Heads up dressage, western dressage and event riders: Are you looking for a way to polish your skills and improve dressage test scores? Do you have a young horse that needs to gain experience before his first show? Do you need help conquering your show-ring nerves? Would you like to get a score for a new test you’ve been practicing or if you’re considering moving up a level? Or maybe showing isn’t for you, but you’d like to have a measure of your training progress. A ride-a-test dressage clinic is just the ticket for all of these situations and more. In recent years, both English and western d ..read more

Tamie Smith riding Mai Baum in dressage at the 2023 Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event CCI5*. Photo by Allen MacMillan/MacMillan Photography This past winter, Tamie Smith, winner of the 2023 Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event CCI5*, focused heavily on dressage with winning mount Mai Baum, competing him at the Prix St. George level. “I feel like it helped him with his overall base conditioning,” Tamie says. “He came out much stronger this year than he has in years past. I think of dressage like weightlifting. Dressage horses are more heavyweight builders than marathon runners. It helped him g ..read more

Photo by Michelle Marie Espinosa/Shutterstock There are places in every dressage test where even the humblest mount can score just as well as—or better than—the fanciest horse. They are the “non-brilliant movements,” of dressage so called because the gaits play little to no role in how they are ridden and judged. Frequently overlooked in daily schooling, these elements offer the clever rider the opportunity to gain a competitive edge—and they’re also good basic training, whether you choose to show or not. So let’s learn how to polish up these non-brilliant gems until they sparkle. The Non-Bril ..read more

Learn how to improve your dressage score by better understanding how it’s judged. Photo by Skumer/Shutterstock You trot down center line, ride the pattern of your dressage test, and soon receive your score. Your placing in the class depends on how that score stacks up against those of your competitors, but there’s a lot more to the dressage judging process than the score alone. The more you know about how dressage is judged, the more you can do to improve your own test scores and placings—and to make your horse a happier and more willing partner. Here’s an overview of the process. The Basic Ma ..read more

The type of saddle you first sat in does not need to be your last. Changing riding disciplines can help you renew your interests and find new joy with the horses you love. Photo by Terry Kelly/Shutterstock “Everyone goes through a process,” says dressage trainer Cody Harrison of Brighton, Colo. “If you change disciplines, it doesn’t mean that you started out in the wrong discipline. As you grow, there are opportunities. You have to step out of your comfort zone and find what’s right for you.” Here, we talked with three riders who made big switches. Read on to find out what prompted their shift ..read more

Last month I discussed how the leg-yield is a useful suppling and training tool for both horse and rider, how the movement is ridden, and some of the common mistakes from the rider’s point of view. Of course, the horse can cause leg yield errors, too, and this article will focus on some of those and how to correct them. If your horse rushes away from your inside leg, turn onto a circle in the opposite direction of the movement. Photo by Amy Dragoo Introduced in First Level dressage, the leg-yield is an important prerequisite for the horse and rider before starting more advanced lateral work. B ..read more

A useful training tool for both horse and rider, the leg-yield while horse riding supples the horse through his hips, croup, lower back, and shoulders. Leg-yielding teaches the horse how to move away from the inside leg to create bend in the body and step under his center of gravity. The U.S. Equestrian (USEF) Dressage Rule Book describes the leg-yield as follows: The horse is kept almost straight, except for slight flexion of the poll away from the direction in which he moves, and the inside legs pass and cross in front of the outside legs with the forehand slightly in advance of the qua ..read more

Photo by Leslie Potter Have you ever tried to braid your horse’s mane for a show and gotten so frustrated that you begged a friend for help or ended up paying someone to do it for you? Braiding a horse’s mane is not overly difficult, but one adage holds true: Practice makes perfect. If you want to have beautiful, even braids, don’t wait until the night before a show to start learning. It takes most people a few fully braided manes to develop an efficient technique. My preference is for “hunter bump” yarn braids because I find them easier to put in and take out than round braids sewn in with th ..read more

Sitting squarely in her black dressage saddle, para-equestrian Holly Bergay picks up her reins and prepares to train a young horse at Ambition Equestrian Center in Sedalia, Colo. Holding the soft leather with the fingers of her right hand, she carefully places a loop around her left elbow. Overcoming challenges, being overlooked, and heartbreak have made Bergay into the resiliant rider and trainer she is today. Photo by Elma Garcia Bergay has achieved world-class riding levels, but not without challenges and the grit to overcome them. Born with her left arm ending just below her elbow, riding ..read more

A horse show inside one of the most densely populated urban landscapes in the country doesn’t happen often. But the Central Park Horse Show brought elite horses to the city—for four years in a row. That streak ended in 2017 after subsequent scheduling issues. And an anticipated return in 2020 was sidelined by COVID-19. Photo by David Handschuh Last fall, when the Central Park Horse Show would have taken place, there was still no sign of it. As New York City re-opened to previous leisure activities and sports, the safety protocols weren’t enough for the beloved Central Park Horse Show to return ..read more