Crystal Pirates
"Our ship is our castle, and our crew is our family – united by sea and bound by crystal."
Est. 5/12/22
by Emily Nightvalley
Deckhands
The Deckhands rank serves as the entry-level position for all new riders, providing a comprehensive foundation in essential skills needed to succeed in the arena. This rank is designed to:
-
Introduce riders to the arena, familiarizing them with the environment.
-
Teach riders how to perform collaboratively, emphasizing teamwork and coordination with other riders.
-
Present fundamental moves that serve as the foundational building blocks for more advanced techniques, ensuring riders develop a solid skill set.
-
Introduce gaited curls, which will be essential for the Cadet modifiers, allowing riders to master these movements early on.
-
Educate riders on the importance of maintaining proper spacing, or "gappings," in competitive dressage, which is crucial for routine work.
-
Initiate riders into their first competitive sequences, providing them with a preface of how competitions work and helping them build confidence in their abilities.
-
Allow riders to become comfortable with basic split alignments, ensuring they can handle complex formations with precision.
By completing the Deckhands rank, riders gain a thorough introduction to the critical elements of riding dressage, laying the groundwork for their progression to higher levels.
Welcome to your first lesson with The Crew!
In this initial lesson, riders will be introduced to fundamental arena lines and quadrants, which are critical components in competitive routines. Additionally, baby pirates will cover the basic theory of curl overs as it relates to quadrants. This lesson will teach riders how to execute two distinct styles of halting, as well as practice common spacing techniques essential for both routines and daily practice. This lesson will conclude with our staff guiding riders through beginner level moves.
