Learning By Example Series: Book 2
Analyzing Functional Conformation for the Olympic Disciplines
Length: 445 pages and over 600 photos, including 63 pages of workbook examples
Price: $59.95
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Analyzing Functional Conformation for the Olympic Disciplines is an comprehensive, 445 page, book covering each of the three Olympic equestrian disciplines – dressage, eventing and show jumping – in great detail. It includes over 600 photographs from Wardrope’s extensive collection to illustrate the concepts of functional conformation. There is also a short section covering show hunters.
Armed with knowledge gained from this comprehensive book, readers will learn what to look for, and what to avoid, when choosing a horse – for competition or for breeding purposes. A small investment in information could save horse buyers and breeders thousands of dollars down the road.
Olympic Discipline Conformation Analysis Examples
Judy Wardrope has studied the top performing horses in both sport and racing, for over 30 years, to determine what separates the best from the rest. Looking beneath the glossy coats and muscle development, she has determined that function is explained by the way each horse’s skeleton is constructed and how it impacts on the horse’s ability to perform at peak efficiency. “It’s a matter of physics – both in regard to the equine skeleton and the tasks we ask our equine partners to perform,” she says.
“Understanding functional conformation allows riders and their trainers to select mounts that are most likely to succeed in competition or on the racetrack. Horses that are built to perform specific jobs learn more easily, display fewer resistances to training and conditioning, are less prone to performance related injuries and will have longer and more successful competitive careers. Because they are happier horses, their human partners are usually happier as well.”
Functional conformation, or ‘form to function’ as it is also called, gives breeders another tool for selecting pairings of stallions and mares to produce foals that have the functional conformation to perform well in, and withstand the rigors of, specific disciplines.
Whether the goal is to produce a horse that can jump higher, move more gracefully in the dressage ring, complete a 160km endurance race or out strip the competition on the racetrack, breeding for functional conformation will impact both the marketability of the offspring today and the entire horse industry in the future.
USEA Review:
Continue studying and improving your equine expertise and take a look at Judy’s latest e-book on conformation: Learning By Example, Book 2: Analyzing the Functional Conformation for the Olympic Disciplines. Here, through more than 600 photos, Judy uses the power of consistency and repetition to illustrate the concepts of Functional Conformation. Featuring many horses that competed at the Olympic Games, World Cup Finals, or World Equestrian Games, she educates the reader on what to look for in a horse’s conformation depending on its intended use and shows that a horse built for the job will have an easier, and likely more successful, career.
These e-books and other literature by Judy is available for purchase on her website www.jwequine.com.
EVENTING USA I ISSUE TEN | 2012 35
I recently purchased your “Analyzing Conformation for the Olympic Disciplines” and love it. I wish I knew all this 20 years ago! Barb Belknap
This is the most useful conformation book I have ever seen. It focuses on practical conformation. I.e. what the great horses have in common. Most books I have seen combine “age old knowledge” (I would challenge a lot of this “knowledge”) with approximations and assumptions and call it conformation. Then the same books will comment that some horses break the rules and are still champions. This leaves the reader with little understanding with which to assess future prospects. Judy’s premise is that there are no horses that break the rules. Those who seem to, can be mechanically explained. They may be extreme cases, but there is a reason they still work. This is the most rational and functional conformation book I have ever seen. I liked it so much not only will I be purchasing her other books, but I am currently reaching out to her for advice on choosing a competition prospect. She has been extremely helpful. She has a very refined and educated eye. It is my hope that more people will read her books, and hopefully we can improve our breeding programs in America. It would be to everyone’s benefit to see athletic horses, with excellent conformation, who will remain sound, being breed as then norm, rather than the exception. Thank you Judy. I look forward to learning from you going forward. Lauren I.
From blogs: “Edited to add sources of conformation assessment information, by request! Highly recommend purchasing Judy Wardrope’s ebook…”
“I highly recommend Judy Wardrope’s ‘Equine Conformation for the Olympic Disciplines’… a bit expensive at $60 but it’s a 445 page PDF download with a shit ton of a pictures, so it’s totally worth it as a resource IMO. I have been to a couple different courses that referred to this source for the study material, for good reason.”
“I love that she looks at it from the approach of each discipline, because it really does depend on the job the horse is doing. There’s not really ONE set ideal, even though several things are similar across the board.”
“Since I’m not qualified to write about things like this, I’m more than happy to point you toward someone who is…I highly recommend investing in Judy [Wardrope’s] ebook, Equine Conformation for the Olympic Disciplines. It’s a little pricey, yes, but it’s 400+ pages of photos, diagrams, and new ways of looking at conformation that you probably haven’t seen before. To me, this is the sporthorse bible. In my experience, much of what she writes about holds true in practical application. If you’re at all interested in the subject, this is a must-own item.”
“Judy [Wardrope’s] book is amazing! I bought it yesterday after I read your post because I do want to become much more educated in [conformation] and how it effects movement. I was a little intimidated before I started looking thought it. I’ve now read half of it and have a new perspective on [conformation] and how you can look at all the pieces of the horse to get a better idea of what [discipline] they are suited for.”
To see what others thought of e-books by Judy Wardrope go to https://www.jwequine.com/books-by-judy-wardrope/survey-results-2/