Vanessa Way

What a great privilege it is to host Vanessa Way clinics at Wetterau, having just returned from another stint with her long time friend and trainer, Carl Hesters, in the UK, Vanessa is able to transmit all that wonderful knowledge and talent into her instruction.

“I went back to Carl Hester’s yard to catch up with my friends and to get some training in with the master and queen of dressage . I always feel very honored and privileged to be able to ride their horses and be part of the team,” says Vanessa.

“I was riding 3 to 4 horses a day, some just warming up for Carl. Charlotte was also very generous and let me ride a couple of her younger ones, as she is still getting back to full body fitness after having her baby barely two months ago.”

Vanessa also enjoyed checking out the latest trends in gear, physiotherapy, and overall management of the top level horses.

“The opportunity to go along to the shows with the team and study the exact warmup that would then lead into getting such fantastic scores was extremely valuable for me as a rider, and trainer myself,” says Vanessa.

“The highlight for me was watching their impeccable positions (which I have been studying very hard myself with Debbie Warne) and seeing how effective it is in real life; the incredible softness to the contact that comes as a consequence of having the ability to be supple and loose, and yet strong and balanced in your core and seat.”

It was very rewarding for Vanessa that Carl not only recognized the improvement in her position since working with Debbie, but also that he was pulling her up on exactly the same issues.

“Overall I feel inspired and believe it is possible to produce results while still training our horses in softness and self carriage, as long as we have discipline, patience, and attention to all details.”

Vanessa brings all this to the clinic, along with her personality, humor and unwavering energy. It is refreshing to be involved in clinics where the instruction is brilliant and fun, and the atmosphere welcoming.

We will continue to host Vanessa at Wetterau (as long as she will have us) with clinic dates below, and always open for people who wish to spectate and learn from this fantastic instruction.

Peter Storr

Promoted to O judge at the beginning of 2021, British born judge, rider and trainer, Peter Storr, has represented his country in both world and European events, was Grand Prix national champion in 2000 and 2001, and has been awarded over forty major titles.

Retiring from competition in 2014, Peter spent eight years training the British Pony Team during which time individual riders won gold two consecutive years, and the Team won gold, silver and two team bronzes.

Invited to the 2023 CDI in Sydney, we decided it was a great opportunity to host a judge of his caliber at Wetterau.

Pedro Torres

It was such a privilege to see Academy Pedro Torres at mums Equestrian Centre in Australia. I have known Pedro for 12 years and besides being someone who I admire beyond words for his achievements, he is also a person who always made me feel so welcome. Welcome in Portugal, welcome at his riding centre, a good friend and a brilliant human being.

I was reminded of this watching him ride. The notion that to be a truly brilliant rider you need to be a good person. I believe that.

In Pedro you see a man who spent his life connecting with, understanding and learning about horses. He sees beauty in every horse. He takes every opportunity to ride EVERY horse.

His desire to continually learn and add to his vast pool of knowledge makes him a trainer that can easily adapt to all level of rider.

“The highlight of my lessons with Alancelot is that he became even softer and lighter to the aids,” says rider (mum) Debbie Warne.

“He became so much looser in the shoulders with the increase in lateralisation and mobilization,and all his paces improved considerably.”

Pedro stressed the importance of using the lateral movements as gymnastics for the horse. Often as riders we complete exercises but forget their purpose. “The more lateralisation the more power you gain behind and the better the trot afterwards” says Pedro.

Mum added that Pedro was enthusiastic for the entire clinic and his main concern was the comfort of the horse. His exercises were based on the biomechanics of the horse, which you can see is an area he has invested a lot of time in, to gain a better understanding of how the horses body works.

“Pedro emphasizes using only one leg at a time, either inside or outside, which allows the thoracic area to not be compressed,” says Debbie.

“He was adamant about having an elastic connection with the mouth which could only happen if you had relaxed arms and elbows, and he asked you to put your shoulders back to collect.”

What you notice too is that we are often apprehensive about taking and giving the rein. Pedro would say give and the rider would think they were giving and he would say “more, more, more” until finally they had released enough.

“The horse likes to stretch the neck. When a horse likes to do something, when it makes him feel good, he will want to repeat it, and he will do it more easily,” says Pedro.

“Pedro reminded me that everything is about my partnership with my mare and that training is about making our time together as enjoyable as possible for us both,” says Fiona Anderson.

“Pedro helped me think about preparing my horse’s body for dressage instead of just riding the movements. He really emphasized the importance of the biomechanics of the horse, and would choose the best exercises to increase the horse’s flexibility, range of motion, and expression.” Says Fiona.

It was stressed throughout the clinic the importance of simple clear aids. So often we go into a movement and so many things happen at once, and instead of communicating to the horse what we want, we restrict him. We force him to tighten his body and thus enter the exercise in tension.

Instead Pedro focused on one aid. Outside leg to canter, shoulders back to collect, and never to use both legs at the same time but instead independently to give the horse clear instructions and to allow the thoracic to remain calm and relaxed, and thus allow the energy to flow through the horse.

“Not only does this result in much more expressive movement, it also helps preserve soundness and promote athletic longevity, allowing us to achieve tension free expression in a way that is enjoyable for both horse and rider,” says Fiona.

Our aim as riders is to help our horse feel comfortable and to maintain health and soundness for as long as possible. Achieving this depends on the riders tact in training, and how they prioritize the horses well being. For Pedro that is the goal and it’s fascinating to watch him get on any horse and attempt to piece it together almost like a puzzle until you see the horse say “oh that feels better”.

Isobel Wessels

International 5 star judge Isobel Wessels is coming to Wetterau in January and November of 2024. Top international competitor in her own right, Isobel has trained many horses to Grand Prix level and won 10 national titles in the UK. Judging and training all over the world we are very excited to welcome her expertise. We have riding and viewing spots available.

Wetterau hopes to continue to welcome International instructors in a regular basis, with Peter Storr set to come in September, Pedro Torres returning for the the second time this November, Isobel Wessels in January 2024 and Vanessa Way continuing her monthly clinics.

We will post dates on the site and will open up the clinics for viewing. We think it‘s a great way to spread top quality instruction and help to reach a wider audience.