Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
Good Morning readers, here we are again, the weekend upon us and one busy with events.
This weekend sees the Twin Palms Dressage League hold its fourth event at Sahara Riding Centre, Saar. This is a qualifying show for the end of season BREEF championship.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with dressage, it is a sport designed to develop, through standardised training methods, the horse's natural athletic ability and willingness to perform. Unlike show jumping, dressage is a very old sport, originating some 2000 years ago and used by the ancient Greeks in preparation for war.
This form of riding was known as Classical dressage, the principles being that the rider move in harmony with the horse rather than working against it.
A horse's natural movement of collection is performed when playing, competing, courting and fighting with one another. This concept of collection is probably very familiar to seasoned riders who have, at some point, been told to ensure their horse is 'collected'.
The best way to explain this principle is to use the example of the horse's movements when trying to impress other horses. They pump up their chest and raise their necks, making themselves look bigger, while at the same time changing their gait to emphasise a much more upward movement. It is this natural ability that early riders tried to reproduce under more controlled circumstances.
From the 15th century onwards, the art of riding in harmony with the horse moved from the battlefield to a much more artistic and sophisticated form, where riders and horses spent years perfecting their skills at speciliased riding academies.
At these schools horses were and continue to be taught 'airs' (or moves above ground) such as the capriole (a horse will leap from the ground, pulling in its forelegs while also kicking out its hind legs) or levade (in which a horse balances on its haunches at an angle of 45 degrees, which obviously requires great strength and control).
While all horses theoretically have the ability to perform all such movements naturally, it is the Austrian Lippizaner and the pure bred Spanish Andalusian, one of the world's oldest breed of horses, that are famous for their ability to perform such movements under controlled circumstances.
Although modern competitive dressage evolved from classical dressage, today's international competitions do not require that horses perform airs above ground, instead they focus upon movements such as extended trot, half pass and pirouette.
Today's competitions begin with introductory level tests and then advance through a graduated series of levels, the test increasing in difficulty and challenging both horse and rider in their ability to perform with precision, control and grace. The most accomplished of horse and rider teams will graduate to dressage tests of Grand Prix level, performed at the Olympic Games.
So there you have it, a brief introduction to dressage. While the league does not have a grand prix class, it does have riders and horses performing to extremely high standards after weeks of training.
Friday will have classes such as Best Turned Out, Working Equitation and New Comer, all of which cater for the less advanced dressage riders. There will also be Preliminary, Novice, Elementary and an all time favourite, Freestyle to Music. This final class is extremely enjoyable to watch.
Riders create their own test and select music to accompany their horses' different gaits. It is always an event that has a captivated audience (or if you are like me and unable to keep your feet still when the music starts, a dancing, singing audience!)
Before closing, just a quick reminder of a 'fun show' to be held at Twin Palms on March 13. More details on this next week.
Have a fabulous weekend!
