What did they say about that? Did the instructors bring up the word “brilliance” of the gaits?
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That’s great!
When I was scribing, one of the L candidates asked the instructor (who also is one of the people who have been derogatory about less fancy horses as noted on these forums, and helped write many of the tests and rules) about a trot lengthening. The lengthening was VERY dramatic, but with trailing hind legs and poll clearly low and well behind the vertical (head being a symptom of the rest of the body with this horse.) The instructor said, “well, you can’t give it a 10 since it’s behind the vertical, so I would take off a point for that.”
Said horse has since had a career ending injury of a type frequently considered to be at least sometimes connected to incorrect movement.
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Ah, I didn’t include my trainer fees - but I missed my weekly double lessons due to the show so it’s only about another 100 on top of my “typical” weekly training cost.
I did do my own grooming/braiding - thankfully it’s not as important to be perfect outside of hunters 
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I agree watching dressage is boring, even for us who ride and compete. However, musical freestyles do bring lots of interest and spectators. Pre-Covid, one of our local shows received some publicity, with local media promoting the show, especially the freestyles.
The response was overwhelming. So many members of the general public showed up there was no room for them. People who knew nothing about dressage or had never seen it loved the freeestyles! A television crew came and did a feature story.
Dressage can be popular if it is marketed correctly. Watching horses dance to music can be exciting for anyone who loves horses but never owned one.
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My years as a dancer and dance teacher make this subject critical to me. In that world, we spend every moment analyzing movement minutiae. Fortunately, for dancers and choreographers, we have a neutral system for describing movement known as Effort-Shape. Developed by Rudolph Laban, it offers a system of language outside good and bad.
I have thought for decades that dressage would benefit from a primer in this method.
To quickly boil it down, there are four so-called efforts and their extremes: Space - direct to indirect; Time - quick to sustained; Weight - strong to light; and Flow - free to bound. Every movement contains at least two easily sensed elements of these qualities. The more identifiable qualities, the richer and more meaningful the movement.
To use it in dressage:
Flicking extended trot front legs would be quick-TIME, free-FLOW, indirect-SPACE, and light-WEIGHT.
In contrast, in Effort Shape terms, the qualities we say are “good” could be described as: medium/moderate in TIME, with free FLOW (i.e. emanating from engagement behind), direct SPACE, and strong WEIGHT.
Here’s an excerpt from an Effort-Shape cheat sheet. I’m interested in your thoughts.
LMA-Workshop-Sheet-Laban.pdf (111.1 KB)
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It’s pretty typical for Region 1. The most I spend is for GAIGs (same facility) and aside from spending a little more because you’ll need an extra bag of shavings (15) and the champion upcharge on classes, it’s not that dissimilar. I can’t find what I spent on GAIGs but it was around 750 (2 classes was there Wednesday through Sunday, had my trainer school me in warm up twice plus a lesson and 6 bags of shavings for the princess). The other times I went to VHC this year for Dressage at Lexington and ERAHC it was 603 +hotel (120)+training costs (140) and 499.8+ hotel (84)+training (90). I can’t compare for Morven, Loch Moy, etc because we usually haul in but last year for one show we overnighted it was 428+shavings(38)+training and hauling (110). I didn’t think Region 1 would be that much cheaper that elsewhere since we’re normally a HCOLA but I guess I’m wrong.
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thanks for sharing this…good article for those of us who work hard and get creative but still feel the pinch in the cost of showing.
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There is a CDI and National show at Tyron this weekend. Most classes seem to average 2-4 entries per class. Especially for the CDI, it seems awfully small. Is this normal for this type of show this time of year?
Post-regionals and many people are preparing to head down south. This is not the time I’d expect shows to be full of entries.
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PLEASE let me or anyone know WHERE you think it could rotate to. They REALLY DO WANT to rotate! It seems every year I ask this question. ANd every year the “options” presented are either not suitable or not available (due to things like Arab Nationals or QH congress or something).
Tryon, Wellington, Ocala, Murrietta, LAEC just off the top of my head.
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Wasn’t the 2023 convention in Omaha? Where is the location for 2024?
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Will Rogers Center in Ft. Worth, Tx
Virginia Horse Center in Lexington, Va
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One of our local GMOs has apparently eliminated its Sept. show from its calendar. It was canceled this year a few weeks before the show, and it isn’t on the list of 2024 shows the organization announced by the GMO. The scuttlebutt I heard was that it is no longer cost effective. That show was held only a few weeks before qualifying ends for Regionals, and it used to attract a nice entry of local riders in the years when Regionals were held in this area. But Regionals are now being allocated to WEC-Ocala and many of this area’s local riders aren’t going to make the trek to FL so there isn’t as much impetus for them to support a local show at that time of year and esp. on a holiday weekend.
The GMO was also forced to raise its membership fee for next year because its Oct. show doesn’t draw as many entries as in years past when it was held in conjunction with Regionals. And that Oct show was generally the big money-maker for the organization. It holds a few other shows in the area - including some schooling shows - but there are a plethora of other entities also offering shows throughout the area, and all those entities compete with each other for entries. Couple that with a general downturn in the number of folks willing to shell out $$$ for recognized shows and we now have a situation where there are fewer fishies but more ponds.
Edited - It was the Oct. show that was canceled this year. The Sept. show was held as two separate shows but it doesn’t look there were a ton of entries. I only looked at one day but there were only eight riders in Training-3, eight riders in First-3, two in Third-3, two in Fourth-3, five in PSG, one in GP, etc. And those are total riders - Open, AA, and JR/YR.
But I am pretty sure that I saw the Oct. show on the schedule for next year but not the Sept. show.
If you mean the USDF convention, it is in Omaha, but it hasn’t happened yet. It is Nov 29-Dec 2.
2024 is Dec 5-8 in Houston.
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Thanks, I am losing track of time in my old age. LOL!
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Tryon is still east.
Tryon is still east.
We tried wellington for regionals. Twice. Didn’t go over well.
Ocala/WEC? Same driving issue and still in the east. Ky is much more central….
Murrietta I am not aware of.
LAEC? Pretty sure they have researched that.
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I think Ft Worth has a conflict.
And again, kY is much more central than VA
These locations should be given/ suggested to your Regional Director. She/he will have much more info.
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That’s just this year and next. Give a suggestion for a location further north.
Lots of folks don’t want to go to GHP.
Requirements/this kid what the FHP had this year: 500 stalls
6 competition arenas and at least 4 warm up arenas with the same footing as the competition arenas.
And I am sure Charlotte Trentelman, our RD, would love to hear suggestions that meet these criteria.
They are both on the west coast and perfectly capable of holding championships. The World Cup has been held at LAEC.
What about Vegas? Also good enough for the World Cup.
The basic answer is that USDF leadership prefers to have the show in their backyard, regardless of the inconvenience for members.
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