Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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36 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A treat for all horses whose riders care enough to read it!, 5 Sep 2000
By A Customer
This book deserves to become one of the best-read reference texts of our generation. Having ridden for almost 25 years (the first 20 or so in the self-taught, 'get-on and hang-on' fashion!), I found again and again that the author, Sylvia Loch, could accurately describe the problems I encounter with my own horse - and explain logically and clearly WHY they occurred and, what's more, HOW I can work to improve matters. Refreshingly, there is absolutely no assumption of either an experienced, problem-free horse, nor of a particularly experienced rider - good news for those of us who neither own a purpose-bred high-flyer, nor have ambitions of top-level competition. I can safely say that my 17 year-old ex-racehorse has already shown me how much he appreciates my reading and learning from this text!A comprehensive, insightful and overdue text, this book is reassuringly approachable and easy to read. It covers progress from newly-backed to advanced levels. The annotated artist sketches, together with many illustrative photos, reinforce the images formed in the reader's mind. I particularly enjoyed the photos of foals in freedom - demonstrating all the moves we riders would love to be able to recreate with our ridden horses, full of fun. Inspirational stuff! Gems of advice and support abound throughout the book - reminding us that every horse is an individual and we, the rider, must take responsibility for recognising his physical and psychological needs through his schooling progress. Much of the traditional wisdom and knowledge described is common sense - blindingly obvious once it hits the reader between the eyes! The skill of the author is demonstrated in her ability to impart this wisdom in a non-threatening, non-patronising manner. She also succeeds in gently reminding us why we school our horses in the first place. Perhaps nowadays many of us 'ordinary riders' don't have the luxury of time, or the opportunity to take advantage of the age-old wisdom of the great horse masters, and are guilty of not looking in depth at the art of equestrianism nor the biomechanics of horse and rider - a symptom of modern lifestyles I suspect, with many of us attempting to hold down full-time jobs, run households and fit our riding into the remaining non-existent spare time. With books such as this, that theory becomes accessible without onerous effort. For anyone who wants to take this further, Sylvia Loch points to many other texts for further reference. I loved the part at the end of each section where the horse comments on his thoughts and feelings whilst the rider fumbles along, oblivious to the confusion caused by his/her aids - it made me immediately apologise to my own horse and promise to try to do better! As a means of encouraging the rider to think about the impact of his/her actions, this worked well. A well-thumbed book of the future in my household, I recommend it to riders of all disciplines who genuinely want to do their best for the horses they ride, and who seek the ultimate goal of re-achieving the horse's natural, unencumbered lightness in movement whilst under saddle.
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A must for riders in all disciplines, 30 Jan 2004
No one book can teach the rider everything they need to know about the kind of exercises which will improve the gaits and increase the horse’s suppleness and lightness of the forehand. That can only be achieved by the right kind of experience, by thinking about, and understanding, what you have learnt, preferably working with someone on the ground to keep a watchful eye on horse and rider, and by further reading. Fortunately there is one book in particular which, although its title implies that it is aimed at dressage riders, I have no hesitation in recommending to riders of all disciplines; after all, until one reaches the more advanced levels, dressage is nothing more than the basic education of the horse. The book in question is Sylvia Loch’s Dressage in Lightness. It sets out, with simplicity and yet with great clarity, the principles of training, the role of the rider, and how the horse responds. It gives the reader a logical, progressive training programme which is flexible enough to suit different kinds of horse, explains the purpose of each exercise, describes precisely how the rider should give the aids, and – in one of the book’s most valuable features – gives some insight into how the horse might respond to what the rider does in the saddle, by means of a ‘commentary’ from the horse on each of the exercises. This book (which I suggest is best read in conjunction with the same author’s The Classical Seat - also available through Amazon) provides a solid base from which to build your knowledge.A must for riders in all disciplines!
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
this is a great book on working your horse classically, 4 Jan 2001
By A Customer
This is a great book, by a great author. It takes you through the principles of classical dressage in a practical way, outlining the process of working your horse classically step by step from the very beginning to as far as you care to go. What it does not cover however is the training of the rider: if you don't already have Sylvia Loch's "The Classical Seat" then DO get that, too -- it's a slim volume, and not at all expensive.
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by Alois Podhajsky
by Sylvia Loch
by Nuno Oliveira
