Well if I’m a hunter rider and my current coats are gray and brown, I might be looking at the old hue/ saturation chart and think heck if I know if my coat is too pale and I’m not going to buy a new coat just to try a dressage test. Same for a jumper.
Maybe it will encourage someone to try a dressage show, maybe it won’t. But I’m stoked at the prospect of a purple coat 
I personally agree that dressage is more affordable than people make it out to be. Definitely cheaper than hunters.
You will stand out in the warmup, maybe. But you will be scored exactly the same in the ring. To the judge, the color of your clothes doesn’t matter. That’s the beauty of dressage.
Pretty sure it’s oneK
IIRC, it just says “a conservative color” coat up to 4th level. “Dark color” for FEI. Edward Gal is wearing what I’d consider a surprisingly light grey/buff colored coat by FEI standards in a video of one of his early rides with Totilas. Apparently no one had a stroke. Lol. I personally don’t think it set off Totilas nearly as well as a black coat did. But I’m also sure Edward Gal doesn’t give a fig about my opinion.
All the show hunters here wear black or navy, with the occasional dark hunter green thrown in for riders of chestnuts. I think I’ve seen an aubergine once. How the judges keep track of all these pairs, I don’t know. I once inwardly tsk tsked at how many classes a particular large grey pont was being ridden in only to discover it was actually 2 grey ponies. And darn didn’t they ever move the same way! I’m basically the same size as my daughter, so for my dressage debut with Il Divo, I borrowed her dark navy coat. (She’s a hunter.)
If I had to guess, I think it is because hunter attire/tack are workmenlike, whereas in dressage, with its military roots, more ornate attire/tack that echoes a military dress uniform is the norm.
I was shocked at how cheap my dressage debut was compared to my child’s hunter shows! My coach was an eventer. And they don’t really go to things with you. At first, I wanted to whine “But, but, I’m a schlocky AA! I need adult supervision!!” (To which she no doubt would’ve pointed out that I’m older than her in her polite, Canadian way.) Leased horse was much more accomplished at dressage than me. I took the advice of his mom to register for 2 tests as he might go round like a giraffe in the first.
We hitched a ride with another boarder. Horse was excited about his triumphant return to the dressage court after 5+ years & somewhat irritated we’d entered Intro & not PSG, but mostly held it together for his hapless, green bean human. We pinned in both tests, no one died, & the whole affair cost 1/3 of what a hunter schooling show would be.
I’ve never gone to a dressage show without my coach. Now I feel like kind of a wimp lol
Gorgeous!
Oh, no don’t! I train with pure dressage coaches sometimes but have found that eventing trainers who are serious about their dressage click better for me. The no coach is an eventer thing.
She also knew the horse knew what he was doing & could be relied on to mostly keep us in one piece! 
I’ve gone to schooling shows alone, but whenever I’ve gone to a recognized show, it’s always been with a group from the barn, so the trainer/coach has been there. I like having my coach there for my warmup. You have to “ride the horse you have,” and sometimes, even though the horse I have looks exactly like my horse, now that we’re at the show I have no idea who the creature I’m riding is, lol. Show nerves can get in the way of assessing the situation and figuring out how to ride Godzilla.
I have brutal anxiety so I always wanted my coach to be the first one to ride my horse on the show grounds and even to warm him up before my class, just so I could be reassured that I probably wouldn’t die lol.
That being said, that was with my old horse, who strenuously objected to finding himself alone in a ring in a strange place. My current ride is a pretty much bombproof 20yo who has a BTDT attitude about everything.
Who knows, maybe I might even enjoy showing now …if I ever do it again lol.
It’s wonderful that you’ve found a great partner. It’s no fun riding a time bomb, especially at a show.
When I first moved to the barn that I was at - there was a a large group of riders who showed, so it was always a group with the trainer. That group got much smaller very quickly, so it was down to just me and the trainer who were showing at all. Trainer went through a spell where she did not have a horse she particularly wanted to show, got re-married, and had a barn full of horses and riders who lessoned but did not show. It was a real strain on her to go to a multi-day show for one rider - and ridiculously expensive for me to have to cover all her expenses myself - so I showed quite a bit on my own. I had my own truck and trailer so was perfectly capable of getting there on my own.
I knew quite a few other people at the shows, so I was always able to find a extra hand when I needed one and often would request to be stabled near a good friend. Not exactly the same as showing with a big group, but also did not have to deal with the drama. If I though I needed it, I would pick up an abbreviated clinic style session from a trainer who I often clininced with for eyes during warm-up.
Interesting. Never occured to me to pay for my coach’s support, though i suppose i wouldn’t mind buying my coach’s trip-with. I’ll probably just go to shows where i know she’ll be officiating or attending… (*Can you enter a class that your coach/associate is judging?) And one day, if this is actually something i want to pursue, i’ll put up a training arena and mirrors so i can see what it looks like when i’m i think getting this good movement or that bad movement. I hope to be self-supporting, as that ultimately, is my goal. To become a great rider. Clothing and tack and ‘socialization’ aside.
No, you cannot.
Just about every coach will require you to pay for coaching at events. If it’s an event they can drive to, generally gas/travel is included in that fee. If you’re going farther or to a multi-day show that requires a hotel, you and the rest of your coach’s clients will be paying the tab for their accommodations/travel, as well as the coaching fee. A lot of the time, it shows up as a much larger coaching fee. That’s why most will just go alone as opposed to being the sole payee for their trainer.
I suppose i really do not want her judging me anyway…she gets to do that every week. And come to think about it, another more critical/less involved set of eyeballs would be more beneficial.
Makes sense to pay an expert for her valuable time/advise. But, doubt i’ll ever take my show on the road. (doubt i’d want to leave my horse overnight, and my farm can’t run itself)
I have this jacket in purple. Although my trainer almost had a stroke when I showed up in warm up.
No, you can’t compete in a class if you have been coached by the judge within 30 days (in Canada anyway) or if the judge has any ownership stake in your horse.
I’m puzzled by your comment about not paying for your trainer’s time. Why wouldn’t you? Hats how they make their living, isn’t it?
Most people I know in a full 5 day / week training program don’t pay extra for show coaching, but everyone I know who just takes lessons once a week or once a month certainly pays for their coach’s time at a show. And if the coach isn’t attending anyway with their own horses, clients would also cover their expenses related the show like meals, hotel, etc.
There are plenty of local one-day shows in most places where you can haul in, ride a couple of tests, pick up your score sheets and go home.
whut? maybe you should reread my original post?
It wasn’t in your original post, it was the comment that you had never considered paying for your coach’s support at a show. Just curious why. Is that not the norm where you live?
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