15 Problems Every Dressage Rider Will Recognize

Posted by Paige Cerulli
9 months

Ride dressage? Then chances are that you're going to recognize - and laugh at - these 15 all-too-common dressage problems.

When you ride horses, it's inevitable that you're going to encounter challenges. In fact, dealing with problems is something that equestrians learn to do quite well. We have to be creative in how we cope with obstacles and equestrian problems. But when you ride dressage, the challenges you face are a little bit different. These dressage problems often become part of everyday life - and we can all identify with them.

Take a look at these 15 dressage problems that any dressage rider has probably encountered. How many of these problems have you had to overcome?

1. New dress boots. Oh, the pain. 

2. Laundry. Laundry. And more laundry. 

And now for the laundry. So many whites. #dressageproblems #fml

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3. Memorizing your test. 

Sunday is DRESSAGE TIME again! 💩 Unaffiliated Prelim again, but this time, it’s the second Prelim class of the day rather than the first. Simply due to the fact we’re relying on a lift from a very helpful, lorry-owning friend, partaking in the final class of the day. And therefore, we are attempting to make the smallest nuisance of ourselves possible. If our last outing is anything to go by, the competitors ‘warming up’ for their Novice/Elementary class will seriously wipe the floor with us anyway🙄. But as Kris Akabusi advised in the 1995 Persil ad, I should really be maintaining more of a PMA (Positive-Mental-Attitude). Do you remember the ad? “Aww nooo, my saaandwiches!” No? I digress. Anyway, anyone who read my post after our last attempt might remember that my biggest issue was the big, fat, inevitable MEMORY LOSS 🧠❌. And that was a simple test. This one, even though it’s the same bloody level, is complex! Not in terms of the movements, just the basic route around the arena🙈. Hence, I am sitting with a Merlot, drawing silly little diagrams whilst trying to visualise the test without looking down at the paper. Like some kind of weird spiritual medium, allowing the Dressage Gods to use my unworthy, shite-at-dressage body as a vessel to communicate the test to the paper. It’s not the first time this kind of mental powercut has occurred either. I usually have a pretty good memory, and I can learn a test within minutes. But send me down the centreline towards a judge’s 4x4, or ring the bell before I set off round a course, and you’d forgive a person for thinking I’d become Jason Bourne. Or Harold Bishop. Or the bird from ‘50 First Dates’ with Adam Sandler. “Oh, C again! Great! Where do I go next???” It matters not that a few days earlier, I had the thing down pat faster than fucking Rainman.🙄 Alas, I may have to seek out a reader this time. There’s no penalty (I don’t think) and I like the fact I’ll have to donate a pound to the Air Ambulance for the privilege too. Let’s just hope I won’t need to use them 🚁 🐎🙏🏻. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~#dressage #stressage #instarider #horses #horseriding #dressageproblems #horseriding #riderproblems

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4. And then forgetting them almost immediately. 

#dressageproblems

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5. When it's time to retire your favorite breeches. 

6. Horse-eating monsters just outside of the arena. 

7. Thumbs up. 

8. Those fun moments when your horse forgets his training...

Woops 🙈🙈😂 #dressage #dressageproblems #equestrian #equestriansofinstagram

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9. And you forget the test. Again. 

10. Those tests that go like this one. 

11. The harsh reality. 

#dressageproblems #whatilooklikeonahorse #wouldntchangeitfortheworld

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12. And moments like this one. 

13. The joys of white breeches. 

Can't take me anywhere. #dressageproblems #whitepantsintherain #wheresmymother

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14. The joys of white everything. 

15. And then? The cost of it all. 

#hellyeah#snort#caching#craycray#dressageproblems #horsegirlproblems

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Sure, dressage comes with its challenges, but there's nothing better than riding a great dressage test or having a rewarding lesson with your horse. We wouldn't trade it for anything.

Which of these dressage problems have you encountered? Are there other problems not mentioned here? Tell us about them in the comments below. 

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15 Problems Every Dressage Rider Will Recognize