Kerry Mack – “It is said that you can win a dressage test on the short side.”
Corners and short sides are really the only free time that you have in the test. You don’t get a score for your corners and the short sides, but this is the time in your test where you are able to rebalance your horse and prepare them for the next movement. The corner is really useful because the corner is a great time to half halt your horse, reengage your horse, and get your horse to bend. It’s also the preparation for the movement that’s coming ahead.
So as you go through the corner, if you’re going to ride an extended trot coming out of the corner, or if you’re gonna ride a half pass coming out of the corner, you tell your horse what’s coming in the corner. So having a good corner is really essential for setting up for the movement that is coming. If you have a bad corner, it’s going to mess up your next movement.
The short side is also important because when you go across the short side, the judge looks at the silhouette of the horse. As you ride across the short side, it’s really important to check: is your horse’s poll up as the highest point? Is their nose a little bit in front of the vertical? Show off the nicest, most cadenced gait that you can get going across the short side because when you’re going across the short side, even though you’re not getting a score for that movement, the judge is taking note of the frame and the engagement, and all that stuff is going to factor into the collective marks at the end of your test.
So I’ll give you guys here a few exercises that you can use to work on your corners and your short sides.
I really hope these tips help!
Happy Riding!
Amelia
