JOE’S EXPERT TIPS

Treat each horse as an individual — some horses pick up new things more quickly than others. Adjust the stride lengths between poles and fences so that they suit your horse. You want him to have a good experience and poles that make things too short or too long will unnerve him. Let your horse jump new fences and combinations a few times until he feels happy and relaxed. Only then progress to the next step. Be soft and giving with your hands over the fences, especially when there’s a pole on landing — this will allow your horse to drop his head to look at the pole.