Pole Bending Training Tips

The speed event of pole bending looks like a wild ride, but it's a demanding equestrian discipline. "It is precision dressage at speed," says trainer Ken Smith, owner of Sunrise West Quarter Horses. "It is a dance with your horse." Preparing a 1,000-lb. animal to weave through six poles in two directions begins with a firm grounding in equitation and communication. From there, say the experts, success hinges on targeted training.

  1. Timing

    • Ken Smith coaches pole benders to cross pole lines at midpoint, calling this a critically important move. "Horses have a tendency to anticipate -- they will want to start back across the line early, and they will want to cross the pole line before the midpoint." Smith trains riders to approach the midpoint straight, then to focus across that point. He wants the horse to move in a straight line to the spot at which the horse bends into the turn: "I want to ask him to move his hips out just a little, so that part of the turn happens with his hindquarters."

    Leg Yields

    • Using leg yields -- a technique that conditions the horse to move laterally off the rider's leg -- is a strategy that veteran trainer Peg Helder says helps the horse respond better to leg pressure and react more quickly to directional cues. Helder told Micaela Myers of HorseChannel.com to start a horse unfamiliar with leg yields at the walk until it becomes familiar with moving away from pressure.

    Flying Changes

    • A horse that hasn't yet mastered flying lead changes -- the act of switching the leading leg at the canter without breaking stride -- is at a disadvantage while pole bending. Though this timed event does not penalize for the wrong lead, the Just Us Horses website notes that "the good runs are always the smooth runs." Flying changes facilitate smooth runs by keeping the horse balanced through the changes of direction.

    Reverse Arcs

    • Peg Helder recommends reverse arcs for loosening the horse's shoulders, which ultimately helps the horse position its body through the poles. She teaches her riders reverse arcs by having them ride in a circle, using the outside leg to push the horse's shoulders slightly to the inside. She says to start at a slow gait and a 60-foot circle until the horse is comfortable bending to the reverse side of the circle.

    Body Cues

    • Ken Smith refers to the "Santa Clause run-down" -- so named because a rider can be heard yelling "ho! ho! ho!" to rate her horse's speed around a pole. The yelling doesn't bother Smith as much as the accompanying yanks on the horse's sensitive mouth. Instead, he says, cue the horse using seat and weight. "Ride to a spot at or near the fifth pole, and sit down," he writes. "Ask the horse to shape by shaping your own body in the direction of the turn." The key is to stay off the horse's mouth, as undue bit pressure causes it move its head counterproductively.