A whole herd of Quarter Horse enthusiasts rode into the recent United States Dressage Federation convention.

Carla Wennberg riding Larks Chaos.

Stereotypes are never a good thing, but it can be easy to fall prey to them. For instance, when I conjure up an image of a typical dressage horse, I visualize an elegant 17-hand warmblood with a name and pedigree that I can hardly pronounce. I expect that many people think of American Quarter Horses as wearing nothing but western saddles. In reality, both of those ideas deserve a good stick of dynamite.

This past weekend, my friend and co-worker Andrea Caudill and I attended the United States Dressage Federation convention in Austin, Texas. Both of us ride dressage (on our Quarter Horses) and were excited about the chance to learn more about it through the educational offerings at the convention. Plus, we were taking with us some educational materials of our own, about the new AQHA program that allows Quarter Horse riders at USDF/United States Equestrian Federation shows to earn AQHA points and other awards.

And last but certainly not least, Andrea was on hand at the awards banquet to receive an all-breeds medal for having the high-point American Quarter Horse in Training Level dressage. Major congrats to Andrea and the other Quarter Horse award winners!

Andrea and I both love the sport of dressage, and we love our American Quarter Horses, but going into the USDF convention, we really thought we’d be in the minority. See the stereotype above.

But when U.S. Equestrian Team member and best-selling author Jane Savoie began her motivational talk at the convention, she opened by asking how many people in the audience rode Thoroughbreds. A few hands popped up. Next, she asked about warmbloods. A forest of arms went in the air. Then she asked how many people rode Quarter Horses, and the response was very similar. Apparently, there’s a lot of us out there!

I can’t tell you how many people approached either me or Andrea when they found out we were with AQHA. Everybody, it seems, has a story about a past or present Quarter Horse who excelled in dressage and had a fun personality to boot. Joy, Linda, Karen, Beth … all those whose names I can’t remember … thank you for sharing your stories with us! You made us feel very much welcomed into the USDF culture, and it’s so wonderful to see how many folks are benefitting from the Quarter Horse’s versatility and kind, user-friendly temperament.

It’s also exciting to see AQHA and USDF working together on the new recognition and points program, and I hope it will encourage even more people to try putting a dressage saddle on their American Quarter Horses.

As more encouragement, America’s Horse magazine is starting a series in the January-February issue on Training Level dressage. The series is written by Andrea and AQHA Professional Horsewoman Carla Wennberg. As Carla points out, dressage is just good training, with an emphasis on a strong foundation, and it can help your horse no matter what kind of saddle you ride him in, and no matter whether you show or just ride for fun.

All this talk of Quarter Horses, dressage and how well they go together … well, there’s just one bad thing about it, and that’s the fact that I was sitting in a convention hall in Austin, Texas, miles away from my own Quarter Horse, instead of tacking him up and going for a ride. That, I’ll have to remedy ASAP!

Happy riding!
Holly Clanahan
Editor, America’s Horse magazine

Don’t miss the fun, educational and heart-warming stories in the print version of America’s Horse! It goes to all members of the American Quarter Horse Association, and it’ll also keep you in the loop on Association news. We want you to belong!