Enjoying Dressage 2 is part two of the popular Enjoying Dressage series with Richard Davison. An easy to learn guide which everyone will find simple to watch and understand.
Richard gives a master class on the rider’s seat, getting structure to your training session and flow in your lateral work, how to get an uphill canter and spring into flying changes, assessing the young horse and extra curricular training.
First up was a whistle stop tour of the riders seat and position in trot, canter and also walk – something that can sometimes be overlooked warned Richard. Richard began by explaining that the dressage position should be as if you are standing up but with your knees bent, and demonstrated on his first horse Hiscox’s Artemis.
Enjoying Dressage 2 DVD Cover
A great tip for those who find sitting trot more difficult, is to go sitting whilst the horse is moving sidewards – this makes it more comfortable for both horse and rider the three time olympian explains.
He next rode another of his horses, Hiscox’s Aliano and covered a variety of exercises from the most simple of lateral movements – the leg yield – right up to some more difficult movements, so that whatever level you and your horse are currently working at, there is some advice and an exercise to help you both improve.
Richard then progresses to talk about how he works each of his horses every day, going through five stages including the warm up -suppling and response’, the body of the lesson right through to the cool down. This is ideal for those of us who get into the menage, warm up and then think ‘what shall I do next?’ In this section you will pick up some interesting tips and ideas that you can try with your own horse.
He emphasises how a horse can change every single day – they can be stiffer on some days for various reasons and some times they may be more flexible and it’s important that you adapt your training on a daily basis to reflect this.
It was interesting to see how responsive Richard’s horse was – even to the smallest of changes in his position – some so small it was impossible to even see.
Next, Gillian Davidson rode Hiscox Komanchi – a more experienced horse than the first two, with Richard teaching and explaining on foot, as she rode some more complex dressage movements.
Gillian then rode a four-year-old horse, with Richard explaining what you should look for in a good, young dressage horse – perfect advice for those who are thinking of buying a new horse in the near future. He covered all the attributes of conformation and movement, examining across the paces whilst explaining in detail the positive and negative points and what you should look for when buying your next potential horse.
Richard showjumps his younger horses for a bit of fun, ‘playtime’ as he calls it – to help them stay motivated and to vary their work. Gillian and Olly ride two five-year-olds over totting poles, some simple gymnastic jumping exercises and some fitness cantering to finish this masterclass DVD.
After watching Enjoying Dressage 2, I was itching to tack up my horse and practice all of the exercises and tips that I had just picked up. It’s so packed with advice you will have to watch it more than once so you can get the most out of Richard’s expertise and advice!
A must watch for every dressage enthusiast.
To enter our competition to win a copy of Enjoying Dressage 2 with Richard Davison, courtesy of Equestrian Vision, please click here.
