The 2024 Adequan/USDF FEI-Level Trainers Conference was led this year by a team of German-born athletes sharing the essence of the training system promoted by the German Equestrian Federation.

Some 300 attendees watched as moderator Lilo Fore and clinicians Sabine Schut-Kery and Sven Rothenberger coached riders through a series of lessons designed to provide continuing education for upper-level trainers and riders alike during the clinic, held Jan. 15-16 at Mary Anne and Walter McPhail’s High Meadow Farm in Loxahatchee, Florida. 

The clinicians talked about how the best dressage trainers and riders apply “the basics” to develop their horses through the FEI levels of dressage and maintain them at that level. The basics they focused on were the fundamental elements and priorities of training, from rhythm to relaxation and suppleness, contact, impulsion, straightness and collection. Trainers who follow the German system rely upon these basic elements in the general education of green sport horses and then refine and apply them in subsequent specialized training.

Details, Details

Schut-Kery, who earned her Bereiter license in Germany before becoming an American citizen and riding on the silver-medal winning Tokyo Olympic team, focused intently on every detail from the moment a rider entered the arena. For example, on the first day of her lesson with Bonnie Canter, who rode her own Vitali, an 8-year-old Hanoverian gelding with whom she won the fourth level adult amateur championship at the 2023 U.S. Dressage Finals, Schut-Kery offered to trim the rider’s saddle pad. She wanted more direct contact between Canter’s calves and the sides of her horse. 

“It’s a small detail, but an important one,” she said.

She tweaked Canter’s position so she could more effectively keep her horse in front of her aids. “Rider position is about much more than equitation,” Schut-Kery said. “It affects how a rider applies their aids to communicate with their horse.”  

She coached Canter to bring her shoulder blades closer together and “ride with a longer leg,” while demonstrating how to bring her knees further back and press her heels down without making her leg stiff. Schut-Kery explained that this leg position is helpful when a rider applies pressure near the girth at the start of each stride in a forward-directing, sideways-directing or engaging aid. 

She had Canter work on using her leg in the correct position while riding every corner in steady rhythm, developing more jump in each canter stride, and increasing thoroughness in the canter to improve collection. 

“When you collect, he gets a little less forward-thinking. He cannot be hesitant to go forward,” said Schut-Kery. 

So she reminded Canter that after she applied her leg aids, she needed to maintain her balance, allow her seat to follow the “swinging” movement of her horse’s back, and ride with elasticity in her elbows to “keep the front door open.” The auditors saw improvements in the activity, engagement and freedom of movement of Vitali’s shoulders. He took longer, more powerful strides, and his topline became more supple as the muscles contracted and relaxed in his back behind the saddle.       

Next, Schut-Kery coached Canter as she practiced half-turns on the haunches at the walk to improve collection. When she wanted Vitali to be more attentive, she told Canter, “Think a little. Focus that he reacts better to the aids. Be disciplined. The minute that you feel that you have to use larger aids, think that he must react to small aids.” 

However, she noted, a horse may seem inattentive to the aids but react slowly because of stiffness. It’s important for a rider to have a good understanding of their horse and adjust their expectations accordingly.  

‘Let Him Participate’

The second day with Canter, Schut-Kery wanted to see a quicker rhythm and “not too slow, not-floaty gaits.” She asked Canter to canter Vitali in shallow loops along the long sides of the arena with bending to make Vitali’s ribcage more supple, which improved his flying changes.

At the trot, she observed, “His neck carriage is OK but upright … it looks less supple and short with respect to the rest of his body.” 

So she coached Canter to balance her leg and rein aids to slightly lower Vitali’s neck while keeping his poll the highest point and his face in front of the vertical so that “the base of the neck is a little softer and more connected with the rest of his body.” Vitali’s back became more supple, and Canter could use her leg aids to ride him more toward the bit.

Next, she had Canter work on “constructive stretching” at the trot to improve Vitali’s contact with the bit. She asked the rider to repeatedly, slightly and briefly release some tension in the reins without moving her hands forward to maintain contact and the poll as the highest point. Vitali responded by opening the angle of his throatlatch and stretching his neck into better contact with the bit. 

“Let him explore a bit while maintaining rhythm and keeping his hind legs under his body,” Schut-Kery said. “Put a limit on how much he can stretch in a working frame.” 

Vitali developed more swing in his back and a more “forward feeling” at the base of his neck.

Schut-Kery told Canter that when Vitali no longer has support from her hands, she can sit up taller and close her legs. Closing her legs should tell Vitali to engage and “move [his] hind legs more under [his] body.” 

“His response to your aids provides information that you can use to train him,” Schut-Kery said. “This stretching exercise is a tool you can use in your warm-up. Riding a horse more over his back can increase the volume of his strides, decrease his tension and engage him more. His energy flows more through his body.”

Schut-Kery talked about riding as a conversation in which both parties must participate to build a strong rapport, not just the rider dictating to the horse.

“Be a conductor in the rhythm, guiding and mentoring your horse based on their temperament,” she said. “Gain your horse’s confidence by letting him know that you won’t put him in a threatening situation where he will have to worry. Have a relationship with your horse, and then you can motivate him. If you want to produce a horse that is motivated and a thinking horse, let him participate a little. If the horse has good character traits, then the horse can participate in the relationship.” 

Relaxation First

German-born Dutch Olympian and dressage judge Sven Rothenberger began his session with Endel Ots and Lion King, an 8-year-old Belgian Warmblood he owns with Caroline Hoerdum, by addressing the gelding’s tension in an unfamiliar covered arena surrounded by auditors. 

While Ots rode at a walk, Rothenberger encouraged him to use each corner to bend Lion King, ride some shoulder-in, and then let him relax. 

“Give your horse enough time for relaxation,” he said. “Try a little leg-yield or shoulder-in at the walk. Don’t try to force a horse to relax.” 

Then he had Ots trot and canter on a 20-meter circle. “You need this basic work. I can see the horse is still tense because he does not finish each canter stride,” said Rothenberger. “He is ‘running,’ even in the free walk. Slow him down with your seat, not the reins. … Sit a little deeper.”    

After this patient work, Lion King relaxed, and his gaits and attentiveness improved. 

“Now this is a frame you should show him in,” Rothenberger said approvingly. Lion King’s throatlatch was more open, his rhythm was steadier, he was more engaged, and he had greater freedom of shoulder. There was better “back-to-front” contact from his hind quarters through his topline to the bit. 

Next, they did some work to develop more activity and jump in each stride at the canter. When they practiced half-pass at the canter, and Lion King lost some of his activity, Rothenberger coached Ots to change from half-pass to shoulder-in and to balance his leg and rein aids to allow Lion King to canter with more activity.  

On the second day, Lion King came into the arena and was much more relaxed and attentive from the start. When they began trotting, the clinician told Ots to carefully use his legs to ask his horse for a little more activity without more speed while riding on curved lines. 

Ots and Lion King practiced collected canter, voltes and half-pirouettes. 

“We have to help our horses so exercises are easier and more fluid,” Rothenberger said. “Horses feel it when they do something good—the rider gives them a good feeling.” 

Lion King seemed to agree, as he stretched his topline in free walk on long reins and looked pleased with himself.  

Basics And Exercises

Rothenberger also coached professional Jessica Jo “J.J.” Tate on her own Romeo, a 12-year-old Oldenberg gelding.

The first day, they worked on flying changes. To prepare, Rothenberger asked Tate to add more jump to each canter stride by developing more control with the outside rein as she warmed up. Rothenberger explained the importance of warming up a horse until he canters with thoroughness, a supple back and in front of the rider’s aids before asking for flying changes. 

Next, the clinician asked Tate to improve jump in the canter by riding half-passes and using her outside leg to support Romeo and prevent him from bracing against the bit. 

Then he asked her to ride half-pirouettes while looking and riding more uphill with steadier contact from her hands to the bit. 

“Everything you do, prepare well,” Rothenberger said. 

This also applied to practicing half-steps toward developing piaffe. After Romeo did some good half-steps, he ended the session.

“You always have to find the point where you say, ‘It’s enough,’ ” Rothenberger said. “Then say thank you to your horse, when you could have done more but you didn’t.”  

The Importance Of Positivity

On the second day, Romeo was anticipating and offered flying changes before Tate applied her aids. Rothenberger had them canter on circles and serpentines until the horse waited and accepted her aids.

Rothenberger noted it is important to reward a horse with a pat immediately after he responds correctly to the rider’s aids—after a correct change, for example—instead of waiting until he completes an exercise or figure that includes a flying change. This helps the horse understand what the rider intends to reward.

He asked Tate to canter Romeo in spirals to encourage him to pay attention to his rider, carry more weight on his hind quarters, articulate his joints and develop better self-carriage. 

Rothenberger described self-carriage as the horse is on the rider’s aids with light, consistent contact, and the rider can give the reins at any time without the horse changing their rhythm or tempo.   

He had Tate ride Romeo in more canter spirals while she maintained Romeo’s rhythm, tempo and correct contact to the bit. He then advanced the exercise by having Tate ride out of the spiral, onto the track and into extended canter on the long side. 

“Now her horse is steadier than yesterday, and she can ride him straighter,” Rothenberger noted.

In the next exercise, Tate rode Romeo in a half-pass in walk and then rode a transition to canter on the same half-pass. “This exercise helps the horse jump in each canter stride,” Rothenberger said. “The rider can focus on improving bend and flexion.” 

As Tate gave Romeo a break at free walk, the gelding strolled confidently around the arena, stretching his topline and calmly looking at the auditors.

Rothenberger summed up the positive approach to dressage training discussed by the clinicians:

“Anyone can be a successful rider, whether they are short, tall, or more or less athletic,” he said, “The thing is to do something positive each day to build the relationship with your horse.”