Sunday, Feb. 16, 2025

Include Reading In Your Riding Education

In any realm of study, be it science or music or horsemanship, the logical first step in the pursuit of knowledge is to become acquainted with what others have already learned. Time is saved and knowledge is advanced when each generation makes use of what was learned previously and adds to it rather than starting over.
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In any realm of study, be it science or music or horsemanship, the logical first step in the pursuit of knowledge is to become acquainted with what others have already learned. Time is saved and knowledge is advanced when each generation makes use of what was learned previously and adds to it rather than starting over.

Surprisingly, while we accept this logical progression of knowledge in many academic fields, we’re less inclined to do so with regard to riding. Not only do a good number of riding instructors themselves admit they’ve not delved into the great works on riding, but even those who have say many of their students have not.

“The fact is, people hardly read at all,” said Cindy Sydnor, of Snow Camp, N.C. As one of the U.S. Dressage Federation’s certified examiners for its instructor certification programs, Sydnor tests the theoretical knowledge of those seeking certification.

While some great books of riding theory are no longer in print, most are, which provides riders with easy access to the works of masters from Xenophon (if you don’t know him, you’re in trouble already) forward to the present. Even for those whose only language is English, translations abound. Although, one serious equitation scholar would argue that the desire to read the works of past masters ought to be incentive enough to learn another language.

“If an important work isn’t translated, then get help from a friend who knows the language or go learn the language,” said Bettina Drummond, a classical rider and trainer based in Washington, Conn., who was a long-time student of Nuno Oliviera, one of the past century’s great masters.

Lack of time may be a key reason why riders don’t read, but it’s surely not the only one. Those who are well-read believe another reason many people fail to read is because they simply don’t understand the importance of knowing equitation theory when it comes to the riding and training of horses.

To be clear, the issue here is reading books on riding theory, not modern-day magazine articles. Sydnor is quick to differentiate, and she even believes these magazine articles are partly to blame for the lack of incentive people have to read books.

“There are so many of these how-to articles being published, and people think these are all they need to read. The problem is, many of these articles are not based on the classical principles,” Sydnor said. “They’re articles by a particular trainer on a particular technique for a particular movement.”

For example, Sydnor said when today’s riders or trainers want to learn about a flying change, they read quick, how-to articles on the flying change. “In our high-tech era you could Google the flying change and come up with all kinds of articles,” she said.

But the problem with this approach is that riders are missing the entire theory behind the flying change, which includes all of the preparation and training that ought to be in place before even considering teaching a horse a flying change or riding the movement.

“It’s like jumping into the middle of a movement before having a command of the basics,” Sydnor said.


Ribbons vs. Reading
Theresa Doherty, a classical trainer based in Southern Pines, N.C., and a long-time student of Walter Zettl, blames the show world, in part, for the lack of reading. The focus on winning ribbons is why riders and trainers concentrate simply on doing the movements for the test, which leads them to read the how-to articles mentioned by Sydnor rather than the theoretical books of the masters.

“People will come to me and say something like, ‘I have a problem with half-pass.’ But I look at the horse and it can’t even trot a 20-meter circle in rhythm,” Doherty said. “I think the best thing we could do for dressage in the U.S. is give out ribbons for longevity.”

The first step in promoting more reading is convincing riders, trainers and instructors that they must. Since the United States has no mandatory licensing program for instructors and trainers, persuasion is the only way to inspire people to read.

Having said this, it’s important to note that the U.S. Dressage Federation does have instructor certification programs and so too do a few other equestrian organizations. However, these aren’t required programs to be a professional. And not all programs force participants to read. The USDF programs do have a required reading list that includes most of the great works on equitation and horsemanship. “And you must do the reading or you will fail the certification,” Sydnor said.

Corinna Scheller Fleming, an instructor and trainer based in Falls Village, Conn., has taken the USDF instructor certification and “L” judges programs and can attest to Sydnor’s claim.

“The workshops in those programs definitely do test your knowledge of theory and you can’t really fake it,” she said. “You have to be familiar with the many books on theory, and you have to understand them. Just reading the books alone doesn’t cut it.”

Fleming received her early equestrian education in Germany, a nation that requires a strong theoretical base of knowledge from its riders. She considers herself well-versed in equitation theory, but she said the USDF workshops really did show her and other riders, trainers and instructors who attended the value of reading books on theory.

“In the workshops, you couldn’t get away with just doing something and having it work. You constantly had to explain why you did what you did. Why did it work? What’s the theory behind it?” Fleming said.

Although amateur riders can perhaps be more forgiven if they haven’t cracked open many equitation books, professionals should most definitely be reading, said both Sydnor and Fleming. “They should not just read these important books, they should own them and use them constantly, like reference books,” Sydnor added.


Gaps In Training
Drummond, who started her training with Oliviera at the age of 7 and was immersed in theory from childhood, doesn’t believe that anyone, whether professional or amateur, can truly advance in dressage without being grounded in equitation theory and this means doing a lot of reading.

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“In any other field of study, if you went to the experts in that field and hadn’t read the works of those who are experts, they wouldn’t take you seriously and would simply pat you on the head and tell you to go out and play with jacks,” Drummond said. “If you want to be a good rider and want to train with people who are experts and very academic in their training, then you need to be well-read in the field.”

She said that most problems she’s found with riders and horses result from gaps in training that results from gaps in knowledge. “You can’t train in stop-gaps. You need to understand the whole process of training,” Drummond said. “Otherwise, it’s like saying, ‘Gee, I don’t know anything about pirouettes, but I think I’ll get on a horse and give it a whirl.’ But what you really need is an understanding of balance and especially of balance through the changes as discussed by le Gueriniere.”

Although better known as a classical trainer and instructor rather than competitive rider, Drummond often works with competitive riders who get “stuck” trying to move from one level of competition to the next, and, inevitably, she said, the problem rests with the rider’s lack of knowledge.

Modern dressage tests are centered on balance–the very same topic on which so many of the great riding masters of the past focused. Yet Drummond said riders aren’t reading the books that would help them understand the ins and outs of balance so that they can remove the barrier that’s keeping them from advancing up the levels.

Another common problem is incorrect use of aids. Again, a topic on which the great masters wrote volumes. Drummond likened a lack of understanding of the aids to “getting into a car with no knowledge of it and thinking you can drive it.”

While these may be good arguments for why riders, trainers and instructors need to read, Doherty said riders wouldn’t read more until they’re convinced that the works of the masters are relevant. And that, she said, won’t happen without changes in the dressage show world.

For those changes to occur, Doherty said judges also need to focus on reading to develop a more educated eye. Her position comes from her experience working with competition horses that are scoring well in the show ring despite the fact that they lack rhythm, which is the foundation of the training pyramid.

“Riders school for the judge, and many lack an educated eye in that they don’t see the lack of rhythm,” Doherty said. “So, you look at Steinbrecht’s book, which is all about rhythm in and out of transitions, but if you can’t even see this at a horse show, how will riders see the book as relevant?”


Where To Start
This list is by no means complete, but it gives some information on the better-known works worth reading. For the best overview of the history of dressage and the place of the world’s great riders and trainers in that history, most recommend Sylvia Loch’s Dressage: The Art of Classical Riding, which includes a great bibliography that’s much more complete than this list. The U.S. Dressage Federation also publishes its required and recommended reading lists for its instructor certification programs.

Harry Boldt: The Dressage Horse Basic Training Of The Young Horse

Francois Baucher: The Principles Of Horsemanship

Anthony Crossly: Training The Young Horse

William Cavendish, Duke of Newcastle: A General System of Horsemanship In All Its Branches

General DeCarpentry: Academic Education Piaffer And Passage

Henry DeBussigny: Equitation

James Fillis: Breaking And Riding

Jean Froissard: Basic Dressage Equitation, Learning And Teaching Classical Horsemanship For Our Time

Chuck Grant: Training In Haute Ecole

Francois le Gueriniere: School Of Horsemanship

Eric Herbermann: Dressage Formula

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Ludwig Hünersdorf: Anleitung

Reiner and Ingrid Klimke: Cavalletti Basic Training Of The Young Horse

Bengt Ljungquist: Practical Dressage Manual

Major Anders Lundgren: Teaching Exercises

Nuno Oliveira: Horses And Their Riders Classical Principles Of The Art Of Training Horses

Antoine de Pluvinel: Le Manerge Royal

Alois Podhajsky: Complete Training Of The Horse And Rider My Horses, My Teachers The Art Of Dressage

Waldemar Seunig: Horsemanship Meister der Reitkunst Am Pulsslag derReitkunst

Gustav Steinbrecht: The Gymnasium Of The Horse

Henry Wynmalen: Dressage: The Finer Points Of Riding The Horse In Action Equitation

Walter Zettl: Dressage In Harmony

Xenophon: The Art Of Horsemanship


The Choice Is Yours
Which books are most important to read is a matter of debate. Some trainers have a great dislike for Baucher. Others say he was brilliant, but misunderstood, and have used his methods with much success. Some people like James Fillis; others detest him. Drummond believes that serious students of equitation should be familiar with all.

“You should understand the different techniques and methods so that you can consciously decide for yourself which methods to follow,” she said.

Nuno Oliviera, Drummond’s teacher, is widely considered to be grounded in the French classical system, and yet he was intimately familiar with the works of the German masters as well.

Cindy Sydnor leans toward such masters as Alois Podhajsky and Waldemar Seunig as places to start, but she also likes Walter Zettl and said the German National Equestrian Federation’s manuals are some of the best overall books.

Theresa Doherty, on the other hand, doesn’t push students to pick up the great books of the past because she’s found that many are a bit too academic for amateur riders. She said this is one reason why even those who open such books fail to finish them. Her approach is to suggest books on horse anatomy.

“For the average lay person, a good anatomy book is the best place to start so they can understand how a horse’s body functions and how it can be hurt. Most people don’t realize how the spine actually works or where the muscles insert or how the joints move,” Doherty said. “If they learn this, then they begin to understand how certain techniques can be damaging to the horse. An understanding of anatomy gets them to bring an intellectual approach to their riding.”

Despite the lack of agreement regarding which books are best, there’s agreement that those who are serious about riding and training need to read. If dressage, whether as sport or art, is to survive into the future, then today’s riders must strengthen the connection to the past through reading so that this generation can be the bridge to the future.

“Any craft dies out if the people who are academics don’t interact with the next generation. These books are that connection. Reading gives you a feeling of kinship, it facilitates discussion and it makes you feel closer to people of the past,” Drummond said.


Lynndee Kemmet

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