Dressage, like dance is much more than a series of technical movements. When practiced at it’s best, we see that dressage always encompasses both art and science to produce something that, in the end, transcends analysis and becomes a beautiful experience. … Paul Belasik

Collection. What is it, and why is it that it eludes so many riders?

According to Paul Belasik, “Collection is still the concept of rebalancing weight toward the hind legs, thereby lightening the forehand. That this is rarely done, or is very difficult to accomplish is no reason to accept less.”

In The Lost Quixotes, Paul Belasik explores the concept of collection and the men who helped create it, as well as the everyday exercises needed to build the strength to achieve it.

Over two years in the making, this film explores the concept of collection, the old masters who created it, and the current science that continues to shape it. It has been created to help riders across all disciplines connect the works of the old masters on collection to state-of-the-art bio-mechanical research.

The cameras take you inside the McPhail Center, the renowned bio-mechanical laboratory for sport horses at Michigan State University, to look at an experiment that, for the first time in history, measured the forces of the levade. A beautifully shot section along the Atlantic coast, at Assategue Island National Park contains an enthralling piece from one of the leading authorities on wild horses and horse behavior and its ramifications for the domestic horse owner.

Trainer: Paul Belasik

Added to Collection: 05/13/2009
Run time: 48 mins

Genres: Documentaries, Dressage