I am definitely a dressage person. Although I've just started riding probably around 5 months ago, I far prefer english to western.

I'm a western person, and as was mentioned, it's all the same thing. Dressage is just training the horse and rider. I was watching the first part of the Olympics dressage, and pretty much patting myself on the back. There wasn't a thing that they did that my mare and I couldn't do (bareback or western, hackamore, curb bit or snaffle). Everyone used to comment about how they couldn't see the cues.

She reined like a QH (although she was mostly TB) and could spin and slide with the best of them. It was all about getting the most bang for your buck. Minimal cues with dramatic results.

So why was I patting myself on the back? I was 13 years old when I got her (green) and trained her to do all of this myself. Personally I think this should be the goal of any horseman (horsewoman). Horsemanship, that's what it really is!

Cheryl,
We've had this conversation before. But once again THATS RIGHT !!
Back when, we actually took pride in our horses and what we could accomplish with them, correctly, no matter how long that took. If 24/7 was a possibility than 24/7 it was. The more you go watch the "good" riders the more it leaves you wondering.
We need to take a few steps back, teach proper everything-management,training,riding,coaching,diagnosis,feed ing,shoeing. If more people would put the time and energy into getting it right the first time, and not hurry up to get it done. Could you even imagine.
Maybe then the horses wouldn't being trying to Buck your A** Off during an Olympic moment.
Anyway, missed you and your straight forward thinking.

I recently read in another forum where someone had posted about riding in a halter and how sloppy, imprecise, and "un-delicate" it is to ride in a halter.

As I read this thread I think to myself 'if that is the extent of your horsemanship and knowledge...' lol- Which many of us here is appears, have a few more cells in their brains. I have seen some pretty dern' (what can I say) wonderful, precise, supple, beautiful, fluid movements in riding with a halter or no head equipment at all. A few of these riders/trainers were dressage riders teaching their horses Olympic level movements.

I have seen horsemen/women who ride with halters, with more obedient, willing, and more well-trained horses than me myself when I ride in a bridle lol... (hehe, great place to put myself as most of the horses I ride are young and green)

Yeah, see that's what I mean. I could ride my mare with a shoelace around her neck and 99.9% of the time she was perfect. I do remember one time in pasture when they were feeding and she wanted me off and stopping her as she ran under low hanging branches was not gonna happen - but that was the rare exception not the rule. If I hadn't been dodging branches, I could have stopped her, even in a halter, but she was in "Brat Mode" LOL.

We trained our horses using, what is now termed, the Vacero method (sorry that doesn't look like it's spelled right). Starting with a bosal and working up to a Spade bit. But our hands were light and we could go back to a bosal or even a halter, in a heart beat even with the spade bit horses. Again, horsemanship.

LTC4H... Thanks! I've been reading, but I've been trying to network and create a new blog to drum up some business and I haven't been posting as much. I'll be around more, don't worry!

Yeah, about that... As I said, I was never into Dressage, but what is it with "Olympic Class" riders bouncing around like a sack of potatoes? Is it just me? That's what I looked like when I started riding ...well if you add the arms flapping like I was going to take off! Girls used to ride behind me mocking me and laughing. You can be sure I learned to sit the bounciest trot after that! I mean really, it was a matter of pride!

I've been getting the daily emails from Andy Curry and if his emails are anything to go on the concensus now days is that horses are spooky, scarey dangerous animals. In the most recent video tape he shows a trainer having a rider go over white poles on the ground and getting them to NOT spook. HELLO? Isn't that basic ground work stuff. Things you should do before you ever get on the horse? From the time our babies hit the ground they were exposed to all sorts of things. Seldom did they spook or shy from something as silly as white poles on the ground.

Here is a picture from Painted Quarter Ranch. Someone I met recently who, as it turns out, shared much of the same stompin' grounds with me. I've mentioned that I've worked cattle, and her dad was one of the owners of the herd AND I won my first blue ribbon at her house. (Small world!) This is an example of the things we would expose foals to at an early age. http://www.paintedquarterranch.com/F...2/IMG_1009.JPG

Not to say they wouldn't spook if an animal came running out of the brush towards them, or some plastic came blowing by. Those things can startle me too. But if the horse has been worked right and not rushed it should not be a big problem.

Now I am talking about the average horse here. Not one that has been abused or one that is hyper-sensitive... that takes work, and I am not trying to negate that issue. I'm talking about every day, normal horses. It just seems that trainers in an attempt to drum up business are playing to fears that really should be a non-issue.

Ummm ...looking at how long this post is, can you tell this has been festering for awhile?? <sheepish grin> okay... stepping off my soapbox and putting it away for awhile!

Awww, love the baby! So cute

Yes, Thats it.
Was giving a lesson awhile back. The girl that owned the horse was riding it and making all kinds of excuses why she "couldn't" . Got feed up and my sister was along-we play together ALOT. I asked her to get on him, I was teaching someone else a jumping lesson, so everytime he came past I would swing a rail or kick a ground pole @ him, until he didn't look @ me and went about his business.
Asked why would you do that. I said Why Not. I surely don't want to go in the show ring and get flung in the dirt because of something as simple as a 5 minute lesson we accomplished @ home.
Yes its that kind of stuff, bikes,motors,umbrellas,kids,toys,dogs,chickens,tar ps.
Tarps- made a sale once because horse walked across plastic sawdust cover, they never even rode were amazed by that.
But my favorite is to 2x4 corral a kids bouncy ball the ones with little legs that go in all directions and make noices, we have one in the ring @ least once a month.

I agree...when I was younger my trainer always told me that I needed to learn at least basic dressage & that it would help my jumping....it took almost 8yrs of convincing (along with high school, college & my 1st boyfriend to distract me) but now I own my first horse & guess who's loving dressage?! takes a bit to get some of the theory behind positioning...but it's helped immensely!

I suppose I'll always be a tiny bit bigger fan of wild-and-crazy cross country, but Dressage is definitely a wonderful discipline to learn. Gives a totally new angle to a horse and rider.