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Western Dressage - Arabian Horse Assoc

17K views 95 replies 22 participants last post by  longride 
#1 ·

AHA to Use Western Dressage Association® Rules & Tests

Aurora, CO (May 2, 2013) – The Arabian Horse Association (AHA) and the Western Dressage Association® of America (WDAA) is proud to announce the use of WDAA Western Dressage Tests for 2013 Western Dressage classes.

The Arabian Horse Association Board of Directors recently voted to use the rules and tests of WDAA for Western Dressage classes starting in the 2014 competition year. AHA and WDAA look forward to offering Western Dressage as another discipline in which the versatile Arabian horse can showcase its versatility and unique style.

AHA and WDAA are eager to offer additional opportunities to riders and their horse via the partnership. The use of Western Dressage Tests for 2013 gives riders the chance to receive feedback on their ride, creating an opportunity to learn, grow and train to the maximum benefit of the horse and rider partnership. Whether Western Dressage is the ultimate discipline of choice or a training tool on the road to other western riding pursuits, the opportunity will exist for members of these associations.

About the Western Dressage Association® of America: The Western Dressage Association® of America is a 501(c)(3) educational non-profit organization focused on providing a model of horsemanship which optimizes the partnership of horse and rider for their mutual benefit. The mission of the Western Dressage Association® is "to honor the horse, to value the partnership between horse and rider and to celebrate the legacy of the American West" which it focuses on through its offerings of educational opportunities and events to the equestrian community. To discover more about the WDAA, please visit www.westerndressageassociation.org.

Coming soon to a show ring near you.........
 
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#71 ·
So, all I'm getting for why anyone doesn't like WD is because some riders who use curb bits ride improperly with them. Right?

Okay, so take out those people. What's so horribly wrong with WD? If/When they do a rule change to disallow curbs at lower levels, then what will anyone have to complain about?

This is what I'm trying to get to. Let's get beyond the curbs being incorrectly used - that happens everywhere that curbs are used. Assume they're all in snaffles with their western horses. What else is there that's so awful with WD?
 
#72 ·
...What else is there that's so awful with WD?
Just that it isn't related to western riding. Traditional western riding is not oriented to riding in an arena, with a significant degree of sustained collection.

Western riding should be oriented to ranch work, or imitating the needs of ranch work. If western dressage was a two event program, one with speed and agility (barrel racing comes to mind) and the second was dressage dressage, with a combined score...I could relate to that.

It is kind of like Western Show Jumping, where you do show jumping but in a western saddle using quarter horses. Haven't heard of it? That is because it is a pretty dumb idea. It may or may not be fun, but it would not be related to western riding.

When someone says "Western", I think of this:



"Emory H. Sager, of the Shoe Bar, on "Old Blue" his favorite cutting horse, working the herd out on roundup grounds. Shoe Bar Ranch, Texas, 1912"

Erwin E. Smith Collection Guide | Collection Guide

Notice there is no riding the horse in a frame, no putting him on the bit, his forehead isn't vertical, he isn't using a collected gait per FEI...it just isn't dressage. That doesn't make dressage wrong in any way, but dressage and western riding are not like peanut butter & chocolate - just because things sound odd together doesn't mean they really DO go together!

If they wanted to call it "Beginner Dressage" to allow folks to explore dressage without all the tack, etc...fine. But there isn't much about it that is western...
 
#73 ·
Dressage is mostly "just good riding". It's about balance and lightness and rhythm. It's about making the horse more comfortable to ride and about teaching the rider to ride better. It's about teaching your horse to respond in a quick but relaxed manner to whatever you ask of him. It's about teaching him to stop without throwing himself on his forehand or jerking his head up in the air. I think all those things and more, apply to western riding as well as English Dressage. If you can manipulate your western horse easily through a gate, you're probably doing more dressage than you realize. Same with riding off your seat and neck reining - both are very, very much like dressage. As I see it, competing in Western Dressage is just another way to enjoy your horse and to improve your riding skills and your connection with your horse.

I also think it should be mentioned that the Western horse (the Quarter horse) has it's roots in the Spanish Barbs brought to the Americas by the Spaniards. Guess what those horses were originally bred and trained to do? Bingo: Dressage. Okay, it probably wasn't called "Dressage" then, (actually it probably was, since "dressage" simply means "training"), and the saddles looked different, but the Spanish horse was (and still is today) built for collection and for use as a good riding horse for war, and working cattle, and just about every other purpose a horse might be used for.

Is collection foreign to Western horses? I don't think so. A western horse doing a sliding stop is collected. A western horse can not to a proper roll-back or spin without being collected. I'm sure any horse in any western show class would be penalized if he went along leaning on his forehand, or with a hollowed back and his nose up in the air. Why? Because western judges are looking for "collection" too. Not to mention that English dressage classes all include the "free walk" which is virtually identical to low headed, stretching down, Western walk.

So, so many similarities. I'm surprised no one thought of this before.
 
#82 · (Edited)
Dressage is mostly "just good riding". It's about balance and lightness and rhythm. It's about making the horse more comfortable to ride and about teaching the rider to ride better. It's about teaching your horse to respond in a quick but relaxed manner to whatever you ask of him. It's about teaching him to stop without throwing himself on his forehand or jerking his head up in the air.

I disagree. Dressage may do those things, but it does so with a different goal and using a different style than traditional western riding. Dressage is NOT about "teaching your horse to respond in a quick but relaxed manner to whatever you ask of him". You can do that with a forward seat. You can do that with a chair seat. You can do that in the traditional western style of riding. You can also NOT do that in dressage, if you are a dressage buffoon - just as you can NOT do it using ANY approach to riding, if you are a buffoon.


I think all those things and more, apply to western riding as well as English Dressage. If you can manipulate your western horse easily through a gate, you're probably doing more dressage than you realize. Same with riding off your seat and neck reining - both are very, very much like dressage.

So if I do those in a forward seat, I'm doing dressage? I think not. There is a reason dressage teachers teach a style of riding. It is the style that works best for dressage. A dressage instructor won't show someone a picture of a top cutter and tell them to ride like that - unless they are being asked about cutting.



There are different styles meant to support different goals in riding. That makes sense. We do not all ride dressage.


As I see it, competing in Western Dressage is just another way to enjoy your horse and to improve your riding skills and your connection with your horse.

It is, but it uses dressage as it base, not traditional western riding.


I also think it should be mentioned that the Western horse (the Quarter horse) has it's roots in the Spanish Barbs brought to the Americas by the Spaniards. Guess what those horses were originally bred and trained to do? Bingo: Dressage. Okay, it probably wasn't called "Dressage" then, (actually it probably was, since "dressage" simply means "training"), and the saddles looked different, but the Spanish horse was (and still is today) built for collection and for use as a good riding horse for war, and working cattle, and just about every other purpose a horse might be used for.

Is collection foreign to Western horses? I don't think so. A western horse doing a sliding stop is collected. A western horse can not to a proper roll-back or spin without being collected.

TEMPORARY, SHORT DURATION
collection. The ultimate goal of dressage is sustained, collected gaits (per the FEI). You can teach momentary collection to a horse in one ride. It doesn't require years of training. Dressage, OTOH, rewards certain builds of horses and requires years of training - because its goals differ from traditional western riding.

Sustained collection is SLOW. The West is BIG. BIG & SLOW don't match well.


I'm sure any horse in any western show class would be penalized if he went along leaning on his forehand, or with a hollowed back and his nose up in the air. Why? Because western judges are looking for "collection" too.

No, they are looking for balance. Leaning on the forehand is not balanced. I was reminded of that last night, when I rode my mare in a snaffle for a change, and she kept trying her old trick of cantering with her nose at the ground. My back is throbbing right now from fighting her. She can do a relaxed & balanced canter when she wants, but she will never get the training required for a true collected canter gait.
And that is OK. Just as it is OK to want to teach sustained, collected gaits.

Not to mention that English dressage classes all include the "free walk" which is virtually identical to low headed, stretching down, Western walk.

That 'western walk' is a fad used in some sports (WP). It is not how most horses move on the open range. West. Range. Open spaces. Long distances. Barrel racing tests certain facets of movements used in a lot of traditional western riding - speed and quick turns. Dressage does not.
That does not make dressage wrong. It just isn't traditional western riding, rooted in the ranches of the west.

So, so many similarities. I'm surprised no one thought of this before.
...I think it's a shame that so few people can see the similarities between Western and dressage. Dressage was never established for arenas either. It was to keep war horses conditioned and battle ready.

That is a myth, IMHO. It was used for parade grounds. The US Cavalry looked at dressage in the 1800s and concluded it had no value for cavalry horses. The moves that were supposedly good for war are actually moves that would make it easier for a foot soldier to kill the horse. And the US Cavalry concluded that dressage training for the typical horse would cause it to break down faster than one without.

It was only brought into an arena for riders to showcase the abilities of their mounts. Same thing happened with reining, cutting, trail, WP, etc. Those are all arena work now with a basis outside of the arena.

There are many similarities between the two. All that hind end propulsion, self-Carriage, lightness in the front end, etc. is the same that Dressage riders strive toward. Sure, you won't see a cutting horse doing a levade. Think about it - leg yields, piaffes, voltes just to name a few. All dressage terms, but you see them in western disciplines in different variations.

Not really. You can do a leg yield without doing dressage. A piaffe, again, has little use on a ranch. Per the FEI, dressage is interested in SUSTAINED collection, and the training scale exists to get to that goal without hurting the horse.

I think part of it is the division between Western and English. Why would you want to stop someone who wants to develop correct riding skills and build a better partnership with their horse?

I don't. I just object to the assumption that western riders do NOT, already, have correct riding skills and build partnerships with their horses. What is 'correct riding'? Dressage teaches heel - hip - shoulder - ear alignment, which truly IS right for dressage. If you want to give subtle cues to your horse with your heel, it needs to be in a location to do that. But like a lot of western riders thru history, I find my legs are more comfortably wrapped around my horse, my horse stays facing the front better and relaxes more, when I ride with my heels forward of my belt buckle.

If this guy hired a dressage instructor, the instructor would think, "I've got a source of income for YEAR ahead of me...":




I ride with my heels a bit further back, and my stirrups a bit shorter, but I have ridden in that position many times and it works fine. For western riding. So does this, which is actually my goal for riding. If this guy moved his shoulders forward, his weight would be carried on a forward seat and he'd be ready to haul butt:



I know my horse could do WD, but not any other western discipline or English Dressage.

I'm curious - why can your horse do nothing but WD?


Why would it be so bad for us to do that? Isn't a goal of riding to build a partnership with your horse? Wouldn't it be better to see riders want to do that through correct riding and subtle communication and for horses to work correctly and balanced in tune with their riders cues?

There is nothing wrong. However, both the name of WD and its stated goals claim western riders need to learn how to do that, and I find that offensive. Mia and I are partners. We have learned how to ride together. Since neither of us knew what we were doing at the beginning, it has been a give & take - I learn something and teach her, she learns something and teaches me. Most western riders learn on a broke horse, which would have been nice. However, the style or riding used in traditional western riding is not abusive, wrong, bad for the horse, domineering or unbalanced.


That type of riding is useful everywhere, even on the trail.
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My comments in bold. I guess my heartburn with WD is that it assumes western riders suck and that we need to imitate dressage to learn how to ride right. This isn't 'right' yet, because Mia & I are both in the learning stage. But it isn't 'wrong' either. I don't need to bring my heels back, and she doesn't need to tuck her head. I do need to learn riding with one hand, although it feels weird to me - but you can tell Mia isn't stressing over it, either. And I really need to relax my back:


 
#74 ·






Dressage, as has been mentioned, isn't about riding around in a ring. That is just a test - not the thing. If you took math test, you would never then say that math is not practical.

Western riding is a many faceted thing. The oldest tradition, from which our modern saddle and cattle working practices come, did and still does use sustained collection. That doesn't mean the horse isn't allowed to stretch out and use it's head and neck or that every vaquero rider will show a horse that looks like it could do 2nd level, but the carriage that was standard for working western horses in the California tradition up until the late 1960s was that of a 2nd level dressage horse. It doesn't matter that the training is done in the open, using natural features to build and encourage collection and bend.
 
#75 ·
I'm finding it interesting that reining is getting bashed, considering it is the one of the primary sports that emphasizes one handed draped rein curb use. SEAmom any horse can be blown up and crippled by poor horsemanship.

The problem as I see it with WD, and so far I've seen quite a bit of it is that the two handed plow reining on the curb is to me like what you'd see when people are schooling EXCEPT good riders offer release, pick up and put down, not a consistent taut rein and horses ducking behind the vertical like you see at these shows.

When I'm schooling my reining horse it moments of picking him up for a few strides and then releasing, those shanks are never consistently parallel to the ground, ever.

Anyone who thinks its ok to ride in curb like that consistently and push the horse BEHIND the bit is fooling themselves. They're using the strength of the bit to achieve a false sense of ability and achievement. Sad really.
 
#77 ·
I'm sorry you feel that reining is getting bashed. I'm certainly not bashing any discipline here. Again, I agree that harsh curb bit use is bad any time, every time. I completely agree with what you're saying, so I'm not really sure what point you're trying to make towards WD. Let's move beyond the curb issue, though. What other reason do you have to dislike WD, if you dislike it.
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#76 ·
Just that it isn't related to western riding. Traditional western riding is not oriented to riding in an arena, with a significant degree of sustained collection.
Thank you for your response, bsms. That's the best answer I've heard to date. One that actually makes sense.

I had this great response all typed up on my phone already, but my husband called and it all went away. So frustrating!

My answer is this:
I think it's a shame that so few people can see the similarities between Western and dressage. Dressage was never established for arenas either. It was to keep war horses conditioned and battle ready. It was only brought into an arena for riders to showcase the abilities of their mounts. Same thing happened with reining, cutting, trail, WP, etc. Those are all arena work now with a basis outside of the arena.

There are many similarities between the two. All that hind end propulsion, self-Carriage, lightness in the front end, etc. is the same that Dressage riders strive toward. Sure, you won't see a cutting horse doing a levade. Think about it - leg yields, piaffes, voltes just to name a few. All dressage terms, but you see them in western disciplines in different variations.

I think part of it is the division between Western and English. Why would you want to stop someone who wants to develop correct riding skills and build a better partnership with their horse? I know my horse could do WD, but not any other western discipline or English Dressage. Why would it be so bad for us to do that? Isn't a goal of riding to build a partnership with your horse? Wouldn't it be better to see riders want to do that through correct riding and subtle communication and for horses to work correctly and balanced in tune with their riders cues? That type of riding is useful everywhere, even on the trail.
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#79 ·
Muppetgirl, what makes you so sure heavy contact on a curb is being overlooked? Are you in on the discussions among the rule makers? Have you attended a Train the Trainers Clinic or any clinic by Lynn Palm, Barbara Long, Les Buckley, Jec Ballou or any of the other members of the Advisory Committee? Have you talked to the judges and asked them how it affects the scores? Just because you see it doesn't mean it's considered correct or is what is meant. While the rules allow two hands, the guidelines for judges stress lightness of contact.
 
#80 ·
I could ask the same of you. Lets look at it this way, rookie reining and green Reiner classes allow two hands on a preferrably DRAPED rein, it doesn't always happen, but it's the goal. Why am I not seeing draped reins in these classes? And when I do see a draped rein I see a horse in a false frame ducking BTV?
Curbs are for neck reining and to be used accordingly, not plow reined on, I think we all agree to that. It's simple and from my knowledge and understanding from talking to plenty of others the way the curb is used in many examples of WD is not correct.
 
#81 · (Edited)
Oh, blast it all. I had responded to your comment, MuppetGirl, but my phone must have messed up in the process of posting.

Did you see where i posted that a rule change will be happening soon to disallow curbs in lower levels? It would appear that your concern is already being addressed. Once that is in effect, will you then be fine with WD as a discipline? You have to remember, not everyone rides/shows in a curb and not all of those using a curb are using it incorrectly. You're really only referring to a small percentage of riders. With WD being so new, these heavy-handed riders likely had this bad habit from the getgo that was established in some other discipline of riding and it carried over to WD. Using similar logic, there should be no showing in any Western discipline where curbs are used simply because there are people everywhere who use them incorrectly. Why cut off your nose to spite your face, though?

Again, moving beyond the parallel curbs (which can and do occur everywhere curbs are used), what do you dislike? Or is it like bsms stated and the thought of an "English" discipline in the "western" world just chaps your hiney?

I genuinely want to get to the root of all this disgust and disapproval - beyond curb bits, of course.
 
#83 ·
I have no disgust or disapproval BEYOND the improper use of the curb. I posted a while back a WD demo video held at a show introducing WD - the curb was parallel the whole time and I was not impressed by the way it was put forward to the crowd. I'm glad they've made a change to the rules and it will certainly sort the goats from the sheep, achieving what they're doing now in curbs with a snaffle will offer the challenge that's required IMO. No more short cuts.
 
#84 ·
It's easy to read anything and become offended. "I enjoy seeing rainbows!" ....... "Rainbows mean rain! There could be a flood somewhere. You're glad people just lost their homes?!" I don't honestly think WDAA is implying that all other western riding is inferior. Though, if you're genuinely owned by that statement, do something about it. Contact the board, email the webmaster. Bring it to their attention so they know.

Dressage as it was established "back in the day" wasn't meant to mimic actual war maneuvers. It was to keep the horses challenged, mentally and physically, and in battle-ready condition. Sure, the horses were paraded around before and after battles, but that was not for the horses. It was for the soldiers to be seen and the "commoners" to see them. Did they do tricks with the horses? Probably. Why not? It boosts the moral of the people and shows the superiority and capability of the riders. How much faith would you have had in a mounted army who couldn't control their mounts? Compare that to the confidence you would have if an army who could make their horses jump in the air on command.

My point with the movement names was that they do exist in a similar form in western disciplines. Leg yielding isn't inherently Dressage-only. It's used in Dressage the same as it's used in reining patterns. It's still a leg yield and accomplishes the same task. A two-point in jumping is the same as a two-point in racing and accomplishes the same task - getting the rider of the horse's back. The racer isn't jumping, though, nor is the jumper racing. A volte in Dressage is the same method used on many barrel racers to help them balance themselves in those tight turns. Not knowing how to train for reining, I can only speculate that reiners start with circles that get smaller and smaller (volte). A pirouette in Dressage is the same basic maneuver as the spin in reining or even the turn in showmanship (whatever that's called) just with a slightly different application and slight variation. The hind end power in cutting horses is amazing to keep a horse light enough in front to follow a cow. Compare that to the power in the hind end required for a levade (granted I don't think is really seen outside of the Spanish riding school).

You have to look beyond the obvious differences in appearance at the deeper meaning of the moves. It's almost like you're looking at granny smooth apples and red delicious apples and saying they aren't both apples because one is green and the other is red. The seat in all disciplines best promotes that discipline. I agree completely with this statement. That doesn't mean you aren't accomplishing essentially the exact same goal.
 
#87 ·
It's easy to read anything and become offended. "I enjoy seeing rainbows!" ....... "Rainbows mean rain! There could be a flood somewhere. You're glad people just lost their homes?!" I don't honestly think WDAA is implying that all other western riding is inferior...
Suppose WD said something like
"Dressage riders! We're here to help you. Ditch your dressage saddle, buy some western tack, and learn from us how to ride with lightness! In WESTERN dressage, we will teach you to ride your horse with balance and lightness and rhythm. It's about making the horse more comfortable to ride and about teaching the rider to ride better. It's about teaching your horse to respond in a quick but relaxed manner to whatever you ask of him. It's about teaching him to stop without squeezing his face into his chest, and moving naturally instead of riding with your back braced against the horse's pull. We'll teach you correct riding, and subtle communication and for your horses to work correctly and balanced, in tune with their riders cues.

Come learn WESTERN Dressage, and learn to move and ride as one with your horse!"
Do you think the average dressage rider would find that offensive? I do. I would, if I had studied dressage and tried to ride dressage well.

The things the WD fans have written on this thread in the last few days are offensive. The underlying assumption is that western riders need to use dressage, because dressage is superior and western riders are inferior and by learning dressage, even if it is on the cheap, western riders will learn how to ride properly. Properly meaning "like a dressage rider". Because western riders don't ride with balance and lightness and rhythm. :evil:
 
#85 ·
Oh, I forgot to clarify one thing. I didn't say he couldn't do anything other than WD. I said other western disciplines and English Dressage. He doesn't have the motion desired for English Dressage, the cow instinct for any working cow events, the conformation for things like reining, the motion desired for WP, etc. He can do trail probably one he can focus longer than a couple of minutes at a time. He could probably do some contesting if he can keep his legs under himself (clumsy horse). He has no hope of doing any of the above listed events with any kind of solid skill. Now, Arabian hunt seat he can do in ammy classes. Maybe even show hack. I'm just pointing out that it gives us something in western that we could both do. I have no interest in contesting, personally. He could probably jump, too, but I have no interest in intentionally leaping off the ground on my horse.
 
#86 ·
I do have the credentials. I talk with the members of the Rules and Tests committees regularly and these are topics that come up repeatedly. I also work with judges. If it were solely up to me the rule allowing curb bits in the lower levels would never have been there, but the people who wrote the original rules and the people who will modify them over time are not the same. I think change will come, but in the meantime education of both competitors and judges is key. What I've seen of top reiners using two hands is not draped reins in the sense I see it in Western Horsemanship. What I'd like to see under the rulse we have now is the rein soft, not draped the way they are in Western Horsemanship. There are examples of this two handed in this clip Cutting, Sorting, Ranch Horse For Sale - YouTube
 
#88 ·
Suppose WD said something like
"Dressage riders! We're here to help you. Ditch your dressage saddle, buy some western tack, and learn from us how to ride with lightness! In WESTERN dressage, we will teach you to ride your horse with balance and lightness and rhythm. It's about making the horse more comfortable to ride and about teaching the rider to ride better. It's about teaching your horse to respond in a quick but relaxed manner to whatever you ask of him. It's about teaching him to stop without squeezing his face into his chest, and moving naturally instead of riding with your back braced against the horse's pull. We'll teach you correct riding, and subtle communication and for your horses to work correctly and balanced, in tune with their riders cues.

Come learn WESTERN Dressage, and learn to move and ride as one with your horse!"


You probably won't believe me but YES! YES! YES! This is what I imagined that Western Dressage was offering me and THAT is exactly why it appealed to me immediately! I am an English Dressage rider who was immediately converted over to the idea of Western Dressage because I so much appreciate my Western riding roots and was hopeful that WD would be a move away from Modern Competitive Dressage and toward a more classical focus on lightness and balance. After all, those Western reining riders sure know their balance, rhythm, timing, etc!
 
#89 ·
bsms, I'm sorry if I've offended you in anything I've said. I rode Western in my youth, then English equitation, then Jumping, then took a 20 year break to have my family, then began riding again. I could have gone back to Western riding or Jumping, but didn't only because I felt I was too old to do reining and didn't want to just walk, trot, canter around a ring all day in Western Pleasure. Neither did I want to start jumping again and risk falling off at my age. So I decided to aim at English Dressage, but because I couldn't find an instructor (because I didn't own a trained dressage horse), I ended up in English equitation again (which I found just as dull to me as Western Pleasure). I finally found a good Dressage instructor and have been riding contentedly ever since, but when I heard about WD I was thrilled. Finally I could go back to Western without being stuck with Western Pleasure (and I apologize to everyone who loves Western Pleasure) or with risking my life in Reining. Meanwhile my wonderful Dressage instructor is thinking the same thing and is seriously considering switching to Western Dressage. :)
 
#90 ·
Just saw this today posted by someone I know who also competes in English Dressage as well. She really enjoys the WD classes she's done this year. She, too, was skeptical as a successful traditional Dressage competitor for many years.
WDAA Selected as USEF Recognized Affiliate for Western Dressage
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#91 ·
.

I have a friend who bought one of these saddles, she was laughed at by half the people at the WD event she went to.



She ended up selling it and bought a good close contact Western Saddle, she is doing well in WD and says more and more people are showing up and entering that class.


.
 
#92 ·
I've competed in dressage from pony club level - I could never afford to have a horse that could go to the top and in the job I had they were aimed at being sold for someone else to do that
I find nothing offensive at all about Western Dressage or Cowboy dressage (which has split away to do its own thing)
The movement grew out of freestyle reining so there is a connection there and its being picked up by people who are fans of the Vaquero style of riding as they also see it as a showplace for their horses
I have a couple of horses here that could never be great at European dressage even though they know their stuff because they don't have the qualities of the warmblood that give them the edge but they have a chance to do well at WD and Cowboy dressage
If people want to do this - and its pretty evident that they do - then whats the harm?
If people hate it and find it offensive then they can just pretend it doesn't exist - no ones going to force them into it.
I think it would be a great thing for Arabians - they already have conventional dressage and western classes so why not a form of dressage for those who want to ride in western gear?
I think it can only do good for the breed - another step to getting them back to being a useful riding horse because its going to demand more than 'riding the rail' and who has the best outfit.
 
#93 · (Edited)
I would be interested in western dressage. My mare HATES English tack, but an english saddle on her and get ready for the races, and possible cross country event -_-'. But in a western saddle she is wonderful. also found this vid and thought people would find it interesting



And this is a vid i have been looking for.
 
#95 ·
Thanks for posting KigerQueen
The direction the second video shows WD to be going in is why Eitan and Jack Brainard split away from Western Dressage to focus on Cowboy Dressage
It was always their vision that it would be about Western Riding with a leaning towards the Vaquero style and with traditional American horses like the Quarter horse and the Morgan.
If WD at higher levels goes like this then the warmbloods are going to have the advantage just as they do in European dressage
If that's what western riders want however then I have no problem with it.
 
#96 ·
I think it's worth noting that none of the WD organizations pull the video of Pam Grace out as an example of what WD is about. Many of the early videos, and this was one of the first, are never shown at symposiums and educational events aimed at judges and trainers. If european dressage videos are used at all, they are of a different presentation of dressage. There are now have some quite nice videos of stock horses and other breeds showing the carriage and light contact sought.
 
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