DVD Review of Horse Hero’s Laura Bechtolsheimer training series
by dressage enthusiast Christina Jones

Laura Bechtolsheimer is widely recognised as the current queen of classical dressage and this DVD training series from HorseHero.com shows why. 

In the four DVDs Laura works with a variety of horses, from her just backed youngsters up to her top Grand Prix horse & European Silver Medallist, Mistral Hojris. 

Laura works with her father, himself an international competitor & legendary German trainer Klaus Balkenhol to slowly, patiently & methodically bring each horse to its full athletic potential.

Emphasis is put on correct ground work & Dr B demonstrates how he long reins to teach & school right up to Grand Prix on the ground in “Laura Bechtolsheimer and Dr B train their future stars”.  The importance of correct lungeing is also discussed & shown.  The correct riding of 4 & 5 year olds is perfectly demonstrated & the importance of not overstressing the young horse is reinforced.  A valuable insight into how to “calm down” a horse prepared for elite auctions is given.

As we progress with Laura & her horses along the training scale we see how the difficult step from early work to true collection & FEI level work is done in “Laura Bechtolsheimer works with youngster Dan”.  The complete training spectrum is encapsulated in “The baby and the finished horse”.

Finally the ultimate finished product is showcased in “Laura Bechtolsheimer and her Grand Prix horses” where we go behind the scenes as Laura works with top freestyle composer Cees Slings on her new freestyle routine which is shown at the debut performance at the Hickstead Dressage Masters. 

These DVDs are packed full of beautiful horses, logically & sympathetically trained & endless wisdom from a top rider & her trainers.  I would wholeheartedly recommend them for dressage riders everywhere. 

Watch YouTube previews here.

For more information or to purchase the DVDs visit the Horse Hero shop at www.horsehero.com

Note: European PAL format

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