Alan Davies, pictured with Mount St John Freestyle at 2018 World Equestrian Games, will be stepping back from his full-time role with Carl Hester and Charlotte Dujardin.
Carl Hester on why Glamourdale’s progress means he looks set to stay on top of years to come, plus a significant change for Carl’s yard in 2023
You might think that 20 minutes is a very short time to deliver a presentation on what dressage is all about. But the Dressage Unwrapped masterclass at the London International Horse Show just before Christmas, which I was lucky enough to be a part of again, made me realise that in that time you can at least deliver a small portion of what’s happening when you ride, at whichever stage of training you’re at, and convey what is good enough for that stage.
With Dickie Waygood, Anne van Olst, Richard Davison and me each covering different stages, we were able to show what to expect at each level. The art of training horses is to know what is good for each stage. It was fantastic to see Richard’s simple instruction on flying changes, Dickie’s use of poles to improve suppleness and accuracy, and Anne training Lottie Fry on Valegro’s “nephew” Nalegro, by Painted Black out of his full sister Jalegrofleur. It seems to me that the Van Olsts have bred a never-ending supply of brilliant horses.
The scales of training
Lottie’s winning freestyle on Glamourdale in the FEI World Cup qualifier at London was certainly technically better than their gold medal-winning performance five months ago at the World Dressage Championships.
Progress at this level is about more strength and better collection, and their piaffe and pirouettes reflected better balance, with a generally more uphill impression shown throughout. Glamourdale looks set to be at the top of the world for many years to come, if all goes well.
Winter training for all of us is geared towards moving up towards the next level. As any rider will tell you, straightness for a dressage horse is a lifetime’s work, and it’s one of the basics to which we must pay attention.
The scales of training, if you need a reminder, are rhythm, suppleness, contact, impulsion, straightness and collection. These are the building blocks of dressage. Always remember to be satisfied with what your horse can give you for its stage of training.
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Thank you, Alan
The really big change for this year at our yard is that Alan Davies is stepping back from his full-time work as groom for us. As well as Charlotte Dujardin and I benefiting from his experience over all these years, Alan has become a well-known personality, a legend even, in his own right. This is not only for his superb turnout skills, and expertise when it comes to travelling our horses around the world, but for his own grooming range, talks and demos across the country, which have made him one of the most recognisable faces in the world of grooming. He and others have brought the profession to new levels of recognition and equality.
He went from hunt service to caring for international showjumpers, to joining our team in 2011, just as Valegro and Uthopia were launching onto the international stage. Then there is his success showing his miniature Shetlands and teaching the now Princess of Wales to ride; the experience Alan has accumulated over 30 years to become a “super-groom” can never be overlooked.
For the past three Olympics, we’ve had medal success, so missing a key member of that team is going to feel very odd in 2023 and beyond. We hope that Alan will still advise and travel with our horses to shows in a part-time capacity, but life on the yard is going to be very strange without his constant presence.
I know I said in my book Making it Happen that, as we’re of the same vintage, if Alan were to retire it would mean I would have to, but just to be clear, that isn’t about to happen.
● What would you like to see in masterclasses at big shows? Did you see Dressage Unwrapped? Let us know at hhletters@futurenet.com
This exclusive column will also be available in read in Horse & Hound magazine, on sale Thursday 12 January, 2023
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One of Britain’s most successful dressage riders and trainers, Carl Hester MBE is an Olympic gold medallist and multi-medallist at European and world championships. He is also the holder of more than 65 national dressage titles and is responsible for the development of the outstanding partnership of Charlotte Dujardin and Valegro. A regular Horse & Hound columnist, you can read Carl’s views in the magazine or website subscribers can view them online below.
