Classical Rider

I originally purchased this book because I had read a friend's copy of 'The Classical seat' which I loved and learned much from. This is not a step-by-step instructional book. It does not even cover the classical seat (it even says in the book that she does not intend to cover that ground again). But there is a lot to learn from it. It is written in a memoir style - moving through Sylvia's life and experiences to cover the important lessons she has learned during her life in Portugal and Britain. Some may find this offputting by I found her writing style easy and the information highly accessible. There are many little gems in the text if you are ready to find them. I did make several observations throughout the book that were slightly at odds with the text. The major one being saddle position. In the vast majority of photos Sylvia and the other riders have their saddles sitting far too far forward - covering the horse's scapula and on at least one occasion obviously affecting the balance of the saddle. I found it intriguing, that she never made the connection between this and some of the events and discoveries she described which sounded remarkably like saddle sore horses . However, this aside I enjoyed the book thoroughly and found it did indeed give me many things to consider and improve in my own riding. Sometimes the 'story' type books are even more effective at conveying their message than straight out - do this type ones and I certainly found myself reading this easily from cover to cover.

This book helped me to better understand what my horse was saying and it allowed my to figure out what was wrong with my riding, why my horse was responding the way he was and what to do about it. Also it taught be to be more humble and respectful of the gifts horses give every day.

I have been riding for 3 years and have felt that I wasn't getting it or understanding what my trainers and horses were trying to tell me. For whatever reason, Sylvia Loch's description of the rider's position and the pelvic floor in relation to the horse's back turned on the lightbulb for me. It doesn't do any good for the rider(or the horse)to continue with his/her lessons until the balanced seat and body position is learned. Otherwise the rider spends all of his/her time behind the horse's movement rather than in time with it. The author definitely loves horses and genuinely wants to teach others how to ride a horse in balance so the ride is enjoyable for both the horse and rider. Those looking for a quick lesson book will instead find this is an autobiography with insights and explanations in between the stories. Read this if you are not afraid of a little more time and effort instead of a quick fix. Your horse deserves it.

I found Sylvia Loch's treatise on the theory and practice of classical dressage to be a delightful read, peppered with many memorable personal anecdotes. This book is far from "gossipy" (as other reviewers have stated), unless you consider Ms. Loch's praise of the old masters and their training methods to be gossip. While Ms. Loch has clearly run into confrontation over the merits of the three-point seat, this is mentioned only once or twice as an aside. All in all, the author is quite obviously committed and devoted to her horses and to the art of classical riding. As such, she has created a really wonderful book that is also, unsurprisingly, very helpful in providing background information on classical dressage as well as its technique.

This text provides an excellent source for any serious rider, or anyone who wishes to truly improve their riding technique. Ms. Loch uses historical analysis and documentation about the great masters of horsemanship. Easy to read, easy to understand, and very correct. I highly recommend this book to all my riding students.