Training

Waylon Roberts’ Cool Cavalletti Exercises

In this exclusive excerpt from "Grid Pro Quo", the Canadian eventer sets up exercises to improve your horse's footwork and your own position.

By: Waylon Roberts | June 10, 2022

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you're listening to an article from horse sport.com. waylon roberts’ cool cavalletti exercises by: waylon roberts. waylon roberts has been representing canada in international competition since the age of 14, when he attended the 2002 fei children’s final for show jumping in brazil. since then, he has ridden at the north american junior and young riders championships and the pan american games. he has trained with some of the world’s top riders and competed at some of the world’s most prestigious events, including the kentucky cci5* on several occasions. when not competing, waylon can be found teaching and training at his new home base, jwr sporthorses in opelika, alabama. these exercises are all about footwork for your horse and position strengthening for the rider. the jumps can be anything from poles on the ground on up, making these suitable for all riders. materials needed. 6 cavalletti. 11 jump poles. 7 sets of standards. setup. when set up fully, these exercises do require a large arena. however, if you are short on space you can split each exercise in half and get creative. to get started, put all the cavalletti and jump poles on the ground. why. these are my favorite jumping exercises for the off season. before getting caught up in the rush to get ready for your next competition, it’s great to spend a little time working on footwork exercises for your horse and position exercises for yourself. without the pressure of competing, it’s the perfect time to take a breath and really focus on the details. advertisement scroll to continue with content in addition to helping horses with their footwork, this is great for working on your horse’s suppleness and core strength while jumping. it’s not uncommon for horses to get stiff and flat while on course, so it’s important to spend the time to teach them how to effectively use their bodies to create a better jump. for the rider to be successful, she must be aware of the effect of her aids throughout a series of jumps. and since the jumps stay relatively small throughout these exercises, there’s no harm in repeating them over and over until you get them right. like most gymnastic exercises, it’s usually quite clear when you get it right, so while it’s always helpful to have a good set of eyes on the ground, it’s possible to work through these on your own if you stay focused and honest with yourself about your mistakes. the other thing that these exercises are good for is teaching riders to keep their leg on and follow the horse’s jump with both their hand and their seat. because, as i like to say, jumping without leg or a forgiving contact is like finding a black cat in a dark room with the cat door open. how. before you even start jumping, it’s important to make sure your horse is properly warmed up on the flat. no amount of jumping exercises will improve a poorly started or nervous horse, so you have to be sure that you have taught your horse well on the flat and your horse knows about contact and leg. this exercise will certainly help further your training, but you must make sure you have the basics down before starting. once you are ready to start jumping, you should begin with cavalletti a or c in exercise 1 on a 15-meter circle. at first, all cavalletti should be on the ground, and you should trot through them a time or two in each direction to show your horse where he is going. if you have a young or inexperienced horse, you can always walk through them first. exercise 1. regardless of the level of your horse, the goal is to introduce these cavalletti in a stress-free way. a tense horse will have a harder time learning and working through his body than a relaxed horse. so relaxation is always the goal. once you are confidently and quietly trotting through one set of the cavalletti, you can begin cantering through them, still on that 15-meter circle. you should then begin raising the cavalletti height based on your horse’s experience. for most of my young horses, i will stick to the lowest height with the cavalletti on the ground. my more advanced horses will quickly progress to the cavalletti at their top height. regardless of the height of the cavalletti or where you are in the warm-up stage, you need to always be aware of your inside aids and use your inside leg to help keep the horse from leading with the inside shoulder through the curve. i like to alternate which set of cavalletti (a or c) i’m working through as i warm up, which allows my horse to see everything in exercise 1 while it is still easy. i find this a good exercise to help with rushing horses, as it’s hard for them to cleanly make their way through the exercise if they do not take their time. it’s also the first part of this series that really helps to teach the rider to follow her horse’s jump with both her hand and her seat. the next part of exercise 1 starts with one set of cavalletti but incorporates a small vertical (jump b) in the center. the distance between the cavalletti and jump b can be adjusted according to the size of the arena, however i most like it set at 66 feet, so the horses have a quiet five strides between jump b and each set of cavalletti. repeat riding from one set of cavalletti to the other, over jump b, on both reins until the striding is even and quiet. for riders who are struggling to see their distance, i like them to count their strides out loud. not only does this help them be more aware of their striding, but it also keeps them breathing! i do like to keep jump b fairly low for the level, until the horse can stay balanced on an even stride without getting strung out. this portion of the exercise teaches the horse and rider rhythm, patience, and straightness. exercise 2. if this has been accomplished without much fuss, the pair can move on to exercise 2. to start here, you can canter each cross-rail bounce (jumps e and d, or jumps g and h) off a long approach to the centerline, and depart from each jump with a rollback turn away from the centerline. so if you are on the left lead, you canter down the long side of the arena and turn down the centerline to have a long approach to the cross-rail bounce closest to the other end of the arena. upon landing, you make a rollback turn to the right, away from the centerline. this rollback not only helps to create a lead change, it also helps the rider learn how to switch the inside legs over the jump to show the horse a correlation between the leg, the lead change, and the bounce. this can be a little intense for some horses, so be sure to keep the cross-rails low until they have their confidence in the exercise. and be sure to rest and reward your horse often. again, since the jumps are small, it’s fine to repeat as needed, but you should never repeat until exhaustion. from here the pair are ready to include the oxer (jump f). again, if you want to start on the right lead, you will jump your first bounce (jumps d and e), stay straight for three strides to the oxer (jump f), and then another straight three strides to the second bounce (jumps g and h). the horse should hold his lead throughout the exercise and the rider must now work to keep the horse straight. again, you are looking to improve the horse’s rhythm, straightness, and patience to and away from a fence. always keep the jumps low until the horse and you are confident; then you can play around with the height to challenge yourself. ***. to order your copy of grid pro quo (to be released july 2022), visit trafalgar square books here. &&>

Waylon Roberts has been representing Canada in international competition since the age of 14, when he attended the 2002 FEI Children’s Final for show jumping in Brazil. Since then, he has ridden at the North American Junior and Young Riders Championships and the Pan American Games. He has trained with some of the world’s top riders and competed at some of the world’s most prestigious events, including the Kentucky CCI5* on several occasions. When not competing, Waylon can be found teaching and training at his new home base, JWR Sporthorses in Opelika, Alabama.

These exercises are all about footwork for your horse and position strengthening for the rider. The jumps can be anything from poles on the ground on up, making these suitable for all riders.

MATERIALS NEEDED

6 cavalletti
11 jump poles
7 sets of standards

SETUP

When set up fully, these exercises do require a large arena. However, if you are short on space you can split each exercise in half and get creative.
To get started, put all the cavalletti and jump poles on the ground.

WHY

These are my favorite jumping exercises for the off season. Before getting caught up in the rush to get ready for your next competition, it’s great to spend a little time working on footwork exercises for your horse and position exercises for yourself. Without the pressure of competing, it’s the perfect time to take a breath and really focus on the details.

Scroll to continue with content

In addition to helping horses with their footwork, this is great for working on your horse’s suppleness and core strength while jumping. It’s not uncommon for horses to get stiff and flat while on course, so it’s important to spend the time to teach them how to effectively use their bodies to create a better jump. For the rider to be successful, she must be aware of the effect of her aids throughout a series of jumps. And since the jumps stay relatively small throughout these exercises, there’s no harm in repeating them over and over until you get them right. Like most gymnastic exercises, it’s usually quite clear when you get it right, so while it’s always helpful to have a good set of eyes on the ground, it’s possible to work through these on your own if you stay focused and honest with yourself about your mistakes.

The other thing that these exercises are good for is teaching riders to keep their leg on and follow the horse’s jump with both their hand and their seat. Because, as I like to say, jumping without leg or a forgiving contact is like finding a black cat in a dark room with the cat door open.

HOW

Before you even start jumping, it’s important to make sure your horse is properly warmed up on the flat. No amount of jumping exercises will improve a poorly started or nervous horse, so you have to be sure that you have taught your horse well on the flat and your horse knows about contact and leg. This exercise will certainly help further your training, but you must make sure you have the basics down before starting.

Once you are ready to start jumping, you should begin with Cavalletti A or C in Exercise 1 on a 15-meter circle. At first, all cavalletti should be on the ground, and you should trot through them a time or two in each direction to show your horse where he is going. If you have a young or inexperienced horse, you can always walk through them first.

EXERCISE 1

Regardless of the level of your horse, the goal is to introduce these cavalletti in a stress-free way. A tense horse will have a harder time learning and working through his body than a relaxed horse. So relaxation is always the goal.

Once you are confidently and quietly trotting through one set of the cavalletti, you can begin cantering through them, still on that 15-meter circle. You should then begin raising the cavalletti height based on your horse’s experience. For most of my young horses, I will stick to the lowest height with the cavalletti on the ground. My more advanced horses will quickly progress to the cavalletti at their top height.

Regardless of the height of the cavalletti or where you are in the warm-up stage, you need to always be aware of your inside aids and use your inside leg to help keep the horse from leading with the inside shoulder through the curve. I like to alternate which set of cavalletti (A or C) I’m working through as I warm up, which allows my horse to see everything in Exercise 1 while it is still easy.

I find this a good exercise to help with rushing horses, as it’s hard for them to cleanly make their way through the exercise if they do not take their time. It’s also the first part of this series that really helps to teach the rider to follow her horse’s jump with both her hand and her seat.

The next part of Exercise 1 starts with one set of cavalletti but incorporates a small vertical (Jump B) in the center. The distance between the cavalletti and Jump B can be adjusted according to the size of the arena, however I most like it set at 66 feet, so the horses have a quiet five strides between Jump B and each set of cavalletti.

Repeat riding from one set of cavalletti to the other, over Jump B, on both reins until the striding is even and quiet. For riders who are struggling to see their distance, I like them to count their strides out loud. Not only does this help them be more aware of their striding, but it also keeps them breathing! I do like to keep Jump B fairly low for the level, until the horse can stay balanced on an even stride without getting strung out. This portion of the exercise teaches the horse and rider rhythm, patience, and straightness.

EXERCISE 2

If this has been accomplished without much fuss, the pair can move on to Exercise 2. To start here, you can canter each cross-rail bounce (Jumps E and D, or Jumps G and H) off a long approach to the centerline, and depart from each jump with a rollback turn away from the centerline. So if you are on the left lead, you canter down the long side of the arena and turn down the centerline to have a long approach to the cross-rail bounce closest to the other end of the arena. Upon landing, you make a rollback turn to the right, away from the centerline. This rollback not only helps to create a lead change, it also helps the rider learn how to switch the inside legs over the jump to show the horse a correlation between the leg, the lead change, and the bounce.

This can be a little intense for some horses, so be sure to keep the cross-rails low until they have their confidence in the exercise. And be sure to rest and reward your horse often. Again, since the jumps are small, it’s fine to repeat as needed, but you should never repeat until exhaustion.

From here the pair are ready to include the oxer (Jump F). Again, if you want to start on the right lead, you will jump your first bounce (Jumps D and E), stay straight for three strides to the oxer (Jump F), and then another straight three strides to the second bounce (Jumps G and H). The horse should hold his lead throughout the exercise and the rider must now work to keep the horse straight.

Again, you are looking to improve the horse’s rhythm, straightness, and patience to and away from a fence. Always keep the jumps low until the horse and you are confident; then you can play around with the height to challenge yourself.

***

To order your copy of Grid Pro Quo (to be released July 2022), visit Trafalgar Square Books here.