Grace, precision and a lifelong bond between horse and rider — these are the hallmarks of dressage, an equestrian art Lea Stokes has spent decades mastering.
A Clark College photography professor and Ridgefield resident, Stokes currently teaches dressage to local riders. Growing up in Corvallis, she fell in love with horses at an early age. Stokes initially used dressage as a tool to prepare herself and her horse for cross-country and show jumping competitions. Over time, her passion for the equestrian discipline grew, leading her to focus solely on dressage for the past 20 years. This year, she made the leap to professional status, sharing her techniques with new riders and helping them foster deeper relationships with their horses.
“The truth of the matter is that dressage will help you with any equestrian sport that you wanna do. The way that it develops a horse in that supple, positive way is really helpful whether you’re just gonna trail ride or jump [for] events,” Stokes said.
What is dressage?
Stokes describes dressage as more than just a sport — it’s a discipline and a training system for both horse and rider. In competitions, horses and their riders perform memorized sequences of movements, showcasing precision, balance and harmony.
At more advanced levels, riders execute intricate movements like the "shoulder-in," where the horse travels slightly bent around the rider's inside leg, creating a 30-degree angle to the wall. This exercise, performed as a collected trot, enhances the horse’s balance, movement, positioning and engagement with the rider. Stokes explained dressage takes years for a horse to exude the patience and discipline required to perform at high level.
“The concept of dressage in some ways is simple. You can read a couple of books and sort of understand it, but the application of it is really a life's work,” Stokes said. “One of my trainers famously likes to say it takes two lifetimes to learn how to ride dressage, and it's basically true, so I'm just doing the best I can in this one.”
The lifelong journey
For Stokes, dressage is deeply personal. She and her horse, Special, a 19-year-old American warmblood, have been together since the mare was 2. Stokes trained Special herself, and together they achieved a significant milestone in 2018: earning a bronze medal by competing at the third level of dressage. Stokes and Special traveled to several local shows to achieve this, driving as far as the Devonwood Equestrian Centre in Washington County, Oregon.
According to the United States Dressage Federation (USDF), at the third level, dressage demands increased engagement, self-carriage and straightness, with the horse demonstrating clear transitions between collected, medium and extended gaits. At this level, other horse moves are used. The half pass is a lateral movement where the horse travels diagonally across the arena while bending in the direction of travel, requiring suppleness and precise coordination between horse and rider. Flying lead changes involve the horse switching leads in the canter mid-stride without breaking gait, showcasing balance, straightness and responsiveness.
Achieving a bronze medal stands out as one of Stokes' proudest accomplishments. Unfortunately, Special was forced to retire shortly after earning bronze due to an injury. The horse is in good health and is stabled in a Ridgefield barn.
Stokes later earned a silver medal while competing at the intermediate “prix St. Georges” level with Ruger, a borrowed gelding with an impressive background, having previously competed at the Grand Prix level, the highest tier in dressage. The prix St. Georges level serves as a stepping stone for aspiring international competitors, showcasing essential skills like double bridles and an intermediate level of performance. The grand prix level, a future aspiration for Stokes, is the highest level of dressage recognized by USDF, requiring complex movements at the highest form of mastery.
While the silver medal is a significant achievement, Stokes holds her bronze medal in higher regard. The fact she trained and raised Special from the ground up makes the accomplishment deeply personal for Stokes.
“I'm most proud of getting my bronze medal on special because I trained her myself with a lot of help … You know, I don't know that I ever thought that I would get myself a medal. It was like kind of more than I could dream of,” she said.
Special’s retirement has not stopped Stokes from her ambition to one day reach the grand prix level. Stokes bred Special, who gave birth to Paloma, now a spirited 4-year-old mare, who Stokes wishes to train for the highest level of dressage.
Training the next generation
Recognizing the challenge ahead, Stokes turned professional this year, teaching dressage at Emerson Equestrian in Ridgefield since March.
“If I'm gonna start my young horse I better be at the top of my game,” Stokes said. “I can't just like take a year off and then start this feisty young mare.”
In her new role as a trainer, Stokes teaches seven regular students the basics of dressage, fostering patience through the exercises. Above all, Stokes emphasizes building trust between horse and rider.
“It’s critical. I have students who are fearful of their horse, or the horse has bad behaviors, so I take a very holistic approach,” Stokes said. “I've worked a lot to build confidence in some of my client's horses. And then through the horse becoming more confident, the rider builds trust in the horse, and the relationship can actually improve significantly just by addressing the relationship itself.”
Stokes said that, as an instructor, she has learned more about dressage in the past few months than in her almost two decades of training because she is working with a new set of horses. However, she has quite a few equine roadblocks ahead of her.
"Paloma has her own ideas about who she wants to be, and dressage isn't exactly at the top of her list … She's a real drama queen with a huge personality — very curious, very high energy, and a bit impatient. She's young and hasn't yet developed the discipline, focus, or willingness to really start dressage training," Stokes said.
Stokes is currently teaching Paloma the basics of dressage, fostering patience. For now, Paloma enjoys trail riding, and Stokes is open to exploring other equestrian sports that suit her personality.
“You can't force a horse to do dressage. You have to develop their mind and body, and you have to teach them with clarity and patience," Stokes said.
