I came  to Sue as an adult beginner 3 years ago and have been  with her ever since.  I started on the school horses available  for 2 years and then 1 year ago, purchased my 1st horse named “Chrome”, a handsome  6 year old paint gelding.  It has been an amazing year.  I have been most impressed with two aspects of Sue’s training sessions.  She is a skillful communicator and has been very successful in getting results due to her ability to communicate with both the horse and rider.  This is not easy to find in a trainer, because it is difficult to teach  the “feel” in dressage.  Secondly, Sue has desire to become a better rider and trainer herself.  Through her participation in a variety of clinics and competitions, she brings those new ideas and enthusiasm to her students.

Sue has the qualities that I need in a trainer.  She’s very motivating and encourages me to reach for a higher standard in my riding.  It always amazes me what she can see when I am riding.!  There is always a plan  and logical progression through the training scale with our work that enables me to build on what I learn.  My “a-ha” moments come  more frequently.  Chrome and I are becoming a team, not just horse and rider.

Sue has helped develop me into a feeling, analyzing, and attractive rider.  I am so thankful to her for showing me “The Keys to the Kingdom of Dressage".
 
Sharon Holt & Chrome
Cornwall, NY

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As a novice rider it has become increasingly clear to me that dressage is the foundation for riding in any discipline. It enables the rider to direct the horse with the proper aids and in the correct sequence. It also enables the rider to ride the horse correctly so that the horse transitions easily from one movement to another. Although I have certainly not achieved this, I understand how studying dressage can lead to balance and lightness in both horse and rider. This is especially important in side saddle, a seat that I am very interested in. Balance in this saddle is of utmost significance due to the fact that both legs rest on one side of the horse while riding. Without dressage, it would be very difficult to maintain a proper seat and aspire to higher level movements in a side saddle.

Marybeth Walker

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I have been studying the art of classical dressage with Susan Stegmeyer for almost 2 years. Susan personifies the term “dressuer rider” and is a true master of the art.

As a person with a significant disability who uses a wheelchair to get around and requires a tracheostomy to breathe, I was turned away from a local “therapeutic riding center” as they felt me “too disabled” to ride horses.

Having been a successful equestrian and avid competitor, riding Hunter/Jumpers in my youth, I knew it would be possible, if I could just locate an instructor who could look past the disability and see the budding enthusiast beneath. After doing some research, I learned that dressage was a discipline that riders with disabilities could participate in and locating a barn near me, I called to inquire about lessons and was connected with Sue.

Sue patiently learned what she needed to know about how my disability affected me and then she got to work teaching me the art. Having no formal training in teaching people with disabilities how to ride did not present an issue for her; she simply worked with me to devise alternate aides that enabled me to accomplish the task at hand. She matched my ability with one of her school horses and I began twice weekly lessons with her. When I was fortunate enough to acquire a horse of my own, she then took on the challenge of training it to understand my own unique set of aids. Having such a thorough understanding of the art of dressage, if I am having difficultly grasping what she is teaching, she has the ability to keep rephrasing it until I understand it. She is never hesitant to mount my horse to (1) demonstrate a particular technique to me or (2) put the “footprint” in my horse’s mind so she will better understand what I am asking her to do.

Understanding the importance of becoming a complete dresseur rider, Sue let me borrow a number of books to read so that I could learn and understand the rules and regulations of the USDF and its colorful history. When my disability led to several long hospitalizations, she made sure my mind stayed busy with even more literature to read.

In the past I have worked with trainers who made me feel as if my success was dependent on their presence, that I would be unsuccessful without their input or have had their own agenda. Sue is refreshingly different in that she always keeps s my goals and aspirations first and foremost when we are training. She strives to empower me to use her knowledge and instruction as a catalyst for my understanding the art and that it is my responsibility to take what she is teaching and apply it to my riding technique and to train my horse. Out of respect for its longstanding history and to show her seriousness about the art of dressage, Sue always teaches wearing the appropriate riding attire.

I feel it an honor and a privilege to be studying under Susan Stegmeyer. At this point, I am not sure if I will go onto compete at the paralympic level or be content with working towards perfecting my skill at the art. Whatever the end result may be, I am thoroughly enjoying the journey with her and know that whatever I choose to do, Sue has the ability, knowledge and experience to get me there.

Donna M. Ponessa

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An extra pressure,
A silent rebuke,
An unseen praising,
A firm correction,
All these passed between us
As through a telegraph wire.

I read these words one day while browsing through OF WOMEN AND HORSES by Ga Wa Ni Pony Boy. Thinking the article would be about dressage I read further. The story wasn’t at all about dressage but those beginning words sounded so familiar. I realized they were similar in content with what my dressage trainer would tell me during a riding lesson. Susan is always reminding me that dressage riding is like dancing with a partner, it’s a team effort but there needs to be a leader. There are certain basic steps that need to be learned before the dance can be perfected and there after look effortless,’as through telegraph wires’.

Susan’s method of teaching dressage is very unique and transcends age categories. My grandaughter, Julie, and I began riding horses in March of 1999. She was seven years old and I was fifty-seven years old. We rode Hunter Jumper for those ten years. Two years ago we moved to the barn Susan was training at and began our dressage journey. Julie is now seventeen and I am sixty-seven.

Learning a new discipline of riding after a decade of Hunter Jumper, especially at my advanced age, has not been quick or easy for me or my horse Missy. Missy and I have only been together for two and a half years. Missy is young, she will be nine this July and I will be sixty-eight in September. Susan’s training methods have been able to bridge the age gap between us. Missy is learning to allow me to be the leader in our dance. She is listening to my, hopefully, subtle aids, my firm but not arrogant corrections and my ever abounding praise.

One of my most joyous moments during a riding lesson is to hear Susan shout out “Your in the pocket, can you feel it!!” It is during those little break through moments that I praise and bless Susan and her KEYS TO THE KINGDOM OF DRESSAGE. Thank you and God Bless You.

LOVE Janet Betanzos and Missy (Sheer Satisfaction).

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I have been taking instructions from Sue for about 3 years. Since I don't have my own horse I have the opportunity to ride several lesson horses. Sue helps me to evaluate each horse as to a "left bender" or a "right bender" and their strengths and weaknesses. This teaches me to adjust my aids and to help them get balanced and carry themselves in the correct frame. I am working on the timing and effectiveness of my aids. Every horse is different and I have to be a thinking rider. It is such a great feeling when you get them round and "in the pocket". We keep the focus on the training scale. Sue is very professional. She always has the lessons planned ahead of time and remembers where you left off. She is positive, energetic, caring: loves what she is doing, has patience, knows what she is talking about and how to demonstrate it. She attends clinics, reads, and is always learning herself.

I am very fortunate that she is teaching me "The Keys to The Kingdom of Dressage".

Rose Arnold

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