Flossy is well known to many on the British Dressage Forum as a teller of interesting stories and perhaps the odd joke or two. We have selected a few tales for your pleasure.

Correct position

Senior Trainer and Marco de Graber were exchanging ideas and experiences from their professional life , as often the topic is the training successes or failing in developing a classical dressage seat in the British Dressage Divas, contrary to most opinions this is not an easy thing to accomplish.
It seems that the female of the Anglo Saxon race suffers genetically from the inability to sit deep in the saddle with an upright but supple body with the hips and pelvis positioned in a manner that enable them to swing and oscillate, gently following the horses back. It seems that for some reason God has denied the Anglo Saxon female from a natural usage of the psoas muscles, or they simply loose them a day after a wedding ceremony. Instruct a BDD to shorten her stirrup and assume an egg laying position in a full gallop and she shows suppleness and agility of a wild cat, how ever mention the word dressage and the shoulder round and the back locks in a rigger mortise like spasm , with the seat bones curled underneath the torso bally button protruding inwards , all in the name of a deep seat.
Senior trainer relayed to Marco de Graber that at times he has to resort to a very descriptive non regulation language in order to effect an influence over the BDDs position, he has to use sentences like “you aught to sit on the hairy part of your anatomy not the flashy part of your body dear”, unless the Diva is completely blond and attempt doing a head stand in the saddle it seems to have a 45% successes rate.
Marco de Graber, being non British, believes in the hands on practice. when simple clear explanation with an explicit demonstration fails to induce the required posture, he resorts to physically prodding ,pulling and pushing until the right posture has been attained.
Senior Trainer raised an eye brow “ Maaaarco this is not very British and if you don't want to go down in history as Jimmy Savile of the dressage world you better take your self in hand”
“I do , I do often!!!” replied Marco de Graber
The conversation continued how the other day after extensive pushing and pulling shoving and prodding, Plump lady was sitting in a near perfect position, erect body supple hips with the top of the pelvis slightly tilted forward, so her plump little legs hanged, in a perfect loose manner, bellow the saddle flap (as it should be), and then continued Marco just as Plump closed her legs to make the horse go forward, the B,,,Y beast arched his back strained his muscles and pushed the pommel of the saddle into plump Ladys correctly positioned pelvic.
“Whaaa !!!! that must have been painful” said Senior Trainer.
“You are telling me “ exclaimed Marco de Graber “it nearly broke three of my fingers”