# Gorgeous young stallion



## Sara (Jul 6, 2007)

My jaw just about dropped off. Talk about a born athlete!


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## JustDressageIt (Oct 4, 2007)

How old is he? I gather he's pretty young... the only complaint I have is his headset under saddle - if he's young, I'd prefer to see a long and low headset - they're creating an unnatural bend and therefore inconsistencies. 

But he sure is stunning! I could watch him all day long...


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## moomoo (Feb 21, 2007)

Gorgeous! :shock: That guy must be near olypic standard sprinter to run that fast with him!


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## Sara (Jul 6, 2007)

He is quite young, born in 2005. A bit more info here:
News -> Breeding -> KWPN -> 2008 -> Ampere Wins 2008 KWPN Spring Stallion Performance Test


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## Kiki (Feb 7, 2007)

I love how floaty he looks in trot. He does loose a bit of it in canter but I agree that poor dude must be a sprinter


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## my2geldings (Feb 18, 2008)

Some gorgeous horses without a doubt but I can't help but shake my head at the how far they will synthesize the sport for show. I mean when you look at the general photo, a poor stallion is being chased in a cage with cameras and crowds etc etc.


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## LauraB (Nov 11, 2008)

He is cool but he looks like a handfull.


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## 1dog3cats17rodents (Dec 7, 2007)

CacheDawnTaxes said:


> Some gorgeous horses without a doubt but I can't help but shake my head at the how far they will synthesize the sport for show. I mean when you look at the general photo, a poor stallion is being chased in a cage with cameras and crowds etc etc.


I think he is being judged for breeding quality (or something like that)

Besides, except the crowds, is it any different then longeing/free longeing? The cage is just because they are working with stallions, and they don't want to get hurt.


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## Jubilee (Dec 15, 2008)

JustDressageIt said:


> How old is he? I gather he's pretty young... the only complaint I have is his headset under saddle - if he's young, I'd prefer to see a long and low headset - they're creating an unnatural bend and therefore inconsistencies.


I'm still new to how headsets and body carriage should be for Dressage. Could you help me understand better what exactly he is doing wrong with his head set. I'm having a hard time seeing it but I know that's simply because I have untrained eyes, I'm trying to learn.

He is GORGEOUS though. What breed is he?

Jubilee


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## JustDressageIt (Oct 4, 2007)

Jubilee said:


> I'm still new to how headsets and body carriage should be for Dressage. Could you help me understand better what exactly he is doing wrong with his head set. I'm having a hard time seeing it but I know that's simply because I have untrained eyes, I'm trying to learn.
> 
> He is GORGEOUS though. What breed is he?
> 
> Jubilee


My pleasure. 

*I didn't take a long time to find these photos... they were kinda the first ones I saw that fit my description.*

Here is a horse working long and low. He is on the forehand, but you can see that he's starting to loosen up through the back. This is where I feel a young horse should be. 








Again, this is a little bit exaggerated, and the horse is travelling heavy on the forehand, but it illustrates the head carraige I'd like to see in a youngster. 

Here is a horse in what you'd call a "typical" dressage headset. The base of the neck is elevated and you can see the "swan"-esque neckset. This is where an advanced horse should be.









In my opinion, a 3 year old should NOT be in that dressage headset. They should instead encourage proper impulsion, and allow the horse to go long and low before having to collect upwards. 

If you can get your hands on a book called "Tug of War: Classical Versus "Modern" Dressage" I HIGHLY recommend it, it's an amazing read, but not too "technical" that the non-dressage rider can't understand it.


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## Spyder (Jul 27, 2008)

Jubilee said:


> I'm still new to how headsets and body carriage should be for Dressage. Could you help me understand better what exactly he is doing wrong with his head set. I'm having a hard time seeing it but I know that's simply because I have untrained eyes, I'm trying to learn.
> 
> He is GORGEOUS though. What breed is he?
> 
> Jubilee


 
He is doing nothing wrong. He is a young stallion and showing off. Notice that he is perfectly capable of lowering his head as he did it several times.

There is no hollowing of the back but there is the tension exibited by a stallion that you will often see especially by a young stallion in an arena where he can smell other stallions. To mistake this verve for incorrect or too high headset is common and once you have seen these young stallions going for their 100 day testing you will see an entirely different picture. 

I have seen several stallion shows and you have to go to one to understand the excitement it generates for man and beast.


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## JustDressageIt (Oct 4, 2007)

Regardless of how "excited" the horse, he should be able to relax his back and work up and under himself long and low. That rider was not riding him long and low, he was riding him as an "upper level" horse, with a high neck and head set.
Doesn't matter how excited they are. 
You said yourself that he has tension... yes.. that's tension from being ridden so high through the head and neck. Ridden with a looser lower headset, he would be able to stretch through his back. Don't care if it's a stallion, gelding or mare. 
I did not comment about the free movement videos, but rather just about the riding video, and I stand by my statement. The headset for that age of horse is incorrect to me, being a more "classical" rider, if you will.


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## Spyder (Jul 27, 2008)

Someone told me what you said JDI and my previous post was based on the loose stallion part of the video. I have looked at the whole video now and see no tensness in the riding part at all. In Europe what that stallion is doing as far as the riding part is normal. They are just better at it than us N.A. riders and I personally am not going to get all jealous about them being better able to get a horse ready for state stud selection.

If a stallion is not up to a certain level then it does not get selected for the state stud. It is these stallions that will produce the next generation of dressage horses that will be imported to North America for some amateur to eventually get it ready to show even though they may not really know what they may be doing. One day we may be able to compete on their level but we need to do a lot of changing in many areas here (breeding,riding and over all expertise).


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## Jubilee (Dec 15, 2008)

Thanks for the explanation. I know there are lots of different opinions on how things are done in Dressage, and I'm not really trying to start an argument. I just want to learn as much as I can from all sides so that I can participate as an educated observer when I watch stuff like this. Thank you for explaining. I will have to check out that book, that is the second time I've seen it recommended. 

Jubilee


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