An interview with Anja Beran

In 2014 werd de blog “Equestrian Lifestyle” opgericht, een website over divers niet-sportgerelateerde hippische onderwerpen; zoals fashion, trends, events en reizen.

Al snel groeide het concept uit tot een druk bezochte website met maandelijks minimum 20.000 unieke bezoekers wereldwijd. Diverse samenwerkingen en oneindig veel events later is er een einde gekomen aan de website, maar één van de meest interessante samenwerkingen was gedurende de internationale beurs Equitana in Essen (D), waar de vraag kwam om Anja Beran te interviewen. Later kregen we ook de kans om enkele dagen te gaan trainen op haar locatie in Duitsland.

Interview with Anja Beran

AB: No, not at all! (laughs)I started riding as a child and just wanted to go hacking — to be outside with the horses. Later, I tried a bit of show jumping because I thought dressage was boring. But little by little, I wanted to communicate better with the horse and started searching for a higher level of horsemanship. That’s how my passion for dressage began.

So you started as a show jumper? Do you still use those techniques in your daily training?Not really, but sometimes we let the horses jump freely, especially in winter when life can get a bit boring for them. We live at 1,000 meters altitude and have a lot of snow, so they can’t go outside much. Free jumping helps keep their work varied. Occasionally, we also train with small obstacles.

Do you still remember your very first horse or pony?

Yes, it was an Arabian, and I have wonderful memories of him. It’s actually quite funny, because today I work with many Arabian stallions from the state stud, and it feels quite special — but I truly love them.

Do Arabians need to be trained differently than, for example, Lusitanos?

Yes, they’re a bit different because their physique is very different, but they’re so intelligent and clever that it’s really fun to train them. In the end, though, all breeds can achieve the same results — flying changes, piaffe, passage — everything is possible. You just need to keep in mind how clever they are.

You’ve probably trained many horses in your life. Is there one that stands out as the most remarkable in your career?

Not really. We run a training center, and usually we don’t get young horses to start from scratch — we get the ones that already have problems. Each horse teaches me something, and I’ve learned a lot from every single one of them. I’m very thankful to all those “difficult” horses because they helped me grow.

So you never start with young horses?

Sometimes, yes — for example, with the stallions from the state stud, or the ones from the biggest circus in Europe, which I also work for. They usually arrive when they are three years old. Most other horses come to us after someone else tried to train them and failed, so we help them start again.

Do you ever get frustrated when you see a horse’s potential but know something went wrong along the way?

Yes, of course. But if the problems are only under saddle, that’s not the worst. The real issue is when the horse has mental or psychological damage, that’s truly sad.

Is there a famous horse you would love to train?

No, not really, there are so many wonderful horses out there.

There’s a lot of discussion about classical dressage in modern competition. Do you think dressage is on the right track?No, not at all.

Could the FEI change something?

It’s a very difficult situation. In my opinion, most trainers and riders really want to do it right but the knowledge is gone. That’s the problem. It’s not easy to change the system, because most people simply don’t know another way. There’s so much old knowledge that has been forgotten. Many riders feel that something should change, but they just don’t know how.

Do you think there will ever be a turning point? Could the FEI or the judging system make a difference?

Ideally, change should start at the top — but it won’t. Some rules should definitely be changed, but real change must come from the basics. Some riders already don’t want to continue like this.

Do you do any other sports to keep in shape?

I like swimming and gymnastics. If I have time, I do it every evening — just 20 minutes, especially exercises to keep my body strong and flexible.

Can you give us some tips for improving straightness in our own bodies?

If you do specific exercises every evening, 15 to 20 minutes is enough, because your body will get used to them.

The Perfect Classical Seat

You seem to have the perfect seat. Can you recommend an exercise for riders who struggle with their balance? What do you think about mechanical horses?

When you’re already on the horse , it’s too late!You need to work on your seat and balance beforehand. When we’re on a horse, we already have so many things to manage — the movement, the turning, the transitions. So the basic work for us riders should be done on the ground.

You need to be mobile and have strength in specific areas — especially your back and core — so you can maintain a stable position. But at the same time, your arms and legs must stay relaxed. That combination is not easy. Dancers or ballet performers often have better balance and rhythm, so for them, riding is much easier.

Which of the old masters inspires you the most?

For me, it’s Nuno Oliveira. The photos of him are perfection, sometimes they say more than the books. You can see perfect balance, a beautiful seat, light reins, and a horse that is fully engaged. Whenever we lose our way a little, it helps to look at his pictures again for inspiration.

Do you think Lusitano horses are the best for dressage?

No, not at all, that was actually a mistake I made when I was younger. I spent a lot of time in Portugal training Lusitanos, but later I realized that it’s the training method that matters most. Classical training makes every horse light, supple, and healthy.

We now have warmbloods, Haflingers, Arabians, Friesians and all can be ridden in lightness and balance at a high level. If the horse is healthy and well trained, the breed doesn’t matter.

What’s the most important quality a horse should have for you?

Brains! I’ve had many horses with imperfect bodies or even physical problems, but if they have a good mind, everything is possible. If a horse wants to work with you and show himself, that’s the perfect horse. A horse with the best conformation but a poor mind — you can’t do much with that.

Do you have plans to spread your knowledge outside of Europe?

Yes, I’ve already been to California, Ohio, Memphis, and the Emirates, and one of my students even went to Argentina and the Philippines. So yes, we are spreading the classical message worldwide.

Will you open a training center outside Europe?

No, we’ll just organize clinics. Some of our riders travel internationally to teach.

I believe it’s very important to preserve the principles of classical dressage — they help so many horses.

Nowadays, there are many different training methods and “new” systems. Do you think we need innovation in horse training?

I don’t think we need innovation in riding. What we need is innovation in horse care: how we keep horses healthy, how we feed them, how we understand them better.

In riding, we should look back to the old masters — the people who truly lived with their horses and rode every day. They knew what worked. We should read the old books again.

What about technology — for example, apps that analyze straightness or balance?

If only it were that easy! (laughs)No, to me, that’s not the right approach.

Is there a current competition rider you admire?

There are some riders who are very, very good riders I enjoy watching. But the problem is the system they are trained in. The system forces them to do things I don’t like. I know they are talented, but they’re pushed too much in one direction.

Breeding has also changed a lot horses today seem hotter and more expressive. What do you think?

Yes, that’s a real problem. Dressage riders often want very “hot” horses because they’ve lost the knowledge of how to properly train a horse. They think a hotter horse makes piaffe and passage easier, but these horses often become too strong, too sensitive, too reactive — and even top riders struggle with them.

Breeders should calm down a bit. Even professionals are reaching their limits with these modern types. For most riders, such horses are simply too difficult. You can see it in the young horse competitions even top riders find them challenging to ride.

Can riders come to train at your place?

Yes, of course, but we’re fully booked for almost two years in advance.

Do you offer school horses?

No, absolutely not.

In one of your videos, you showed the rehabilitation of a Friesian horse. Do you often do this kind of work?

Yes, it just happens naturally. I don’t specifically look for it. Many young stallions, three or four years old come to us after their approval tests for breeding, and they are often completely broken afterwards. It’s simply too much, too early. I feel sorry for them, but we try to help them recover.

How long do horses usually stay with you?

Normally, about six or seven years. I’m fortunate to have clients who want to develop their horses properly. I even had a circus horse who came to me at three years old, stayed until he was eight, went on to perform and then returned to me again at 29!

Do you enjoy working with stallions?

Yes, very much. They’re very attentive sometimes too much! But I like their expression. All classical movements piaffe, passage, levade are natural expressions of stallions when they want to impress a mare. So it feels very natural to work with them.

Your DVD “Train the Eye” is very popular. What makes it special?

Because it explains everything that’s happening today. It doesn’t give you all the solutions, but it clearly shows the differences and helps you understand the real problems.