What The Hell Is Dressage Anyways?

I've had a lot of people ask what the hell I am doing since dressage is not a well know sport here in the States. Below is a brief definition:

"Dressage (a French term meaning "training") is a path and destination of competitive horse training, with competitions held at all levels from amateur to the Olympics. Its fundamental purpose is to develop, through standardized progressive training methods, a horse's natural athletic ability and willingness to perform, thereby maximizing its potential as a riding horse. At the peak of a dressage horse's gymnastic development, it can smoothly respond to a skilled rider's minimal aids by performing the requested movement while remaining relaxed and appearing effortless. Dressage is occasionally referred to as "Horse Ballet" (cf. nl:Dressuur). Although the discipline has ancient roots, dressage was first recognized as an important equestrian pursuit in the West during the Renaissance. The great European riding masters of that period developed a sequential training system that has changed little since then and classical dressage is still considered the basis of trained modern dressage."

Here a link to a Grand Prix Freestyle ridden at the 2006 World Equestrian Games (World Championships) by Anky Van Grunsven ridding Keltic Salinero: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPJGEzI3aIc&feature=related.