Unless otherwise noted, all quotes on this page are the work of Lesley Stevenson. Please ensure proper attribution when sharing. Thank you!
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"If your horse makes a mistake in the test, don’t punish the horse ever. It’s the easiest way to get a 4, and it makes us judges really cranky at you. We think, ‘If she’ll do that in front of all these people, what does she
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Things will not get better on their own - it's up to us as riders to ensure progress. This means being proactive, working hard, and using every available tool to improve your knowledge and skills.
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We always talk about not riding with too much inside rein, but it is also possible to ride with too much outside rein. Holding too strongly on the outside rein will prevent the horse from bending to the inside, and may cause him to tilt his head.
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"My father always said, 'Things just take time.' He did not believe in quick tricks or things like draw reins. Rather than using such things, he said it is better to go on the circle and do things like half-halts and transitions to get the horse
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"Great horses bring an unquenchable love for the game, and a fierce competitive desire to every competition." ~ Jimmy Wofford
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Strive for the feeling that two thirds of the horse is in front of you.
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If your horse is too sensitive to your leg, don't respond by taking your leg off. Simply practice lots of downward transitions to work on getting your horse to wait for you, while quietly accepting the presence of your legs lightly on his sides.
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"Necks that are pulled in stop the muscles of the back developing and interfere with the natural paces." ~ Reiner Klimke
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From member Nancy Baxter Alchorn ~ "Better equitation goes a long way to fixing problems."
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Be extra careful when conditioning both young horses and older horses. Young horses have tendon/ligaments/bones that have not yet been strengthened. And the older horse’s ligaments and tendons tend to become less elastic and resilient over time.
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"If we ask novice riders how much of their focus is on the horse’s head, most of them, if they are honest, might say 80 percent. But the head is perhaps 10 percent of the horse’s body, so be sure you are not using 80 percent of
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"Every horse is different and requires their own special attention; however, staying true to the basic principles of dressage and remembering that “art ends where violence begins” is an adage I have lived by." ~ Robert Dover
