Andrew Nicholson clears the final fence (appropriately themed for the Rolex Grand Slam) with Quimbo

© 2013 by Nancy Jaffer

Andrew Nicholson, the last rider to go in show jumping this afternoon at the Rolex Kentucky three-day event, kept it all together to win and qualify for the last leg of the $350,000 Rolex Grand Slam at Badminton next weekend.

It was "phew" moment for the New Zealander, who rejoiced during a pre-presentation victory gallop as he flew around the ring on Quimbo once safely across the finish line.

After receiving his trophy and a Rolex watch, he did another three laps, some of which he performed while waving both hands to the sold-out crowd of nearly 20,000 that packed the stadium at the Kentucky Horse Park.

William Fox-Pitt, who also is in line for the Grand Slam if he can win Badminton, was just as happy but less exuberant, though he smiled broadly as he swept past his fans on Seacookie, who was totally fault free over Richard Jeffery's course. One four in the starting field of 29 could make that claim.

When the defending champion left the ring, however, he found he wasn't able to straighten his left pinky. He had no idea how he broke it, but was already bandaged up when he arrived at the press conference. William didn't think it would affect his riding, however.

Making a triumphant run around the sold-out stadium after he kept all the poles in the cups for show jumping, Andrew Nicholson celebrates aboard Quimbo

© 2013 by Nancy Jaffer

Andrew logged 3 time penalties as he made his careful way around the fences, but that was a wise decision, since he had a comfortable cushion. His final score was 41 penalties, to 48.2 for William. Andrew's other horse, Calico Joe, isn't much of a show jumper. He also wasn't much of a steeplechase horse, which is why he originally was purchased. But he's won a good bit of money eventing, and even with 12 penalties today, he emerged in third place with 52.8 penalties.

Quimbo is a stunner, a Spanish horse bred to show jump who also is versatile enough to handle cross-country and dressage. This one is going to be a superstar. Andrew had some help from Spanish show jumper Luis Alvarez Cevera, who also has been the coach of the New Zealand show jumping team. But I wouldn't think Andrew needs too much assistance. He is a beautiful rider who know how to let a horse do its best, using guidance rather than interference.

Now it's time for Andrew and William to concentrate on Badminton, and if he had to guess which of them might earn the Grand Slam (which has been won only once in its 12-year history) a smiling William conjectured, "probably neither."

Not only will they have to cope with Badminton's demanding cross-country course, but also Olympic, world and European champion Michael Jung of Germany. Yes, their work is cut out for them.

I asked Andrew what he'll do when he gets home tomorrow as he prepares for Badminton.

William Fox-Pitt, Andrew Nicholson with his new Rolex watch and Buck Davidson

© 2013 by Nancy Jaffer

Listen: Andrew Nicholson

Unfortunately for us, and by that I mean the U.S., this is the eighth time in 11 years that a foreign rider has won Rolex. Our event. New coach David O'Connor has a lot of work to do, but there were some bright spots on our horizon.

Buck Davidson, who had been third on Ballynoe Castle RM, dropped rails at the last two fences on course to wind up fourth with 53.2 penalties. He could take comfort from the fact that he was the spring U.S. Equestrian Federation champion, but noted, "I'm bummed to have two down," saying the effort "fell apart a little bit at the end."

Yet he noted if he had to lose, being right behind the world number one (Andrew) and William (who has won more big events than any other rider) is the place to be.

Buck Davidson, the highest-placed American, fourth on Ballynoe Castle RM

© 2013 by Nancy Jaffer

And I'm thinking maybe he--or anyone else--wouldn't be here at all if it weren't for his father, Bruce Davidson. It was Bruce's victory in the 1974 world championships in England that granted the U.S. the right to hold the next world championships in 1978, which he also won. That was the start for the fledgling Kentucky Horse Park, giving it a boost that enabled it to become one of the world's premiere equestrian destinations.

Notable American finishes included Lynn Symansky with Donner, who achieved a double-clear to come in fifth, and Will Faudree on Pawlow, right behind her in sixth place.

I was happy to see Australia's Peter Atkins finish 10th on Henry Jota Hampton, coming up from 28th after dressage. Big move! You may know his horse as "Henny," as in "Run, Henny, Run" for their wonderful helmet cam videos. Peter and Henny have had a soap opera's worth of problems, from an ownership squabble to Peter's leg fracture. But they're together now and going well. Next year's Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games and perhaps the 2016 Olympics are in their sights.

I had the pleasure of speaking with Peter today. Why don't you listen in?

Listen: Peter Atkins

I still haven't gotten a consensus on the difficulty quotient of the cross-country course. I spoke this morning with Great Britain's Yogi Breisner, the always astute chef d'equipe of the British eventing team, and he felt the course was hard enough.

So when I ran into course designer Derek di Grazia, I wondered what he thought about it after nearly a day to consider.

Listen: Derek Di Grazia

The best, best, best part about it was that no one (horse or human) suffered a serious injury and it made for a day of great sport without serious consequences.

The main focus at Rolex is, of course, the competition, but for some, a bigger enticement is the trade fair. It is huge, having spread over the years from an area near the stadium to an indoor arena and beyond. One of the big features at various booths is having eventing celebrities on hand to autograph and have their pictures taken with excited fans. When I was walking through the fair this afternoon, I saw a looooong line in front of the Purina booth. So I investigated; the occasion was the appearance of Boyd Martin. He deserves all the admiration he can get; he's incredibly personable and makes everyone he talks to feel important when they come to see him.

I got a few minutes with Boyd (yes, I cut the line, I was in a rush to cover the show jumping). He told me he's undergoing surgery tomorrow for an ankle problem, a fracture and ligament damage. I asked how it happened, he told me, "falling off horses."

I hope he's back in time for Jersey Fresh in two weeks, though that may be wishful thinking. At any rate, I'll be there, and sending you a postcard on the evening of May 12. Be sure to check back at Equisearch, and go to facebook.com/equisearch and facebook.com/practicalhorseman for more about Rolex.

Until then,

I envy you guys, I really do. Shakespeare called jealousy the “green-eyed monster,” and that’s me these days. The reason I am so jealous is that some of you reading this are going to take part in rebuilding our U.S. Eventing Team from the ground up.

I never had that experience. When I joined the team as a rookie in 1966, it was a well-oiled machine—and in many ways a colder, more impersonal environment than we are used to these days. The U.S. Equestrian Team owned many of the horses, and riders were merely plug-and-play cogs. (I might be the only U.S. rider ever to be off the team, on the team and off the team all in the space of four days.) That was the way it was. We just shrugged and did not worry about anybody taking care of our needs. The way I figured it at the time, any fool who joined a team made up of Mike Plumb, Kevin Freeman and Mike Page was going to get a medal. All that fool had to do was show up for work every day, take care of business and learn as much as possible from watching these pluperfect players of the game, all future U.S. Eventing Association Hall of Famers. Remember, this was before Jack LeGoff had even arrived as our coach; he was the icing on the cake for us and a big reason for the U.S. team’s dominance of the international eventing scene for another 15 years.

Ups and Downs
But that was then, and this is now. Any sports franchise goes through highs and lows, and our present situation—no medals at the 2010 World Equestrian Games or 2012 London Olympics—is as low as the U.S. Eventing Team has fallen in a quarter-century. While our decline was as swift as it was precipitous, it is not the only time it has ever happened to us. We finished with team gold and Karen Stives won the individual silver in 1984 at Los Angeles; we were at the top of the eventing tree—­admired, respected and imitated around the world. But we went from the top to the bottom in one Olympic cycle. Only two years later, our team finished in disarray at the 1986 World Championships in Gawler, Australia, and we failed to even finish a team, much less medal, at the Seoul Olympics in 1988. That’s the way Olympic-level sport works: Sometimes you are the birddog; sometimes you are the fire hydrant.

Then the cycle started all over again. First the upside—Dorothy Trapp Crowell’s lone individual silver medal in 1994 with the incomparable Molokai. Next came team silver and Kerry Millikin’s individual bronze medal at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, then team bronze at WEG in 1998. David O’Conner won the individual gold medal at Sydney in 2000 and led us to a team bronze medal. At the 2002 WEG in Jerez, we won team gold. Then Kim Severson and Winsome Adante won a silver medal and the team won a bronze at the 2004 Athens Olympics, the late Amy Tryon and Poggio earned an individual

bronze at the 2006 WEG in Aachen and Gina Miles won an individual silver medal at the 2008 Olympics in Hong Kong on McKinlaigh. After that, though, no medals were earned at the 2010 WEG, and our team finished well down the line at the recent London Olympics. We have been riding shotgun down the avalanche, and now we are here at the bottom … again.

Let’s Come Out Swinging
We are in what baseball players call a “slump.” There is no denying it. While it is not what we wanted, it is what we have got, and we need to deal with it. I once asked Troy Glaus, MVP of the 2002 Baseball World Series, how he dealt with slumps. He said two very important things—­listen carefully, folks—to get out of a slump: “You go back to your basics,” and then he said, “You swing your way out of a slump.”

This is pretty important advice from someone who knows something about battling back from adversity, and we need to think about it. To get better, the first thing to do is to recognize we are not good enough. That’s a fact. You have to admit something is wrong before you can fix it.

The next thing to do is to look at your competition and figure out what they are doing that puts them, not you, on the medal ­podium. If you do that, you ­notice that each successful team has a system and their riders all ride in a similar fashion. If form follows function, medals follow form, and we need to match our methodology with sound basics. Taking a look at your competition will tell you how they are currently doing things and will inform your return to your basics.

It seems to me that in many ways we have written the book but lost the plot. In the past, the style with which our eventing teams rode reflected our systematic, sound, clear and consistent basic technique. I realize that any system beats no system, but if we are going to go back to our basics, we must first examine those basics. Before we start exposing our horses and riders to a certain progression of requirements, we should question those requirements …

If you are a horseman, chances are you are extremely conservative. I do not mean this in the political sense of liberal and conservative, but in the literal sense that you are disposed to preserve existing conditions. You have very good reasons for this conservatism when it comes to the welfare of your horse. The penalties for change without contemplation can be severe, and your horse pays the penalty with his health and soundness if you are wrong. If wisdom is the anticipation of consequence, then we all labor to be wise when it comes to our horses, ­because they trust us so completely with their well-being.

Looking back over my career, I find I have always been resistant to fads and changes in the horse world. Some fads, ­especially when it comes to apparel, do little harm to our horses, although bling says something about the rider’s need for attention rather than the attention she should pay to her horse. Other fads are more abusive (rollkur comes to mind) and some, like the now outmoded use of a true interval system of conditioning (short bursts of maximum exertion), injure horses with sickening regularity. Unlike humans, horses do not self-monitor their own soundness. If you ask a good horse to gallop until he is exhausted, he will cheerfully injure himself for you. Modern eventers may speak of using an interval system to condition their horses, but what they really mean is they use an intermittent system of exercise and conditioning.

Although conservatism has its benefits, we must always be open to improvement in the care and training of our horses, ­especially when that change is supported by scientific research. I am speaking of two topics I have discussed previously: the use and abuse of tight nosebands in dressage and the unsafe and unsteady galloping ­position that has crept into our teaching.

One Noseband for All?
Nosebands are one of my many irritants when coaching. For example, flash nosebands are ubiquitous in the eventing world. Almost every horse I see is wearing one. Flash nosebands are inherently ill fitting—a flash is basically an inefficient figure-eight noseband—so they are invariably overtightened, causing a pronounced indentation in the flesh of the nasal bone and, occasionally, small sores on the lips. In addition, these nosebands can interfere with the horse’s normal swallowing mechanism, producing the very resistance they are intended to cure.

I can’t decide which irritates me more: overtightened nosebands or the mindless application of equipment, regardless of whether it is suitable for this horse at this stage of training. Not every horse in the eventing world needs or goes well in a flash noseband. Yet when I ask riders whether they have tried other nosebands, or even no noseband, they look at me as if I had just stepped down the ramp of the mother ship. Obviously, it has never ­occurred to them to try something else. ­After all, everybody tacks up their horses this way, so it must be correct. Sigh.

In the past, I have spoken out against the use of overly tight nosebands on pragmatic rather than scientific grounds. My reasoning was that both the International Equestrian Federation (FEI) and U.S. Equestrian Federation rules consider it a good sign when a horse softly chews the bit, and judges reward this behavior during the dressage test with favorable marks. A good working definition of classical training is that we do not ask the horse to do anything he does not do in nature. Clearly, strapping a horse’s mouth shut is unnatural and will not produce classical results in terms of acceptance of the bit, softness of contact or self-carriage. Naturally, we want the best possible score for our horses, but by cranking the noseband as tight as possible, we actually prevent them from accepting the bit correctly.

Given all this, you can understand that a recent series of articles at www.eurodressage.com got my attention and led me to scientific studies regarding the effect of tight nosebands on equines. The researchers’ findings—that tight nosebands are abusive to horses—are not surprising. However, new scientific knowledge means that we now can prove something that was merely alleged in the past.

If our current practices are proven to be abusive, even unintentionally, then we must immediately adopt new practices based on the latest findings. What surprises me is that this is not happening: Riders and trainers are not changing their practices in response to new information. We do things a certain way because we have always done them this way and it is too much trouble to learn new techniques. This attitude is prevalent in the horse world and is a huge barrier to improving the health and training of our horses.

Phillip Dutton won the CCI 3-star on Mystery Whisper

© 2012 by Nancy Jaffer

He didn't have to win in the process, but he did, and was outstanding. What a treat to see a horse that can do all three phases with flair, executing a smooth dressage test, eating up cross-country and showing respect for the fences in show jumping.

The Australian import, who came over late last year, was one of only two entries in four divisions at the Horse Park of New Jersey to score less than 40 penalties in dressage. (He was marked at 32.6 penalties; Karen O'Connor received 39.6 on Veronica, fifth in the CCI 3-star.) Mystery Whisper was fault-free over the jumps on John Williams' twisting cross-country course highlighted by the "Jersey Shore" water complex, accumulating just 1.2 time penalties because Phillip saw no need to push for extreme speed.

In today's show jumping, he dropped one rail (the first time he's done that all year; Phillip blamed the way he rode to the fence) and accumulated one time penalty. But his total was still a respectable 38.8 penalties, well ahead of second-place Jude's Law, an extremely handsome gray dude, ridden well by Michael Pollard to a 47.6-penalty total.

"Another box ticked," said delighted coach Mark Phillips as Mystery Whisper exited the ring after his victory gallop. Mark had explained to me earlier in the day that a team hoping for a medal at the Olympics needs at least one horse that can score in the low 30s in dressage; he added with a grin that he'd like two or three.

There is time before July, however, to work with outstanding candidates and perhaps bump up their performance level a bit. The "A" training list hasn't been changed this year; an update won't be issued until June 11, when 15 horse/rider combos will be named to the long list. That will be reduced to a short list of 10 before the horses ship to England, where they will train for the Games.

The only three people on the A-list now are Phillip, but with Mighty Nice, his 10th-place horse at Rolex Kentucky--Mystery Whisper's purchase hadn't been confirmed when the list was released; Boyd Martin with Neville Bardos and Otis Barbotiere, third at Rolex,  and Sinead Halpin with Manoir de Carneville.

Mystery Whisper going cross-country under the guidance of Phillip Dutton

© 2012 by Nancy Jaffer

Phillip, of course, was thrilled at how well Mystery Whisper performed. Really, could there be any doubt--the horse already had won two events this year--but anything can happen in eventing. He was smiling as he talked about the weekend.

Listen: Phillip Dutton

"I'm really enjoying the horse," said Phillip, who called him, "incredible. It's pretty neat." That's quite a statement coming from the generally low-key rider.

The only downer here is the fact that Jim Wildasin (who also owns Will Coleman's ride, Twizzel) bought the horse for his daughter, Arden, to ride after the Games. That doesn't bother Phillip, even though there will be no Burghley, Badminton or Rolex for him with Mystery Whisper.

"I'm lucky to have the ride on him. That's part of the game. We don't own our horses; we just ride for other people." But he added, "I'm going to make the most of it while I have him."

What's Mystery Whisper like to ride?

"When you first see him, he's not the most imposing animal," Phillip said.

"Once you start working him, the first 10 minutes is just nice and then something clicks and he just goes and really gets the motor underneath him," Phillip observed comparing him to a racehorse that has another gear.

"He's a phenomenal horse, a freak of nature."

Sinead Halpin and Manoir de Carneville

© 2012 by Nancy Jaffer

Sinead did the CIC 3-star with her horse, nicknamed Tate. These days they've decided to call the CCI long format and the CIC short format. I think that's confusing, because long format makes you think of the old days, when a CCI included roads and tracks and steeplechase.  (Remember? Gosh, it seems like a long time ago now.) Anyway, a CCI is longer than a CIC, and I'll leave it at that.

Sinead tied for sixth in dressage with a score of 49.6, then was one of only three in her division to put in a double-clear cross-country. She moved up to third after that, and then second when Will Faudree had the first two elements of the triple down with Pawlow in the show jumping. But the triple tripped her up, too; Tate dropped a pole at the middle element. Rebecca Howard of Canada, who would go on to win the CIC 3-star, led after cross-country and had toppled just one rail with Riddle Master. Her final score was 52.8 to 53.6 for Sinead; very, very close.

I asked Sinead to assess Tate at this point.

Listen: Sinead Halpin

Boyd Martin and Neville Bardos took a not-for-credit spin around the Jersey Fresh show jumping course

© 2012 by Nancy Jaffer

Boyd brought Neville to Jersey Fresh, but never intended to run him cross-country here. Instead, he competed in dressage, which did not go well (the score was 54.2 penalties; apparently Neville has taken a dislike to the Horse Park arena) and then did a show jumping round after the regular competition finished this afternoon. He had two fences down; Neville was a handful.

Boyd and I discussed that.

Listen: Boyd Martin

By the way, as I have mentioned in the past, the movie rights to Neville's story have been purchased. (Neville missed a trip to the slaughterhouse after Boyd bought him, and he survived a dreadful stable fire last May.) I suggested to Boyd that if they actually make the movie, there's only one person who should play Boyd: Himself. Who else is better looking and more articulate? And then there's that great Australian accent. (Like Phillip, Boyd was born in Australia and became an American citizen.)

One of the nice things about my job is I get to see the sport at all levels and all around the country. This gives me an opportunity to spot trends and notice changes, and several things have caught my attention this spring.

The Classic Is Alive and Well
First, it looks as if the Classic format will survive and flourish. (A Classic includes roads and tracks and steeplechase, in addition to cross-country.) This is a change in my thinking. (However, I am not alone in my renewed optimism. John Strassburger had some interesting comments in his recent blog post on the same topic at www.horse-journal.com/john-strassburger-blog/.) For several years I have been quite concerned about the loss of Classic Preliminary events, several of whose organizers dropped the competition for the simple reason that Classic events in their area were not drawing entries.

In the past, Classics were organized as a labor of love. We were so fortunate that Neil Ayer fell in love with eventing in the early 1970s and put on the legendary Led­yard Horse Trials at his farm in Wenham, Massachusetts. He went to endless trouble and expense to build and host a world-class event there, and the sport is forever in his debt.

However, for the Classic to survive as a sport into the 21st century, it must find a business model that works.

The first thing that has to happen is that organizers need entries. The following statistics from our ever-efficient U.S. Eventing Association office explains the relationship between entries and competitions offered.

This table shows the total number of starters at Training Classics over the past four years:
2008: 211
2009: 274
2010: 217
2011: 245

Contrast those with entries at Preliminary Classics over three years:
2009: 3
2010: 20 (7 CCIw–Galway Downs)
2011: 20 (7 CCIw–Galway Downs)

The “CCIw” designation signifies that the competition was held under the ­International Equestrian Federation (FEI) rules as both a short format competition (with no steeplechase or roads and tracks) and a Classic (thus the “w” denoting “with steeplechase”). Due to a change in FEI rules, riders can now qualify for further FEI competitions while participating in a Classic. This has helped maintain the number of Preliminary entries, but it has not proven to be a panacea for maintaining entry numbers. The reason is that many participants in a Classic are not involved in climbing the FEI qualification ladder and are drawn to the Classic by the inherent challenge of it. They view the Classic Preliminary as a destination, not as a stepping-stone to further competition. At the same time, many riders with upper-level aspirations do not want to compete in a Classic because that format is no longer used for Intermediate and above. This is the natural outgrowth of the dichotomy in the sport I mentioned in my earlier column on a professional/amateur split that is forming in eventing. (Read it online here or in the August 2010 issue.)

The Training entry numbers are ­interesting because they show a steady involvement in Classics during some extremely difficult economic times. The number of Classic participants represent roughly 2 percent of USEA membership. It is worth noting that USEA is gratifyingly and completely in favor of the Classic format, and indeed my worst fears would have come true without USEA’s support and the vision of the few remaining Classic organizers.

To support the efforts of our organizers, the USEA committees involved might consider encouraging entries at higher but attainable numbers over the next few years. If riding in a Classic is going to become part of the résumés of USEA members, then we would hope that at any time about 5 percent of our members take part in a Classic every year. Naturally, the makeup of those entries would change from year to year due to new horses, changed circumstances of jobs, school and so on, but 5 percent would be the overall goal. This does not seem to be a very large number, but it is more than double the current participation.

It will be interesting to watch the future of the Classic develop. Short-term, I think we will see a plateau of entries at Preliminary level and a slow, steady growth at Training level—there are 12 Training Classics currently scheduled for 2012. The new Novice Classics are a step in the right direction, and they seem to have found quite a clientele. We also still have several Preliminary Classics scheduled, despite low entries over the past few years. It may well be that in years to come we will realize that, just as the Irish monks preserved civilization during the Dark Ages, our organizers will have preserved the Classic format with their persistence.

There is a great deal of hand-wringing going on behind the scenes in our eventing organizations and committees about “Where Is Eventing Going?” Silverbacks who are mentally stuck in another century are asking, “Can this sport be saved?” In my opinion, however, we are well past this stage. We need to take a deep breath, figure out the ramifications of the changes we’ve already made and evaluate where we are now. Once we do this, we can get an idea of where to go next.

Yogi Berra once said, “When you come to a fork in the road … take it.” It seems to me that we took this particular fork without knowing it was there, and we now have to deal with the results of having created a two-track sport. I have written extensively about the Classic event. Always a big fan of this format, I am possibly an even ­bigger fan now that eventing’s dichotomy is more apparent. But I want to devote this column to the professionalization of the FEI (International Equestrian Federation) levels and what that means for us going forward.

Most of us have noticed the two-track system that is developing in the sport of eventing. The FEI levels of the sport—three- and four-star events—are moving farther and farther away from the vast majority of riders, while at the same time the grass roots of the sport are aiming their competitive efforts at the Preliminary (one-star) levels and below.

First track, half-star and one-star Classics: Our general US Eventing Association membership is showing an increasing interest in the series of Training and Preliminary Classic events (long format with steeplechase) that are now available across the country. The numbers—both of Classic events available and of entries—are showing a healthy interest in this format.

Second track, “professional” eventing: The entry numbers for eventing’s FEI levels are healthy as well, but those upper levels are now almost exclusively the territory of professional riders or of riders seeking to become professionals.

Goodbye to the “One-Horse Rider” Model
Of course there are exceptions to this professional trend, even at the four-star level. Horses do not read books or columns, and the occasional amateur-owner still catches lightning in a bottle when her horse somehow intuits how the game is played and away she goes to the top. It is wonderful when this happens, and it always catches the public imagination. Probably the best example of catching lightning in a bottle is that of Mary Anne Tauskey and her horse Marcus Aurelius. In 1974, Mary Anne was a waitress at the ­hotel where the US Equestrian Team squad lodged before the World Championships at Burghley, England. At the time she was just a kid who did not have two nickels to rub together. But she had a nice Intermediate horse and a dream, and two years later she won a gold medal, riding for the US Olympic team in Montreal.

However, one rider on one horse is not the paradigm these days, a big change from the one-horse rider model we used for the sport in the last century.

The New Eventing ­Professional
The first thing you should notice about modern professional riders is how well they ride compared to riders of my era. There is no doubt that the FEI’s increasing emphasis on the technical phases of dressage and show jumping has produced riders who compete at an admirable standard. (Their cross-country and horsemanship skills are slightly less than in years past, but they should not be criticized for adhering to the skill-set requirements of their competitive levels.) One can certainly make the argument that this increased technical proficiency results, in great part, from the increased professionalization of the sport.

The next thing we notice about this new career track is the duration and intensity of these new professionals’ training. It now takes an incredible length of time to make it to the top with skills in all three disciplines honed to razor sharpness.

Jack LeGoff, the legendary Hall of Fame trainer of USET teams, used to say that it took four years to take a rider from Preliminary to CCI***. Nowadays, you can forget that. It typically takes a rider about six years to get from Preliminary to ­Advanced. Naturally, she will be climbing the rungs of the relentless FEI qualification ladder all this time and will have had extensive FEI experience at the one- and two-star levels. However, four-star competition is usually a shock to these young riders. (Young! By the time they get to this level most of them are 25 or 26 years old!)

Four-star competitions are the pinnacle of the modern professional career path, thus the vast majority of riders at this level are well beyond “capable” and are moving on toward “excellent.” It can be demoralizing to a young rider to finally arrive at the four-star level after six to 10 years of training, only to find that she is once again the “worst” rider there; most of the professional riders at the four-star level exceeded “very good” years ago.

The USEF is operating so smoothly that the taking-care-of-business sessions often bordered on boring. It's both a relief and a testament to how far the organization has come since the tempestuous days less than a decade ago, when the organization was formed out of the power struggle between USA Equestrian and the U.S. Equestrian Team.

Many of the rule changes these days are hammered out at affiliates, such as the U.S. Hunter Jumper Association or the U.S. Eventing Association. These proposals come to this meeting for the final touches in most cases, and many are not even voted on by the board (they are approved through what is known as a consent calendar). So the discussions over the last four days were fairly dull, with one exception (more about that later).

The two big dinners, however, are another story. The Horse of the Year affair on Friday night and the Pegasus last night  each were emotional, fonts of sentiment for the heroes, both human and equine, of equestrian sport.

The most moving experience, as always, was the presentation of the Lifetime Achievement Award. This year it went to Jimmy Wofford, an icon in so many pursuits. You may know him best as the brilliant and witty eventing columnist for Practical Horseman. But the son of a cavalry officer was a fabulous performer in his sport before retiring for good in 1986, winning medals at the Olympics and the world championships with class and style. He rode in steeplechase races as well.

He's a tough guy. Jimmy just  had an operation to fix an ankle that he injured in 1974; (yes, nearly 40 years ago) when he fell off one of his mother's horses. He kept a stiff upper lip all that time, but I thought you'd wonder when you saw photos of him on crutches.

As a trainer, Jimmy excels. Every Pan American Games, world championships and Olympic team since 1978 has one of his students on it. They include Kim Severson, USEF President David O'Connor (who you may have heard was an individual Olympic gold medalist) and his wife, Karen O'Connor.

You likely do not realize, however, that Jimmy had a key role in governance. He served as an officer of both the U.S. Equestrian Team and the U.S. Combined Training Association. In the 1980s, he was a president of the old American Horse Shows Association, the predecessor of USAE and USEF.

When it comes to the "level playing field" that's mentioned repeatedly at the USEF convention, Jimmy was uncompromising in his disdain for the cheaters and determination to stop them. It was a focal point of his acceptance speech, along with his reverence for horses.

Jim Wofford wore the Jimmy Williams silver hat trophy as he accepted the USEF’s Lifetime Achievement Award

© 2012 by Nancy Jaffer

The presentation of the silver cowboy hat trophy (inspired by the headgear of the first recipient, multi-discipline Californian Jimmy Williams) put Jimmy into an exclusive club that includes coaches Bertalan de Nemethy and Jack LeGoff and show jumping gold medalist Billy Steinkraus, legends all.

I asked how he felt about it all.

Listen: Jim Wofford

Jimmy wrapped up his speech this way: “I am no longer involved in sport governance. This is not from a loss of faith in the process, but rather from a conviction that our affairs are in good order and in good hands. I am now able to turn to my abiding passion with all my energies. I devote my life these days to horses, and the riders who train and care for them. I have always been fascinated by riding and training theory, and by the application of classical methods to modern competitive circumstances. I now return to those endeavors with a grateful heart for the honor you have shown me tonight.

“When I was the President of the AHSA, I wrote a monthly column for our magazine. I always wanted to keep my remarks to our membership focused on horses, and therefore closed my column each month by saying ‘I’ll see you in the warm-up ring.’

Those have been the happiest moments of my professional career, in the background of a warm-up arena, helping yet another aspiring rider discover the joy of partnership with God’s noblest creature, the horse.

And so, Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you yet again. I’ll see you in the warm-up ring.”

Just so you know that not everything was serious, after stepping down from the podium, the man of the hour was ambushed with Silly String by his grandsons. (For a priceless picture of the incident, be sure to check back this week and look at the gallery.)

Steffen Peters was a lock for Equestrian of the Year for the third time, a contest in which only USEF members and the media could vote.

He's amazing. On Friday, the Pan Am Games double gold dressage medalist was riding in a show in California, where he made his debut with Legolas, the new grand prix horse who will be the back-up for his superstar Ravel. Akiko Yamizaki, who owns both horses, and Steffen's wife, Shannon, urged him to compete with the horse, instead of just schooling him at the show as he had planned.

Steffen told me he had to think about it and then realized that he could blame it on them if something went wrong (said with a smile). Of course, nothing did, and both horses finished with scores of more than 80 percent before he flew out to accept his trophy.

Combined driver Jacob Arnold, junior equestrian of the year; Jimmy Wofford and Steffen Peters, equestrian of the year

© 2012 by Nancy Jaffer

Since the outcome of the Equestrian of the Year contest was predictable, Steffen came prepared with a very professional slide show to thank everyone who had made great things happen for him in 2011. That included his mom; his wife, the horse owners, natch; grooms, vets, and of course, the horses.

Even Friday the 13th couldn't stop the unstoppable Neville Bardos from claiming the Horse of the Year Trophy for the international disciplines.

Well, to be exact, Neville didn't step up to get his trophy. Rider Boyd Martin (who had to borrow a blazer from another guest after showing up in casual clothes) stood in for his horse. Neville was in Florida practicing dressage with Boyd's wife, Silva, who is working on that phase in preparation for a shot at the London Olympics (Boyd and Neville are short-listed).

Boyd Martin, center, at the Horse of the Year awards with two couples that are members of the Neville Bardos syndicate: Spike and Jeanne Sylvester and April and Chuck Whitlock

© 2012 by Nancy Jaffer

For the first time, the public could vote for Horse of the Year and that made Neville a cinch. (The title was divided for the first time. Neville got the title for horses in international disciplines. Sjoerd, a marvelous Friesian stallion, took national honors.)

Neville has been very well publicized and may be even more so; Boyd said he got a call from Warner Brothers the other day about the possibility of a movie based on the horse's remarkable life.

Neville should be the posterboy for thoroughbred racehorse recycling. If people thought they could wind up with a horse like Neville (who only cost Boyd $850 when he saved him from going to slaughter) wouldn't they be tempted to get an athletic thoroughbred, rather than some fancy warmblood (who'd be a lot more expensive)?

Neville Bardos and Boyd Martin

© by Nancy jaffer

And anyone casting the movie who doesn't use the extremely handsome and personable Boyd as the lead should be pushing papers in a cubicle somewhere.

I'm sure you all know Neville's tale, so just in case you need a reminder, here's the long story short: Boyd brought him to the U.S. when he left his native Australia. They won the 2009 Fair Hill 3-star and were the top-placed American duo (Boyd became a U.S. citizen) in the World Equestrian Games.

Last May, Boyd and Phillip Dutton rescued Neville from a stable fire, where he was moments away from death. Despite having breathed in smoke and suffering burns, Neville pulled through. His five-figure veterinary bills were paid by his fans.

Unbelievably, the tough chestnut gelding recovered enough that three months later he was able to finish seventh at the Burghley, England 4-star.

Boyd was aglow with pride at the USEF dinner. Here's what he said when we talked.

Listen: Boyd Martin

This means we need a solid understanding of the correct theories of riding and training horses to school them effectively. If we do not have an idea of what “perfect” looks like, then we will not know if things are “pretty good” or not. We know we are not going to see “perfect” in this lifetime, but we need to have that theoretical standard in our mind as a measure of our progress to date. This requires a very clear idea of classical theory, whether in dressage, cross-country or show jumping. The Oxford American Dictionary that I consulted defines “theory” as “a set of principles on which the practice of an activity is based.” (There’s that nasty word “practice” again.) To practice with any hope of improvement, we have to understand what—and how—we should practice.

It follows, then, that if our training and riding theory is less than correct, our results will be less than satisfactory. In my travels to clinics around the country, I am always on the alert for either variations from classical theory or common-sense errors. I try to correct them when I can, not because I view myself as the sole source of this theory, but because my role these days—along with that of many other instructors and coaches around the world—is to preserve those classical principles for the next generations of riders and trainers. François Robichon de la Guérinière, Gustav Steinbrecht, Federico Caprilli, Wilhelm Müseler, Brig. Gen. Harry D. Chamberlin, Bertalan de Némethy, Jack LeGoff, George Morris … they lit the lamp. We are just keepers of the flame.

The Basic Dressage Seat
I am going to talk about some deviations from classical form that I have observed recently in each of our three disciplines. Because everything we do in the saddle should be based on dressage, let’s examine your dressage position first. The foundation of this position is a three-point connection between your seat and the saddle. Those three points are the two seat bones and the pubic bone. The classical position does not involve resting on your tailbone (coccyx).

Students have told me they are being taught that, because we must keep a vertical line from our ears to our heels, we should keep our spines “flat”—with no curve in the lower back—as well. A flat back is not exactly correct, because it does not conform to the natural shape of the human spine. At the halt, a slight forward arch in the small of your back conforms to the natural shape of your spine, which means it is the easiest for you to maintain. In addition, a slight arch gives your waist the greatest possible range of motion. This range allows you to follow your horse’s movement without separating your balance from his.

This is important because all of your efforts to obtain an independent seat are really efforts to establish harmony and unity between your horse and yourself. Once you achieve that harmony, your aids can begin the long-term conversation with your horse that you hope will lead to classically correct dressage.

Speaking of aids, your legs are the most important aid available to you, especially at the beginning of your dressage work with your horse. Because of this, you need to take special care with your leg position. Instructors who tell you to keep your feet parallel to your horse’s sides are only half-right. If you turn only your foot parallel to your horse, you will lock your ankle, because this is an unnatural position for the human ankle joint.

Those instructors should be telling you to rotate your thigh forward so your entire leg, not just your foot, is parallel to your horse’s side. There are two reasons for this. When you turn your thigh forward, you place the flat of your thigh on the saddle, rather than the round part on the back of your thigh. This immediately makes your leg more stable. In addition, when you turn your thigh forward, you change the way your pelvis meets the saddle from an “A” shape to an upside-down “U” shape. This allows for a much closer connection between your seat and the saddle, which is all to the good.

While you are practicing this, make sure you do not pinch your knees. As a relaxing exercise, occasionally lift one leg at a time away from your saddle beginning at the halt and later on in motion. When you first attempt this, you will not be able to do very well, because you will find that your hips are quite tight. Do not try to lift your leg very far at first—until you stretch and develop your hip joint, you can get a heck of a cramp in your hip. You will need a great deal of stretching, Pilates and power yoga to be able to relax and stretch your thigh at the hip joint.

While you are at it, don’t forget your best tool for developing a deep, secure, independent dressage position: riding without stirrups. At first, your toes will point away from the horse. Keep stretching your hip joint, and eventually you will find you can ride with a parallel leg and a deep, influential seat.

Question: I’ve heard that when you’re in jumping position, the angle behind your knee should be between 90 and 110 degrees. But at a show recently, I noticed that many of the riders seemed to have the correct angle on the flat, but when they were over the actual jump, it seemed much greater. Should the angle behind your knee stay the same in jumping position over fences as on the flat?

Answer: Most of the trainers I ask about this say they don’t have specific numbers in mind when they evaluate riders’ leg positions. However, one of my favorite clinicians, the legendary jumper trainer George Morris, does say that he prefers riders to maintain a knee angle of about 110 degrees while midair over a jump. When you look at pictures of top riders, their knees are usually close to this ideal at the apex of the jump. It is rare to see angles as extreme as 90 degrees in the show ring, except in cases where a rider’s lower leg has slipped out of position.

Knee angles are primarily a product of stirrup length. The shorter your stirrups, the more acute your knee angle. (That’s why you will see angles of 90 degrees or even smaller in steeplechase races, in which jockeys use extremely short stirrups.) Shortening your stirrups better stabilizes your leg, allowing you to balance your body and stay with your horse’s ­motion over jumps. This is especially critical over bigger jumps. For this reason, most people ride with stirrups a hole or two shorter for jumping than for flatwork. In general, therefore, you should actually see greater knee angles in flat classes than in over-fences classes.

And no, your knee angle should not stay exactly the same in all the phases of a jump or, for that matter, in all the phases of a ride. Throughout the course of any ride, your knee angle fluctuates constantly to accommodate changes in your position. For example, when you go from sitting in the saddle to two-point position—lifting your seat up out of the saddle—your knee angle increases. On a much more subtle level, your knees open and close slightly to absorb changes in you and your horse’s balance, for example, if he suddenly stumbles. They do this working in concert with your hips, just as they do when you sit down on or stand up from a chair.

During the arc of a jump, your knee angles change, but not as dramatically as your hip angles do. As your horse takes off, your hips close quite a bit to allow him to jump up to you. At the same time, your knees stay relatively open. Any miniscule changes they make to help you maintain your balance during take-off and mid-flight may be hard to spot from the ground. When your horse lands, your knees may close slightly to help absorb the impact—and this angle change may be more obvious to onlookers—while your hip angles open up again.

Fortunately, your knees do all this ­adjusting and supporting without you having to think about it. To help them do their job, periodically check that your stirrup lengths are even—so you know you’re putting equal pressure on the irons—and always be conscious of adjusting the lengths correctly for jumping and flatwork. Also ­remember to switch your leathers regularly to compensate for uneven stretching. Just like rotating the tires in your car, following this routine will help to keep the rest of your position in a good, working balance.

Hunter/equitation trainer Katie Gardner began riding at a very early age. Under the tutelage of such great trainers as Jim ­Hagman and Karen Healey, she earned many top honors, including reserve championship at the 2002 US Equestrian Federation National Hunter Seat Medal Finals, championship at the 2003 USEF West Coast Talent Search Finals, team silver and individual bronze medals at the 2003 USEF National Junior Jumper Championship and team bronze at the 2004 North American Young Riders “A” Team Championship. Katie earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology, summa cum laude, at the University of Southern California in 2007. For the last three years, she has served as assistant trainer to Peter Lombardo at Frontier Farms, based in Los Angeles, California.

This article originally appeared in the November 2011 issue of Practical Horseman magazine.

Men certainly have their place in the upper echelons of dressage, but for every Steffen Peters at the top of the sport, there are thousands of women in the United States competing at Training Level through Grand Prix. Neither the U.S. Equestrian Federation (USEF) nor the U.S. Dressage Federation (USDF) keeps statistics on the gender of their members, but it’s clear that dressage has become a woman’s game. At shows from coast to coast, competitors in the adult amateur division are overwhelmingly female, as are the youths participating in U.S. Pony Club programs and in the Junior and Young Rider divisions. The trend appears to be global: In a recent ranking of the world’s leading dressage riders by the Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI), six of the top 10 spots were occupied by women.

Female dominance in the sport wasn’t always the norm. When dressage made the Olympic roster at the 1912 Games in Stockholm (where it was joined by eventing and show jumping), it was predominantly a pastime of male military officers. That all changed in 1952, when the summer Olympics in Helsinki opened the door both to civilian male competitors and women. By winning the individual silver medal in dressage, Denmark’s Lis Hartel wasted no time in demonstrating to the world that women could compete alongside men and win.

Some observers have suggested that behind every female competitor is a male trainer. However, in his book Dressage Masters, David Collins speculates that as the current generation of riders matures, “most future great masters will be female, as exemplified by Finnish Olympian Kyra Kyrklund.”

Dressage in the Early Days

In its infancy, modern dressage was virtually inseparable from its military origins and that tradition followed in the United States. Until 1951, when the U.S. Cavalry was formally disbanded, the U.S. Olympic team members were selected from the ranks of the Army. At the 1932 Games in Los Angeles, the U.S. Army Equestrian Team won an unprecedented five medals, including the historic bronze in the individual dressage event won by Col. Hiram Tuttle and Olympic, a horse he trained.

Olympian and longtime FEI “I” judge Maj. Gen. Jonathan R. (Jack) Burton joined the Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) Horse Cavalry Division in 1940 and learned military-seat equitation and steeplechase as well as polo. From there he graduated to cavalry school at Fort Riley, Kansas, where his studies included riding, shoeing, stable management and veterinary procedures.

Now 91, Burton is still active as a dressage judge and clinician. “Dressage,” he acknowledges, “has become more of a female sport. But 20 years ago, it was quite the other way around.” He voices concern that the number of males in dressage is dwindling. “I’d like to see the men in the sport encourage others. We need more men!”

Charles de Kunffy, the Hungarian-born clinician and author on classical dressage, remembers his first impressions of the U.S. “To my great surprise, men were far outnumbered by women in dressage. The Europe I left had the statistics the other way around, but with an obvious surging of women enthusiasts.”

De Kunffy says he’s not surprised that women outnumber men in equestrian sport, particularly since they compete as equals. “Gender division evaluates most sport achievements separately, but riding does not. This is a great incentive for women.” But he points out that dressage instructors have disproportionately been male. “This could be due to men having traditionally been given greater systematic education in military riding schools, which in time transmuted into riding academies in Germany, France, Sweden and elsewhere,” he explains. “Most of the career aspirants enrolling in these post-World War II academies were men seeking to make a career in the field.”

The Influence of American Culture

USDF President George Williams says family connections attract many men to the sport. He was no different. “I grew up with horses,” he explains. He and his eight siblings all rode, an effort spearheaded by their mother, Mary Hotchkiss Williams, a dressage rider and instructor who cofounded the Monadnock Pony Club in New Hampshire. Williams himself started dressage lessons at age 8. “I absolutely loved it,” he says. “But it wasn’t just the riding, it was our social life as well.” He bemoans the lack of participation by males in the sport. “I agree that there’s a crisis in dressage, but I don’t know how we can reach the boys coming up. There are so many other sports vying for their attention. Dressage is certainly not easy, and it’s not for the timid, but it is very rewarding.”

Six-time Olympian Robert Dover, who started riding dressage at age 19, sees little support for males who take up riding. “In North America, at least, there’s no denying that there’s a stigma—just as there is for those who want to dance or take part in sports seen as being played more by girls. Still, there have always been many top professionals in dressage and the other [equestrian] disciplines who are male.”

USEF National Dressage Youth Coach Jeremy Steinberg agrees. “In the U.S., dressage is not looked on as a top sport,” he says. “But in Europe, where there are generations of families in the horse business, no one looks twice at a boy wearing breeches in the grocery store. Here, if you show up in breeches and boots, everyone looks at you cross-eyed.” As a boy in Seattle, Steinberg was introduced—reluctantly—to dressage by his mother. “I thought it was really stupid,” he admits. “But being athletic and very active, I saw it as a cool thing the more I did it.” Like Williams, he came up through Pony Club, where he quickly grew accustomed to being one of the few males in the barn and at shows.

Today Steinberg travels around the country coaching young hopefuls. “I’d say that for every 10 to 15 girls I see, there’s maybe one boy. But of the boys I do run into, more of them are participating with the thought or aspiration of becoming professionals.”

Pierre St. Jacques, a member of the gold-medal-winning American dressage team at the 2003 Pan American Games with his horse Lucky Tiger, says that males in the U.S. typically favor action sports. “Dressage is just not part of our culture,” he says. “Here, all the role models are baseball, hockey or soccer players. You don’t see dressage riders in the mainstream media.” In Europe, where he’s trained and competed extensively, equestrian sports are looked
at through a different lens. “There, every village has a riding center—it’s just part of life. No one frowns on boys who ride.”

Growing up in Montreal, St. Jacques rode and did downhill skiing. “I also loved to do slalom, but I loved the technical aspect of it, so I can understand why I gravitated to dressage. All my friends just wanted to go down the hill as fast as they could. I wasn’t drawn to team sports, so my mother steered me into something that I could do year-round.” St. Jacques says he was usually the only boy at the barn, but, he laughs, “I didn’t complain! Of course, I was so enthralled with the horses, I didn’t always pay attention to what was going on around me.”

Dressage trainer Gerhard Politz, who worked with Egon von Neindorff, Willi Schultheis and Brig. Gen. Kurt Albrecht in his native Germany, detects no gender differences in how his students learn. “Sometimes one has better communication with a particular student versus another, but I don’t believe that’s gender-related. Dressage queens come in many persuasions!” But he believes that male trainers have certain advantages over their female counterparts. “There’s a period in almost every horse’s education where a certain amount of physical strength can be an asset.” But, he stresses, “I am not advocating training horses with force. On the other hand, most horses respond better to being ridden with feeling and sensitivity—that’s usually where women have the edge.”

Robert Dover takes this idea a step further. “It is actually the responsibility of their trainers to instill in boys and men an understanding that their use of physical strength should not take the place of sensitivity and lightness when riding.”

Fit for A Man

Just as men and women compete as equals in the dressage arena, their show clothes are virtually indistinguishable: white breeches, white shirt with stock tie (men can wear a regular white tie instead), dark dressage coat or shadbelly (tailcoat) with typically canary-colored vest points and black dress boots. Nevertheless, many of the men in dressage’s upper levels push the fashion envelope: Spanish team members don gray shadbellies, and Steffen Peters relinquished his longtime tailcoat for a futuristic, high-tech model by his sponsor GPA. But probably no male rider cuts so stylish a figure as top rider Edward Gal of the Netherlands, who regularly turns heads in the dressage arena—and not just for the horses he rides. At the 2009 Dutch Dressage Championships, he sported a pale gray tailcoat, created for him by Dutch couturier Mart Visser, that featured black detailing on the sleeves and nine buttons instead of the usual six. “In Holland most people liked it because it was different but still stylish and chic,” notes Gal. “Clothing must be elegant and have a good fit and some small details that make it unique.”

With men at the fashion forefront of dressage’s upper levels, you’d expect them to have a wealth of choices when shopping. George Williams is succinct in his assessment of what’s available for men: “I’m used to going into a tack store and not finding what I need.” One explanation for this comes from Tabitha Knaub, who has worked in equestrian retail for 15 years on both coasts and is now co-owner of LA Saddlery in Los Angeles. “Men don’t shop,” she says. “The ones who do are tall and skinny, and they’ll only buy a couple pairs of breeches and maybe a polo shirt once or twice a year. It’s not like if you have it, they’ll come—they just don’t come.”

Brooke Sander of Dressage Extensions, which has a store in Moorpark, California, along with a flourishing catalog and online business, agrees. “Our client base is probably 95 percent female and a lot of them are seasonal shoppers.” She says the company’s male customers are primarily trainers seeking function and comfort over style. “A lot of men tell me their breeches are 10 years old. FITS and Kerrits come out with new colors and prints every season, but in the men’s area, they mostly stick to white, blue and black. Pikeur is a good source, and we try to have a variety of breeches for every day as well as the nicer pairs for showing,” Sander adds. But for men who wear larger sizes, there’s little to no selection. “Bigger men have to go custom,” says Knaub. Others seek out online sources, such as Reitsport Schockemöhle, or turn to regular sport coats for show wear.

While there are hurdles in finding clothing, men may have a slightly easier time when looking for saddles. Sander says their most popular saddle size is a 17½-inch, but that many men go for 18-inch saddles. Larger than 18 inches usually must be custom-ordered. According to certified master saddler Jochen Schleese, “Saddles have been traditionally built by men for men. The seat bones,” he explains, “are the key structure for the foundation of position and balance.” Men have two V-shaped seat bones set close together, giving them what Schleese calls “a bipod axis.” “It’s difficult for women to achieve the classic shoulders–hips–heels straight line due to the fact that the articulation of their hips is different than a man’s,” he says. “A male’s hip sockets are much farther forward, so their legs naturally can hang straight down.” Schleese says that in most males, the upper leg is approximately the same length as the lower leg, which means that their legs will hang straight using a “normal” stirrup bar placement.

The Future

Only time will tell whether men will play a more prominent role in grass-roots dressage in the years to come, but in the meantime, Jeremy Steinberg and Pierre St. Jacques say they offer their male students a little extra encouragement. Steinberg says, “There are so few of them—you want them to stay interested and see that other men are doing it.”

St. Jacques may have a more personal stake in the development of one potential student: In June, he and his wife, Samantha, an eventer for the Canadian team, welcomed their first child, Stirling Keaton St. Jacques. The proud father states, “Since both of his parents ride, it will be interesting to see what he wants to do. Riding is a great way to grow up.”

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