Student riding her horse in the ring

Tryouts for the Fall of 2021 will be held on Saturday September 4th at 10am at the UVM Horse Barn Coop located at 430 Spear Street. We will be providing shuttling from the Harris/Millis building entrance by the parking lot beginning at 9:45am. (We will provide return shuttling back to campus as well!) Please bring your own helmet and boots. Our questionnaire is attached, please email it to us at dressage@uvm.edu prior to tryouts.
Feel free to email us with any questions or to be added to our interest list to receive the most up to date information on tryouts, the team and our upcoming activities!

The University of Vermont Dressage Team has a lot to offer to riders of all disciplines and experience levels. Our current team consists of individuals from a range of different backgrounds, but the study of classical dressage provides the perfect common ground.
The UVM Dressage Team currently consists of 20 members. In the fall semester, try-outs are held to fill any open spots. We invite all athletes to try-out. The selection process is competitive, but not impossible as we have various experience levels to fill. If you are interested in the team, have any questions, are interested in attending  tryouts, or would like to be added to our interest list, please email us at dressage@uvm.edu.

The UVM Dressage Team is based out of the UVM Horse Barn Co-op, conveniently located about five minutes from campus. To learn more about the UVM Horse Barn Co-op, follow this link: https://asci.uvm.edu/horsebarn/. Membership on the UVM Dressage Team offers riders one to two forty-five minute lessons per week during the fall semester and one forty-five minute lesson per week during the spring semester, plus multiple “free rides” (practice rides, on your own) throughout the year. The lesson package also includes clinic lessons each semester with guest clinicians such as Eric Horgan, an Olympic level Eventer, and Lori Barnard, a local gold medal dressage rider and trainer who also holds an R judging status. To learn more about Eric and Lori, follow their respective links: http://www.erichorgan.com, https://loribarnarddressage.com/. We believe in a hands-on approach to horse care and providing our members with a comprehensive learning experience in all aspects of the equestrian sport.

For the past eighteen years, the team has grown and flourished under the watchful eye of our coach Bonnie Timmerman. In 2012, Bonnie was awarded the Intercollegiate Dressage Association (IDA) Coach of the Year Award due to her thoughtful and precise approach. She currently competes at Third Level with her lovely gelding Vivaldi. To learn more about Bonnie, please visit her website: http://www.bonnietimmerman.com/.

To put our skills to practice, the UVM Dressage Team takes part in intercollegiate dressage competitions, sponsored by the IDA. Typically, the team takes eight members to each show, where we compete at Introductory, Lower Training (T1), Upper Training (T3), and First Level. We compete against other schools in regions A and B. Riders are mounted on a horse, drawn at random from within their level, given 10 minutes to warm up, and then expected to perform their test. This is an excellent opportunity to improve your ability to ‘catch ride’ and learn how to ride and perform on any horse. Each semester there are approximately four to six horse shows sponsored by university teams within our region, as well as IDA Nationals, held in mid-April. We currently compete in the A/B region of the IDA which includes UMaine, UNH, JWE, UMass, UConn, MHC and UVM. To learn more about the IDA, please visit: http://www.teamdressage.com.

What is Dressage?

Student riding her horse in competition

dres·sage   (dr-säzh, dr-) [French, preparation, training, dressage, from dresser, to set up, arrange, train, from Old French drecier, to set up, arrange.]

"To the untrained eye it looks easy, but like many equestrian sports, it serves the needs of a diverse range of horse lovers. It's an Olympic equestrian sport; yet a basic training discipline for the backyard horse. Dressage teaches a horse to be obedient, willing, supple and responsive. The horse freely submits to the rider's lightest "aids" or body signals, while remaining balanced and energetic. The object of dressage is the harmonious development of the horse in both mind and body, and every horse, regardless of its type or use, can benefit from this training. Dressage principles are a logical, step-by-step progression from simple to increasingly complex movements. More and more is asked of the horse as it becomes mentally and physically ready to respond to these demands. The graceful movements performed in competition may look effortless, but are the result of years of training. The aids should be virtually imperceptible. A squeeze of the calf, a closing of the fingers, a shifting of the rider's weight in the saddle should be all that is necessary to tell the horse what is required. Dressage requires the horse and rider to combine the strength and agility of gymnastics with the elegance and beauty of ballet. The result is truly the best blend of sport and art. The highlight of a dressage competition is the Musical Freestyle in which the rider creates and choreographs to music an original ride of compulsory figures and movements."

—The United States Dressage Federation

Team Roster

Group photo of the team and their club banner

2021-2022 Roster

Captains
Isabell Gross
Autumn Crabtree
Gabby Clewans

Members
Hallie Nelson
Elyza Bird
Carley DeLoureiro
Julia DeTondo
Sarah MacDonald
Sydney Miller
Caroline Rickerman
Marcelite Bucheit
Margot Mental
Olivia Hall
(+ new members to be added at Fall Tryouts!)

Contact information

Need to Contact someone from the Team?
    
Coach: Bonnie Timmerman (Bonnie.Timmerman@uvm.edu) www.bonnietimmerman.com 
Club Advisor: Marie-France Nelson (Marie-France.Nelson@uvm.edu)
Captains: Isabell Gross, Autumn Crabtree, Gabby Clewans - dressage@uvm.edu 

Horse eating a yellow Popsicle

Upcoming Events:

Please see Facebook for current events

The Dressage Team is an official UVM Club sport

This page is only to represent what an ASCI major might be interested in. It is not the official club page. Please see that here: