This week H&C caught up with dressage legend Richard Davison at his Staffordshire base as he prepared the young riders headed to Express Eventing for their dressage to music performances.

Richard has competed for Great Britain in three Olympic Games, two World Equestrian Games and four European Championships as well as being a four time World Cup finalist. He was six times British number one in the international dressage rankings, so it is no surprise the Express Eventing team sought his help in training these young riders – who will in many cases be performing their first dressage to music.

The morning session featured Ginny Howe and her impressive grey Divilabit, who she has been training since he was a five year old. Richard encouraged Ginny to reward him by removing the pressure of her leg in the quarters in, bringing about an instant improvement to this big horse.

Richard explained: “I do treat my horses sometimes, but I believe that the best reward a horse can have is removal of pressure. If he has done what you ask, take the pressure away; that is what horses want.”

The dressage element of Express Eventing is different to the standard phase of dressage in three day eventing, as Richard explains: “In the test there are some technical elements - like canter pirouettes - which are optional, but will add to the score if done well. It’s good because it doesn’t encourage riders to take unnecessary risks and ride a movement badly, but encourages them to stay within the horse’s capabilities. It’s important to remember that what a horse can do at home might not be the same at a competition with music, crowds and screens.”

Richard was frequently out of his seat helping the riders in the arena; he had his worked cut out as many had turned up with no routine or music.

“It’s important to remember that it takes years to put freestyle to music together and that’s why riders always perform the same routine,” he said. “Some of these riders today have come with no music and no plan, and in other cases we just had to tweak the routine here or there. The problem is that eventers are so laid back and are normally learning the test in the lorry.”

Richard was keen to ensure the riders make the most out of the flexibility of the Express Eventing format; whereas in normal dressage to music lyrics are frowned upon, he encouraged the young riders to use a wide array of music scores to keep it feeling young and upbeat. With tunes from Top Gun, Phil Collins and Candy Man entering the arena, the dressage phase of the competition look set to be as much of a crowd pleaser as the jumping: “The great thing about these tests is that where normally lyrics aren’t appreciated, here good young music is encouraged,” he explained.” I have tried to get the riders to choose music to suit the horse, as I said this can normally take years but I hope these guys will have a bit of fun with it but don’t sacrifice the technical for the music.”

Jill Gratton-Fisher, one of the organisers of the clinic and Express Eventing, explained that the young riders were selected on performance and recognition from British Eventing. She was keen to dispel fears that the inclusion of young riders would deem the competition less competitive. Many of these riders have completed or qualified for Badminton, and are competing at the highest level.

The biggest change to last year’s event is that the showjumping and cross country phases will no longer run back to back. The combinations will tackle the cross country track then rest and change before the showjumping, which is to be jumped in order of merit to make the final rounds more exciting. Another change will be the addition of an ‘eraser’ fence in the showjumping, which if jumped successfully will deduct penalties from a rider’s score, allowing for a closer finish and for trailing competitors to make up placings.

Gemma Tattersall, the current Under-25 National Champion thinks that speed will be a big factor and feels it is important to have a fast and careful horse, like her own Chamrock, to meet the requirements of the competition.

Fellow young rider Flora Harris sees the Express Eventing specific horses as the way forward. She thinks riders will have a horses trained especially for the competition, in much the same way as showjumpers currently have puissance or speed horses.

After lunch Richard worked with a couple riders who he has helped previously with their music and routine. Arthur Dufforts, with his little chestnut mare, has chosen some inspired music (we shan’t reveal what, you’ll have to watch his performance to find out) which gives the impression that his horse is floating along with the beat, making them a very exciting pair to watch.

After the sessions, H&C caught up with Richard, accompanied by his two Collie dogs Snap and Crackle, to ask him some questions about his own training and his current wonder horse, the Grand Prix gelding Hiscox Artemis.

Richard explained that it is not usually a question of pickin gup ready-made Grand Prix horses: “I usually take horses on very young, from foals to three year olds. The most important things are temperament and attitude. I look for very round movement with big knee and hock action and I like hot horses.”

Of Hiscox Artemis, Richard explained that he certainly falls into the ‘hot’ category: “He is a very powerful all-muscle pocket rocket and sometimes strong in the bridle. He feels very different in differing situations but tries hard and has a good brain.”

Richard does not plan to take him to WEG, as he feels that he will not quite be ready for it. “He is winning a lot but I won’t be taking him to WEG, as I don’t need to go from a professional perspective, and for him it’ll be better to wait for the big competitions next year and aim for the London 2012 Olympics.”

When asked what his top tips for warming up for a competition are, Richard explains his rationale: “It’s very important to break your warm up in to sections; suppling, responsiveness (to legs, fingers etc) and test movements.”

“The suppling stage is very important and can take a while depending on factors like age and journey time. Don’t move onto the next stage before achieving the previous, and don’t over practise anything the horse finds hard in the warm up; you will stress him out. Save the hard stuff for home as it is too late to fix things on the day; get good marks for what he’s good at.”

“It’s important to know how much is needed without draining the tank; time your sessions at home and after a competition analyse your warm up as well as your test to work out where improvements are needed. If you warm up in sections it’s easy to analyse, and a good warm up is critical to a good performance but always remember: don’t leave your test in the collecting ring.”

This year’s Festival of the Horse, encorporating Express Eventing, runs from Friday 9 to Sunday 11 July at Stoneleigh Park. If this year’s new format is a success, the organisers hope to roll out a nationwide Express Eventing series that will run at all competitive levels.