18/04/2025
Icelandic Working Equitation- A New Discipline for Icelandic Horses and the People who Love them!
As many of you know Alex and I have loved exploring Working Equitation. The sport's emphasis on agility, balance, harmony, bravery and technical skill dovetails exactly with the emphasis in our breed, gave us another opprotunity to show off the versatility of the Icelandic Horse, and improved our riding and training in all the ways we value most. But as we did it more we started thinking, the emphasis on canter work in WE makes it tricky for the average Icelandic to progress through the levels, and furthermore with our emphasis on developing all five gaits as well as the unique traditions and history of Icelandic horsemanship being something worth celebrating on its own. Could we create a unique leveling system, with goals and obstacles that reflect our unique horsemanship traditions and training goals while still maintaining the emphasis on bravery, agility, balance and cooperation?
We think we've done it! We hope you will join us in this adventure! We will be posting more about various aspects specifically in the coming days but here first is a general overview of this new discipline.
What is it?
The discipline of Icelandic Working Equitation was created to recognize and promote Icelandic horsemanship as well as its culture, attire and techniques. There are three trials that make up a Icelandic Working Equitation competition: Dressage, Working Phase and Speed.
Dressage: The dressage phase demonstrates the fundamentals of good training and the qualities of the Icelandic Horse as a sport horse. As the horse progresses up the levels, they should demonstrate a relaxed, forward thinking, agile, high performance horse that moves well and correctly through the body, showcasing a high level of athleticism and harmony.
Working Phase: The Working phase is designed to represent the potential obstacles and tasks required of a working Icelandic Horse both throughout history as well as in modern day. Certain obstacles also pay homage to Icelandic Horse horse culture in general, both past and present. This phase should demonstrate a harmonious partnership, precision, as well as high levels of horsemanship. This phase has been heavily inspired by Working Equitation's efforts to honor working horse traditions throughout the world, and has been modified to celebrate the particular talents and skills of the Icelandic Horse, as well as the traditions that have accompanied their use.
Speed: The Speed phase is solely judged on time taken to complete the obstacles in the course, alongside time penalties and bonuses. There is no concern for style, however time may be added for rough riding at the judge’s discretion. This phase demonstrates the horse’s bravery, boldness, and speed capacity as well as the rider’s precision and coordination.
Interested in more information? Feel free to message us here!
Want to see it in action or try it for yourself? We will be holding clinics throughout the year both at our farm as well as various farms around the country, we could be coming to a farm near you!
We will also have a competition June 14-15. Come to watch, compete and join the adventure with us!
Video Note: Some video has been taken from Icelandic Horses competing in traditional Working Equitation shows, however the obstacles seen and the style of riding reflect the vision and goals of the sport.
