Dressage

Dressage is considered the 'art of riding'. The sport involves hours and years to produce a horse that is correct in the basics of symmetry and balance, that has self-carriage, is very responsive and involves delicate communication between horse and rider. Dressage horses are also expected to master special movements such as half-passes, piaffe, the passage, a collected and extended walk, trot, canter and gallop and basic dressage is considered a fundamental requirement for other sports such as jumping and 3 day eventing.

“The benefits dressage offers to any horse’s training are improved muscle conditioning, improved soundness and flexibility, improved rideability and improved behavior.”

— Ellesse Jordan Tzinberg, International Grand Prix Dressage Rider & Trainer

Standardbred horses in dressage

Over the years Standardbred horses have made tremendous headway in the dressage arenas world wide. Now that it is becoming known that pacers (Standardbred horses that have former pacing racing careers) can be retrained into new careers to become horses that trot and canter without the pace the versatile Standardbred is also beginning to show the talents of the breed in the sport of dressage.

Xena and Jo from Tasmania placed in the Top Ten
at the EA Tasmanian State Dressage Championships

Kelly and TC enjoying their many wins in dressage competitions.

Online Dressage Competitions

Showing in dressage competitions is expensive. The travel to each competition and the fees for participating and boarding a horse can add up. Recently, dressage entered into a different phrase of competition which is referred to as Online competition. In general, to enter into this type of competition a rider submits a recorded (video) test to a panel of judges and is judged against the other competitors. This has enabled a lot of competitors to be able to participate in competitions where the expense might otherwise be prohibitive.

Rhiannon and her Standardbred horse, Jimmy (Got The Life) have enjoyed online competitions and been very successful in dressage. Rhiannon explains, "I prefer online. It’s an even playing field, but I do show Jimmy locally. He finished second at the Royal Show a few years ago. I will still compete in live events but there’s a bigger audience and better prizes to win online.”

Rhiannon Dwayne and her Standardbred Got The Life was recently judged the 2019 Dressage On-line Overall International Champion in Australia.

Rhianon and Got The Life are also former Australian and British Online Dressage Champions and have won and placed at numerous other dressage events.

Qualities that make Standardbred Horses ideal for dressage

The Standardbred horse is known for its versatility to participate in many different riding styles and sports. See our Standie Talents section for examples of the many areas of horseback riding Standardbred horses are successful in.

Standardbred horses have a combination of excellent temperaments and confirmation that is desirable for many types of riding and particularly for dressage:

• The horses have an ingrained work ethic that is undeniable.
• The horses are willing and easy to train
• The horses are versatile and suitable for many riding styles and equine sports
• The horses excel in jumping, dressage and many other sports
• The horses are known for their stamina and big hearts
• The horses have strong legs and hooves. They are and remain sound for many activities.
• The horses are rarely 'spooky', they are safe to work with
• Pacers are easy to find and affordable: Local equine rescues and farm animal auctions often have pacers for adoption / sale.

Dressage begins with the basics

If you adopt a Standardbred horse with the intention of training and working with the horse in dressage, retraining is required to teach the horse the basics which are the trot and canter (without the pace). The true and tried method was developed into an educational video, Standardbred Training - Retraining A Pacer, by the Standardbred Fan Club in 2009 and continues to be the preferred method of many riders because of its humane approach and the outcome which is a fully retrained horse that trots and canters on cue without the pacing.