2 minute read
Flatlanders Dressage & Combined Training Association, Inc
PRESIDENT, Pat Boutwell VICE PRESIDENT, Jill Christopher TREASURER, Cynthia Klingler SECRETARY, Shelley Zwiebel WEBSITE, www.flatlandersdressage.com
by Heather Bonifas
Everyone’s heard of the old adage, “all work and no play makes Johnny a dull boy”, or at least something close to that. Recreation is not just a luxury for the lazy, but a much needed time for variety and mental down time. Just as this is true for ourselves, it is likewise true for our equine friends. A couple of years ago, I was privileged to sit in on an educational training clinic at the Equine Affaire, Columbus. In the presentation, the clinician spoke about the importance of recreational and varied activities for our horses. She was a Grand Prix rider but did not always focus her ring work on particular movements nor her next test. She regularly worked cross training days with her horses and was convinced that it made them much the better dressage horse for it. Some of her activities that she included in her training routine were western riding, jumping, and trail time outside of the arena. She said it kept them and her much happier to face the more challenging elements if they spent time away from the grind of monotonous training.
I could not have agreed with her more. Many horses (and people) get stuck in a rut, as it were, and lose the joy in the very thing they are pursuing. As such, I was happy to participate in a Flatlander’s Fun Day recently. Seven of us came out to enjoy the activities planned out by our gracious host, Marylou Paxton. The weather happened to be just perfect for the two-part roster. Half of the plans included riding and working on tests in her outdoor arena while the other was set up in her large pasture containing multiple obstacles for the horses to navigate. The tests were self and peer evaluated and varied from lower level traditional, mid level western and an impressive upper-level test ridden on a pony! What a time we had together. Out in the pasture, people were weaving cones, crossing ground poles, navigating through uprights with fluttering bags, walking across a tarp, and even over a couple of low jumps. Both people and horses looked to be having a wonderful day. Many of us were pleasantly surprised with our skills and those of our horses!
Of course, we shared a meal— this time was under Marylou’s shade trees. We carried in our own food, shared it amongst friends and lounged about until it was time to wander back home. Since this was such a roaring success, we are planning more enrichment (fun) days for the upcoming summer season.
