Improving the Dressage Seat

January 5, 2010

QUESTION: I am 40 and have been riding for five years. I recently acquired a classically trained dressage partner, and my problem is trying to get my seat straight and my legs stretched long and relaxed, so I can follow the horse’s motion and sit the trot. Can you help?
ANSWER: Like any other sport, [...]

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Improve Your Dressage Seat

January 2, 2010

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Figure 1
© Mandy Lorraine

Figure-Eight Exercise
1. In this simple exercise, as the horse turns from one direction to another–around two benches beside my ring, or around cones or trees or whatever you have–you can feel his hips move under your seat and become aware of how your balance changes slightly to keep [...]

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Finding Your Dressage Leg

December 30, 2009

New dressage riders who arbitrarily lengthen their leathers end up riding “heels up/toes down” or with their legs thrown forward, bracing against their stirrups. Those who have tried to stretch by riding without stirrups often pinch with their knees, making the lower leg unstable.
The basic tenet that these riders overlook is the intrinsic [...]

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Ask the Experts: Dressage Stirrup Length

December 24, 2009

Question: At what point is a rider ready to lower his or her stirrups? A friend told me recently that I should be riding two or three holes lower so I could have “more leg.” All I get when I do that is a wobbly leg. How can I prepare myself for longer stirrups, and [...]

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Buying a Used English Saddle

December 18, 2009

Aside from the price of a used saddle, there are other areas with which you need to be concerned. Look at the billets on the saddle. Billets are always one of the first things to go. Are they cracked or have they de-laminated (pulled apart)? The billets are what hold the saddle to your horse [...]

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