Walking On Volume 6, Issue 10, October 2019 | Page 6

Bits & Pieces
Walking Horses Excel at
WDAA World Championships
Things are cooling off in middle Tennessee but our
breed continues to be hot competition no matter where
they go or what type competition they choose. To me,
it is a personal victory to see OUR breed compete in
“unusual or different”  rivalries and do well. One of
these “different” competitions is Dressage. Dressage
is fairly new to our breed; however it is one of the the
oldest of training methods, and is often referred to as
classic training. This is a consistent method of training
for all horses that traces back to Xenophon a Greek
General who wrote about it in 475BC. The court horses
of the Renaissance in Europe were presented using this
training, which can still be seen at the Spanish Riding
School in Vienna Austria. Applying this training tech-
nique to our Tennessee Walking Horses is a natural fit
because the training exercises promote engagement of
the haunches and following through stride as well as
collection that naturally enhances animation. The ex-
ercises found within the tests in each level are the basis
of this training technique.
Recently the Western Dressage World Champion-
ships were held in Gutherie, Oklahoma. The Tennessee
Walking Horse breed saw several horses competing in
the Gaited Division. In the Gaited Division there were
Tennessee Walking Horses, Racking Horses,  and Mis-
souri Fox Trotters. The show grounds were beautiful
and spacious. The indoor arena was the biggest many
had ever shown in. According to all reports the gaited
folks were made to feel very welcomed. Everyone was
so nice and encouraging.
 Professional trainer, Scot MacGregor has been
instrumental in bringing  Dressage to the forefront
for the TWH breed for several years. Scot has several
horses that compete nationwide and do well. At the
Western Dressage World Championships MacGregor
Stables had outstanding scores resulting in multiple
wins. Not only did Scot excel with his horses but his
customers’ horses also did very well. Scot and All
Around Midnight garnered six wins and one reserve.
Extra Daring, owned by Pat Crouse, collected one win
Jessica Marlewski
Jessica Marlewski
Tami Steinbrecher
Kitty Keen
6 • Walking On
Scot MacGregor