Dressage Canada is fortunate to have Erin Patricio as a member of the Communications Committee. Erin is originally from BC, but is living and working in California. She's been interviewing and writing great articles for Collections. Please enjoy the article she wrote on the Heike Kemmer Clinic she audited in March.

Heike Kemmer Clinic, by Erin Patricio

On March 26^th to 28^th, 2010, riders and auditors were treated to a clinic with Olympic gold medalist Heike Kemmer at Christiane Noelting’s beautiful 80 acre Dressage Center in Vacaville, CA.

The word that could be best used to describe Heike Kemmer’s training style would be ‘patient,’ as she took the time with each horse to properly warm up, engage and prepare for every movement.

The Warm Up

Each horse and rider was asked to begin their work on a twenty meter circle, using stretching in forward trot to begin. Only when the horse was relaxed, swinging through its back and engaged in a rhythmic trot and canter, with “good breathing” were they picked up into a working frame. The warm up exercises continued with spiraling in and out circles using shoulder fore, travers and renvers, with emphasis on creating increased suppleness in the horse with the rider’s inside leg at the girth to
outside rein connection. The focus of Heike’s warm up was on developing relaxation, rhythm and impulsion before beginning more collected work for, as she explained, it makes the rest of the
ride much more successful when the time is truly taken in the beginning to prepare the horse for work ahead.

The Rider

Heike Kemmer encouraged each rider to be ‘patient and courteous’ with their mount, while developing a deep seat and correct, confident aids. “Lower your hands to put your bum deeper into the saddle and use your belly muscles to bring the horse from behind,” she instructed each rider, and in doing so, achieved a more effective position for the pelvis. “Switch your whip often,” the students were told as she went on to explain that this keeps the rider from sitting permanently on one side or the other.

In correct positioning, she explained, the rider not only is able to sit with ease and apply their aids more effectively, but will also stay in balance with the horse who in turn, moving in balance itself, will maintain correct rhythm through every gait. Ideal balance, a rider who sits on, not behind or in front of the vertical, will result in harmony between horse and rider and should be the goal of every work session. To achieve better balance while keeping the horse supple and forward, pressure in the inside stirrups in all gaits created an effective suppling and driving aid of the inside leg.

The Set Up

Before every movement, the quality of the gaits, rhythm, impulsion and the outline of the horse were established. Instead of performing endless exercises therefore wearing out the horse unnecessarily, riders were instructed to fix the ‘core problem’ of the movement prior to performing the exercise. In the changes, for example, when the horse backs off the rider’s leg, Heike instructed the rider to make a twenty meter circle at C, going forward and back in the canter. This, she explained, establishes impulsion while putting the rider’s seat deeper in the saddle in preparation for increased sit during the tempis. Establishing the forward before each movement resulted in much more ease throughout, allowing the riders to feel the benefit of their horse traveling in correct balance with rhythm and impulsion from the beginning to the end of the exercise.

The Exercises

No matter what the exercise or level of horse/rider combination, the core focus was the same.

Lower the hands, bend around the inside leg, sit deep, maintain the impulsion. In the canter half pass zig zag, Heike instructed the rider to make the first half pass, then straighten, complete the flying change and then make a volte before continuing on to the next half pass, resulting in increased bend, straightness and control in the movement.

Pirouette exercises often found the rider on a square, making quarter turns at each corner, segmenting the movement into easier pieces before putting it all together for a full pirouette. Thinking haunches in in the lead up to the movement, she instructed, positions the hind quarters properly in the pirouette.

Transitions between walk and trot on the long side with an eye to maintaining the impulsion throughout in order to keep a clear upwards and downwards transition were seen in nearly every lesson. In the canter/walk, riders were encouraged to develop an energetic working canter in the uphill transition immediately to keep the horse thinking forward throughout.

In the walk, Heike demanded supple, following hips from the rider to help establish a clear four beat gait while maintaining the desired outline in the horse’s frame. When one horse rushed tightly in the walk work, she instructed her student to sit ‘heavy and relaxed” in the saddle, so that the horse feels your confidence. The change in the walk was immediately visible.

In between and at the close of all exercises, riders were directed to stretch and relax the horse on a twenty meter circle and many walk breaks peppered the rides.

Heike Kemmer’s obvious care and compassion for the horse, stringent attention to detail and dedication to quality and correctness of the rider made this not only an informative clinic, but also an inspiring one for all involved.

Rounding out the weekend were daily demonstrations by Jochen Schleese of Schleese Saddlery who explained, among other topics, the differences between male and female conformation relating to saddle fit and Elk Grove Milling, speaking on nutritional needs for horses in training.

Heike inherited her love of horses from her father, a successful breeder and owner of over 40 broodmares on his farm near Hannover, Germany. Heike grew up in West Berlin and was introduced to riding by her father. Her partner at the Hong Kong Olympics, Bonaparte, came to the Kemmer stables as a weaned foal and soon proved his aptitude for the dressage ring. At age 7, Bonaparte had already learned most of the Grand Prix movements. As Heike says on her website, “At home thrifty and shy he builds himself up in the arena and always tries to give all.” Heike is still showing Bonaparte and is now bringing up several young horses although she recognizes that she and Bonaparte have one of the special relationships that are rare and precious.