Red Finds His Balance

By Shana Canre

Firestorm, or “Red” as he’s affectionately known, is my 17-year-old Tennessee Walking Horse. We’ve been riding gaited dressage for six years together, and showing together for two.

I was never really interested in gaited horses, nor was I looking for another horse when I ended up with Red, but sometimes it is just meant to be. I had been riding dressage for a few years on my Arabian, Image, but I didn’t know much about riding gaited horses. Red was very nervous, extremely hot and forward, and struggled to hold a gait. He had some basics and a few buttons, but that was about it. However, what really stood out to me was how kind and willing he was, and I was so excited to start our journey together.

Since I knew nothing about gaited horses, everything I learned was self-taught. I would record Red’s gaits, watch videos online of gaited horses, and compare those to his gaits, until I learned what they felt like under saddle. It was not easy, but we learned together, and were patient with each other.

Classical dressage work did absolute wonders for Red, helping him find his balance and build the muscles necessary to hold his gaits. Unfortunately, cantering is not something that’s been in the cards for him. Some gaited horses struggle with the canter, and Red is one of those horses. It’s not something I push him on, as I enjoy his walk, flatwalk, and running walk instead.

Our first year together was challenging, especially with Red being such a hot and anxious horse. He was extremely forward, and it took some time to figure out how to turn that into good, relaxed forward motion. With consistent work and patience, Red has turned into a horse that I can explicitly trust in any situation. He is very honest and always takes the best care of me.

At the end of 2022, I took Red to his first dressage show in a few years (we had gone to a couple shows at the end of 2019, but he had been nervous and not quite ready). The National Walking Horse Association (NWHA) has gaited-specific tests that call for Tennessee Walking Horse specific gaits. I was blown away with how calm and relaxed Red was. I was even more blown away when we ended up with scores of 68.43% and 69.06%!

In 2023, we competed in our first full show season, and Red was phenomenal. He was consistently receiving scores from the high-60s to the mid-70s, and ended up in first place in the NWHA Year End Awards, with a cumulative average of 77.81%.

In 2024, we competed in our second full show season, and again were consistently receiving wonderful scores. We even entered some Prix Caprilli classes, and ended up with our highest score ever of 79.545%! Red was a superstar in the show ring, and we again earned first place in year end awards.

We have been lucky to be able to show at local venues that accommodate the NWHA dressage tests. If you are thinking about showing classical gaited dressage, reach out to your local venues to see about adding these tests! In addition, the comments we’ve received from judges over the past couple years have been so kind and inspiring. They have been very welcoming of seeing a gaited horse in the dressage ring, and the comments have been very helpful.

It has not been a quick or easy journey, but I’m so grateful to our amazing coach, Sue Cavalli, for influencing me to be the best I can be for Red. Sue teaches classical dressage, but learned all of Red’s gaits along with me so I could train and show him in gaited dressage. She has taught me to be kind, patient, and consistent to achieve my goals, and has supported us every step of the way in this journey together. Sue has been ringside for every single class at every single show, and has always set us up for success.

Even though I used to show classical dressage for years, prior to Red, I had always struggled with show nerves. It has been an enormous confidence boost, the past couple years, knowing that all I have to worry about is myself in the show ring. Red takes his job seriously and always takes the best care of me, which has given me a much-needed confidence boost.

Red is the sweetest and kindest horse I’ve ever met, and loves snuggles and kisses. It has been so fulfilling watching him go from a horse that was terrified of everything, to develop into a horse that now exudes confidence and loves to try new things. Aside from dressage, Red also enjoys liberty work, trail rides, and bridleless riding.

It has been the best feeling showing people that not only can gaited horses do dressage, but they can do it exceptionally well. We have had our fair share of struggles with people who don’t believe gaited horses should be in dressage, but I think Red has shown everyone that gaited horses do belong here. The equestrian community has been overwhelmingly supportive, and it has been wonderful showing the dressage community how successful gaited horses can be.