Classical Dressage Art in Motion

Hosting a clinic is a three-sided triangle, and each corner has to be in concert with the other two in order for the event to be the best it can be. It is expensive and time-consuming to host a clinic, but it can also be extremely worthwhile. It can drive business to your barn, increase the talent level of your resident horses, riders and on site trainers, and provide valuable insights into what the world of competition is currently favoring from the judge's box, if that is what make your horse world tick. It can also net you some good income. Paul Alvin-Smith teaching advanced showjumping student   The three corners are the host, the clinician and the rider. Each party has to be tuned in to the other for the event to work. As an experienced clinician as part of the Grand Prix duo that is my hubbie and me, I find the travels (sometimes extensive to other countries), hours of almost non-stop training and the effort that we put in very rewarding. For the most part anyway. We work wit...

For the past few decades hubbie and I have been out and about sharing our equestrian knowledge and in particular dressage training, as the 'Brit Grand Prix Duo' and our work has taken us far and wide.  It has been very rewarding, thought at times quite exhausting! As we kick in to 2023, we are thrilled to announce we are already fully booked for the limited 'book' we are offering to hosts for our clinics.   The post Covid reality that like everyone else caused us to pause and consider how we were spending our time and what direction we wanted to take our lives. We have to acknowledge that we are not getting any younger and that while we enjoy our travels giving clinics, it takes up much time and travel as everyone knows is a more intense experienced and more difficult to accomplish than ever.  So, now I've taken you around the block explaining the change, am also pleased to share that another 'result' of this cut back on travel for clinic giving has also res...

  A Covid vaccine is just the jab needed to get the job of horse clinics and horse training back to person to person. Hopefully the vaccine roll out will speed up in time for Spring.   Ever the optimists, the team here at Willowview Hill Farm has made the decision to re-open for hay sales April 1st, along with some new horse training events from May 28th. These announcements were apparently eagerly anticipated by our clientele as video submissions for entering clinics were rapidly received and slots for riding opportunities quickly filled. Our weekend options for clinic giving in 2021 are almost full! If you are able to work on weekday dates we may be able to accommodate Spring and Summer 2 day clinics. Please ask. We are also hoping to attend shows in our coaching capacity as things get under way, and we thank our regular students for their patience over the last 12 months!   Here are details of our WVH Summer Series on Facebook ( please note 2/3 will be held off-site as...

As we push through into month 9 of no international clinic giving or even national clinic giving, and the welcome mat for US visitors across the world is now thrown down by only about 3 countries, it is ironic that my hubbie and I renewed passports at the beginning of the year and signed up for expedited airport and global travel access.   As a result of the travel restrictions we were forced to postpone our entire 2020 clinic season.  Frankly, we miss the adventures abroad like shown in the video above, and the fun and education of meeting new and familiar faces both giving instruction and taking it. It's truly weird at this point to not have seen students in person, and to have to rely solely on Apps to keep us connected to the ongoing training of our riders. My husband Paul and myself are very grateful for the hosts that have simply postponed and not cancelled the clinics booked. Meantime, all our remote training session fees are donated to charity, as we do our little bit ...

It's important for all trainers to keep training with other trainers. Stagnation is the enemy of progress and it can also just be hard to keep yourself motivated as a trainer or clinician. You need fresh material and fresh knowledge to bring to your students and you always want to keep improving both your own training of horses and the training of those under your wing. Over the past 25 years or so my husband Paul and I, a duo of Grand Prix dressage competitor/coach/clinician and trainer, have always kept busy continuing our education so that we can share that wealth with others.   Access to the top echelon of dressage riders worldwide, is not available to all and by taking part when invited to special symposiums, or hosting Olympic level clinicians for our regular students as well as to our own benefit as riders, we are very happy to provide some added value to our valued students. Our annual, 'Ride With An Olympian' clinic is a prime example of how much fun ...