1 Simple Tip to Improve Your Dressage Scores
Aug 25, 2023
Quick and easy tip to improve your dressage scores:
When heading across the diagonal, whether in working trot or any sort of lengthening/medium/extended, wait until the end of the movement (corner/downward transition) to change your posting diagonal.
If you change your posting diagonal in the middle, it can affect your horse's rhythm, balance, energy, and/or throughness. And it's RIGHT in front of the judge, so they see it. They see ALL of it.
Usually it's a minor inconsistency, but it can still be the difference between a 7 and an 8.
It just makes the movement look less fluid, even if your horse doesn't change at all.
If you wait until the end of the movement to change your posting diagonal, not only is any interruption/inconsistency more hidden, but it also can help collect your horse ever so slightly heading into the corner.
This goes for any horse, but can be even more important for horses who have sensitive backs.
So next time you head into the dressage arena, be patient and just wait to change your posting diagonal until the end of the diagonal. There's never a requirement to change it in the middle.
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