Horse Show Dressage
Objective:
Competitors at the same level complete a test with pre-set movements, receiving a score for each movement. The rider with the highest total score wins.
Each movement of the test is assigned a value of 0 (not executed) to 10 (Excellent). Any mark of 6 or below needs to be explained on the score sheet by the judge.
There are also collective marks from 0 - 10 awarded for gaits, impulsion, submission and the rider's position. The collective marks are given a co-efficient of two, doubling their value.
Going off course is penalized by 2 points the first time, 4 points the second time, and eliminated the third time.
Often considered the practice of the art of "classical horsemanship," dressage is best described as the ideal partnership between horse and rider. The horse should be supple, loose and flexible but also confident, attentive and calm. At all levels, they are judged on freedom of gaits, harmony and lightness, impulsion and acceptance of the bridle. Dressage competitions are open to any horse, mule or pony, no matter what breed.
The Tests:
At a local and national level, there are five levels of tests that horse and rider must work their way up to achieve the goals of suppleness, impulsion and harmony. Each level has a variety of tests that ask the same questions of horse and rider but in slightly different ways, allowing competitors to have more than one ride at the same show if they desire. Horses are limited to not more than one recognized competition in a day and no more than three rides a day at Fourth Level or below.
Starting from lowest to highest, the levels are:
Training Level - The most basic level of dressage that proves that the horse's back muscles are supple and loose. To be successful, the horse needs to move forward freely in a steady rhythm and calmly accept contact with the bit.
First Level - In addition to the requirements of Training Level, the horse should exhibit that it has developed "throughness" (pushing power from behind) and achieved a degree of balance.
Second Level - In addition to demonstrating that the horse has achieved the thrust needed to succeed in first Level, it also accepts more weight on the hindquarters (collection), and is reliably on the bit. A greater degree of straightness, suppleness, and self-carriage is required than at First Level.
Third Level - Above and beyond Second Level, the horse is now expected to clearly demonstrate rhythm, suppleness, acceptance of the bit, throughness, impulsion, straightness and collection in each movement. There must be a clear distinction between medium and extended paces.
Fourth Level - Tests at the Fourth Level are ranked as medium to difficult, designed to confirm that the horse has acquired a high degree of suppleness, impulsion, throughness, balance and lightness while always remaining reliably on the bit. The horse's movements must be straight, energetic and the transitions must be precise and smooth.
FEI Tests:
Riders who participate at the International level ride the following tests, culminating in the Olympic level Grand Prix tests.
Prix St. Georges - This test represents the medium stage of training. It comprises exercises to show the horse's submission to all the demands of classical equitation as well as the mental balance and development that will enable him to easily carry the moves out with harmony and lightness.
Intermediate I - Horses at this level are held to a relatively advanced standard. The object of this test it to progress the horses on from simply the correct execution of Prix St. Georges moves to the more demanding exercises of Intermediate II.
Intermediate II - Requiring even more correctness that Intermediate I, the object of this test is to prepare the horses for the Grand Prix.
Grand Prix - The highest level of achievement in dressage, this test requires perfection from the horse. It's characterized by the total absence of resistance and the complete development of impulsion while performing the most difficult moves in the sport.
The Musical Freestyle Test - This is a competition of artistic equitation set to music. It includes all the required movements and gaits of the standard tests at any particular level. That is, it is possible to ride a musical freestyle tests at First Level, Second Level, etc. on up through Grand Prix. The competitor is free to choose the form and manner of the presentation, as long as he completes the required moves within a fixed time. The test should clearly show unity between rider and horse as well as harmony in all the movements and transitions.
