A fantastic evening with the riding master Ingrid Klimke
Educational, entertaining and enjoyable: The masterclass of the CHIO Aachen CAMPUS with the riding master Ingrid Klimke impressed the audience
She is one of the most successful riders in the world. And one of the most versatile! And that is precisely what the riding master Ingrid Klimke impressively and very convincingly demonstrated during the masterclass of the CHIO Aachen CAMPUS. In the scope of the three and half hour programme she trained eight horse and rider pairs through the warm-up phase, in dressage, jumping and over eventing obstacles in the fully-packed, seasonally decorated Albert-Vahle Arena.
The spectrum of the horses taking part ranged from four-year-old youngsters through to experienced dressage and eventing horses. The emphasis of all the sessions, which were both varied and versatile, was placed on the harmony between the horse and rider! After all, the 54-year-old is not only well-known for her amazing victories, but also for her sensitive riding style. Her demand – always treating the horse in a partnership-like and respectful way and practising the sport with a large portion of passion and enthusiasm. Consequently, the motto of the evening was again and again: “Praise, praise, praise!” As soon as a horse completed an exercise totally relaxed. “Sometimes one has to pat one’s sports partner as if he has just won the SAP Cup in Aachen,” the 54-year-old stated, who succeeded in improving the suppleness, connection and engagement of each of the horses with the aid of many small tricks.
The rider from Münster particularly relied on the usage of cavalettis to achieve this aim, integrating them into the training sessions in a variety of exercises. “This motivates the horse and encourages it to engage its legs more energetically,” explained Ingrid Klimke. And not only that: Everyone, who was present on this evening, was able to experience how the work with cavalettis not only strengthened and made the horses supple, but also how much fun it is – not only for the rider, but also for the horses. “It adds variety to the work and encourages the horse to think for itself,” the expert0020explained. In the course of the evening she also gave the audience insights into her everyday training at home and looked back on her experiences at the CHIO Aachen – from her first ever appearance in a lead-rein class, to the World Equestrian Games in 2006, through to her victory in the SAP Cup with her “Bobby” in the year 2019. A video clip of the ride was shown on the big screen again, commentated by the riding master herself live.
Hence, the informative programme offered both great variety and valuable tips for the daily work with one’s partner, the horse. All of the riders not only left the arena with plenty of homework, but also with a proud smile on their lips. “That was great fun,” beamed Lorelotte Weller, who together with her lunger, took many tips for the winter work home with her. In the concluding autograph session, Ingrid Klimke not only whipped out her pen, she also answered the individual questions of the audience and had a few selfies taken with them. A really educational evening, which came to a cosy conclusion over cocoa and mulled wine in a festively decorated Christmas village, bringing the CAMPUS year 2022 to a fantastic close.
