by Laurel Scott and Beth Collier
Dressage — which comes from the French “dresser,” to train — is systematic training that encourages the harmonious development of the horse’s physical ability, while improving his suppleness, balance and flexibility, as well as his confidence in and understanding of his rider. The result, if done correctly, is best described as an elegant partnership.
It’s a good basic foundation — some might even say the proper foundation — for
most equestrian disciplines. Indeed, dressage has influenced everything
from Western stock seat riding to modern hunter/jumper techniques.
To benefit from dressage, a horse needs only a four-beat walk, a two-beat
trot, and a three-beat canter.
More than 2000 years ago, the Greeks — who believed that the way to live
in harmony with the universe was to obey its laws — used dressage to prepare
their steeds for war. Working without saddles or stirrups and only snaffle bits
for control, they produced mounts that moved in a light, well-balanced fashion,
yielding gracefully, willingly and proudly to their riders’ every
request.
It was the Greek commander Xenophon who penned the best-known work
of this era on training and horsemanship. His philosophy — which was later refined
by Antoine de Pluvinel, William Cavendish, and François Robichon de la
Guérinière — evolved into classical dressage,
the highest expression of the art of equitation.
Today, most equestrians are more familiar with competitive
(or “modern”)
dressage than its virtuoso classical cousin. Indeed, the Spanish Riding School,
which was founded in 1572 in Vienna, Austria, is one of the last bastions of
the classical tradition (France’s Cadre Noir de Saumur being
another). This tradition was revived during the Renaissance with
the introduction
of small firearms and the return of the light horse to European
cavalry. (See
Spanish
Riding School story in this issue.)
Here, the preferred mount is the Lipizzan, or Lipizzaner,
a powerful and intelligent breed cultivated from Spanish
stock
(hence the
name of the
school). The graceful
haute ecole (high school) movements that have thrilled
the school’s audiences
for centuries are based on the breed’s own natural movements,
and take an average of six to eight years of intensive work to
perfect.
From the leg yield and the flying change to the pirouette
and the piaffe, every maneuver was developed to keep
a horse mobile
and
handy — capable of wheeling
towards or away from the enemy — while engaging in hand-to-hand
combat.
As for the exacting and difficult “airs above the ground,” these
maneuvers were also designed to protect and defend, as well as
to intimidate. They include, but are not limited to:
Levade — a highly controlled rearing motion, in which the horse’s
head and neck shields his rider, while the latter reaches down
to slash with a sword or aim a pistol. Can also be used as an evasion
tactic.
Courbette — a balancing on the hind legs, followed by a series of forward “hops” that
serve to disperse foot soldiers.
Capriole — a dramatic forward leap, in which the horse tucks his forelegs and kicks out behind. This was used either to clear space on a crowded battlefield or to escape over the heads of infantry.
Fast forward to 2005, when the battlefield is the competitive
arena, and the goal the perfect dressage test.
(Dressage competitions were
originally devised
to test the abilities of cavalry officers.)
This means rule books, new terms and lots of
abbreviations!
In order to show in USEF/USDF-recognized shows,
your horse must have an HID number. In order
to show in
the FEI CDI
shows, you must have
an FEI horse passport, which
you arrange through USEF.
Some people still refer to USEF as AHSA,
but they are forgetting that it was briefly
USAE
at one point. And
USEA refers
to the United States
Eventing Association,
so it gets a bit tricky!
USEF/USDF shows sometimes include classes
for the USDF Region 1 championships,
listed as
BLM or USDF
Q for
the GAIG. BLM
wannabes
must also be a
member of one of 14 associations, which
includes PVDA, IEO, LVDA, CDCTA, VADA
and MDA.
You
must also decide whether you are a JrYR
or AA. You can’t
be both!
Some classes are also listed as TOC or
MFS. Sometimes an FEI TOC will exclude
a class,
such as PSG.
Foreign competitors
used to
have to submit
USEF Foreign
Competitors’ licenses, but now they can just be USEF or USDF members like
everyone else, since their foreign federations are not going to know what the
heck they’re trying to accomplish. If YRs do well enough at USEF/USDF shows,
they may even qualify for the NAYRC, but they may not need an FEI horse passport — so
check the rules!
Confused yet?
USEF: United States Equestrian Federation
USDF: United States Dressage Federation
HID: Horse Identification Number
FEI: Federation Equestre Internationale
CDI: Concours Dressage International
AHSA: American Horse Shows Association
USAE: USA Equestrian Association
BLM: Bengt Ljungquist Memorial Championships
USDF Q: United States Dressage Federation Qualifier
GAIG: Great American Insurance Group Championship
PVDA:Potomac
Valley Dressage Association (MD)
IEO:
International Equestrian Organization (PA)
LVDA: Lehigh Valley Dressage Association (PA)
CDCTA: Commonwealth Dressage and Combined Training Association
(VA)
VADA: Virginia Dressage Association
MDA:Maryland
Dressage Association
JrYR: Junior or Young Rider
AA: Adult Amateur
TOC: Test of Choice
MFS: Musical Freestyle
PSG: Prix St.-Georges
NAYRC: North American Young Riders’ Championships
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Copyright ©2006 The Equiery/Tuttle Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved.