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The versatile in-hand pole setup that will give your horse plenty to think about – even in walk

Martha Terry Martha Terry

    • This groundwork exercise is handy for keeping your horse engaged and stimulated in walk, because of the constant changes of direction combined with negotiating poles.

    Aims

    • Provide mental and physical stimulation
    • Strengthen core and hindquarters
    • Focus on changes of bend while negotiating poles

    The setup

    Setup: Three sets of two poles set up in like chevrons, with about 4m between the points of each set.

    You will need: training halter, lunging cavesson, or your horse’s usual bridle

    Diagram for horse exercise showing three chevrons and routes to take

    How to do this in-hand exercise

    1. Just because you’re working in hand doesn’t mean you don’t need to warm your horse up. Before you start the polework exercise, spend 5–10min in walk. Your horse should be walking actively, as you would expect if you were riding. Incorporate plenty of transitions to check your horse is focussed and working with you, not being distracted.
    2. First, approach the chevrons on a straight line (orange line above). The poles should draw the horse into the point.
    3. Approach the points in the opposite direction, aiming for the points. Without the poles guiding you both into the point, you need to be accurate so the horse doesn’t meander to the side.
    4. Now you can play around with the formation. Do circles and loops making a cross-section through the chevron, varying whether you cross near the point or where the poles widen out (green line). Taking the poles on an angle like this will increase the emphasis on footwork as the horse needs to work out how to lift and put down his feet.
    5. You can also approach the sides of the chevron at a right angle, then dogleg off to the opposite arm of the next chevron (blue line). This works on changing the bend while negotiating poles. All the time, you are asking you horse to assess, react, be supple and precise with his footwork.

    Make sure you work equally on both reins.

    Tips and troubleshooting

    1. Layout

    If you only have four poles – or are short on time – just two chevrons will also provide a great workout.

    2. Accuracy

    Striped poles are really useful for keeping disciplined on accuracy. If you decide to cross from, say, white stripe to white stripe, can you stick to it?

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    Martha Terry
    Martha Terry

    H&H features editor
    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.
    Martha Terry

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