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One of my favorite things about dressage is that there are so many ways to play. Schooling shows, recognized shows, little local ones, big hairy international ones, everything in between. There’s room in our sport for the person with the day job who are weekend warriors with their rescue pony, and there’s room in our sport for the independently wealthy with time and resources to ride at the top level. There’s room for the professional who teaches people how to do their first tests, and there’s room for the professional who brings them to the international ring. There’s lots of room.
But I’ve always felt that dividing classes by rider occupation was a silly line in the sand to draw. The working students of the world who come to their jobs not knowing much more than how to put their horses on the bit have to compete in their first-ever first level test against me on something with international ambitions, and that seems unfair. The weekend warrior on the pony has to compete against the amateur who’s made Grand Prix horses and is starting anew with something young, and that seems unfair.
And yeah, it’s just a ribbon. At the local shows, I don’t care, but some people do. And at the regional and national championships, a lot of people do. For some riders, that local show is their regionals, or their nationals or their Olympics.
What if, instead of dividing classes by rider occupation, we divided them by level of rider experience?
Read the rest at The Chronicle of the Horse!
One of the things that I pride myself in the most is not being a shill for products. When I recommend something, I want people to know that I truly believe in it and use it in my day-to-day life. But I’m also a girl who’s gotta pay her bills, so if there’s a way to make a few pennies recommending stuff I’d be recommending anyway, then game on.
Enter the Amazon Affiliates program. So yes, I’ll get a kickback if you order via these links. But I pinkie promise that these are things I use on a regular, sometimes even DAILY, basis, and I’d tell you they were great anyway.
*Updated to include links to some virtual lesson gear, and also a handy chair I love for my desk-job riders!*
SUN HATS: I’ve got a big head. I’ve also got long hair. And I’ve got super fair skin, so if the sun touches me, I will quite simply burst into flames. I’ve got two sun hat recommendations for those of us with bigger noggins, though they do come in normal noggin sizes as well. And they both have ponytail holes!
This one is cute and foldable and straw-esque. They make a big deal about how you have to steam it; I didn’t and my life has, somehow, managed to go on even though my hat does get slightly creased. Definitely has been worn at the barn, though it’s so dang cute that I keep it more as my muggle hat.
My dedicated barn hat is this guy, which does fold up, but doesn’t roll up, so it’s not as easy to pack. But it’s comfy as hell and breathes well, and it’s a super-solid brim; no rays are getting past this bad boy!
SUNSCREEN: On the subject of being a Paleface, this is my favorite sunscreen. Mineral sunscreen means gentler on your skin, as well as VASTLY gentler on coral reefs, but straight up zinc oxide is actually whiter than I am, something I didn’t think was possible. Australian Gold tints this product in a few different skin tones (I wear the “Fair To Light” color) so it’s not so chalky, and of all the tinted ones I’ve tried, this is the smoothest to apply and most comfortable to wear.
BANDS: If you’ve ever ridden in a clinic with me, I’ve probably put a band on you. This band – which I use in the XS/Blue size – goes diagonally across the body from heel of boot over opposing shoulder, and is great for activating the rider’s leg and core, as well as proprioception. I’ll either use one on a rider’s weak side, or more often I’ll use them as a pair.
This is the band I put a rider’s wrists through, so they have to push their wrists out against it, activating their core muscles and also making it much harder to ride with the elbows out.
The bands I connect to the rider’s thumbs, behind the back, to both encourage breathing and proprioception into the back, as well as to discourage pulling back on the reins. The pickle with these bands is that they only come in sets of 12; if you want to order just one, I’ll sell you one of mine, or bring it to a clinic for you. (Shoot me an email.) But here’s the whole set.
And not quite a band, but a chair. If you’re a person who works at a desk all day, you have tiiiiight hip flexors. I love this chair for you all, because it allows for some longer leg (though you may need to raise your desk to get maximum benefit), as well as a complimentary core workout at the same time.
VIRTUAL LESSON NECESSITIES: If you take virtual lessons, these are the things you need. First up, the Pivo is far-and-away the superior virtual lesson system. It’s cheap, there’s no subscription fee to use, and unlike certain (ahem) expensive-as-hell systems out there, if the Pivo gets distracted by a bumblebee or something, your instructor can take over the robot. I bring my Pivo to shows – with multiple horses in the warmup, where the Pivo tracking algorithm would be useless – and my coach can just take over the robot and control it herself from her computer.
You’ll also need some industrial-strength bluetooth headphones. Your earbuds aren’t good enough – not enough range, not enough sound quality. These headphones have the range and quality you need, and are designed for athletes so you can sweat on them or ride in the rain without a disaster.
I’ll update this list for anything we use a ton of in the barn!
I bought Ojalá (Vitalis—Fienna, Sir Sinclair) from her breeder, Belinda Nairn, as a foal. She grew up in a field, learned to stand on crossties, lead, have a bath, be civilized. At 3, she was backed. She learned to walk, trot and canter on the bit like a lady, work with other horses in the ring, and hack out by the time I picked her, now 4, up in April of this year. I rode her and found her delightful, and then handed the keys to my wonderful assistant trainer, Ali Redston, who has a much greater affinity for the youngsters than I do. They went on an off-property outing, which was uninteresting. They went to a recognized show, where they performed admirably in two Materiale classes, and behaved to perfection.
And then I gave “Lala” a month off.
Why? She was sound. She was working well. She approached each day cheerfully, with good manners both on the ground and under saddle. She’s barefoot behind, clean legged and has a strong topline. Why stop?
Well … because I could. Because there really isn’t anything else I particularly care about for her right now. Lala happens to also be truly every inch of 18 hands, but I’m truthfully not sure I would have done anything differently if she were 16 hands. I came back to this: At 4 years old, there’s really not much to win, but plenty to lose by doing too much.
Read the rest at The Chronicle of the Horse!
I’m writing this blog from my couch, where it is a delightful 72 degrees. I have an iced coffee, some office work and a leisurely Monday afternoon ahead of me. I am just home from teaching a clinic in Texas, where the high each day was 102. It’s been marginally cooler here in Virginia, but not by much during our recent heatwave.
We could talk about global warming, but it’s not like summertime in Virginia was a balmy experience before humans started humaning. It’s hot here. It’s sticky here. It’s certainly not going away. So, we plan accordingly.
Read the rest at The Chronicle of the Horse!
Big blue ribbons, plus OPEN RIDE SPOTS in our upcoming clinics with bit fitter Stephanie Brown Beamer, renowned horsemanship expert Chelsea Canedy, and more! Read all about it in our e-newsletter, and sign up to receive it directly to your inbox!
She was 5 but green broke, still owned by her breeder. I was 21, a veteran of the Young Rider and U25 programs, and as such I thought I knew a few things about horse training. I was wrong, as young people filled with hubris are often are. But I couldn’t have asked for a better teacher than Ellegria.
“Ella’s” real name was, tragically, Elly McBeal, which clearly had to go. She was a Westphalian of great old German breeding (Ehrentanz I—Patrizia, Philipo) and one of three Grand Prix horses her mother produced, with a coat like a copper penny, and a tanky body that belied her 16.1 hands. She had an extended trot that would knock your socks off, a gift for passage and a 10 extended walk.
Read the rest at The Chronicle of the Horse!
SATURDAY
8 Lauren Sprieser & Madiene, 6 yr KWPN Mare, 3rd Level
8:45 Ali Redston & Ojalá, 4 yr KWPN Mare, Training Level
9:30 Jodie Harney & Sullivan, 10 yr Oldenburg Gelding, 4th Level
10:15 Mary Ewing & Fiero, 16 yr Oldenburg Gelding, Training Level
11 Julie Nelson & Reno, 5 yr Thoroughbred Gelding, 1st Level
11:45 Sandra House & Scarlet, 13 yr Holsteiner Mare, 1st Level
12:30 LUNCH
1 Skylar Skalicky & Jasper, 9 yr KWPN Gelding, 2nd Level
1:30 Claire Decker & Wizard, 9 yr Friesian Cross Gelding, 2nd Level
2 Ada Oldfather & Corino, 14 yr Holsteiner Gelding, 2nd Level
2:30 Nicole Vasil & Roscoe, 12 yr Welsh Cob Stallion, 2nd Level
3:15 Heather Richards & Halcyon, 11 yr KWPN Mare, 4th Level
4 Nancy Sulek & Quallentino, 8 yr Oldenburg Gelding, 3rd Level
SUNDAY
8 Nicole Vasil & Roscoe, 12 yr Welsh Cob Stallion, 2nd Level
8:45 Heather Richards & Halcyon, 11 yr KWPN Mare, 4th Level
9:30 Nancy Sulek & Quallentino, 8 yr Oldenburg Gelding, 3rd Level
10:15 Jodie Harney & Sullivan, 10 yr Oldenburg Gelding, 4th Level
11 Mary Ewing & Fiero, 16 yr Oldenburg Gelding, Training Level
11:45 Sandra House & Scarlet, 13 yr Holsteiner Mare, 1st Level
12:30 LUNCH
1 Skylar Skalicky & Jasper, 9 yr KWPN Gelding, 2nd Level
1:30 Claire Decker & Wizard, 9 yr Friesian Cross Gelding, 2nd Level
2 Ada Oldfather & Corino, 14 yr Holsteiner Gelding, 2nd Level
2:30 Lauren Sprieser & Madiene, 6 yr KWPN Mare, 3rd Level
3:15 Ali Redston & Ojalá, 4 yr KWPN Mare, Training Level
4 Julie Nelson & Reno, 5 yr Thoroughbred Gelding, 1st Level
Dogs, horses, humans—we’re all malleable, but never more than as youngsters. Our early years are so terribly critical. It’s why the folks who take Thoroughbreds off the track, or who fetch neglect cases from the auction, and make them into good citizens in sport disciplines are really so extraordinary. It’s much easier to teach something well the first time than it is to install it as an after-market add-on.
As a horse person who generally has had enough money to get nice young things but not nicely trained things, this has worked out fine for me. I was never someone who started babies, but even getting them at 3 and 4, and immediately thinking about turning nicely, adjusting nicely, taking my big ol’ leg and big ol’ seat, and generally fitting into my program and my style from the beginning means that becomes their native tongue. They are imprinted into my way. My way works well for me, and thus far has produced lots of horses that are both good at dressage and good at life. These horses also seem to do well in their next homes, even ones with people shaped differently than me, or who ride differently than me. That’s lovely. And I’m not unique in this—most dressage trainers follow the German Riding System of leg-seat-hand because it works. Most trainers install things like ground manners and standing at the mounting block and going away from home like a good boy instead of like a feral beast because most trainers don’t want to die.
Read the rest at The Chronicle of the Horse!
We’ve got rider biomechanics clinics, we’ve got horsemanship clinics, we’ve got traditional dressage clinics, and we’ve got a heckofa lotta ribbons. Click to read all about it, including links to audit our fantastic summer clinic series, which you truly cannot miss!