Bim Bambino was my Grand Prix School Master. What does that mean? Well, he was trained and shown up to the Grand Prix level in dressage and I bought him to teach me how to ride at the upper levels of dressage. Many people think that you can just sit on a trained horse and he will do whatever you ask, which isn't entirely true. If you don't know how to ask correctly - the horse will not respond correctly. This is where the school master part comes in - by learning on a horse that has been correctly trained - the rider learns how to correctly use her aids to get the response she is looking for. A school master doesn't try to figure out what you are asking for and give you a different response every time you use a certain aid, a school master gives you what you ask for. The rider starts learning not only what the correct response feels like, but also how to ask correctly.
Bim Bam and I started out showing at third level which was very hard for me because I had never shown at any level in dressage and probably confusing for him because he had been showing Grand Prix and was sure that we were doing extensions, Piaffe, and Passage several times during the test because I was so nervous and was giving him all kinds of confusing messages. He put up with my clumsiness graciously and slowly but surely we began to talk the same language. Once I began to communicate with him correctly we really progressed quickly. Within two years I was showing him Prix St. Georges and earned my USDF Silver Medal with him.
Not everyone is fortunate enough to be able to have a school master, but I think that when one of the members of the riding team (horse/rider) is more advanced than the other, the results are better. Now that I have learned from a schoolmaster, I feel more comfortable with a less trained horse because now I have a better understanding of what response I am looking for with my horse. I am more confident and can give clearer and more consistent aids to the horse I am training so that she can also learn from my Grand Prix Schoolmaster.
Bim Bam and I started out showing at third level which was very hard for me because I had never shown at any level in dressage and probably confusing for him because he had been showing Grand Prix and was sure that we were doing extensions, Piaffe, and Passage several times during the test because I was so nervous and was giving him all kinds of confusing messages. He put up with my clumsiness graciously and slowly but surely we began to talk the same language. Once I began to communicate with him correctly we really progressed quickly. Within two years I was showing him Prix St. Georges and earned my USDF Silver Medal with him.
Not everyone is fortunate enough to be able to have a school master, but I think that when one of the members of the riding team (horse/rider) is more advanced than the other, the results are better. Now that I have learned from a schoolmaster, I feel more comfortable with a less trained horse because now I have a better understanding of what response I am looking for with my horse. I am more confident and can give clearer and more consistent aids to the horse I am training so that she can also learn from my Grand Prix Schoolmaster.
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