I have re-worked the distances on this as I was having a complete brain melt down yesterday when I originally pulled it together.
This is a BE Trainer Jo May exercise and designed to get horses and riders looking and thinking quicker.
These are hard exercises so if in doubt build small to start with. It is not necessarily going to be about beautiful riding but reacting and getting the job done so the horse understands what it is doing and remains confident. If you are struggling with space this exercise could be done with just three upright fences down the centre line.
Step 1
The pole is designed to be primarily trotted into but can be cantered into on the distance. The trot pole is to help the horse look where his feet are going and drop his head. Being built on the angle it means the rider has to keep a straight line. The distances are on one stride between the uprights but a shorter 1 stride (about 10ft rather than 12ft) to help the horse stay athletic.
Step 2
Building up from step 1 and adding another fence. Make sure your lines are good and the rider needs to think and act quickly as the horse will not know what to expect first time. It can be done off both the left and right but I have only demonstrated off the right rein. You can then mix it up with a combination of step 1 and step 2.
Step 3
Is changing the direction, again the horse will expect to go straight on so rider needs to think and act quickly. It can be done both ways.
Step 4
Straight down the middle and over the bounces. The bounces are designed to be small and for the horse to look and think. The turn is deliberately sharp so they don’t know where they are going and the first couple of times can be uncomfortable as they work out the question. The rider should be supportive and soft and hold onto a neck strap to stay in balance. The uprights encourage athleticism and the bounces help footwork and thinking quickly.
