More about Dressage Judging

10/04/2025

...this appears to be one of Australia's current International Dressage Competition representatives when how this horse is 'moving' over the ground leaves a lot to be desired for it WELFARE.

And this shows the problem with Dressage Judges when they continue to award 50%+ range marks in tests for this sort of training/riding response which allows horses to get to Advanced and above levels of competition....as this one has...which continues to promote the BAD training and riding of Dressage horses.

09/05/2023

...more for discussion i.e. check out my Intro Post!

19/03/2022

...to help judge the riding of Dressage Riders, this Canter example helps to further understand:
- the importance of 'sitting deep'
- if rider is 'connected' to their horse in 'sitting' canter
- how well a rider's body is helping the horse to know the 'pace' required .and more when we discuss these things!

https://www.facebook.com/HorseClass/videos/247857370771471/

13/12/2021

Lots to talk about here re good training/performance of horse concepts....but first thing that's easy to note is horse's 'frame'/carriage, which includes head/neck position....and hearing how its breathing 'works' to reinforce the level of 'goodness' in this horse's training...

29/04/2020

It's this sort of thing that makes me 'unpopular' i.e. I don't approve of Horse Sports that use animals like this...or circuses...but NOT by the horse!

18/09/2019

This looks more like how 'it' should be for the Dressage Horse......check this out more later..

Annie Morris shares tips she learned from riding with this top Portuguese dressage rider.

12/09/2019

Posting this here..but this 'antic'/what horse is 'being made to do' is nil re the Art of Dressage [...if going to call Dressage an Art instead of a Science!]

12/09/2019

A post to do with types of responses that develop due to how horses are ridden! Go read FEI Rule Book and see if you can work out/see how correct this horse is!!!!!

15/08/2019

In Dressage, how a horse uses its legs shows how well it's able to
'move' over the ground in the way it was designed to.. . There are a few 'principles' that apply to this idea.. and it 'pays' in good ways to know how to train/ride horses so that they can move as naturally meant to when free in nature

The charming dancer Fiderking, born 2010, by Fidertanz out of Unlimited by De Niro - Figaro - Harnisch/Trak., bred by Helmut Kleen, Germany, and owned by Christine Kohler-Ekstrand, USA, shines under the 16 years old Sophia Ekstrand in the Junior Level in the USA. Recently the couple won the Junior Individual Test in Burbank, California, and won Silver in the Junior Team Test. At the Temecula Horse Show, California, Fiderking and Sophia Ekstrand danced to the second place in the Individual and the Team Test. The pair is coached by the international Grand Prix-rider and trainer Marcus Gribbe, Germany, who moved to the USA. Fiderking started his career at the Fall Elite Auction 2016 in Vechta. Mother Unlimited is the sister of Grand Prix star Dandelion OLD under Uta Gräf, Germany, and the mare Uniqua who was Reserve Champion at the Oldenburg Elite Mare Show in Rastede 2003 and was price highlight at the Fall Elite Auction 2004. Fiderking comes from the well-known Uthoba dam line which also brought Gut Wettlkam's Stand by me OLD by Stedinger, successful in Grand Prix under Lisa Müller, Germany, as well as Quel Filou OLD, successful in Prix St. Georges under Anna Zibrandtsen, Denmark.

15/08/2019

Some ideas to consider....the 'forward' seat/position in rising trot actually 'frees' up the horse from constraint of rider...to allow rider's body 'weight' to 'come down' on horses's back every second step is an unbalanced/retarding way to ride a horse ...and can cause to become 'bridle lame'....and it's very important to make sure that rider's back movement/stiffness doesn't cause the horse's walk to become a 'pace' or lateral movement..cos as soon as it does = horse isnt 'walking' thus 'gait gone wrong' etc...

29/05/2019

...it still continues! Note here the leg-usage and carriage 'issues' which show whether the horse has been 'properly' trained.

The charming dancer Fiderking, born 2010, by Fidertanz out of Unlimited by De Niro - Figaro - Harnisch/Trak., bred by Helmut Kleen, Germany, and owned by Christine Kohler-Ekstrand, USA, shines under the 16 years old Sophia Ekstrand in the Junior Level in the USA. Recently the couple won the Junior Individual Test in Burbank, California, and won Silver in the Junior Team Test. At the Temecula Horse Show, California, Fiderking and Sophia Ekstrand danced to the second place in the Individual and the Team Test. The pair is coached by the international Grand Prix-rider and trainer Marcus Gribbe, Germany, who moved to the USA. Fiderking started his career at the Fall Elite Auction 2016 in Vechta. Mother Unlimited is the sister of Grand Prix star Dandelion OLD under Uta Gräf, Germany, and the mare Uniqua who was Reserve Champion at the Oldenburg Elite Mare Show in Rastede 2003 and was price highlight at the Fall Elite Auction 2004. Fiderking comes from the well-known Uthoba dam line which also brought Gut Wettlkam's Stand by me OLD by Stedinger, successful in Grand Prix under Lisa Müller, Germany, as well as Quel Filou OLD, successful in Prix St. Georges under Anna Zibrandtsen, Denmark.

22/05/2019

22/05/2019

18/05/2019

Promoting continous improvement for the care, housing and involvement of horses in our sport and recreation activities

30/04/2019

Recently I have been wondering if anyone knew when and where the Walk and Trot dressage test had been 'invented'!

In relation to this, in 1978 I helped established a 'dressage training' focused group in South Australia called Southern Horse Education Group, which led to the 'idea' of this group offering Walk and Trot tests to riders in competitions that this group held - to help/encourage riders to engage more easily in this particular horse-sport. This led to a committee member, Stuart Earl, designing these tests, which were formulated to include walk/trot 'movements' already included in the Preliminary’ or Level 1 tests at that time.

In those days in Australia, Level 1 Tests were called Preliminary Tests...and eventually these then ‘NEW to the Australian Dressage scene’ Walk/Trot tests came to be called Encourage Tests...although I might be getting confused here now re the label 'encourage' being used for unofficial dressage competition days which this group had also been ‘set-up’ to do in its early years.

The main goal of this group in its early days had been to promote the riding and training of 'proper' dressage – which was at a time when the 'nasty' Rollkur type 'training' behaviour was becoming more 'known' to then be overtly promoted in the training of South Australian dressage horses by various interstate/overseas ‘visitors’ i.e. coaches, making it difficult for any local coach who knew 'better' to be taken notice of. And this sort of thing still happens.

23/04/2019

..

23/04/2019

For my 'horse' books, I've been preparing text to include about the 'training scale' of Dressage...so thought i would finally view what was on You Tube these days re 'training scale dressage' which led me to view an offering from an austn. rider who is supposed to be Grand Prix level rider and i think on the horse in this video...who talked re 1st three levels of this 'scale' while riding a horse that was NOT relaxed re it's head or mouth 'carriage' THUS unable to work on 'contact' or On The Bit - THUS another 'typical' example of rhetoric WITHOUT 'correct or 'proper' example of what the rhetoric was about i.e.these levels of this scale...and the walk rhythm was a bit suspect as well....AS WELL AS a this video being a very good example of how Dressage judging since 1990s in Australia has been guided at least until 2015 TO BE totally 'missing the mark' IF how this horse is working for this rider was ALSO how it had 'performed' in dressage tests from say 'medium' or 4th level tests upwards.....i.e. before it got to PStG level etc... False ideas re what rhythm is about as well...

And my disgust at seeing this example of dressage riding as well as listening to 'talk' that is ALSO 'off the beam' re what dressage 'is about' MAINLY re idea of contact is exactly why 1. i gave up official dressage judging a decade or so ago and 2. have avoided attending State or National competitions anymore cos the riding/result of most of the training of horses to get them there had been producing 'horrid' results THUS they should have NEVER 'got there' etc THUS most unenjoyable for me.....which ALSO made i very hard for ME to judge them truthfully without 'bad flack' returned from upset riders as well as their coaches etc...not to mention other judges who didnt like the idea of being 'challenged' re what was 'real' and what was NOT...cos they didnt seem to know what was correct/proper etc...

28/02/2019

The word 'professional' is supposed to refer to 'when money is earnt' so - but me look at this later and hope then this trainer makes some comment about how 'good' professionals don't ride their horses with their noses behind the vertical and their polls low when performing all 'paces' except 'long and low'.....which IS WHAT this rider IS doing with this horse!!!!!

German master Christoph Hess explains how to become a great rider and build correct connection in dressage training.