Hilary M. Clayton, BVMS, PhD, MRCVS, will be the speaker at the Dressage at Devon Forum on Wednesday, September 24. With "The Bio-Mechanics of the Horse," participants will enjoy a brief lecture as well as a lively question and answer discussion session. A gourmet boxed dinner and soft drinks will be served. There will also be a cash bar.

The lecture, "Fitness Training to Maximize Dressage Performance," will address the fitness requirements of dressage horses at different levels of training, including exercises that can be used to improve the horse’s fitness and strength in a highly sport-specific manner. Descriptions will include exercises performed from the ground, cross-training exercises and strength training exercises. Dr. Clayton will also discuss performance issues related to lack of strength or suppleness.

A graduate of the University of Glasgow, Dr. Clayton is a professor and the McPhail Dressage Chair in the Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences at Michigan State University. She has focused her professional career on the study of the movement of horses, including gait analysis, lameness mechanics and the conditioning of sport horses. Dr. Clayton is also an accomplished equestrian with Bronze, Silver and Gold medals from the United States Dressage Federation.

"Fitness Training to Maximize Dressage Performance" will be held in the Devon Room at the 34th Annual Dressage at Devon Horse Show on the Devon Horse Show Grounds in Devon, PA. The Forum will begin at 7 p.m. (doors open at 6:00 p.m.). Tickets are $40 and include dinner. For information or to purchase tickets, contact Anne Moss at (610) 316-4294 or e-mail [email protected].

Dressage at Devon is the highest-rated international dressage competition and most complete breed show outside of Europe. Olympic medalist Robert Dover calls Dressage at Devon “the standard by which all American horse shows should be judged.”

Dressage at Devon takes place at the Devon Horse Show Grounds, Route 30, in Devon, PA, September 23-28.

For more information on Dressage at Devon, please visit www.dressageatdevon.org.