Different jumps work your horse in different ways – here’s a little selection:
True oxers, made up of two verticals parallel to each other, are great for building strength behind and will encourage your horse to really stretch up and over the front and back rails.
Ascending Oxers, like true oxers, are built with two verticals parallel to one another – however the back pole is set slightly higher than the front, which will encourage your horse to jump in the correct shape.
Swedish oxers, where the front and back poles slant in opposite directions, are especially useful. The centre point, created by the V shape where the poles cross over will help with straightness and the lift and tuck of the front legs.
Raised trotting poles make your horse work hard and concentrate – they can be quite physically demanding so you don’t need to work over raised poles for too long.
Cross-poles create a V shape (which becomes narrower as the height of the jump is increased) – this will encourage your horse to lift his front legs, keeping them neatly tucked up and in as he jumps.
Uprights require your horse to jump height not width. To clear them, your horse must roll back onto his hindquarters in order to push himself up and over the fence – great for building strength and working on accuracy of take-off.
