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‘Small fences help produce expressive, accurate flying changes’: how Harry Meade mixes dressage with cavaletti
In the second part of a training series with Harry Meade, the five-star event rider uses cavaletti to help perfect his horse’s flying changes. This set-up of small fences can also improve adjustability in the canter
For this training exercise, Harry Meade is riding Cooley Anything You Like (Neville), a rising 10-year-old by Camillo VDL. Last season the horse was competing at three- and four-star level, where flying changes start to be incorporated in the dressage test.
Harry has already given the horse a leg stretch through the lanes in the village and had a trot and canter in the school on each rein. He has set up four small fences (or cavaletti) along the centre line of the arena (see diagram – the circles are for the canter adjustability exercise later on).
The cavaletti can be jumped: a) at random on either rein; b) used to change the rein; c) on a circle at one end, then open up the canter along the long side and back to a circle at the other end
(Image credit: creditUnknown)
He pops a few cavaletti individually from canter on one rein, before changing the rein and doing the same on the other.
“When teaching horses flying changes, a common mistake for some horses is to change late behind rather than the front and hindlegs changing in unison, particularly horses that have a weaker canter or are slow off the aids,” Harry explains.
“When horses do flying changes over a pole on the ground, they are often late behind – the front legs change over the pole while the hindlegs are planting down on the take-off spot, then they also change lead over the pole, but this is technically a late change. Instead, the hindlegs must change lead before the pole, while the front legs are over the pole.
“Giving a more demonstrative aid can cause a horse to accelerate in the change, so I like to use cavaletti to help as the horses don’t overreact to the clearer leg aid by accelerating, but by jumping a more expressive change. The cavaletti means that they get used to the aids, without running or tightening because there is a small fence to negotiate, so it is easier to stay in a rhythm.”
Harry Meade training: “Call out clean changes”
Harry has someone on the ground watching and forewarns them each time that he is about to change the rein over a cavaletti. They watch the hindlegs to see if the horse plants them on the take-off spot in the new position they call “clean”, or if they plant the hindlegs still in the original lead they call “late”.
Harry explains that when changing canter leads in a jumping round, Neville can “drop out” behind.
“He goes disunited, then takes a fumbled trot step before correcting to the new lead.”
Harry wants to teach Neville to make demonstrative, accurate changes, through giving very clear aids for a change just before the cavaletti, so that Neville changes behind on take-off and lands on the correct lead.
“My aim is to be able to switch the hind end to the new position, by positioning my legs in the new position on take off – I’m looking to point the tail to what will be the new inside, by riding renvers on the last stride before take-off. I’m looking for Neville to be more reactive through his body position when I put my leg on for the change, but without him bursting out of the contact.”
Harry Meade demonstrates renvers on foot to put the horse in the new position for the changed canter lead before take-off.
(Image credit: Jess Photography)
Harry jumps four cavaletti at random on the left rein in a fluid rhythm before using one to change the rein. A stride or two before take-off, Harry positions Neville in renvers (or right travers) and on cue Neville clearly plants his hindlegs in the new canter lead position, so the change is clean. Having jumped several more cavaletti on the right rein, Harry uses another to change back to the left lead, with Neville again planting his hindlegs in left canter lead at the point of take-off.
After several changes, Neville shows some exuberance, kicking out over the jump; Harry pats him on landing.
“If he overreacts with his hind end over the fence, or kicks out, then I don’t mind and he must still be rewarded, as that is better than under-reacting and being late to the change,” he says. “Once he understands the aids, it’s easy to achieve a clean change with a softer aid.
“Using renvers at the point of take-off, it’s easy for the horse to change, as the new inside hindleg – which up to now has been the trailing one – has less far to jump through to become the leading leg because of the positioning of the quarters in the renvers.”
Practise changing gears for canter adjustability
Harry also uses this line of cavaletti to practise adjustability in the canter, jumping three fences in a circle at one end, then opening up to canter along the long side before collecting the canter and making a circle over three fences at the other end, and lengthening on again to repeat it. You can add a small spread to open the horse up.
Practising adjustability: Harry says this exercise “acts as good, pre-season jumping fitness for horses after a lay-off”.
(Image credit: Jess Photography)
“Most showjump training exercises are performed in one monotonous gear, which is great for training but not always sufficient preparation for competition,” says Harry. “This exercise replicates the change of gears required in a showjumping course and refines the adjustability.
“It also acts as good early pre-season gym training for the horses after a period without much jumping. It works their jumping muscles with lots of low-intensity work, without big strenuous efforts.”
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Martha is an experienced journalist who is mad-keen on horses and dogs. Her reporting CV includes the Paris Olympics, European championships, Aachen World Equestrian Festival and World Cup finals. After growing up with assorted liver and white springer spaniels, she enjoyed 14 years with two rescue dogs. Now, her constant companion is Fidget, an extremely energetic and habitually muddy black and white springer. Martha has written on topics as diverse as a top horse’s clone to the best GPS trackers for dogs, as well as equestrian and rural matters for Country Life, The Field, The Times, The Spectator and The Telegraph alongside Horse & Hound.
