Deutsches Spring- und Dressur- Derby 2013

Last Friday, I spent the afternoon at the Derby. It wasn't a Derby like the Kentucky Derby, but it did
involve horses. It was the jumping and "dressage" which is actually a French word for training

It was a whole new world for me.

A friend lives very near (as in a 5-minute walk) to where the event takes place, so she organized an afternoon at the derby watching qualifications with a grill party to follow.

I wasn't sure what to expect, but, like most sports, it was very exciting to experience it in person. I'm not a person who ever watched more than 30 seconds while channel surfing past horse jumping on TV.

photo source

The big excitement was a 4-meter "obstacle" (see video here top right) which really seemed to throw the horses off their game. They surveyed the situation and some went down after 5-7 seconds. But some took as long as 30 second to figure it all out and then practically slide down on their rears.

The dressage was less-exciting, but just as interesting. Plus, it helped that one of the gals in our group used to ride horses, so she was able to explain what was going on so could better understand what we were watching.

We also saw how and why horses are a mega-expensive sport. There were lots of stands to buy everything from saddles to boots to luxurious RV-trailers where the horse can travel inside instead of being pulled behind a vehicle. I am still not sure I want to google how much those go for.

The weather stayed dry, but it cooled off mid-afternoon. We had a warm beverage and proceeded to the grill portion of the day. Three hours at the derby was the perfect amount for me.

It was a very worthwhile new experience for me.