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How did Reining come about?
Today's Reining originates predominantly from the work of the
American cowboys. In order to teach stubborn cattle better, the horses
had to be as quick and nimble as cats of prey, but also able to shift
down where necessary. In addition, they needed to be manageable with one
hand only. After all, cowboys needed their right hand for the really important
things in life - like a lasso, a cigarette, or adjusting their cowboy
hat.
Over time, this cowboy style of riding developed into today's highly refined
art of Reining. Reining is the dressage of western riding and the most
important discipline in the show. Today, Reining is a professional sport
in every respect.
Reining is often referred to as the royal class of western riding. It
stands for high-performance sport at world-class level.
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"One Million Dollar Rider" Shawn Flarida |
Milestones
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In 2000, Reining was officially approved at international
level by the FEI (Federation Equestre Internationale = International
Federation for Equestrian Sports) as a seventh discipline in horse
shows. |
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In 2002, Reining was included for the first time
in the World Equestrian Games in Jerez/Spain. |
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In 2006 the Reining World Cup took place in Aachem,
Germany (20 August – 3 September). |
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Reining could become an Olympic sport as early
as in 2012. |
What does Reining involve?
Reining is the dressage of western riding and undoubtedly
the most important discipline in the show. It is ridden at a gallop. The
individual elements of the competition come from the moves that a cow
horse must use in performing its duties, but have been refined in the
style of classical dressage to a "sporting art form".
A Reining pattern (manoeuvre) involves:
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Speed - a Reining pattern (manoeuvre) is ridden
at a gallop. The level of difficulty increases with speed and earns
the rider points.
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Precision - the manoeuvres, such as changing from
large fast to small slow circles, or flying lead changes, must be
performed with precision.
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Smoothness - the horses are ridded with one hand
and with loose reins.
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Sliding stops. The horse stops at the "whoa"
of the rider. The hind legs are brought under the horse in a locked
position. While it slides across the ground for several metres in
a cloud of dust, the front legs nimbly keep moving. This manoeuvre
is one of the most spectacular ones in Reining.
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Breath-taking spins, in which the horse pivots
several times around itself at lightning speed.
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Rollbacks over the hocks.
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Quick back-ups.
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And finally, the extraordinary nerves of steel of the American
Quarter Horse, whose roots go back to the Spanish Andalusian. This
breed can change in an instant from high performance to calmness
and serenity.
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