Dressage: Core Elements..

Dressage is training of a horse through gymnastics, to achieve the balanced and light engagement found in horses in nature. It is the art of being able to extend and collect a horse smoothly.

Many people consider Dressage to be the Ballet of the horse world. The sport may seem effortless to the audience but the horse and it's rider require years of athletic training and dedication to achieve such standards of graceful performance and display.

Dressage is performed in a 20 x 60 meter arena, the arena is set out with letters. These letters represent where and what movements are to be executed. Riders also use these letters to judge distances, for example the size of a circle. Sometimes lower level events are performed on smaller arenas of size 20 x 40 meters. This is known as a short arena.

There are different levels within Dressage. Each level builds upon skills required for the previous level and reflect the development of the ability of the horse and it's rider. There are six standard levels and four International levels. In each show 'tests' are ridden. A test is used to determine how well a horse and his rider have been schooled and disciplined. Tests are rewritten and distributed every few years.

Each level has a specified purpose which is stated on the test form. In addition, each movement in the test has a description of what the movement is and what elements are needed to perform it correctly. Scoring for the tests is based on both individual movements and collective marks. In addition, certain movements have coefficients that make them more important. The scoring scale is as follows:

10-Excellent, 9-Very good, 8-Good, 7-Fairly good, 6-Satisfactory, 5-Sufficient, 4-Insufficient, 3-Fairly bad, 2-Bad, 1-Very bad, 0-Not performed

The collective marks are based on:

Gaits--the freedom and regularity of the horse's movement

Impulsion--the horse's desire to move forward, elasticity of steps, roundness

Submission--the horse's attention and confidence, harmony with rider, lightness of movements, and acceptance of the bit

Rider's position and seat--correctness and effect of the aids.