Tuesday, October 05, 2010

interesting Totilas link - looking at his gaits

http://www.klubequus.org/totilas/

16 comments:

jme said...

i was just commenting to my mother the other day after i saw the televised version how freakish his gaits were. very enlightening to see them in freeze frame.

i was horrified by most of the performances i saw. and the stupid commentator kept swooning over all the horses' flashier but incorrect movements, saying "look at that horse throwing it's front legs way out there" in what i think was supposed to be a passage or piaffe but looked more like some sped-up version of a spanish walk.

the only one that i thought came close was fuego - a little baroque for my taste (though there's nothing wrong with that) but at least it tried to be consistent with a philosophy!

smazourek said...

Oh that's funny. I was actually commenting somewhere else the other day about how much Totilas reminds me of a gaited horse. Guess I was right on!

billie said...

Agreed, and even more interesting to me is the way so many people will jump all over you if you evaluate Totilas' gaits and say anything negative. I can't figure out what in the world the charm is with this movement.

I am being totally serious when I say that if any of mine began moving like he does I'd call the vet for a lameness exam!

billie said...

smazourek, you are not alone in that thinking. It's been said many times over the past few years.

Valentino said...

I have heard that Totilas and Brentina are expecting...

billie said...

I'm sure the baby will cost a small mint - mind-boggling.

Grey Horse Matters said...

I can't really add anything to this. I didn't like it and didn't think he deserved the score he got. Fuego was better in my opinion.

Jeanette said...

Taking a look at Wikipedia, there is some interesting info about the foundation breeds of the Dutch Warmblood. I know when I look at Totilas, I see a high Hackney type of gait. I am wondering if rather than training some of his "high" steps are from the Dutch Harness Horse genes.

Here are some quotes from Wiki on both the Dutch warmblood and the Dutch Harness horse.

"Strict selection procedures mean that the Dutch Harness Horse is reasonably uniform in type and motion, and also means that the gait qualities of the horses are inherent. As the show horses are not asked to canter in harness, this gait receives less attention. The walk is diligent, but the trot is the true show gait. The forelegs are typically longer than the hindlegs - by design - and as such the horse will "sink" in the back and rise in the front. This quality is responsible for the powerful, active hind end and the great freedom in the forehand. These horses usually have a metronomic trot and ample suspension."


"The breed is based on the native Groningen and Gelderland horses, which were formerly indispensable in agriculture and transportation services. Strict selection procedures and a clear breeding aim enabled breeders to produce a refined, high-stepping horse within a few decades

Dutch Warmblood is significantly more sensitive than its Gelderlander and Groningen ancestors. Performance test results allow breeders and buyers to identify horses with amateur-suitable temperaments. All Dutch Warmbloods are selected to be uncomplicated to handle and ride. Among the dressage horses, cooperativeness is paramount as an element of the submission required in that sport. From the show jumpers, a level of courage and reflexivity is required to effectively navigate a course.[5]

Since the turn of the millennium, Dutch Warmblood breeding has shifted from breeding a "riding horse" to further specialization into dressage type and jumper type horses. To protect against losing canter quality in the dressage horse and conformation, gaits and rideability in the jumper type, genetic material continues to be freely exchanged between the two types. Specialization depends on the abilities of the horse."

Just a thought on where the "Totilas" gait may have come from.

billie said...

Arlene, I saw enough of Fuego to agree that he offered the better performance.

billie said...

Jeannette, thanks for the info. I think it depends on whether one sees Totilas as having a "powerful active hind end" and "great freedom in the forehand."

What I see is a weak hind end that strings out behind him, and front legs that are pulling and almost scrambling forward - with very little suspension.

Interesting about the front legs being longer - if that is true for Totilas it makes sense physiologically that he moves the way he does. I can't actually imagine that anyone breeds for this "by design" - it seems like it would put undue strain on the horse.

Jeanette said...

"These horses usually have a metronomic trot and ample suspension."

This is the line I found interesting. Totilas certainly displays both, at least at the collected trot.

I am not happy watching Totilas, his so-called extensions really bother me, but then I spent years riding Throughbreds. I did have a friend who drove a Hackney and until my eye ajusted to the Hackney gait I found it very "off".

I am not commenting about good or bad dessage training Totilas has had, I am just remarking that different breeds can have very different ways of moving.

billie said...

You're right, of course, that different breeds can have different ways of moving. However, the standards for scoring remain the same - which is really the biggest complaint I have about the performance. The judging should adhere to the standards as they are written.

It's true that I happen to like the way classical movement looks - as opposed to the way Totilas moves - no question about that. Aesthetically but also because I think the way Totilas moves is not doing his joints any favors in the long run.

Dougie Donk said...

I'm beginning to bore even myself with the view that Totilas should be given some extended quality time off in a field, so that he can remember how to move naturally.

His conformation reminds me the German Shepherds with dreadful hip dysplasia. Poor guy.

billie said...

Not boring! Keep saying and writing it. I would love to see that poor horse able to run freely.

Jeanette said...

I totally agree! It would be wonderful to see Totilas running and bucking in a huge paddock, with all day turn-outs. It would also be great to see him cantering cross-country with loose reins on a snaffle bit under a rider who is sitting stillm, and just enjoying the ride and the horse.

billie said...

Love those images, Jeanette.