Tension in Dressage

[Melodra]

TBF only one person, not people mentioned 'disobedient'.

In that post I am certainly not suggesting that a tense horse does not do things at the right time/is disobedient, just reiterating that even if a horse is off the aids (which obviously could lead to not doing things at the right place) that it will have to be doing things at the right place in order to generate a good score. If it is off the aids and only cantering several strides after it should have it will not score well over a tense horse.

Which kind of reiterates my point that it is easy to read things wrongly.

You yourself mentioned “not doing things at the right time”.... which I had clearly stated was not the case.

Again, the judge stated in the collectives that he was an obedient horse and when he relaxed would achieve high scores, so that was not the issue here.

And again, I am not questioning the judge’s comments. But I am asking if a horse that has to be kicked is or should be considered more correct.

 

[Melodra]

Thank y

It is hard when you have a fizzy horse. I spent my teens wishing my pony would just relax. She was obedient, talented and well schooled. But she found the whole thing very tense. So often she would not score much above 60% no matter the level because tension crept in.

I now have a 'lazy kick-along'. The judges seem to like him. Above anything he is rhythmical and consistent. We are building the suppleness and power as we go. I will admit its not as nice a feeling riding a horse like that compared to a more wizzy pony, but the judges aren't riding. They're only judging what they see in front.

I wish I could show the difference my instructor has made to my friends eventer. She is tense but obedient, powerful, lovely paces and again all the talent. Again the judges knock it badly. But the difference since training with this lady is amazing. The more she relaxes the more incredible she looks. I so wish I had my pony now! If you are based in Cheshire PM me and I'll send you some details.

Thank you, I’m not but I appreciate that. He has hugely improved already on his second time out, did everything he was asked this time, and again lovely comments from judge so feeling hopeful and excited about his future. We will get there!

 

[Cortez]

That’s what I mean about not reading. He did everything he was asked, when asked. The judge stated that he was obedient in his collectives.

In your original post you described your horse as cantering sideways, etc. in one test, which would be marked as a disobedience - that is what I was referring to - and would be as a result of tension, which is apparently your main problem with the marks you are receiving. You are obviously upset at my responses, which is a shame as they were intended to answer your question. It sounds to me as if you are perhaps missing understanding of some of the building blocks of dressage, which has at it's purest root "calmness". You are asking us to tell you whether a calm horse that has to be pushed should score higher than one which is tense - you already have the answer for the test in which the marks reflected that.

Whether we will agree with the judge of the particular test you are complaining about would depend on viewing it which you don't want us to do, so it's hard to say really whether "you was robbed" or not.

 

[Melodra]

In your original post you described your horse as cantering sideways, etc., which would be marked as a disobedience - that is what I was referring to - and would be as a result of tension, which is apparently your main problem with the marks you are receiving. You are obviously upset at my responses, which is a shame as they were intended to answer your question. It sounds to me as if you are perhaps missing understanding of some of the building blocks of dressage, which has at it's purest root "calmness". You are asking us to tell you whether a calm horse that has to be pushed should score higher than one which is tense - you already have the answer for the test in which the marks reflected that.

Whether we will agree with the judge of the particular test you are complaining about would depend on viewing it which you don't want us to do, so it's hard to say really whether "you was robbed" or not.

No, that was his first test!!!!

Not this test, as I clearly stated. There was a huge improvement as he was absolutely obedient and the judge stated as much in his collectives.

Puts head in hands.

 

[HufflyPuffly]

It's an interesting discussion, but I do think you need to be less defensive about people commenting, there is a wealth of knowledge here if you leave your feelings out of it and try and take note from the more experienced posters.

I agree its a funny one, which is worse too much hand (to contain them) or too much leg (to push them), for too buzzy vs too lazy.

I will agree with the other posters that generally the tense/ buzzy horse will score less as that tension will cause the frame to become tight which will block the swing through the back and therefore block the hind leg. Whereas the lazy horse might need kicking on, but will be softer over the top line and back as there isn't tension affecting them.

When you watch your videos back does your horse track up well, as I'll bet (as the owner/ rider of my own v. buzzy and have the tense comments t-shirt) that there is a shortness due to the tension affecting the way of going, it is this sort of thing that movement by movement drops the marks down as it might be a mark or half a mark per movement but overall ends up very costly. I thought mine were moving well until I really got them soft and through, then it's a whole different ball game and you can understand why the marks were not there before.

 

[Melodra]

In your original post you described your horse as cantering sideways, etc. in one test, which would be marked as a disobedience - that is what I was referring to - and would be as a result of tension, which is apparently your main problem with the marks you are receiving. You are obviously upset at my responses, which is a shame as they were intended to answer your question. It sounds to me as if you are perhaps missing understanding of some of the building blocks of dressage, which has at it's purest root "calmness". You are asking us to tell you whether a calm horse that has to be pushed should score higher than one which is tense - you already have the answer for the test in which the marks reflected that.

Whether we will agree with the judge of the particular test you are complaining about would depend on viewing it which you don't want us to do, so it's hard to say really whether "you was robbed" or not.

Further, why are you using the words “I was robbed?” I never used such words...why are you putting them in my mouth? It’s disingenous and dishonest of you.

I have said throughout I agree with the judge’s comments. What is your problem?

 

[Cortez]

No, that was his first test!!!!

Not this test, as I clearly stated. There was a huge improvement as he was absolutely obedient and the judge stated as much in his collectives.

Puts head in hands.

You can take your head out of your hands, I am aware that the horse was not disobedient in the second test, and that he did a better test, and that you were disappointed that he didn't score higher in it, etc., etc. I can read and comprehend quite well. The point is that tension is what is causing your problem, and yes: as far as dressage is concerned tension is worse than sleepy obedience.

 

[be positive]

That’s what I mean about not reading. He did everything he was asked, when asked. The judge stated that he was obedient in his collectives.

I think the issue with a tense horse over the lazy one is that every movement will be marked down a point or two, what may be a 7 becomes a 6 or a 5 whereas the lazy horse may require a sharp kick, or more, to get it going the judge can still give a 7 if the movement is otherwise "fairly good" the rider having to work to get more will not really be penalised in the movements, if they get what they want, but may lose a few in the collectives but the tense horse will not pick up the collectives either because the tension will limit the marks that can be given.
I have ridden many horses in lower level tests and generally the lazy relaxed ****** that make me work hard will get far better scores that anything that is tense and I know how frustrating it can be, a horse that really allows you to ride them for every movement yet is in front of the aids is a joy but it can be a fine line between being with you and either a bit behind or too much in front, it is part of the art of dressage that often eludes us once in the arena.

 

[Cortez]

Further, why are you using the words “I was robbed?” I never used such words...why are you putting them in my mouth? It’s disingenous and dishonest of you.

I have said throughout I agree with the judge’s comments. What is your problem?

What's yours? "I was robbed" is an expression, that's all - I wasn't quoting you, as you should well know. You may agree with the comments, but you obviously don't agree with the marks or the placing.

 

[ester]

You yourself mentioned “not doing things at the right time”.... which I had clearly stated was not the case.

Again, that was a general comment, not about your horse, and actually more regarding lazy horses. One minute you say you want a general discussion but when people respond in a general way are then saying that your horse didn't do that (well we know, because we are talking generally).

And as said before yes, it is more correct for a horse to be kicked on and not tense.

 

[Melodra]

It's an interesting discussion, but I do think you need to be less defensive about people commenting, there is a wealth of knowledge here if you leave your feelings out of it and try and take note from the more experienced posters.

I agree its a funny one, which is worse too much hand (to contain them) or too much leg (to push them), for too buzzy vs too lazy.

I will agree with the other posters that generally the tense/ buzzy horse will score less as that tension will cause the frame to become tight which will block the swing through the back and therefore block the hind leg. Whereas the lazy horse might need kicking on, but will be softer over the top line and back as there isn't tension affecting them.

When you watch your videos back does your horse track up well, as I'll bet (as the owner/ rider of my own v. buzzy and have the tense comments t-shirt) that there is a shortness due to the tension affecting the way of going, it is this sort of thing that movement by movement drops the marks down as it might be a mark or half a mark per movement but overall ends up very costly. I thought mine were moving well until I really got them soft and through, then it's a whole different ball game and you can understand why the marks were not there before.

I’m defensive of people misquoting me and misreading my original post and further implying that I am a sore loser rather than engaging in discussion.

There have been some great constructive and helpful comments; others have put words in my mouth, I really don’t care how experienced these people claim to be; clearly not very if they think kicking a horse along is desirable.

 

[Melodra]

What's yours? "I was robbed" is an expression, that's all - I wasn't quoting you, as you should well know. You may agree with the comments, but you obviously don't agree with the marks or the placing.

Why use the term when I had said nothing of the sort?

 

[Melodra]

I think the issue with a tense horse over the lazy one is that every movement will be marked down a point or two, what may be a 7 becomes a 6 or a 5 whereas the lazy horse may require a sharp kick, or more, to get it going the judge can still give a 7 if the movement is otherwise "fairly good" the rider having to work to get more will not really be penalised in the movements, if they get what they want, but may lose a few in the collectives but the tense horse will not pick up the collectives either because the tension will limit the marks that can be given.
I have ridden many horses in lower level tests and generally the lazy relaxed ****** that make me work hard will get far better scores that anything that is tense and I know how frustrating it can be, a horse that really allows you to ride them for every movement yet is in front of the aids is a joy but it can be a fine line between being with you and either a bit behind or too much in front, it is part of the art of dressage that often eludes us once in the arena.

Thanks for this, this is probably the most helpful response so far, appreciated

 

[milliepops]

I’m defensive of people misquoting me and misreading my original post and further implying that I am a sore loser rather than engaging in discussion.

There have been some great constructive and helpful comments; others have put words in my mouth, I really don’t care how experienced these people claim to be; clearly not very if they think kicking a horse along is desirable.

i don't think anyone has said that's desirable, your question was whether it was right that it should score more highly than a tense horse. neither are *desirable*, but one is more costly in terms of scores than the other.

 

[Cortez]

Why use the term when I had said nothing of the sort?

Oh for crying out loud! Why use any term? It's a neat catch-all to describe the way you are coming across. You plainly feel that you should have scored higher than a horse which was going differently from yours, thus obviously putting you in opposition to the judge on the day, who preferred the way of going of the lazy one. Your question was, if I'm not mistaken, why this should be? I, and many others, have attempted to tell you that yes, generally speaking, this will be the outcome in lower level dressage competitions.

 

[Melodra]

Oh for crying out loud! Why use any term? It's a neat catch-all to describe the way you are coming across. You plainly feel that you should have scored higher than a horse which was going differently from yours, thus obviously putting you in opposition to the judge on the day, who preferred the way of going of the lazy one. Your question was, if I'm not mistaken, why this should be? I, and many others, have attempted to tell you that yes, generally speaking, this will be the outcome in lower level dressage competitions.

You put words in my mouth. Accused my horse of disobedience. Accused me of being a sore loser.

I said I agreed with all of the judge's comments which were actually very favourable on the whole. I questioned generically if a horse, on its forehand leaning on the bit, being kicked along by its rider was more correct than a horse that was slightly tense but otherwise obedient and receiving otherwise positive comments. It was a question that I'm sure many people have asked themselves.

We will have to agree to disagree but please do not ever misquote me or put words in my mouth.

 

[Red-1]

I have ridden BD and judged Trailblazer and I would mark down a tense horse.

To me one of the cornerstones of training is that the horse is soft, as opposed to light. Light means that the horse responds, but with a tight quality. If the horse looks OK, but you give the rein and he does not softly follow, that is light not soft. For any correct work the horse has to respond softly, have retained his reach and comfort with the bit. He will stretch softly, bend softly, remain soft in his mind and body.

With a horse who yields to pressure in a soft way, then you can easily add a bit more energy, and the horse's body is aligned to take that extra energy and use it productively. The horse will lift the back.

With a tense horse, who on the face of it is being obedient, usually the contact is light but rather false, as in if the rein is lengthened the horse does not reach into the contact and seek. The outline or frame is more tense. In these horses if you add more energy into the mix, then the situation will get worse not better as the basic corners of control are not covered.

Personally, when I re-schooled horses, I would be able to have a much better result in a time frame with a horse who was confident, soft, moving without tension than with a horse who was guarding themselves with tension. For a tense horse I would take the training back a stage and teach the horse to reach and stretch, be confident to seek into the contact, before any further work could be done. With a very tense horse I would start that work on the ground, to teach the horse to softly hold the bit, to relax and yield to a contact without hiding behind it.

To me, a correct but slightly lazy horse is further on in their training. A tense horse needs some re-education which takes longer than initial education.

My view only, I am not necessarily expecting anyone to agree!

 

[milliepops]

think many of us would agree with you Red

 

[Melodra]

I have ridden BD and judged Trailblazer and I would mark down a tense horse.

To me one of the cornerstones of training is that the horse is soft, as opposed to light. Light means that the horse responds, but with a tight quality. If the horse looks OK, but you give the rein and he does not softly follow, that is light not soft. For any correct work the horse has to respond softly, have retained his reach and comfort with the bit. He will stretch softly, bend softly, remain soft in his mind and body.

With a horse who yields to pressure in a soft way, then you can easily add a bit more energy, and the horse's body is aligned to take that extra energy and use it productively. The horse will lift the back.

With a tense horse, who on the face of it is being obedient, usually the contact is light but rather false, as in if the rein is lengthened the horse does not reach into the contact and seek. The outline or frame is more tense. In these horses if you add more energy into the mix, then the situation will get worse not better as the basic corners of control are not covered.

Personally, when I re-schooled horses, I would be able to have a much better result in a time frame with a horse who was confident, soft, moving without tension than with a horse who was guarding themselves with tension. For a tense horse I would take the training back a stage and teach the horse to reach and stretch, be confident to seek into the contact, before any further work could be done. With a very tense horse I would start that work on the ground, to teach the horse to softly hold the bit, to relax and yield to a contact without hiding behind it.

To me, a correct but slightly lazy horse is further on in their training. A tense horse needs some re-education which takes longer than initial education.

My view only, I am not necessarily expecting anyone to agree!

Thank you for this, this is helpful. He is only tense at events which is hard to replicate at home - and I imagine my nerves do not help matters. That said, he was much improved on only his second time out, so hopefully we are getting there!

One question though.. is a horse who is leaning on his forehand on his rider really soft though? Isn't this just another means of evading a correct contact?

 

[Cortez]

You put words in my mouth. Accused my horse of disobedience. Accused me of being a sore loser.

I said I agreed with all of the judge's comments which were actually very favourable on the whole. I questioned generically if a horse, on its forehand leaning on the bit, being kicked along by its rider was more correct than a horse that was slightly tense but otherwise obedient and receiving otherwise positive comments. It was a question that I'm sure many people have asked themselves.

We will have to agree to disagree but please do not ever misquote me or put words in my mouth.

That sounds rather threatening....and you have accused me of being dishonest: clearly we are not going to be friends.

Not sure why you're so hung up on this, you have repeatedly had the answer you were asking for, although plainly not the one you want: yes, tension will be marked down over boring, kick-along obedience - it is one of the central tenets of dressage. And it was YOU who mentioned that your horse was, in a previous test, disobedient.

You are coming across as a sore loser, yes. Also one who doesn't like to hear things that happen to be inconveniently in opposition to your firmly held, but unfortunately inaccurate views.

 

[Melodra]

That sounds rather threatening....and you have accused me of being dishonest: clearly we are not going to be friends.

Not sure why you're so hung up on this, you have repeatedly had the answer you were asking for, although plainly not the one you want: yes, tension will be marked down over boring, kick-along obedience - it is one of the central tenets of dressage. And it was YOU who mentioned that your horse was, in a previous test, disobedient.

You are coming across as a sore loser, yes. Also one who doesn't like to hear things that happen to be inconveniently in opposition to your firmly held, but unfortunately inaccurate views.

I'm not sure what your problem, is but please don't engage with me if all you want to do is intentionally misinterpret my words.

I am happy with the way my horse went. I'm happy with the judge's comments. I questioned the correctness of what I see as the opposite problem to mine. Some people chose to respond constructively in that in the context of scoring, tension is likely to lose more marks but not necessarily less correct/worse than a horse on its forehand. You chose to attack me without listening to what I was trying to say.

Whatever is going on in your life, please don't take it out on me.

You might note, that I have thanked those who bothered to respond without an attack. I'm not looking for a particular answer. It was my horse's second time out and I am beyond happy with him. It was a simple question.

 

[Red-1]

Thank you for this, this is helpful. He is only tense at events which is hard to replicate at home. That said, he was much improved on only his second time out, so hopefully we are getting there!

I have had to teach horses to deal with many unusually stressful situations, and IME, if the training is truly sorted a home, it does not come unravelled. Many horses can approximate to the correct responses, but if truly obedient you will be able to work the horse and decide where the horse holds the head/neck. I mean, be able to place the head far out and low, without pulling. It is like a magic switch where the horse is taught to relax, stretch, seek the contact.

With a baby I spend ages in walk, changing where I want the frame to be. Let it out, bring it in, all with a loose swinging back. Lateral flexion is also a 'tell' as if a horse is truly loose then lateral flexion is easy to achieve without the horse twisting the head, the ears and eyes should remain level. A tense horse will tend to tilt.

If the horse is at a stage where he can't go into the dressage ring without becoming tense then more work needs doing both at home and also in schooling in unfamiliar situations. My last horse had some naughty habits and I made sure he was happy in many situations before doing a show. I would hire a collecting ring at the end of a show, so the buzz was still there, ad finish with a walk on a stretched frame in the ring. I address nappyness issues, so the horse is happy to leave others. I have 'thrown' a competition on occasion by warming up and then doing less in the actual ring so the horse loses the association that the ring is where hard work happens. In fact, I may well be one of those combinations where the horse looks lazy, as for me very much relaxation, softness, yielding has to come before the pieces can all be put together.

A horse does not innately know what a competition ring is. If he is reacting differently there then either he is not sufficiently acclimatised to different places, not acclimatised to leaving other horses or the rider is riding differently. They certainly have no concept of competition unless in a race where all horses are running together (certainly not in a dressage competition!). Oh yes, they can come to enjoy competition, I believe I actually ride better in the arena, I am more focussed, but I actually ask 5% less of my horse in there, ride for the NEXT competition, rather than for this one.

If the horse has been even the slightest bit different we go back into the collecting ring and address whatever the issue was, which also works if the horse believes that we go from the ring to the horsebox. Nope, it is not for the horse to make assumptions and decisions, it is for the horse to stay with me and listed to what I am asking.

I can't see the point in taking a tense horse repeatedly to dressage without addressing the issues. You get what you practice, so I prefer not to practice being tense, even if that means going back to ground work.

 

[Cortez]

I'm not sure what your problem, is but please don't engage with me if all you want to do is intentionally misinterpret my words.

I am happy with the way my horse went. I'm happy with the judge's comments. I questioned the correctness of what I see as the opposite problem to mine. Some people chose to respond constructively in that in the context of scoring, tension is likely to lose more marks but not necessarily more correct. You chose to attack me without listening to what I was trying to say.

Whatever is going on in your life, please don't take it out on me.

I give up!

 

[Melodra]

I have had to teach horses to deal with many unusually stressful situations, and IME, if the training is truly sorted a home, it does not come unravelled. Many horses can approximate to the correct responses, but if truly obedient you will be able to work the horse and decide where the horse holds the head/neck. I mean, be able to place the head far out and low, without pulling. It is like a magic switch where the horse is taught to relax, stretch, seek the contact.

With a baby I spend ages in walk, changing where I want the frame to be. Let it out, bring it in, all with a loose swinging back. Lateral flexion is also a 'tell' as if a horse is truly loose then lateral flexion is easy to achieve without the horse twisting the head, the ears and eyes should remain level. A tense horse will tend to tilt.

If the horse is at a stage where he can't go into the dressage ring without becoming tense then more work needs doing both at home and also in schooling in unfamiliar situations. My last horse had some naughty habits and I made sure he was happy in many situations before doing a show. I would hire a collecting ring at the end of a show, so the buzz was still there, ad finish with a walk on a stretched frame in the ring. I address nappyness issues, so the horse is happy to leave others. I have 'thrown' a competition on occasion by warming up and then doing less in the actual ring so the horse loses the association that the ring is where hard work happens. In fact, I may well be one of those combinations where the horse looks lazy, as for me very much relaxation, softness, yielding has to come before the pieces can all be put together.

A horse does not innately know what a competition ring is. If he is reacting differently there then either he is not sufficiently acclimatised to different places, not acclimatised to leaving other horses or the rider is riding differently. They certainly have no concept of competition unless in a race where all horses are running together (certainly not in a dressage competition!). Oh yes, they can come to enjoy competition, I believe I actually ride better in the arena, I am more focussed, but I actually ask 5% less of my horse in there, ride for the NEXT competition, rather than for this one.

If the horse has been even the slightest bit different we go back into the collecting ring and address whatever the issue was, which also works if the horse believes that we go from the ring to the horsebox. Nope, it is not for the horse to make assumptions and decisions, it is for the horse to stay with me and listed to what I am asking.

I can't see the point in taking a tense horse repeatedly to dressage without addressing the issues. You get what you practice, so I prefer not to practice being tense, even if that means going back to ground work.

Thank you for this.

I can see where you are coming from, totally agree with lots of work needed at home, although again, he is relaxed at home. The collecting ring hire sounds like a great idea.

That said, we saw a huge improvement from his first test to the second. This was only his second test. The horse listened and was absolutely obedient and the tension came from over exuberance rather than discomfort or distress, he showed a huge amount of learning. He is a part bred Arab and it is his nature to be excitable...not sure it is totally fair to say that the horse generally can't go in a dressage ring without becoming tense. I also didn't go there to win/be placed (the event was local to us) I went exactly for that experience for the horse. His score was also respectable, but it wouldn't have worried me had it been low...my expectations were not high in the first place!

The judge seemed to feel it was a given that he would in time become more relaxed...

 

[madamebonnie]

One question though.. is a horse who is leaning on his forehand on his rider really soft though? Isn't this just another means of evading a correct contact?

Leaning or on the forehand? George has always had a fairly good contact but is prone to being on the forehand mainly because of weakness, he never gave the feeling of leaning ON me. A young horse could be particularly prone to this or a horse built that way for example a thoroughbred. It is not correct to lean or be on the forehand. Nor is it to be behind the vertical.

I find this diagram of the scales of training helps

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/328551735288277563/

If you went straight in to impulsion without the lower building block which you might find with a wizzy horse, the whole picture is ruined. You wouldn't find a good Rhythm, they obviously wouldn't be supple, as tense, and an incorrect connection from either too much trying to keep them together or too light as mentioned above.
Whereas a horse that has Rhythm, is reasonably supple but is still developing a contact; and then might be a bit on the forehand would still get higher marks even if they haven't developed impulsion yet.

Some say the scales are interchangeable but you get the idea from a scoring point of view how this sort of horse may score higher. Doesn't mean the judge would 'like' this horse more than the other.
https://image.slidesharecdn.com/tra...namic-training-scale-25-638.jpg?cb=1414114827

 

[Melodra]

Leaning or on the forehand? George has always had a fairly good contact but is prone to being on the forehand mainly because of weakness, he never gave the feeling of leaning ON me. A young horse could be particularly prone to this or a horse built that way for example a thoroughbred. It is not correct to lean or be on the forehand. Nor is it to be behind the vertical.

I find this diagram of the scales of training helps

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/328551735288277563/

If you went straight in to impulsion without the lower building block which you might find with a wizzy horse, the whole picture is ruined. You wouldn't find a good Rhythm, they obviously wouldn't be supple, as tense, and an incorrect connection from either too much trying to keep them together or too light as mentioned above.
Whereas a horse that has Rhythm, is reasonably supple but is still developing a contact; and then might be a bit on the forehand would still get higher marks even if they haven't developed impulsion yet.

Some say the scales are interchangeable but you get the idea from a scoring point of view how this sort of horse may score higher. Doesn't mean the judge would 'like' this horse more than the other.
https://image.slidesharecdn.com/tra...namic-training-scale-25-638.jpg?cb=1414114827

This is what I meant. It is not correct for the horse to lean onto the rider's hands. working on the forehand is not correct. Kicking a horse is not correct. But this and some of the comments here have been helpful in gauging why a horse that is no more correct could still regardless score more highly in the test itself.

 

[Maesto's Girl]

Could have written this about my Arab. The amount of comments I get saying my marks would improve greatly if she just relaxes! I'd be rich if I got £1 for each one....by each movement and in the overall comments box

She's always on one, but very accurate for movements which saves our scores at a 6, but she can do better when she thinks about it. I have seen people miss markers and movements on "lazy" ponies score better than we have because of the consistency of what is considered a more pleasing rhythm.

Annoying as she has a lovely, expressive movement and is so responsive - and we could be on 7/7.5's at least

 

[ester]

I think that goes back to what level again though, at lower levels being on the forehand is going to be penalised differently than if it were occurring at a higher level.

 

[ihatework]

Having ridden dressage on tense horses and calm/idle ones the latter almost always score better - although I have to say I prefer the former for some daft reason.

I think the tension is scored harshly because it impacts 2 different areas of way of going - submission (a tense horse hasn’t really submitted to the rider even if they are performing the basics of the movement) and also suppleness (tight horse does not make a supple ride!). Then because of those two things often the odd rhythm blip or lack of straightness pops in.

You can rest assured you are going to loose at least 1 mark a movement but often 2 depending on how tense.

A tense but reasonably obedient otherwise test in my experience is in the 58-62 bracket. Throw in more extreme tension and/or disobedience and it trends downwards

 

[Melodra]

Could have written this about my Arab. The amount of comments I get saying my marks would improve greatly if she just relaxes! I'd be rich if I got £1 for each one....by each movement and in the overall comments box

She's always on one, but very accurate for movements which saves our scores at a 6, but she can do better when she thinks about it. I have seen people miss markers and movements on "lazy" ponies score better than we have because of the consistency of what is considered a more pleasing rhythm.

Annoying as she has a lovely, expressive movement and is so responsive - and we could be on 7/7.5's at least

Wouldn’t change them for the world though! As you say, lovely responsive rides - he is such a fast learner too! It’s a blessing to ride a horse who loves to work, but with that I guess we have to accept some over excitement on occasion