Since Matthias Rath announced that he was going to train with Sjef Janssen, the German dressage world has been ablaze with rumours, discussions and riders, trainers, and official bodies issuing statements on their position. The Rothenberger family joins the club with their statement:
Classical vs Something Else, or Not?
The past few weeks we've often been asked what we think of the planned co-operation between Matthias Rath and Sjef Janssen. We try never to pass judgement on other riders we're not closely involved with. Of course we have our thoughts about the boiling controversy:
For years the dressage world has been in a trench war between "the Dutch" and "Germans" and classically oriented riders condemn the Dutch system without really knowing it. As a Dutch-German family we have consciously put these quotation marks with both nations because we know both worlds, and it's not a black and white one. Neither can riding be reduced to the alleged classical "hold in front, whip behind," nor to Dutch "low deep and round".
Those who really want to compare both training systems have to ask after their goals. That is where the fundamantal difference lies, because done right, the classical way strives for a co-operative partnership between rider and horse "in front of the hand." The Dutch system is fundamentally simpler. It's all about total control over the horse with the help of gas (leg aids) and brake (hand aids). For both methods there are wonderful and less wonderful examples; there are riders who know what they are doing and why - and then you have those who just copy without understanding the principles.
What annoys us in this entire discussion are those extremist opinions. "He who begins to stop, stops with beginning," is one of Sven's mottos. For many years the German dressage riders were the non plus ultra. Those abroad who had ambitions came here to learn from the best. Gonnelien also came to Germany for that and stayed. To this date Germany is still the only country with documented riding principles established through centuries of experience.
However, in the past twenty years other nations are awakening from their rigidity. They have begun not only to copy the German system, but also to look beyond the border, while Germany was resting on its laurels. In the Netherlands they started to work together with behavioural scientists, they applied mental training and looked what they could learn from other sports. The rider needs this mental flexibility, just as he needs the knowledge of the scale of training.
He who thinks he can do everything or knows everything has already reached the beginning of the end. In riding we never stop learning because every horse is different, each combination fits together differently (or not at all), because there are always new ideas worth trying.
We fully stand behind classical riding. But with the same conviction we keep our eyes wide open, listen at training sessions and try new things; not because we think there should be a new system every now and then, but because we believe that our horses can benefit from it when we always stay alert and curious.
-- The Rothenberger Family
Photo © Barbara Schnell
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