

© 2011 by Nancy Jaffer

I asked her how many bonus points judges give for such one-handed feats and she retorted with a smile, "Not enough." Her total was 73.950 percent.

Adrienne's win on the impressive Oldenburg known as Eddie had significance for me because I met him shortly after he had arrived at Peggy and Parry Thomas' River Grove Farm in Idaho as merely a prospect. I was there to work with Adrienne's mentor, Debbie McDonald, on her book, "Riding Through," but impressed by Adrienne's talent, I also wound up doing a story for Practical Horseman on the Washington State native, who started with Deb as a working student. Now she's the assistant trainer and with her second big show in a row (she also won the freestyle at Saugerties, N.Y., last month) looks like a hot contender for next year's Olympic team.

Debbie couldn't be here to assist because she had a clinic elsewhere, so Adrienne worked with U.S. Technical Advisor Anne Gribbons. It was a successful combination, as Adrienne also won the Grand Prix earlier in the show. She noted that Catherine also had been helpful, always checking and asking if she needed anything.

Pirouettes were among the many strong points of the winning Grand Prix Freestyle by Adrienne Lyle and Wizard.

© 2011 by Nancy Jaffer

Adrienne is still developing her freestyle, which starts off with "Play that Funky Music" and includes "Dancing on the Ceiling" and "Soul Man." The driving beat throughout shows off Eddie's rhythmic piaffe and of course, his elegant extended trot draws oohs and aahs from spectators. The audience really got into this one, clapping in time to the music as Adrienne was wrapping up her performance.

Adrienne, who was making her Devon debut, said, "It was a wild experience. I've never ridden in an arena with that much atmosphere."

Despite the weather, the place was jammed, with ranks of umbrellas ringside amping the ambiance.

"I was told the crowd gets rowdy, but I had no idea they cheered during your ride," laughed Adrienne.

"It was really fun. It was his (Eddie's) first time under lights, so he had a lot of little nervous moments, but he tried to stay with me."

Even though she was soaked to the skin, she graciously gave me a few minutes of her time before going to change out of her wet clothes.

Listen: Adrienne Lyle

Catherine had planned to ride her other horse, Cadillac in the freestyle, but a cracked tooth is causing him problems and she's hoping it can be fixed before it leads to bigger trouble. (Luckily, she's married to a veterinarian.)

While Catherine also had hoped to be an Olympic candidate, she is on the verge of giving up that dream because she hasn't been able to get sponsorship, and can't afford to pursue it on her own. She may sell both horses, or perhaps just Winyamaro, though time is short for anyone seeking to buy a horse for the 2012 London Games. Horses competing have to be owned by someone from the rider's home nation before the end of this year.

Adrienne and Catherine were the odds-on favorites in the freestyle, which drew 11 starters. While entries in the breeding division were up this year, the performance division was down slightly. Things haven't been easy for D at D. Last year, it ran against the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, which thinned the ranks. This year, the national championships were held in September instead of June, and the Pan American Games trials were part of that package. As a result of the timing, a number of people felt they had done enough this season. Melissa Taylor, for instance, told me that she and partner Lars Petersen (a former D at D freestyle winner) would have loved to come, but had just been away from their Florida home too long. Others said the same thing. Tina Konyot noted during the championships that she is now based in Canada with her boyfriend, racehorse trainer Roger Attfield, and the trip would have just been too much for her Calecto V at this time.

Meanwhile, the Pan Am team went into quarantine and training camp today, which impacted their availability. However, team member Cesar Parra put on a couple of demonstrations with Grandioso, and alternate Heather Mason scored big victories in the Prix St. Georges and Intermediare I freestyle with Warsteiner.

Catherine Haddad Staller, Adrienne Lyle, James Koford

© 2011 by Nancy Jaffer

Although some big names were missing, D at D was still a special experience. Spectators are both knowledgeable and appreciative, and the stands were filled despite the weather. New footing in the Gold Ring, to match the surface in the main Dixon Oval, was welcomed. When the schooling area gets the same type of ground and word gets around, that will be a big drawing card.

The freestyle's third-place finisher, James Koford on Pharaoh (72.775 percent), got an incredible reception for his ride to Spanish music, and the other participants also were warmly treated. Many played up to the crowd, as did D at D regular Canadian Jackie Brooks, sixth with Gran Gesto, who fist-pumped big time and really got into the applause she received.

Guy McLean gave amazing exhibitions with his four Australian stock horses.

© 2011 by Nancy Jaffer

"I've been doing this show for 20 years and this is by far the best success I've had," said Koford.

"Everybody stepped up to the plate the crowd was into it, the horses were into it the riders were into it. It was a great night."

My sentiments exactly. They really know how to put on a show at D at D, and make fabulous shopping (the best I've seen at this venue) and good food a part of the package, along with pure entertainment. I was completely wowed by the exhibition, Australian Guy McLean and his four perfectly obedient horses. His big trick is having one horse lie down and all the others stand over it. No one moves a muscle. Oh yeah, and this is while he's performing a handstand in the saddle. But that's not all he does. Last night, he was cantering in place and backwards, very impressive for those of us who too often have trouble doing it forwards!

I couldn't wait to talk to Guy (love that accent) and find out how he came to appear at D at D.

Listen: Guy McLean

Nicolas Torres Rodriques of Colombia on Devon veteran Silver Label

© 2011 by Nancy Jaffer

Part of the fun of being here is seeing the regulars, both people and horses. I was jazzed to watch Silver Label, who I'd written about several years ago when Michael Shondel was riding him, winning in the junior ranks with a new rider, Nicolas Torres Rodriguez of Colombia. Cesar, a native of Colombia (but now an American citizen) who is his trainer, talked about what's next.

Listen: Cesar Parra

Another regular is U.S. Dressage Federation President George Williams, who provided many thrilling moments here in the days when he was winning the freestyle with that darling black mare, Rochet.

After saying hi to him by one of the shops, I asked him for his view on why Devon is so special.

Listen: George Williams

Earlier, I was speaking with Melanie Sloyer, the show's senior vice president, and made the mistake of saying "regular Devon" when talking about the May/June hunter/jumper show, which dates back to 1896.
She told me gently that those associated with D at D, founded in 1975, prefer the terms "Spring Devon" and "Fall Devon." I stand corrected.

She told me that for next year, post-Olympics, the committee will be "making a very aggressive effort to attract the top horses and riders in the country and Canada," while helping to improve the facility and making sure the prize money is all that it should be.

As for the breeding show, which has been growing in popularity, she considers Devon "the showcase for American breeders. We actually have spectators at the breed show, which is very unusual. I attend a lot of breed shows up and down the East Coast, and Devon really is the one where everyone wants to be. You have the opportunity to be judged by four different judges and the quality of the horses has increased in quantum leaps in the last 10 years."

Melanie pointed out, "The top horses in this year's breed show were American bred. I think what it means for the sport is that we no longer have to go to Europe to get the best horses. I think the best horses are here in this country."

I asked her to talk about the show from her perspective.

"Dressage at Devon is sort of the crown jewel of dressage competitions in this country. People come from all over. We have people who buy their tickets a year in advance to be here. We have sold-out crowds on Friday and Saturday nights, standing room only," she said.

"People get exposed to dressage here because they come not only for the show, but also for the atmosphere. We've had people come to us and say, `I'm a dressage rider because I was here in 1976 and saw Hilda Gurney on Keen come down the center line and I was hooked and here I am.'"

We'll have a D at D gallery up early this week, so come back then and next Sunday, when I'll be sending a postcard from the Platinum Performance/U.S. Equestrian Federation Show Jumping Talent Search Finals East.

Until then,

For more photos from the show, go to the 2011 Dressage at Devon photo gallery.