Learning to watch dressage intelligently

Greetings,

New Sporthorse.TV member and fairly new dressage fan.  I ride Western and own a stock horse but absolutely love to watch dressage.  I've been searching for a reference book/video/whatever that'll give a newbie a good explanation of the dressage levels, testing, the various moves, etc., but am not having much luck.  So far all I've been doing is going to schooling shows and watching what I can on the tube (and now Sporthorse.TV!).

Does anyone out there in dressage land have any ideas re how to learn more about this sport and watch it intelligently?? 

Thanks,

Mary

Dear Mary, 

There are many books and videos out there that will inform you as a spectator, and eventually as a rider too (we can hope). I personally love Debbie McDonald's, Riding Through, as it has a lot of pictures and stories from behind the scenes, so to speak. The USDF Guide to Dressage is great because it assumes that you don't know anything about the sport and then explains the movements with diagrams and photos. For more technical explanations from a more "old school" perspective, Dressage by Henry Wynmalen is very detailed, but dense, and How to Ride A Winning Dressage Test by Jonathan R. Burton, is from a judge's perspective. The last two you might have to find at a library as they are older, but the first two are available from any english riding catalog, Dover or Bit of Britain and the like.

I hope that helps, and keep watching, I hope that soon we convince you to join us and ride dressage!

Kara

PrHieviously bassclef54 wrote:

Greetings,

 

New Sporthorse.TV member and fairly new dressage fan.  I ride Western and own a stock horse but absolutely love to watch dressage.  I've been searching for a reference book/video/whatever that'll give a newbie a good explanation of the dressage levels, testing, the various moves, etc., but am not having much luck.  So far all I've been doing is going to schooling shows and watching what I can on the tube (and now Sporthorse.TV!).

 

Does anyone out there in dressage land have any ideas re how to learn more about this sport and watch it intelligently?? 

 

Thanks,

Mary

Hi

I am a lot like you.  Ride western have stock horse. doing dressge schooling shows.  I got a tape called Through the judges eye and it helped.  Also I scribed for a judge at our schooling show..learned a lot.  I volunteered a a sanctioned show and sat in the stands and watched. Also the narrrated videos on Sporthorse helped. Where are you riding?  I am inthe NCC chapter of the Oklahoma Dressage Association.  My instructory Rainee Boyd has sate with me and watched other riders and told me the goods and bads.  mostly good.  My biggest problem is getting my orse forward.  I ride a Paint/Pinto.