Nice horse, nice rider. With time they will be even better.
Iāve read a few interviews with Ed Gal, and he says he saves the extended trots for shows , and often works his horses at home in what he calls āthe pony trotā.
[QUOTE=Countrywood;8415438]
Iāve read a few interviews with Ed Gal, and he says he saves the extended trots for shows , and often works his horses at home in what he calls āthe pony trotā.[/QUOTE]
Not surprising. I donāt know many experienced riders who ask for that kind of movement at home. Some of the most spectacular horses look downright average in their regular workā¦ Ok, maybe not average, but certainly donāt look like that 
I personally prefer Valegro. He doesnāt look like a windup mechanical toy.
My first thought was āBig Lick Dressageā. Which is probably unfair, this isnāt necessarily cruel or ridiculous, I was just surprised at how much dressage has changed since I last followed it.
The rider is incredible, and the horse is doing what he was bred to do, and trained to do. Itās a reflection of modern dressage. Whether you think this is a good or bad thing is entirely subjective.
Sports which are judged on subjective criteria encourage faster evolution, as breeders and trainers take what is considered āgoodā to extremes. If that is what the judges are rewarding, then that is the future of the sport.
I donāt see how āmodern dressageā is so off the rails when you see a horse like Valegro excelling at the top.The judges do a decent job of rewarding good work.
I donāt think Zoniks movement is spidery or exaggerated. Totosā was at times and I hope Gal does not try to bring out that quality in Zonik and instead concentrates on pure movement, as Valegro demonstrates.
Valegro is a more muscular mover, Zonik is more floaty.
Valegro is also a much more compact and (relatively) short-legged horse. It would be difficult to get āspideryā movement from him even if you wanted to.
[QUOTE=heronponie;8417329]
Valegro is also a much more compact and (relatively) short-legged horse. It would be difficult to get āspideryā movement from him even if you wanted to.[/QUOTE]
The point is that his movement is highly rewarded by the judges so perhaps it is incorrect to suggest that āmodernā dressage is going the wrong way or that judges are rewarding the wrong things.
[QUOTE=Crockpot;8417472]
The point is that his movement is highly rewarded by the judges so perhaps it is incorrect to suggest that āmodernā dressage is going the wrong way or that judges are rewarding the wrong things.[/QUOTE]
One can hope that the TRAINING is what is important. Charlotte and Carl train very differently than the Dutchā¦thank goodness. The lack of negative tension in Charlotteās riding (or should I say in her mounts) is so refreshing.
[QUOTE=heronponie;8417329]
Valegro is also a much more compact and (relatively) short-legged horse. It would be difficult to get āspideryā movement from him even if you wanted to.[/QUOTE]
He shows natural movement.
Yes, I understood your point Crockpot, and yes, I understand what natural movement looks like Equibrit. Did not think I was stating something controversial or unclear, simply commenting on the conformation of that horse.
Reminds me of Big Lickā¦
I hope dressage still means training. Circus is something else. Y
Wonderful showing of what breeders and trainers are creating but this is far off from any true gaits that used to be marked well.
Why do we have to go to the edge of breeding mutation with all horse sports. Reminds me how off the edge western pleasure, Arabian, QH and TWH etc have gone in the past ten years. No wonder the average horse owner is giving up on horses now; that is what it takes to win I would not want it either
Imo, Zoniksā movement is natural to that horse. And some of it of course is created by conditioning and training, but that kind of lofty gait and airtime is bred into certain horses. (why they sell for such high $). Imo, EG is evolving as a rider/trainer and perhaps going less for the flash he went for with Toto and more for balanced movement.
That said, nothing wrong with a bit of flash as long as it is natural expression and not forcedā¦it is a horse SHOW after all. Zonik looks full of joy and like it is easy for him , you canāt fake that in a horse. Charlotte and Valegro have same quality, they make it look easy and the horse looks happy to be out there. I used to hate watching Elizabeth Werth ride, her horses always look tense and sullen and like she is pushing them to the max.
[QUOTE=melhorse;8418155]
Wonderful showing of what breeders and trainers are creating but this is far off from any true gaits that used to be marked well.
Why do we have to go to the edge of breeding mutation with all horse sports. Reminds me how off the edge western pleasure, Arabian, QH and TWH etc have gone in the past ten years. No wonder the average horse owner is giving up on horses now; that is what it takes to win I would not want it either[/QUOTE]
There are still lots of ānormalā horses out there that will be competitive with good training. Probably not win the Olympic Gold, but most dressage shows are far from that. The ones that are on track to medal at the Olympics etc should be fantastic movers, as well as superbly trained and ridden. For the life of me I cannot see why watching EG on a super young prospect would make any average horse owner give up.
As if I could ride as well as EG even if some fairy godmother gave me such a horseā¦as if most tennis players could play like Federer if someone put them in a US open tournament? An arena does not make a champion tennis player, a track record of competition and success does. Same with a rider. A suburb horse does not make a champion rider, we saw that with Toto. Itās the other way around, a superb rider brings out the best in any horse and thus over time the rider gets sponsored to ride the best ( or buys and trains raw talent up to the best as CH does)
[QUOTE=ShannonLee;8418271]
There are still lots of ānormalā horses out there that will be competitive with good training. Probably not win the Olympic Gold, but most dressage shows are far from that. The ones that are on track to medal at the Olympics etc should be fantastic movers, as well as superbly trained and ridden. For the life of me I cannot see why watching EG on a super young prospect would make any average horse owner give up.[/QUOTE]
Yes indeed. Watching these great talents is inspiring to me.
If anything is discouraging for the average rider, itās more likely the be the inflation that has made it nearly impossible to afford good training and decent facilities, feed, shoeing and veterinary care.
[QUOTE=melhorse;8418155]
No wonder the average horse owner is giving up on horses now; that is what it takes to win I would not want it either[/QUOTE]
By definition, the average horse owner is not an international dressage competitor.
[QUOTE=alicen;8418862]
By definition, the average horse owner is not an international dressage competitor.[/QUOTE]
Indeed. Isnāt it a bit like being an average marathon runner (anyone who can get through one and not fall over five miles into it, like I would do) and looking at the people who win marathons, and saying, āIf thatās what it takes to win a marathon, whatās the bloody point?ā
