1949: overbent

I was browsing through “Academic Equitation” (1949) by General Decarpentry and I found this picture, and the caption made me look twice:



The caption reads: “The German [the horse on the rigt] horse is circling at the trot on the right rein (he is slightly overbent). Taine [the horse on the left] is circling at the canter on the left rein. Both riders are using a lightly adjusted curb rein. Note the temporary drawing back of the outside heel of the riders, particularly obvious on Taine”.

What caught my eye was the authors comment about the horse to the right: “he is slightly overbent”. When I first looked at the picture I didn't made the assessment that the horse on the right was overbent. Would you?

I find it intriguing to ponder how our perception of a horse that is on the bit have changed since this book was written in 1949 till today.

But who was General Decarpentry, you might ask yourself. What could he possibly know about dressage? Apparently he knew a lot. He decided at a young age to pursue a career in the French cavalry. For fourteen years he was a member of the Cadre Noir, eight of there as “Ecuyer" (riding master). From 1933 he was active as a judge in international dressage competitions in Europe and worldwide. For several years he was also chairman of FEI's dressage committee. So this is not the view from an isolated hermit, but from one of the most prominent dressage judges at the time. I find this very interesting and food for thought.