Not-So-Speedy Dressage
From Endurance to Dressage
Not the whole month of course. That would be stupid. And painful. And I am lazy. I did go without stirrups on Saturday though. I even took them off my saddle completely so that I wouldn't be tempted. Except that's kind of a lie as I didn't remove my leathers for my own benefit. Laurel, the neighbor, has been riding Willie a lot lately, but she's been doing it in a jumping saddle. And they're not jumping. They're doing some trotting, but the truth is, she and the ranch owner are doing just as much walking and talking and laughing as anything else. Laurel has been complaining about her knees and ankles though, and after even a short ride, she's tired and sore. It's a long story, but Deborah, the ranch owner actually has a dressage saddle and suggested Laurel give it a try instead of her trusty hunter saddle. This is where I come in.
Neither of them has much experience with a dressage saddle, so Laurel asked if I would help her get Willie tacked up. After much digging through the tack room, we found some old dressage pads, a couple of girths, and some leathers. After switching things around a bit, we got one of Izzy's girths to fit (Willie actually needs a smaller one), two of the pads served the purpose of one good one, and the leathers were hung. When Laurel got on though, we found that the leathers were way too long for her, and no one wanted to spend time punching new holes. Speedy's a well broke pony these days, so I just slid my leathers off and put them on her saddle. From there, Laurel rode around adjusting the stirrups up and down until she found a length that worked for her. Undeterred, I hopped up on Speedy without any stirrups and proceeded to work through the elements of Second Level Test 1. Not bragging, but I am so pleased with the development of my sitting trot! I still can't sit a big trot lengthening, but I can now actually sit the trot! We even cantered and did walk to canter to walk transitions. Now that I know I can, I am going to ditch my stirrups a few times over the next few weeks. Not that I want Speedy to fail at Second Level, but I don't want to be the sole reason we fail either. If he's willing to work hard to do his part, I can't offer him any less. No stirrups it is!
jenj
9/13/2017 06:31:48 am
No stirrups has been super helpful for finding my balance and getting my butt in the saddle. I hope it helps you too! Pro tip: Put a grab strap on the front of your saddle. I use mine an embarrassing amount of the time.
Mia
9/13/2017 08:02:51 am
Grab strap on mine too. :)
I had a hard time on the pony staying centered left/right (she's so insanely narrow). I found no-stirrups really helped teach me how to use my weight more effectively without throwing the pony off balance. Not sure it helped me sit the trot better. I still struggle immensely with that. 9/13/2017 12:28:06 pm
Taking off my stirrups shows me where I am unbalanced, but it also shows me where I am improving! :0) Comments are closed.
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About the Writer and RiderI am a lifelong rider.
I began endurance riding in 1996 where I ultimately completed five, one-day 100 mile races, the 200-mile Death Valley Encounter, and numerous other 50, 65, and 75 mile races. I began showing dressage in 2010. Welcome to my dressage journey. About Speedy GSpeedy went from endurance horse to dressage horse. After helping me earn a USDF Bronze medal in the summer of 2020, he is now semi-retired. Speedy is a 2004, 15'1 hand, purebred Arabian gelding. His Arabian Horse Registry name is G Ima Starr FA.
About IzzyIzzy was started as a four-year old and then spent the next 18 months in pasture growing up. I bought him as a six-year old, and together, we are showing at the lower levels. He is a 2008, 16'3 hand warmblood gelding. His Rheinland Pfalz-saar International (RPSI) name is Imperioso.
National Rider AwardsState Rider Awards
State Horse Awards
Working Towards:
CDS Sapphire Rider Award Third Level: 63.514% Third Level: 62.105% Fourth Level: Fourth Level: 2023 Show Season
Show Rating (***) CDS/USDF/USEF (*) CDS (s) Schooling (c) Clinic (r) Ride-a-Test Clinic 2023 Show Schedule
TBD 2023 Completed … Pending 2023 Qualifying Scores
Regional Adult Amateur Competition (RAAC) Qualifying Training Level 3 Scores/2 Judges/60%: Score 1: Score 2: Score 3: Archives
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