Collection—what it is and what it isn’t—is regularly debated in most horsey circles. While there is a tendency to segregate ourselves by discipline, the truth is, the base philosophy should really be the same, whatever saddle you ride in or sport you pursue.
In her bestselling reference DRESSAGE 101, renowned dressage coach and motivational speaker Jane Savoie provides down-to-earth discussion around the ever-hot topic of collection and self-carriage, as well as all the exercises anyone ever needs to achieve collection as an “ultimate goal.” She also shares many stories of different riding lives, including this one about Dennis Reis, who once upon a time earned his living on the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association circuit:
Dennis was a cowboy who trained horses for a living and discovered he had been doing dressage without knowing it. As his ability to communicate with his animals evolved and his talent was noticed by his neighbors, who were mostly dressage riders, he found himself in the unusual position of being asked to reschool upper-level dressage horses who were brought to him with specific problems. The dressage riders sought him out even though he had no classical training himself.
When asked about collection, Dennis is quick to point out that it’s not just a “head-set.” “Collection isn’t conforming to a preconceived notion of a frame or a picture of what it should look like,” he says. “It’s not a reduction in speed or a shortening of frame. It’s a posture that generates deep inside the body. The horse is round, balanced, engaged, off the forehand, and his back and neck are ‘turned off’—not braced.”
In dressage terms, when the horse’s back and neck are “turned off,” the energy that originates in the hindquarters can flow to the forehand without meeting any stiffness or restriction caused by the sustained contraction of the back muscles.
Dennis is enthusiastic about the joys of riding a horse that is in self-carriage. “The movements are fluid and elastic, transitions are flowing and soft, the horse is light and easy to guide and willingly yields his body to the rider.”
I think we can all get there, don’t you?
Jane Savoie’s DRESSAGE 101 is available from the TSB online bookstore, where shipping in the US is FREE.
CLICK HERE for more information or to order.
And watch for Jane’s new book DRESSAGE BETWEEN THE JUMPS, coming Fall 2019!
Trafalgar Square Books, the leading publisher of equestrian books and videos, is a small business based on a farm in rural Vermont.