Lexington, Ky.—April 26

While watching the warm-up at the Land Rover Kentucky CCI****, you would expect to see U.S. Eventing Performance Director Erik Duvander and various eventing coaches like Olympic gold medalist Leslie Law, who trains Caroline Martin.

But you might’ve been surprised to spot Scott Hassler, the former U.S. Equestrian Federation young horse dressage coach and a well-regarded breeder and Grand Prix dressage rider and trainer. He’s there coaching Boyd Martin and Phillip Dutton.

Scott Hassler (left) and U.S. Eventing Performance Director Erik Duvander walked back after watching a dressage test. Photo by Sara Lieser.

“It came about because we’re 45 minutes apart,” explained Hassler, who runs Riveredge Dressage in Chesapeake City, Maryland, not far from Dutton and Martin’s farms in Pennsylvania. “A year ago Phillip sent me a text asking if I’d have time to come help because they wanted to get more serious about dressage. I said, ‘Let’s give it a shot.’ We worked together a few times, and we all clicked really well, so we just kept it up.”

Hassler said he’s had a blast coaching the event riders.

“First of all, those guys are pretty awesome,” he said. “No egos, just super coachable and hungry for the information. If I influenced them, I just helped them gymnasticize the horses a bit more and learn about how to make transitions a little more fluid and then add precision to it and just get more thoroughness. They’ve just been eating it up.”

He admitted there are some differences in working with event horses versus straight dressage horses.

“Your event horses in general are fitter, tighter, and you’ve got to watch the nerves a little bit,” he said. “So it’s all about getting the best out of them and not getting them nervous.”

Grand Prix dressage rider and coach Scott Hassler was ringside in the warm-up at the Land Rover Kentucky CCI****. Photo by Sara Lieser.

Hassler was thrilled with Boyd’s test on Tsetserleg, which scored a 31.2. “I loved it. I thought it was really nice,” he said. “Very fluid. He got all the changes, and that’s something at this level you’ve got to be careful about. It looked really harmonious. This is my first time going to a show with them, so it’s been fun seeing how they do it in the ring instead of just videos, being here live and getting them ready. I was very happy.”

He also raved about Dutton’s mount Z. “Z is so freaking cool. I love that horse,” said Hassler. “He still gets a little green in the changes, so we’ve got to get that down, but otherwise I thought it was a really nice test, and that’s all we can ask for.”

Martin’s main coach is his wife, Grand Prix dressage rider Silva Martin, and it was actually through Silva that he met Hassler. “Silva rode with him when we first moved to America,” said Boyd. “We went to Hilltop Farm and watched him ride. I’m sure he gets tons of people turning up to watch him ride. Who would have known 10 years later he’s our coach.”

Boyd said that he and Dutton team up using specialty coaches like Richard Picken for their show jumping and Hassler for dressage. “We’re neighbors in Aiken [South Carolina] and in Pennsylvania, so it makes sense bringing in experts,” he said. “We sort of piggyback off each other and egg each other on. Scott’s awesome. He swings by once a week. It’s tricky for me because Silva’s my main coach, but it’s good to have a fresh set of eyes and a person tuning you up and picking on things that might have gotten missed by your other coach.”

“He has a wealth of knowledge and experience,” added Dutton. “He’s also understanding that our horses aren’t just trained for the dressage but for the other phases as well, so he’s been a great fit for us.”

The Chronicle is on site at the Land Rover Kentucky CCI****. Keep an eye out at coth.com for all our coverage of the event.

Important Links: Land Rover Kentucky website  ⁄  Ride Times / Results /  Live streaming / All of the Chronicle’s coverage

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