Reprinted with permission from Cowboy Dressage Newsletter:
August 2-4, 2013
“Build It and They Will Come”
“Cowboy Dressage Competition debuted at Rancho Murieta Gold N Grand Horse Show Aug 2-4. Gold N Grand is known on the west coast for being the premier open horse show at one of the west’s top equine facilities.
A record number of 183 entries for one discipline made history. It was Cowboy Dressage. This does not happen by accident. It happens because of hard work, a strong support system, brilliant team work and an excellent product.
Thank you to so many people who worked to make this happen. From trainers to amateurs to volunteers to staff and most of all to the many, many horses who all gave so much.
We were so excited to present our Gold N Grand High Point Cowboy Dressage Buckle to our open rider Jeff Sanders of Fallon, NV. Our Amateur Buckle went to May Dutil of Santa Rosa, CA and our Junior Buckle went to Anna Borden of Auburn, CA. Every rider and every horse was a winner and we congratulate you all!!!
This is very exciting and rewarding for a small grass-roots group with an idea and a dream. With the help of extraordinary people from our core Cowboy Dressage World Group, Dr. Robert Miller, Jack Brainard and many others, we are forging ahead with momentum and growth.”
183 entries! All I can say is WOW! I look forward to seeing Cowboy Dressage develop over the next few years and kudos to Eitan for continuing to advocate horsemanship that is based on kindness and respect for the horses as well as his production of beautiful, effective educational materials that stay true to dressage principles.
Such exciting things are happening all over the place in the western dressage community. I continue to be amazed by the growth opportunities available to riders who are interested in creating a strong dressage foundation on their western horses. As fall approaches and the regular show season ends, we start to think about ways to keep ourselves riding and to keep our horses fit. In our barn, one way we are keeping our edge on is by utilizing the virtual show systems. Virtual showing allows riders the luxury of staying at home and videoing their tests. For competitors and horses alike, freedom from show nerves, strange environments, unpredictable conditions, exhaustion and myriad problems including transportation issues or for riders who live in remote locations with no show venues, the virtual show system is a huge gift. North American Western Dressage developed their virtual show system in 2012. The organization will continue offering educational and competitive opportunities to ride the NAWD tests and give participants valuable feedback from qualified dressage judges. The virtual shows will focus on education, growth and development for riders who wish to utilize the NAWD tests at all 6 levels. The NAWD Virtual Show System is available to both members and non-members and tests may be submitted for NAWD Trax year end awards. I will continue to bring readers upcoming show details in the weeks to come.
IPHDA (International Performance Horse Development Association) headed up by Rod Miller has created a virtual show system that is super simple to use and which gives riders choices about the style of tack in which they ride. Here is a link to a video of a simple Level 1 walk/trot IPHDA “Dressage in any Tack” test: http://youtu.be/tOs8uh5GITU It’s not a perfect ride but you get the idea and I tell you, if we can figure out how to participate, so can you! At the lowest levels, this system provides a huge learning opportunity and helps riders get important direction for their training from qualified industry professionals. The wonderful part about virtual showing is that this educational direction is available year round so for those of us who live in snowbound areas, our winter training is manageable without travel risk to driver or horse. WDAA’s website has info on virtual shows as well so take a look at this simple way of getting professional feedback on training and riding.
Thank you all for taking the time to read this blog and for your interest in Western Dressage. I welcome your input regarding anything you have read in this blog, your rescue horse’s story as well as your western dressage story at [email protected].
Michelle Binder-Zolezzi is the founder of the Relational Riding Academy. Relational Riding is a program that utilizes dressage as fundamental training for all horses performing in all disciplines. She has been an ARIA certified Instructor since 1989. She is currently working on her second book “Relational Riding: A Horsemanship Tutorial,” and has completed work on two professional video productions, “Any Horse, Any Rider: Relational Riding: A Universal Foundation” and "Understand Riding From the Ground Up."