I took My Moms Dressage Horse to a Hunter Show

[Jealoushe]

and she was a star!

http://fillysbestfriend.blogspot.com

Does anyone else do any cross training with their dressage horses?

We have found this is really helping her mare. She was being a bit of a brat spooking and acting out in the warm up ring. The hunter shows have opened her eyes to lots of big scary things, horses coming up from all angles, and helping her build different muscles from the work over fences.

It was great riding such a well schooled horse in the hack classes. She was pretty much one of the only horses who could do the "collecteds" and "strongs", and her transitions were bang on, I think this gave us an edge!

Have you done a different discipline with your dressager this summer?

[meupatdoes]

All of my horses do both.

I have a 6yo hunter prospect who is schooling 3'6" at home and just took the most fledgling nibble at tempi changes in his last clinic.

I really think it benefits the horse as well as the quality of the work in both disciplines to do both.

So far he has showed schooling shows and last year won everything year-end for dressage and was 6th year-end in the local hunters.

2012 we start recognized, so we'll see!

[LShipley]

Great blog story!

I have turned my 12 year old hunter pony into a dressage horse! I don't think she ever had much formal training. She was having trouble with lead changes and was always behind my leg.

So after a year and a half of dressage lessons, she has built up a lot more muscle and I am a much more knowledgeable rider. Our lead changes are pretty solid and she gets in front of my leg.

I plan to continue flip-flopping between dressage and hunters - and showing locally for both. Sometimes the different styles confuse me, but my horse and I like variety.

[netg]

How fun! And good job!

She's a cutie - no wonder the judge liked her!


I trail ride as much as possible in addition to my dressage. I need to buy or build some jumps, even if I just do the pole across a bucket type of jumps at first! I definitely believe in cross-training, and miss my horse getting time over fences since we moved to our own property. I told my trainer I'd like for her to take him out cross country when she has a chance because I'm too chicken to jump cross country the first time since the 90s on a horse who has jumped upper level stuff...

[enjoytheride]

Your pairs video cracked me up.

[LarkspurCO]

Wow, that's a lot of ribbons.:cool: