Riding Loops (5m and 10m) In Trot

Alex's Dressage Tips

Riding Loops (5m and 10m) in trot.

Loops appear really easy to do but you’d be surprised if you sat at C for a few hours as I do you would see that many marks are lost unnecessarily. Loops are put in put in tests so riders can show their horse’s ability and willingness to adjust the bend of their body to the curvature of the line it follows, without any resistance or change of pace, rhythm or speed.

I want to see a well ridden corner before the loop with the horse round, connected, rhythmical and balanced, with a clear inside bend. Then we want to see the movement ridden accurately and smoothly with the bend changing according to the direction of the horse, maintaining the quality of the trot throughout.

Things that can go wrong…
- Inaccurate shaped loops
- Loss of rhythm / balance / stumbling
- Hollowing / tightening over back / resistance
- Swinging quarters
- Breaking into canter

Tips include…
1. The corner before the loop is key, Ensure to ride it deeply and fluently, half halting effectively to prepare and balance him for the loop.
2. Check there is no blocking through the shoulder or back as suppleness and a fluent and smooth change of bend is essential.
3. If rising to the trot on a horse that’s particularly prone to tightening over the back then I recommend that you do not try changing the diagonal when changing the bend on the loop each time as sitting twice as opposed to rising could potentially create unwanted tightening.
4. Ensure your horse is straight for one stride on the two occasions on the loop and that there is a clear and supple bend for the judge to see as the curvature of the loop changes.
5. Be incredibly accurate. 5m loops hit the quarter line momentarily only (not for 5 strides!) and 10m loops hits X momentarily too (not 5 strides!). Remember loops have no straight lines.
6. Keep your eyes softly on his ears and where you’re going, keeping him flowing forwards and through, with good length of stride ensuring the hind legs are following the front ones. We will be watching this.
7. Return to the track slightly before the marker so that you’re exactly straight and on the outer track as you pass it. Half halt to rebalance then ride the corner deeply as you did in the corner before the loop.

Note that I'll be considering the mark for the loop as you ride the last corner and if you lose balance and connection here then this may confirm to us that there were probably issues coming through and out of the loop, so may well affect the mark.