Dressage People?

UnaB

UnaB

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Ok, I need some advice/reassurance/reality check please :D

I am very lucky that Abbey Dressage is in very easy hacking distance for me, but have been put off going because 1) I am not a dressage rider, havent had any lessons in years and need a LOT of work on my position and "dressage tidiness" when riding, 2) have a very immature, unbalanced baby who has JUST started her schooling and 3) it looks very posh!!

But, curiosity has got the better of me and i've just looked on their website at what we could do if we were mad and had a go. Looking at their walk/trot test, the technical stuff we can do individually fairly well. But, being young and immature, im not sure if it would be a complete disaster trying it all together as a test. It may well just be a train wreck.

On the one hand, the thought of being laughed off the showground like some kind of crazy person terrifies me :D But, we have no other hackable shows (that I know of) and at rising 5, my mare really does need to be out and about a bit if possible. So im torn....

So what i'd like to know is what the judges will be looking for in a walk/trot unaffiliated class? Will they expect/understand that some of the horses are young and some of the riders are useless? lol My mare is a friesian so a very slow maturing breed and she is taking a particularly long time, so she is quite unbalanced and ungainly at times, although she tries her hardest. Would they also expect us to maintain an outline the whole time? We had been working on this the end of the summer (she's been turned away all winter) and she would take a nice, relaxed contact and hold a nice outline for a little while, but I dont think she would do it for the whole test, or even half :D And what with it being the first party she'd have ever been to, I expect she would be even less likely to be calm and relaxed.

So... Would I be best trying to find a little SJ show she could do (we are good at SJ! Albeit, in trot mostly lol) or will the judges and other competitors perhaps take pity and be nice to us in our train wreck test? I just dont want to be seen to waste peoples time and have people thinking i shouldnt be there...!
 
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They'll be fine about it. I took B there for a W&T test - shes not a baby but very green as we had no transport. B bucked and spooked her way round the warm up :o then proceeded to do the same in the test :o with a few bits of cracking trot in between :D They were brilliant and helped loads - when we went back the following weekend she was better and they even gave me pointers :)

The first few times it doesn't matter where you're placed, its getting out there even if it means the test is a bit wobbly :)
 
Ooh, any thoughts of placings havent even crossed my mind, just doing everything in (vaguely) the right place, staying INSIDE the markers and pony having a positive day would be all I could hope for :D

In between the acrobatics, did your horse LOOK like a dressage horse though? On the bit, in an outline etc etc? I just worry that we will probably do most of the test with a giraffe neck, bending the wrong way and unbalanced and just look completely out of place there.....!

I've seen pics on here of people doing their first dressage tests on their horses and they always look really professional... We wont!!
 
I took my little mare there as a rising 5 last year and it was fine :). The thing about dressage is to take as little notice as possible of the others in the warm up and just do your own thing (within reason of course). You are only competing with yourself and you never know what will happen when the others go into the arena. It will be good for your horse and you to get out and about. I remember going into the indoor arena VERY slowly - she took her time lol - and the judge was very sympathetic and let us trolly round a bit before the test.

It's a lovely venue with nice people so enjoy and let us know how you get on :) :)!
 
You could just hack her there and take her round the warm up? Take the pressure of a bit.

Can't really say what the judge is looking for as I'm not a judge, but if you could do an accurate test, trot where you should etc, then you will be heading in the right direction. I would not have thought that the judge would expecting a perfect outline through out the test, just that your training is heading in the right direction ie, starting to work from behind.

Anyway what i'm trying to say is no on will laugh so GO and ENJOY your horse!!
 
Don't worry about "outline" - just try and maintain a steady contact and do the walk and trot transitions in the right places. It's more important that your horse is going forwards rhythmically than where it's head is - that's the last thing to worry about. When I took the mare last year to her first walk and trot, I concentrated too much on what her head was doing, and a lot of the comments were "Unsteady contact" and "not going forwards", but when I went in and did the next test, I made myself forget where her head was, just rode with a quiet, steady contact, she settled and was much more forwards and we won the class. Good luck. Just enjoy yourself.
 
Not been to this place, but in my experience people are very keen to help you get your youngsters going and give them experience. Every dressage comp we've been to has had people there giving their youngsters experience, getting them into a different situation, spooking about, generally being green etc. It's the only way that they are going to learn after all.
 
I would go for it. I'm sure many of us have had many disastrous dressage tests with youngsters, including me, but with youngsters it is very easy to take something positive out of the day - even if the only thing you can think of is at least you tried :D Judges are surprisingly sympathetic to clearly green horses so although you might not get an amazing mark, they should at least write constructive comments.
 
If it's a baby you have a golden opportunity to be sure that you teach this horse to go perfectly from the start. If I were you I would not go for a test I would go for lessons. You can start this horse off perfectly which will make both your futures a hell of a lot easier (how many of us spend months trying to undo a lifetime of bad habits!!!?) and probably comfier too... think of all that physio you won't have to pay for if your horse is going right from the start!! :D As you say you're not a dressage person (I'm not either, but I always try to ask an expert before I try anything!) then I'll wager you would just be "having a go" at the walk and trot test and maybe not doing some bits right and so instilling the wrong way of going in your horse, which could cause problems further down the line.

Totally go for a lesson first. They will help you prepare your horse for a test and make sure she is going the best way she can for her age and type and her own comfort. They will love a blank canvas to work with!
 
When I took my boy to his first dressage, I was so terrified I was shaking putting the bridle on in the trailer, I was prepared for everything including broncing round the warm-up and the test, but bless him he just wandered up to the warm-up, trotted round like a pro, had a little canter, then did his test, his only boo boo in the test was at the start he trotted up the center line and stopped gawping at the judge in the car! then worked it out and carried on! we didn't get a place, I didn't care, I had some nice comments, and we had survived! thats all you really want is just to have a nice pleasant time and get your horse to enjoy and relax!

He went on to affliated dressage and never put me on the floor or embaressed me, and if you had have seen him when I first got him, you would never have believed it!

Good Luck!
 
You should be fine doing an Intro test! Lots of people take babies to 'big' dressage places to get them used to it and everyone has to start somewhere. It is NOT necessary to ride in an outline in an intro test. The judge wants to see the horse moving freely forward in a consistent contact but it doesn't need to be an outline. Even in a prelim a consistent contact is preferable to a horse being restricted by having it's head hauled in to it's chest. That's what I was told when writing for judges anyway!
Go for it! Do the intro and ignore everyone else who is there in the warm-up. The judge will give you some good pointers for improvement so you will have plenty to work on afterwards.
 
It's always useful if you can hire the arena for at least half an hour begore you consider putting an entry in, preferably with the boards up, so that you can both get used to the place. Have a couple of friends with you so they can move about, chat etc & make like a crowd, good learning experience for a young horse. Run through a couple of walk/trot tests when you both feel settled, if it feels ok put an entry for their next competition day.
Don't worry about the reactions of others, only the rude & stupid will be snide (who cares about them !) & lots of people will help if asked.
The judge will be looking for a consistent rythm, relaxation & obedience, some contact is good but don't sacrifice the other things for it. Don't worry about the venue, it is only a building, four walls.
 
I went to the local venue near me that had a very posh looking website I was realy worried about not fitting in but everyone was great. They waited until the silly pony had stopped spooking at the boards before they rang the bell and they called my test out for me. It was a nice day out and they were all realy supportive of his first dressage expiereance. We even got a rosette and the comments on my test were quite funny. They were along the lines of needs to slow down :rolleyes: :D
 
Abbey is incredibly nice - you could go for some lessons with Glenys first (she's nice, knows her stuff, but expects you to work hard). However, they are incredibly good with people taking green horses. When I first got my big bay eventer as a 5yo, my other horse was entered for her first BD novice there. She went lame, so rather than waste the entry fee/day ticket cost, I swapped in this green 5yo whom I'd owned for a week. I just wanted to know what his reaction would be. He coped, didn't go in an outline, but got round, and behaved really very well. At the end, the judge asked me what the story was (I clearly looked v pleased considering we'd done a pretty awful test by dressage standards!). I explained, we had a nice chat, and the comment at the bottom of the sheet was 'clearly a new experience for the horse'!

It's a very well run venue, which is what you want with a baby horse I think.

Why not go for some lessons first and ask Glenys' advice as to when you are ready to go there for a test?
 
Go for it you can only learn and explain that you are new.

My friend who has done really well in Dressage etc got herself into it and I dont want to put you off but her horse bolted out and smashed all the plant pots up and trashed it all


Although not funny at the time(although I wish I had been there to see her....and we had such a laugh about it now) she continued and practiced lots and she is now really good as are her pony club mad daughters.

So go for it, none of people or horses were born with the knowledge they had to start somewhere too. Sounds like a good challenge to me and I think they will be pleased to have a new face as well to join in.

Good luck
 
My baby Friesian's first stressage outing was to a nearby affiliated BD venue with a reputation for being a bit snooty. He had eyes on stalks, he grew to 30 hands, and in the warm up, he did a passable impression of a ground-to-air missile, which, I am told, looked spectacular from the ground, although not from where I was sitting. He snorted at all the white boards, the letters, the flower pots, the judges box, an ant, the sun, etc etc, but when the bell went, he dropped his head and showed me that he is, in fact, a dressage horse. It felt crap, it felt tense, it felt hard work, but he won his class on 65%, and no one laughed, as they were all there with young horses having their own problems.

Dressage, in my opinion, would be a much better introduction to a party for a young Friesian than a showjumping event, principally becasue the whole atmosphere will be much calmer.

Good luck.
 
I've been following this thread with interest as I'm taking my not-so-young WB to his first dressage comp next month.
I was panicking about not being able to maintain a consistent outline, specifically in canter but you've all made me feel so much better about doing it.

good luck, OP - hope it goes well
 
I took my new horse to our first dressage test last weekend. We did the walk/trot test and everything was good until we got to the indoor arena for the test. haha. We did some part of the test on a outline but a very small proprotion of it. We had a few bends the wrong way due to her spooking at C everytime we went round. We never got placed but wasnt expected to. Was good to get her out and just need to keep going with her to get her to see more and more.
 
i remember the first competition took my mare to - the judge had, had to driv through the arena to park her car to judge and had therefore left tyre tracks in the sand and we where first on. Well my mare thought they were going to eat her and would not go anywhere near them. It ended in the judge havin to get out and scrape them over with her foot - she tried leaing her over them but not a chance they would eat her. Go and just give it a go it is all a learning experiance for you both.
 
I think you should go for it :)

Think a few lessons before, if you can, would be a good idea. To have someone watch you and give you some feedback is really helpful. Might be an idea to hack up to the arena and give your horse a look around? So she has an experience of being asked to work in a new environment??

Your test should be fluid and smooth. There should be an element of balance and control.

Practice the accuracy of the tests as this is where you can pick up or lose a fair portion of the overall marks, IE your circle size, clear and sharp transitions and nice reasonably square halts.

And lastly, go and have fun. Don't worry about other people. You're there for you and your horse. Good luck!!
 
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Loving reading all the funny stories! My mare is the most chilled out horse you could meet and has always been very relaxed and never spooks when i've taken her along to parties in hand so i dont expect any silly shenanigans.... Of course, they always do it when you least expect it lol! Im more concerned about her just going around like a riding school pony (no offence to riding school ponies!!) and being a bit unsure what on earth im wanting her to do.

The lesson idea is a good one. My former RI is a dressage rider, she's never met Una as i've not had lessons for years but maybe i will give her a ring to come out and give me a lesson or two in the field just to see what she thinks, maybe even try to encourage her to get on board and see what she can get out of the horse. I can get them to jump confidentally and calmly, but I get SO stressed doing dressage and am useless :D Not sure I can afford Glennis' prices for lessons...!! :eek:

Either way, i will get doing some work on the pony and see if I can get anything resembling a forward, collected schooling session from her at least and go from there. I've never asked her to do any schooling so it will be a good lesson for her at least and if she takes to it we'll see about doing a competition.
 
Abbey are really nice, and it's never seemed snooty when I've been there. My friend and I took her horse last month and he was unusually spooky in the arena so the judge didn't ring the bell for her to start, just called quietly 'you can start now'!! He decided rearing was a better option than halting and saluting but settled after that and she won the Medium!!!
 
Go for it...I think judges expect that in the W&T classes they will mostly be judging young horses or young / beginner riders so aren't expecting a flash 'dressage' horse in the test.

I think they will be looking for the basics to be visable - ie maintining a reasonable rhythm (but maybe not all the time) having reasonable impulsion and showing correct bend.

They will also understand that this will often be a horses first outing so will not be surprised by any of the antics your horse may decide to include in the test.
Give it a go - it's another pair of eyes who can tell you what you need to work on.
If you don't like it, don't go back.
 
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