The goal is to demonstrate the horse’s grace, balance and alertness.
The rider commands the horse to perform precise movements based on three basic values—walk, trot, and cantor—using highly complex signals in the show ring.
The horse and rider are then controlled in such a way that they can make adjustments to these movements and can now easily move from one movement to the next round.
There are three dressage competitions; First, the Grand Prix and Grand Prix Special, the elements that horse and rider must choose and the path they must take around the show ring(s), are outlined by the judges in a set order.
In freestyle, the rider and horse determine the order of the elements and their path to better accommodate their abilities, in this case their movements and figures are choreographed to instrumental music.
