Training and Riding with Cones and Poles

Training your horse to concentrate on a lesson, bend his body from nose to tail, and pay attention to where he places his feet—whatever your discipline or level of expertise, these are necessary foundation skills.

Here you will find an incredibly handy guide to introducing and solidifying these concepts, as well as many others, with exercises using two very basic training tools: traffic cones and ground poles. Arranged in an easy-to-view format so you can work through the exercises progressively, or dip in and try ideas “à la carte,” these pages provide all you need to reinvigorate arena workouts and keep both you and your horse engaged in the training process.

In addition, you’ll discover that incorporating cones and poles in your daily lessons not only provides visual interest and physical guidelines for your horse as he moves around the ring, it also gives you a means of developing accuracy in your schooling figures and transitions. With these exercises, your horse’s movement and response to your aids will certainly improve, but so will your overall riding performance.