When Two Spines Align ─ Dressage Dynamics: Attain Remarkable Riding Rapport With Your Horse

Within riding exists a fundamental conflict of interest: The rider needs to have control?her confidence depends on her ability to control the balance of her own body as well as that of her very powerful horse. The horse, by nature, needs to feel free?free in both mind and body to express himself through physical movement.

In WHEN TWO SPINES ALIGN?DRESSAGE DYNAMICS author Beth Baumert, writer and editor at the internationally recognized equestrian magazine Dressage Today, resolves the freedom-control enigma by taking a close look at the individual components that make up riding and dressage and providing practical ways riders can learn to harness the balance, energies, and forces at play. Readers will discover how to use ?positive tension” and their body’s ?power lines” to become balanced and effective in the saddle. They will then find ways to understand and manage the horse's balance and ?coordination challenges”?specifically the fact that he is inherently crooked, so the rider needs to help him become ?straight,” and that he is a four-legged creature naturally inclined to do too much with his front end and not enough with his hind. Ultimately, the rider learns to regulate and monitor the horse's rhythm, energy, flexion, alignment, bend, the height and length of his neck, and finally, his line of travel by properly aligning her spine with his. When the center of gravity of a balanced rider is directly over the center of gravity of a balanced horse, that place where two spines align becomes the hub for rider and horse harmony?a dynamic and remarkable riding rapport that yields beautiful performance.

Beth Baumert operates Cloverlea Dressage LLC in Columbia, CT where she trains horses and riders from Training Level through Grand Prix. She and her husband Alan have owned the farm for 37 years. The farm has been a dressage training facility for most of those years. In the early years, Beth was devoted to riding jumpers until she happened upon a dressage show and first witnessed a line of three-tempi changes. Cloverlea Dressage has had a strong young rider program over the years, and Beth has served as the chair of the United States Dressage Federation (USDF) Junior/Young Rider Program.

Beth's primary interest has always been education. She is a USDF Certified Instructor through Fourth Level and an ?L” graduate with distinction of the USDF judging program. For many years, she produced videos of the Aachen Dressage Show and other instructional videos so American dressage riders could aspire to the European standard.

Beth was the initial editor for Dressage Today magazine and continues to serve as technical editor. In this capacity, she is in constant contact with the best dressage riders in the world as they write about the technical aspects of dressage.