I’m 13, and I’ve been riding for four years. I just got my first horse about week ago. I’m hoping to start dressage lessons within the next month or so. But, I don’t know how I would go about trying to get a career in dressage. Could anyone tell me? Also, I live near Lexington, Ky, if that helps any.
Find a good dressage instructor to take lessons from (retired judges are amazing, if you can find one). Do as many clinics as you can. Personally, I’d rather do regular clinics, say once a month, over weekly lessons. But if you can afford regular lessons and the occasional clinic with a top rider, that’s great!
Join the USPC as it will also help a lot. Even if you just get to C-1. Getting to C-2 would be ideal as you could specialize in dressage, but you’ll need to do a fair amount of jumping to get there.
Once you’re a little older, see if your trainer would need any help around the barn- even if it doesn’t pay / you don’t get anything in return, it will help a lot in the long run.
At 16-18, you have a few options-
#1 Continue to work / help out at your trainer’s barn or another nearby barn and get ready for college. **In high school / college take some different languages (Spanish and/or German) so you can more easily get a working student position abroad**
#2 Finish high school and go for a working student position.
While option 2 seems better, go for 1- You’ll have more time to gain experience, to get through pony club, and you’ll have a back-up plan in case things don’t work out.
Any other questions on this topic, feel free to message me.
August 16th, 2010 at 1:02 am
Good for you! A great discipline! Since you are in Kentucky, you are in the heart of horse country! If you are boarding your horse, make sure you board at a facility that offers dressage! Since you are 13, you can start working at the farm, doing barn work, cleaning tack, etc. Apprentice yourself to the dressage trainer… you can also read…there are some great books out there… the best one yet is "There are no Problem horses, only problem riders". As you get older, start looking into college programs which offer and Equine Major. If the school offers you a year or two abroad training in England, or Canada, you should look well into that. You should also compete. If you are serious about a career in horses, and dressage, your edge will be in competing and training.
If you are not boarding, but keeping your horse on your property, you can still work at a dressage facility. If you have a trainer coming to you, he or she will be able to recommend one to you.
Good Luck.
References :
August 16th, 2010 at 1:07 am
Basically, you won’t have any chance at a career in Dressage for a few years, decades, or more. I’m not saying you suck or anything- it’s just that, to make real money off of it and have it be really good, showing, training, and winning. This takes time and money- and lots of it.
But if you do want to do that- You are on the right path. Keep taking lessons, keep learning- it’s a long road though, and plan on having a real job, a career, to pay the bills while you continue learning. It will not be cheap- To get your name out there, you will have to show, and to win, you need a nice horse. Most likely, a very expensive nice horse, unless you are lucky enough to come upon a diamond in the rough and, at that point in time, experienced enough to train it to the highest levels of competition. Which is, no offense, unlikely. But if you put your mind to it, somehow, you may someday be able to retire from one job, buy a barn,and maybe give lessons and train horses as well as show your own for a living. I know a woman who has done that- She’s in her 50s. But good luck.
References :
August 16th, 2010 at 1:31 am
Find a good dressage instructor to take lessons from (retired judges are amazing, if you can find one). Do as many clinics as you can. Personally, I’d rather do regular clinics, say once a month, over weekly lessons. But if you can afford regular lessons and the occasional clinic with a top rider, that’s great!
Join the USPC as it will also help a lot. Even if you just get to C-1. Getting to C-2 would be ideal as you could specialize in dressage, but you’ll need to do a fair amount of jumping to get there.
Once you’re a little older, see if your trainer would need any help around the barn- even if it doesn’t pay / you don’t get anything in return, it will help a lot in the long run.
At 16-18, you have a few options-
#1 Continue to work / help out at your trainer’s barn or another nearby barn and get ready for college. **In high school / college take some different languages (Spanish and/or German) so you can more easily get a working student position abroad**
#2 Finish high school and go for a working student position.
While option 2 seems better, go for 1- You’ll have more time to gain experience, to get through pony club, and you’ll have a back-up plan in case things don’t work out.
Any other questions on this topic, feel free to message me.
References :
Riding / Training Horses Most Of My Life –Dressage Along With Some Jumpers And Eventing–