101 Western Dressage Exercises for Horse & Rider

This series of Western Dressage exercises are designed to improve suppleness, balance in movement, and responsiveness. Each exercise has a specific goal in mind, and they are organized by different areas of focus: softness, looseness, rider development, engagement, adjustability, and ground work. With illustrated step-by-step instructions and full arena diagrams, you'll quickly be on your way to mastering this exciting discipline. The exciting new discipline of Western Dressage allows riders of Western pleasure, work, or competitive horses to take advantage of the benefits of traditional dressage using Western tack and attire. This book, the first on the topic, has step-by-step instructions for the 101 key exercises.
Jec Ballou is the author of  101 Western Dressage Exercises for Horse & Rider, 101 Dressage Exercises for Horse & Rider, and Equine Fitness. She is a national advisor to the Western Dressage Association of America and contributed to the current rules for the sport. She teaches clinics across the United States. She lives in Santa Cruz, California.




Stephanie Boyles is the co-author of 101 Western Dressage Exercises for Horse & Rider, founder of Unbridled Rider, and the creator of the mobile applications 101 Dressage and 101 Western Dressage. Boyles lives in Boulder, CO.


Al Dunning has been training award-winning Quarter Horses and outstanding riders for more than 40 years. He and his students have won numerous national titles in reining, cutting, working cow horse, and other disciplines. He owns Almosta Ranch in Scottsdale, Arizona (www.aldunning.com). Contents



Foreword by Al Dunning



1.       What is Western Dressage?

2.       Softness



1.       Correct Flexion

2.       Releasing Tension

3.       Arena Diamond

4.       Random Rails

5.       Serpentine with Poles

6.       Haunches-in Prep

7.       Circle 8s

8.       Circle Prep

9.       Lope Chute

10.   Box Turns

11.   Testing Balance #1

12.   Testing Balance #2

13.   Leg-yield to Smaller Circle

14.   Lope Lightness

15.   Quarter Pirouette and Halt

16.   Fine Tuning

17.   Half-pass to Leg-yield

18.   Shoulder-in to Haunches-in

19.   Two Circles at Once



3.       Looseness



20.   Controlled Wandering

21.   Snake over Poles

22.   Circle Review

23.   Free Wheelin'

24.   Sit and Stretch

25.   Warm-up Figure 8

26.   Stretching and Rounding

27.   Cavalletti Half-circles

28.   Suspension Square

29.   Testing the Walks

30.   Adjust the Walk #1

31.   Adjust the Walk #2

32.   Raised Fan

33.   Turn Both Ends

34.   Jog Diagonals

35.   Three Step, Three Step

36.   Leg-yield to Lengthening



4.       Rider Development



37.   Getting Centered

38.   Rider Posture

39.   Rider Coordination

40.   Independent Seat

41.   Finding Feel

42.   Developing Seat

43.   The 4x4x4

44.   No Hands

45.   Pelvic Rock

46.   Mindful Corners

47.   Lope Transitions on Centerline

48.   Box Transitions #1

49.   Box Transitions #2

5.       Engagement

50.   Circle Up

51.   Balance Pattern

52.   Over and Forward

53.   Working to Lengthened Jog

54.   Two Poles plus a Stride

55.   Step Under

56.   Collected Walk

57.   Collect – Extend

58.   Schaukel #1

59.   Schaukel #2

60.   Collection Serpentines

61.   Jog Half-pass

62.   Lope Bowtie

63.   Counter to True

64.   Counter-lope Serpentine

65.   Lope Half-pass #1

66.   Lope Half-pass #2

67.   Pirouette to Half-pass

68.   Very Collected Strides

69.   Shoulder-in on Circle

70.   Counter-lope Circle 8s

71.   Rein-back to Lope

72.   Lope Pirouette



6.       Adjustability



73.