DRESSAGE!

dres-SAGE. The work conjures up many images and thoughts for me. In its pure meaning it's simply training the horse. When it is dres-sage it is an attitude. I have been a fan and a critic for many years, more often the latter. But, lately I have been lucky to have an on-farm trainer and a very qualified instructor for her which has given me only positive opinions.

I saw a horse at Brandywine this week that made my jaw drop. He is HUGE, which was eye-catching enough, but when his rider got him going he was stunning. And it was all completely relaxed and I couldn't take my eyes off from him. Watching a horse working at that level and seeing him behave as if he were going on a walk through the park made my day. I'm so used to seeing horses ridden with so much pressure, including to a point my own, that it was wonderful.

Zing had a workout yesterday that was the best he's ever had. I got to play coach and remind Kristina to bring the rein up not back and to remind her to throw him the reins so he could search for the bit. I got to tell her to 'ride him on the buckle'! These are totally against all former training she has had. I'm telling you, he was so relaxed and he developed a sweeping, free-moving gait. Zing naturally has a lot of air under his feet and yesterday he moved like a WB, with the air and the swinging gait. It was so much fun to see.