What is dressage?
Dressage is about showing the judge that you can get your pony to do what you want him to do, when you want him to do it.
You and your pony have to follow a set of instructions laid out in the dressage test.
A judge marks the test. They give you a mark out of ten for how well you carry out each instruction. At the end of the test the marks are added up and the winner is the horse and rider with the highest score.
Competitive dressage within the Pony Club runs at 5 levels for both teams and individuals:
- Preliminary PC70
- Grassroots PC80
- Novice
- Intermediate
- Open
The Summer Area qualifying competition includes all these levels; PC70 and PC80 qualify for the Regional Championships whilst Novice and above qualify for the Pony Club Championships.
There is also the Spring Festival Championship which has opportunities to qualify at an Area competition in the Winter at grassroots level and above.
In March of each year we ask those that are interested in being considered for teams to register their interest via the calendar and attend as many dressage training sessions as possible to allow our coach to help and advise on which level would be most appropriate.
Eligibility rules apply – take a look here
What to wear for dressage competition:
- Current standard hat – hats and hat covers must be predominately black, navy blue or a conservative dark colour that matches the rider’s jacket
- Jodphurs/Breeches – white, cream or beige (with or without dark-coloured contrast seats)
- Riding jacket – a traditional style worn with a Pony Club Tie or hunting stock.
- Standard riding or jodhpur boots with a well defined square cut heel may be worn. Plain black or brown half chaps may be worn with jodhpur boots of the same colour. Tassels and fringes are not allowed.
- White NWPC numnah
- Snaffle Bit (See rules)
- No Martingale
- Gloves
- Hair should be tied back securely, in a safe manner to reduce the risk of hair being caught and to prevent scalp injuries
- No button holes
- At prize-giving, mounted or dismounted, competitors must be correctly dressed in their competition riding clothes
Please refer to the current Dressage rule book or ask if you are unsure if your bit or tack is ‘legal’ and familiarise yourself with the dressage rule book and includes forbidden bits, whip and spur lengths, eligibility and the rules of the competitions
Training:
The training pathway offered by NWPC begins for the 5yrs plus age group with Dragonflies. Riders need to be fully independent at walk and trot to participate. Coaching is normally in groups of 4 for 1 hour.
For those 10yrs and over the journey is continued with coaching from Jemma Bentley, riders need to be confident with the 3 paces. Coaching is in pairs for 45 minutes.
Training takes place throughout the year culminating in test riding clinics leading up to the Area Competitions.
At training members may wear dark plain jodhpurs with NWPC branch polo shirt and sweatshirt.
Any questions about which level to train at, please ask Dawn Guyatt
