24 Love Thy horse Magazine
Bridging the Gap between Dressage, Natural Horsemanship and Western
By Ken Faulkner
When I was asked to think about and write about bridging the gap between dressage, natural horsemanship and western ridding, my first thought was … why?
Then I got to think about what defines each discipline. What are some of the strengths and weaknesses of each discipline, how has each discipline evolved from its early form to now and how does society impact on each discipline. What similarities do each discipline have in common.
The following column is only the thoughts of a horseman who has dabbled a little in as many disciplines and sports as possible to advance my overall knowledge in my attempt to earn the right to call myself a horseman and not as a single event competitor.
Let me think about each discipline in an attempt to find a decision or lead me to more questions.
When I think about dressage, a word that literally means horse training, I think of the English style of riding. I think of dressage as a competition, of the English hack and of the many other types of this style of riding. I think of the unique and largely complementary dress code and the different types of English saddle showing different seats and balances to compliment the discipline. I wonder how and if the plethora of different seats and thigh pads help or hinder the balance and movement of the body.
I think with wonder and a little concern at the huge difference between classical dressage, so called modern dressage and now competitive dressage. Whatever we think of the differences I think we should all agree that the passion should be evident by the softness, the pleasure and the ease of communication between the horse and rider. It is a joy to watch a ride, any ride that doesn’t look like mental, emotional and physical warfare between the horse and the rider.