
While his presentation was not very well structured and seemed more like the gathering of some random, important thoughts on physiotherapy for horses, the amiable Dun did share a few interesting insights into maximizing the horse's mobility and flexibility. However it can never replace the love, warmth and partnership you share with a real horse.ĭutch team equine physiotherapist Jarko Dun is not the first physio to speak at the Global Dressage Forum but like most of his predecessors Jarko also slightly got lost in presenting a complex matter in 30 minutes. The simulator could be a good tool to generate more body awareness by refining one's aids as the machine virtually represents the perfectly trained Grand Prix schoolmaster.


With a price tag of 70,000 USD for a front door delivery of the simulator, this product might provide the safety and security fearful riders need to get back in the saddle. "The machine does what you do so there is no blaming that the horse didn't understand your aid." "It teaches you to be more subtle with your aids," said Ask Upmark.

The major advantage of the simulator is that a rider can be taught to be much more consistent in giving the right aids - the place where one puts the leg, the pressure one uses on the reins and staying balanced in the saddle. Her student became extremely fearful after having had some bad falls from her horse. The head of the horse can move from side to side so you give it the required amount of bending to change direction and go through corners in the dressage arena projected on a flat screen in front of the rider.īarbro Ask Upmark explained how she uses the simulator in her daily training program and brought one of her students along to demonstrate riding the simulator. The tall black plastic horse has three sensors for the leg aid, sensors in the saddle area and sensors for rein pressure. Swedish born Barbro Ask Upmark presented the dressage simulator, while Dutch Jarko Dun shared a few insights on equine physiotherapy.īill Greenwood, the inventor and creator of the Racewood brand of horse simulators, introduced his product which originated in a request from an injured professional race horse jockey, who wanted to get back to a good level of fitness without sitting on a live horse. On the first day of the 2012 Global Dressage Forum two working group sessions took place which couldn't have been further apart from each other.
