Pony power! We are celebrating ponies of all breeds on YourDressage through the month of June!
Did you know dressage riders who choose ponies as their mounts are eligible for many Adequan®/USDF All-Breeds Awards, as there are several pony organizations on our Participating Organization list?
Here, an adult amateur from Region 1 shares the story of the trail-pony-turned-dancing-partner she leases!
By Kristen Cunningham
Remy’s first interaction with Bell was a feeling of overwhelming dread when her boyfriend told her about a free horse he had been offered on Facebook Marketplace.
“Um, with horses, free is usually not a good thing,” she tried to explain to him. He had just returned from buying an offroading machine, where he was offered a little paint mare as part of the deal. Despite her reservations, Remy agreed to accompany him to try out the pinto pony, and they decided to take her home to their barn.
After a few months, Remy’s trainer asked if one of her students could take some dressage lessons on Bell (since that student was between horses). Remy was excited to have some training put on Bell and agreed. It wasn’t long before that student, Kristen, had fallen in love with Bell, and subsequently asked if she could lease her and make her into a dressage pony.
“But what if she gets too fancy for me!” Remy’s boyfriend worried, envisioning that his trail horse would suddenly refuse to do anything except piaffe or do two-tempis while out for a hack. Remy successfully convinced him, and Kristen set to work on convincing Bell to try to move faster than a jog.
After a few months of hard work and many long lessons with her trainer, Kristen asked if she could take Bell to a show.
“What’s Bell short for, so I know what to put on the entry form?” Kristen asked.
“It’s just Bell; it’s not short for anything,” Remy explained.
Bell surprised everyone with her relaxed and enthusiastic attitude in the sandbox, and ended up with a win at her first local dressage show. She proved to be an amazing confidence builder, quickly adapting to a variety of environments, whether chilly, windy days, or showing at farms with emus and peacocks wandering around. Additionally, Bell enjoyed the extra attention dressage days entailed, from massages and cookie stretches before and after every ride, to some good ol’ wither scratches.
After a few months of schooling shows, the pair felt ready to try their first recognized dressage show. Her new USDF registered name? “Just Bell,” of course!
The pair’s proudest moment to date is scoring 69% to come in second in a large Training 3 class, demonstrating that size doesn’t matter! The pair are looking forward to continuing their season at the Virginia Dressage Association’s Dressage at Lexington, their first overnight show together.
And what does Bell think of her new dressage career? She would like to advocate for the addition of a snack break during the free walk.
“You want me to maintain the stretch forward and downward?” While munching on her hay, she muses, “It would be much easier to do if there was something tasty waiting for me down there, rather than just dusty arena footing. Like maybe some grass or hay.” She looks forward to hearing USDF’s response to her proposal.
I ride with the same trainer as Kristen, and can’t say enough good things about her, Bell, Bell’s owner, and especially their trainer, Nicki Carson. Nicki’s openminded and positive approach to dressage for all horses is the glue that makes this all work.