FREE JUMPING - How to set it up and why it can be a great exercise for your horse, whether young and green or older and more experienced!

Free-jumping your horse in a jumping lane is a great exercise for your horse, while also being quite useful for you as the trainer. Free-jumping allows you to assess a young horses' natural attitude and ability for jumping while teaching them self-confidence, balance and how to negotiate obstacles, while also being a valuable exercise for older horses especially those who have some problems like stumbling or putting in extra strides.
Young, green horses can be free-jumped before they are broken in, although of course you must remember that jumping is quite an effort for them when they are not fit and muscled, so short sessions over low jumps offer best results making jumping becoming a fun, positive exercise. Because the jumps are initially only set at a low height and are in a straight line, occasional free-jumping on a good surface shouldn't put anymore strain on a young horses tendons and joints than the sudden turns and stops they do in the paddock of their own accord!
It must always be remembered that you can teach your horse alot and assess their basic style over even a small fence and it is not advisable to see "how high" your young horse can jump in the early stages - quickly putting the jumps up higher and higher might sound impressive to some but will not make a better jumper out of your horse in the long term and may instead result in the beginning of some problems like repeatedly refusing and losing confidence.

Famous stallion "Cor De Le Bryere" freejumping with terrific style. Many breed associations include free-jumping as part of their stallion and mare classifications.

When free-jumping you need to keep in mind the ideal shape of a horse jumping. The horse should lower his head and lengthen his neck as he approaches the fence, take off correctly and round his back nicely with his knees up, with the withers being the highest point of the horse when over the top of the jump (not the head!). Some horses will have better natural style than others who need to learn to lift their legs and bascule more etc, and some horses are bolder and obviously enjoy jumping, while others may need to build up more confidence in their own abilities. With jumping ability being one of the most highly inheritable traits in horse breeding, strong jumping bloodlines will more often than not show through during free-jumping sessions. Free-jumping any horse can help you determine where your horses' natural tendancies lie.

To setup a free-jumping lane you will need a good number of poles and jump stands (or barrels) to form the edges of the lane, as well as to form the actual jumps. Cavaletti can also be useful. The lane is easiest to create if you have an existing arena wall (of adequate height) or a suitable safe fenceline to use as the outer side of the lane, meaning you only need to build one side of the lane. Ideally the lane will form a complete oval shape so the horse can move around the laneway uninterrupted, however if you have smaller area or less equipment available, one long laneway with an entry and exit point at each end can be made, catching the horse at the end and leading them back to the start point.

Above: Example of free-jumping lane setup with poles and barrels within an exisiting fenced arena or paddock. Assistants stand in the middle to encourage the horse to keep moving or to slow down.

If using an arena it can also be a good idea to round off the corners using poles etc to prevent the horse facing into the corners which may cause them to stop or turn around.

For your horses' protection it is a good idea to use bell-boots and brushing boots on the legs. A halter and leadrope will be needed. Some people like to saddle and bridle the horse (removing the stirrups and reins, and using a breastplate is a good idea) so the horse becomes accustomed to the feel of the gear while jumping.

If including multiple jumps make sure you measure the distances accurately between your jumps correctly otherwise the horse may have trouble making the distance to each jump, constantly hit their legs and might start to refuse or rush through the jumps if they become worried. The standard distances initially might not be suitable for a young horse in the early stages of training who is less balanced and rhythmical (or for example a pony with a smaller stride) so ensure you adjust your distances to make it best for your horse. The distance between any two obstacles is measured from the back of the first obstacle to the front of the next. As your horse progresses in their training they will learn how to adjust their stride to make almost any distance between jumps work out well. Teaching your more advanced jumping horse to be clever on their own accord with free-jumping can be very helpful when it comes to jumping under saddle.

Very simple free-jumping exercise setup in an indoor arena.

Once you have a free-jumping lane setup and your horse all ready, you will need one or two assistants with lunge whips who can judge the horses' pace and help you keep him moving around the laneway. A good trot and calm yet forward-going canter are your aim - you don't want the horse to become hurried, unbalanced and fast, most especially when they are learning as they will only become worried about jumping and will learn to jump flat rather than develop a proper rounded bascule over the fences.
If the horse has never been free-jumped before, it is a good idea to introduce them to the whole idea by initially leading them through the free-jump lane several times, with your jumps set as simple poles on the ground for a start. The horse should then be set free within the lane with each assistant standing in the middle of your oval and encouraging the horse to trot or canter calmly around the lane over the poles at an even pace. This needs to be acheived before jumps are introduced. While free-jumping each assistant should remain quiet and still so the horse can concentrate and focus, and only send the horse on from behind with a flick of the whip if the horse loses momentum, while also being ready to help slow and settle the horse if he becomes too fast. The idea is for the assistants to keep the horse moving with good rhythm and plenty of forward impulsion without distracting the horse or making sudden moves that drive them forward at the last minute before the jump. If the horse is already familiar with voice commands (walk, trot, canter and stand) it can be very useful to use these as well. As soon as the horse starts to relax around the lane or has jumped down the lane nicely let them stop and reward them with plenty of praise and time to catch their breath and think about their work before doing some more. After a few free-jumping sessions most horses will start to enjoy the exercise and probably wont need much encouragement at all from your assistants to keep moving forward around the lane.

Horse free-jumping in a built up laneway using poles and arena fenceline as boundaries.

Following a calm canter around the lane over poles, you can start to build the poles up into small jumps. Small cross-bars with the centre approx 50cms high are a nice introductory jump as they encourage the horse to round up over the centre of the jump. Always use ground lines as they also make the jump easier for the young horse to judge the correct take-off point. Raise the last fence in the lane first (so the horse has to negotiate the poles on the ground beforehand), then later raise the second to last fence as well.

As with any schooling, always judge your horses' temperament and efforts before asking further demands of them. If the horse is nervous let them continue going over poles on the ground until they become more confident to negotiate one small jump. If the horse is very excited and rushing through the jumps or poles too quickly use your voice to keep them calm and give them longer breaks inbetween each round so they can become relaxed and settled again. Don't be too despondant if your young horse seems to lack courage or ability. Often when young horse have gained more confidence and built up muscle and strength they can become quite successful jumpers because they have been given the time and training to show their real ability and potential.

Horse free-jumping in a built up laneway using poles and arena fenceline as boundaries.

On your first day of free-jumping, just two or three clean, calm, rhythmical runs down a lane of poles with one or two small jumps would be a very good positive note to end on. The horse will finish with confidence without becoming too tired or hurting themselves and will remember what to do next time you bring them to the lane.

Once you have taught your horse to free-jump in this calm, relaxed manner you will be able to slowly raise the jumps, introduce small spreads and later even add different walls and fillers to your jumping lane. The distances between the jumps should be able to be set at the accepted standard once your horse has developed a good rhythm and has their basic jumping technique more established. Bear in mind that even for a fit, advanced horse, each average showjumping competition class will only have around 15 jumping efforts in it, so several rounds of your jumping lane is a strenuous workout requiring quite alot of effort. Also remember that if you have setup your freejump lane as an on-going circle to change the rein regularly to avoid your horse becoming stiff on one side.

For older horses who have made a habit of refusing jumps, rushing after jumps or adding in short extra strides between jumps, free-jumping can help them to gain their self-confidence back and develop better stride and technique. Refusals are not an option because with walls each side and you and your assistants behind there is nowhere else to go! Placing a pole on the ground at approx 6.5 metres either side of your jumps can help your horse develop a better canter stride between the jumps while also encouraging them to slow down if rushing as they must sight the pole and collect themselves on landing, transfer their weight into the hindquarters and slow down to negotiate the added pole.

Regular free-jumping provides variety to your horses schooling regime and is used by many trainers and breed associations around the world who recognise its worth. Because the horses must learn to think for themselves, when it comes to jumping under saddle with a rider the horse has the skills to be able to help the rider in more difficult situations. A rider introducing a young horse to jumps for the first time, after it has already been free-jumped, will be able to feel the balance and bascule of the horse already quite well developed compared to riding a youngster who is still learning how to judge and negotiate a fence, let alone deal with the added weight of a rider on their back.

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