Flying Changes with Steffen Peters

Flying changes are often one of the most challenging parts of training a horse. Sometimes the change is late behind, crooked, tense, or rushed. Some horses try to anticipate before being asked, while others do not react at all. Once a horse develops a habit of doing the change incorrectly, it can be very hard to fix.

In Building Better Flying Changes, six-time Olympian Steffen Peters explains the movement with a step-by-step, practical approach that starts well before you ask for the change itself.

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Stop Repeating the Change. Start Improving the Preparation.

You may be working toward your horse’s first flying change. You may already have a change, but not one you can rely on. Either way, the answer is rarely to ask again with a stronger aid.

This masterclass is for riders who are dealing with:

  • A horse that changes in front but remains late behind
  • A rushed, flat or downhill change
  • Crookedness or swinging through the haunches
  • Tension before, during or after the change
  • Anticipation and changes the rider did not ask for
  • A horse that ignores the aid, or overreacts to it
  • Uncertainty about whether the horse is actually ready
  • Confusion about where, when and how to introduce the change

Steffen teaches you to look beyond the mistake, identify the missing piece and choose an exercise that helps the horse understand.

Build the Change You Want, Before You Ask for It

By the end of the masterclass, you will understand how to:

  • Evaluate the quality, tempo and natural characteristics of your horse’s canter
  • Recognize the balance and degree of collection needed for a change
  • Confirm that your horse is light, prompt and comfortable in the canter aid
  • Teach the horse to yield from the outside leg without losing inside flexion
  • Use walk–canter transitions, travers, leg yield and a “baby” half-pass as preparation
  • Separate the sideways aid, straightening aid and changing aid so your horse understands each one
  • Choose a line and setup that support the individual horse
  • Keep the neck, shoulders and haunches straight through the change
  • Correct late, short, crooked or overreactive changes without drilling
  • Manage anticipation, tension and excess energy while preserving confidence
  • Progress from a horse’s first change to clean single changes and changes in series
  • Know when to repeat, when to simplify and when to stop for the day


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Learn From Steffen Peters

Steffen Peters has spent more than 30 years developing horses to the highest level of international dressage. A six-time Olympian and three-time Olympic team medalist, he has represented the United States across multiple generations of horses and at the sport’s most demanding championships.

His career includes winning the 2009 FEI Dressage World Cup Final with Ravel and two individual bronze medals at the 2010 World Equestrian Games. But his authority in this masterclass is not only the medals. It is the depth of experience behind them: teaching horses their first changes, developing clean tempi changes for Grand Prix and solving the tension, anticipation, crookedness and misunderstanding that arise between those two points.

Steffen’s system is exacting without being forceful. He values cooperation over submission, light and clearly understood aids over stronger pressure, and patient preparation over drilling the movement until the horse gets it right.

Wherever You Are in the Process, Learn What Comes Next

Whether you are preparing for your horse’s first flying change, trying to improve an inconsistent one or beginning to develop changes in series, Steffen gives you a practical system for evaluating what you have, identifying what is missing and choosing the next exercise. You will see polished moments and imperfect ones, with clear explanations of what Steffen notices, why he makes an adjustment and when he decides the horse has done enough.

  • Know When Your Horse Is Ready

    Learn how to evaluate the canter before asking for the change. Steffen shows you what to look for in the horse’s balance, tempo, straightness, collection, self-carriage and response to the aids. Then what to improve when one of those pieces is not yet in place.

  • Build a Better Canter and a Clearer Aid

    Use walk–canter transitions, travers, leg yield, half-pass and collection exercises to develop the physical balance and understanding behind the movement. The outcome is not only a better flying change, but a more adjustable canter and a horse that responds to lighter, more precise aids.

  • Introduce the First Change With Confidence

    Follow Steffen’s process for preparing and asking for a horse’s first flying change without rushing or surprising the horse. Learn how to choose the setup, separate the sideways and changing aids, keep the horse straight and recognize a good moment to ask.

  • Troubleshoot the Change You Have

    See how Steffen responds when a horse changes late behind, becomes crooked, rushes, shortens, overreacts or does not respond at all. Rather than simply repeating the movement, you will learn how to identify the source of the problem and return to an exercise that creates a clearer answer.

  • Work Through Tension and Anticipation

    Watch Steffen make decisions in real time when horses become tense, excited or begin changing before the rider asks. Learn when to simplify, when to take a walk break, when to try again and why doing more is not always the path to a better result.

  • From Single Changes to Changes in Series

    See how the same fundamentals carry forward as Steffen develops single changes into three-, two- and one-tempi changes. Dressage riders, jumper and eventing riders, trainers and anyone working to improve canter balance and communication can apply the underlying system, even if Grand Prix is not the goal.

The Best Flying Changes Begin Long Before the Aid

Learn to recognize the right canter, develop a lighter response, build the horse’s understanding and approach every change with a clearer plan.

Join Steffen Peters for a detailed, honest look at the training behind a clean, balanced and confident flying change.

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Three Ways to Access

  • Buy the Masterclass

    Best for: Riders who want focused, permanent access to Steffen’s complete flying-change system. Get the full masterclass and return to the lessons whenever you need them.

  • Join NF+

    Best for: Riders who want this masterclass plus ongoing access to a broader library of lessons, clinics and original equestrian education. Watch Steffen’s masterclass and continue learning from leading riders, trainers and horse people across disciplines.

  • NF+ Member for Life

    Best for: Riders who want to make one purchase and keep learning without another subscription renewal.

    Unlock Steffen’s masterclass, the complete NF+ learning library, the other premium masterclasses included in the offer and every eligible new release through December 31, 2026—with lifetime access.