E
Dressage
The Western Way
Part I by Jeff Wilson
Photos by Rein Photography
Everyone should have access to the highest level of horsemanship they desire, regardless of the saddle they ride in, the clothes they wear, or the horse they ride. I can’t say everyone has had that
opportunity available to them more than right now, so giddy-up! I’m talking about Cowboy and Western Dressage.
The truth is, and I’m staring at all you western riders, is that the principles of riding that are older than dirt have been locked away from you. I’m talking about a riding foundation called dressage. First, let me ring my own cowbell and see if my definition rings true for you. As a western rider I have a culture. It’s comprised of my cowboy hat, my boots and all my western tchotchkes. It’s the decor and ambiance of my house and barn, from the quintessential wagon wheel chandelier swinging in my arena to the sorry-eyed, maneless, flea-bitten blue, happy appy in the barn. I have my identity as an equestrian in the western world. The world of dressage, for me, was off the radar because I blazingly rode with a lariat. A preposterous idea would mean giving up my western saddle, my daisy-clipper, along with my cowboy hat, for duds that’d be too tight. But that’s the misunderstood world of dressage.
The good news is that the world of dressage has finally come to you, right there, plopped down and still wiggling at your doorstep. You can ride in your comfy jeans, in your beat-up western saddle, with ole Thunder. It truly is a moment of “come as you are.”
The truth is that horsemanship is much older than what we do here in America. In fact, it’s thousands of years old. Techniques born out of military function, battle maneuvers and quests for survival to an age where horsemanship was developed to its highest form of art. That means that horses have been outsmartin’ their riders longer than you’ve been outsmarted by yours. These developments are very much alive and available to us today through the misunderstood discipline called dressage. Most western horsemen will not give up their western lifestyle and embrace breeches and formal attire. There is no appeal to a discipline that doesn’t seem to agree with the work ethic of the western horse. The age-old foundation of dressage is so much bigger than the stadiums we see dressage horses compete in today. The thousands of years of horsemanship, called dressage, has now come to us in the form of western and cowboy dressage horsemanship, a practical application of biomechanically engineered foundations that bring the highest level of horsemanship from the ages to you. Boom.
much alive and available to us today through the misunderstood discipline called dressage. Most western horsemen will not give up their western lifestyle and embrace breeches and formal attire. There is no appeal to a discipline that doesn’t seem to agree with the work ethic of the western horse. The age-old foundation of dressage is so much bigger than the stadiums we see dressage horses compete in today. The thousands of years of horsemanship, called dressage, has now come to us in the form of western and cowboy dressage horsemanship, a practical application of biomechanically engineered foundations that bring the highest level of horsemanship from the ages to you. Boom.
CONTINUED >>