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Fashion Forward in the Dressage Show Ring

At the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, where the dressage freestyle made its ground-breaking Games debut, Robert Dover suggested to me that the competition dress code could be more relaxed, with a wider variety of styles and colors at the least and the innovations could become more daring as time went on. It sounded interesting to me, so I then dutifully trotted up to Reiner Klimke, perhaps the most eminent figure in the sport at that time, and asked him what he thought. The German, who wowed America with his brilliant gold-medal performances on Ahlerich in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, listened tight-lipped to what I had to say. Then he fixed me with a piercing look and said, sternly emphasizing each word, βThis is NOT circus!β
Klimke died in 1999, before the word βblingβ was in general circulation. I wonder what he would make of the current trend toward glitter. I think I know, though, how he would have responded to a few comments tossed around that perhaps costumes might be worn for rides to music in competition. His response wouldnβt be pretty, I feel quite sure of that.
Nearly two decades after my conversation with Klimke, things have loosened up considerably regarding dressage dress, especially for the freestyle under the lights. Still, the subject continues to be a regular topic during meetings of the FEI Dressage Committee, when its members discuss the sportβs future.
As the FEI mulls over ways to make all its disciplines more up to date and popularβalways with an eye toward keeping the sport in the Olympicsβthere is still a line being drawn with the word βtradition,β which continues to be cited when it comes to determining the rules on dress.
βI donβt know how far weβll go,β mused Thomas Baur, of Germany, deputy chair of the committee. βI think some modernization will be on the way. I still donβt know what it will look like in the end. A lot of the stakeholders, like riders, trainers and organizers, agree that we want to go on the modern side. From my point of view, it is not really a need because we already have the possibility in the rules to use other colors [for tailcoats], and more or less nobody is using that. But others see the need, so I think it will come.β
He did add, βIβm a bit afraid of seeing an orange tailcoat in a championship, though there seems no danger of that in the immediate future. But a few more years onβwho knows?β How far it will go is a matter to ponder.
British Olympic team gold medalist Carl Hester, the mentor of Charlotte Dujardin and one of Valegroβs owners, sees several angles of the dress issue, having spent many years competing before the bling barrage. βIβve lived on the other side of it,β he said, when asked about his feelings on the loosening of the dress code. βI feel quite happy about the way that itβs moving. I enjoy the tradition of it, understandably, as I know a lot of other people do. The only people who donβt seem to want to look forward to the new image that I think is going to have to happen at some stage are probably those people who have never lived through the era of very traditional dress.
βIβve managed to come through a transition, I feel, into slightly blingy,β he continued, adding he doesnβt, however, see himself in a place where he would utilize bling in excess.
Hester added, βI think it looks good. If we are talking about bringing new people into dressage and new spectators into dressage, they will be, I think, more happy to see that than the old, stuffy image. For embracing new people, itβs going to have to happen.β
Canadian rider Jacqueline Brooks noted there is a real question about the way to modernize the sport while still maintaining some of its traditions. βThatβs a difficult balance,β she said. βWe should be allowed to express our individuality, but where is that line between a sport and a spectacle?β she wondered.
Brooks thinks blinged-out browbands look beautiful, but it is possible to take it too far. βWhen you are getting into reins, stirrup leathers and stirrups, then the tradition is lost,β she said. On the other hand, she says, βwool tailcoats are so not up to speed with our sport. Some of the newest fabrics are amazing.β Even so, Brooks feels that the tradition of the sport can be lost when riders take it too far.
Catherine Haddad Staller, however, seems to support a different mindset when discussing the international dressage community. βThereβs been a lot of talk about making the sport more appealing to spectators,β she said. Haddad Staller herself favors a coat made from shiny material for her evening appearances. βWhen we stick with drab, very military-looking dress, it doesnβt have a lot of appeal. I donβt want to turn it into a costume class by any means, but I do think if you can add a bit of bling, especially if youβre showing under lights at night, if you can add some crystals here and there, a sparkly material, a sparkle on a boot or a spur, I think it really livens things up. Iβm not a person who wants somebody to go out there looking like the Rhinestone Cowboy at all, but I do think we have to loosen up our rules about dress, so we can make a more appealing picture out there.β
Things have changed a great deal since the 2007 World Cup Final in Las Vegas, Nevada, when Haddad Staller requested permission to step slightly out of the norm and wear a brown shadbelly. The ground jury said no.
These days, different colors and patterns are dressing up tailcoats for freestyles and rhinestones are no longer strangers to the arena. There are, however, those who think they should be used judiciously.
βIf it promotes the beauty of the horse, then itβs fine,β said Dover, now the U.S. technical advisor and chef dβequipe. βIf it takes away from the beauty of the animal and the gaits of the dancing thatβs going on, then itβs not fine. Thatβs in regard to what I believe we should be thinking of as a standard.β Dover said that he thinks that the underlying question revolves around whether the attire promotes the beauty of the sport or detracts from it. βThatβs the key to the entire thing,β he said. βI donβt think itβs a clear-cut answer.
βIf it becomes extreme to the point where you canβt even look at the horse because youβre so busy looking at the plush velvet with the 15 different colors of the rider, then itβs not to the advantage of the rider because the horse stops being the biggest part of the picture. If it enhances the overall beauty of the combination, then I think itβs all good.β
Doverβs predecessor in the technical advisorβs job, Anne Gribbons, who is also an international judge, had a similar sentiment. βBling in small amounts and in the right places, I think, can enhance both the horse and the rider,β she said. βWhen itβs done in a classy way, a way that is not in your face, itβs fine and itβs fun,β she continued. βThereβs a limit,β she said, however. In Gribbonsβ opinion, too much sparkle on saddle pads, browbands and used in abundance on tailcoats is where she draws the line.
βWhen [bling] comes at you in all its glory and then the test isnβt so good, itβs almost a negative influence,β she pointed out. βThereβs so much glitter and bling, and you expect great things, and if they donβt happen, itβs a little bit flattening. It could actually work against you if youβre not careful,β Gribbons warned. A change she would like to see in dress would be a sportier, more modern-type coat that she contends would go better with helmets than do the tails. She considers the pairing of tailcoats and helmets bizarre. βNo designer in the world would put that combination together,β she said.
The more experienced riders understand the value of moderation that Gribbons emphasized and they include some conservative voices in the Grand-Prix ranks who just want to ramp up their clothing a little.
βI like that the sport is evolving,β said Canadian Olympic medalist Ashley Holzer. βA little something special for a freestyle at night is nice as long as itβs age- and arena-appropriate. I like that people are having fun with the sport, but Iβm not at the age where I want to come in with a lot of bling. These younger girls and guys that are coming out, they have a little more pizzazz on them.β
Not everyone, of course, exercises the same discretion. βI totally agree with the FEI that weβve got to put a limit on it,β said Pan American Games double-gold medalist Steffen Peters.
As one of the minority in the U.S. still wearing a top hat instead of a helmet for major competitions, he noted, βIf itβs too sparkly, too bright, thatβs not my personal taste.β
Although Peters wears a helmet for warm-up and some national classes, he prefers a top hat for international competition as a number of top Europeans and U.S. riders still do, including Lisa Wilcox, Lars Petersen and Haddad Staller. World Number One Charlotte Dujardin always wears a helmet. When she did so among a sea of top hats when taking double gold at the 2012 Olympics, it was a matter for much comment.
At one point, Peters wore a forward-looking shadbelly with cross over fastening, but is now in a more traditional style with a sponsorship from Cavalleria Toscana. He did note that eventer Will Faudree asked him for his former shadbelly and is wearing it. βIβm very happy itβs still being used,β Peters said.
U.S.-based Danish rider Petersen has updated his look, but only slightly. βIβm a little old-fashioned. I have a coat now with little stripes in it. Thatβs probably as far as Iβll take it,β he chuckled. βI donβt want it to become circus too much,β he said.
Pan American Games team gold medalist Kimberly Herslow has an edging of rhinestones on her boots, yet she doesnβt go crazy with the shiny stuff. βAs far as the bling, I like to keep it not overdone,β she commented. βI like a little for myself, and Reno [Rosmarin] has his browband with the blue crystals. But generally, I like to keep it tasteful. I think it sometimes can be a bit overdone and too much just looks gaudy.β
There are ways Herslow chooses to express herself without too much glimmer, she noted. βI have a new shadbelly that has points that you can change to make them conservative or a bit more fun and bright. I like to switch it up so itβs not always the same. Still have to keep it classy, though,β Herslow said.
Olympic medalist Wilcox agrees that bling can be nice, but says it is important to maintain a classical flair. βBe respectful to the sport,β she said. βBling looks great when it sparkles at nightβ¦ [but] I donβt think we need to go in the direction of the circus in the color of the coats.β She prefers to put sparkle on her mounts rather than herself. βI like my boys to be the ones everyoneβs looking at, and I just disappear into the saddle.β
There are, however, times when adding more than a touch of show business has its place in the big picture of attempting to popularize the discipline, even if that place is not in the competition arena.
Steward Elisabeth Williams recalled that costumed freestyles worked well as an exhibition during the World Cup Final in Las Vegas last spring. βI think it is good the more we can show the crowds that dressage can be fun while we show them the beautiful horses and the beautiful movements. I think the crowd just loved it because there were a lot of people in there maybe who didnβt know so much about dressage and think itβs a boring thing to watch. Well, this is not boring. I donβt know if weβre ready for the competition freestyles to go quite this wild, but Iβm not totally against the different colored coats, the different colored boots, the bling on helmets or whatever because I think we need to do something to keep the interest.β
Asked whether he thought we will one day see costumes in the freestyle, Baur was as definite as Klimke had been. βI hope that never will happen,β he stated firmly.
βWe are a traditional sport and we should stick to our roots. We should not become members of the circus.β
Original article: Fashion Forward in the Dressage Show Ring (dressagetoday.com)
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