[Trinity_Tx]

"the most wonderful high in the world is riding atop a galloping horse!"

...although I've had a few take off with me and turned the high into sheer terror, lol. But you're right. it's an awesome feeling when you know the horse and the terrain.

I finally had to give up on dressage training cuz I couldn't discipline myself to that much structure. lol Was too much fun to just let our hair down and run for the thrill. 8]

[3catsanadog]

No dressage for me! Western saddle and bit is the way I like to go!

An old friend of mine used to pooh-pooh dressage all over the place. "When's a horse ever done a side pass over a yucca plant?" is how she'd respond when someone would ask her her opinion. (I was living in Denver at the time.)

[Trust but Verify]

You seem to know something about horses/racing, so let me ask you a question. Earlier, while watching the coverage, I saw the rider of an escort horse using only a strap around the chest of the horse to control the horse. No halter, no bit, no tack whatsoever on the head of the horse. I've never seen that before. I wonder how you control a horse that way and what is it called?