Written by Diane Kaser
Welcome to the Western Dressage Association of America Michigan affiliate.. Our acronym is WDAMI. I know that some folks have always wondered about dressage. What the heck is it anyway? Dressage is simply training and now the western horse and rider can train or compete in their own shows, attend clinics or take lessons by nationally recognized instructors. Speaking for myself, dressage has been a big part of my life. I just love to trail ride. By taking lessons and riding with good instructors I have been able to create a better trail horse. Who doesn’t want their horse calm, cool and willing to go forward? Oh, a fallen tree? No problem. We will simply step over it.
A goal of Western Dressage is the development of a harmonious partnership between you and your horse. How do we accomplish this? By using a system of progressive training to produce a horse that is physically strong, balanced, supple and obedient. Your horse will also demonstrate a calm, confident, attentive attitude and will be happy to do his job.
We as riders have an obligation to our equine partners. There are many factors to consider here. One big thing I see quite often is a bad fitting saddle. If your saddle does not fit your horse properly, it can compromise your position in the saddle and over time create sore back problems for your horse. There are many websites with good information on proper saddle fit. It’s extremely challenging if you have a wide and short backed horse. Throw in low withers and you have a really tough one. Your saddle ideally should have a level seat. If the tree is too small, the saddle will sit up too high in front and most likely sit lower in back. This scenario will cause the rider to sit back against the cantle and not be in a centered position. If the stirrups are hung too far forward or too far backward, it becomes nearly impossible to sit in proper body alignment. So, your horse is trying to balance an unbalanced rider in an unbalanced saddle that causes him pain.
Getting back to developing a harmonius partnership between you and your horse, it is easy to see why saddle fit is so important. The next time you saddle up, check your saddle. Does it really fit the both of you? If you aren’t sure, find a good saddlefitter. It’s worth the money for comfort.
2014 has a lot in store for Western Dressage. Peter Campbell will be at the Cheboygan County Fairgrounds July 11-14. Please call Jill at 231-420-2654 for more information. Tom Pierson and Rachel Leigh Ory will be at Rising Hope Riding Center 5/31-6/1 in Harbor Springs. Call 231-758-2856 for information. This will be a Western Dressage and Horsemanship Clinic. Phil Oakes will be giving an Introduction to Western Dressage at his farm OBar Ranch in Gaylord. Call 231-732-8417 for details. Spring Moon Farm is hosting Sue Hughes on June 28 for Western Dressage and Classical Dressage. The farm is in the Beulah area. Call 231-882-9571 for more. You can go to our website w.w.w.wdami. org or visit our Facebook page for more information on shows and clinics.