WHO the exercise is for:

Horses who rush their jumps, who speed up right before a jump, or who anticipate the coming fence and get difficult to keep straight and responsive.

HOW to set it up:

Set up 3 simple verticals in a straight line with about 20m between each element. 

WHAT to do:

Jump the first element and then do a 20m circle to the right, jump the second element and then do a 20m circle to the left, then jump the third element (as shown by the blue lines - hopefully your circles are more round and even than mine!). On your next approach do your circles the opposite direction. The third time jump elements one and three, going around the second element (as shown by the red lines). Continue mixing up circles and loops until you feel your horse is responsive then go straight through the 3 fences. 

WHY we do it:

We put in circles and 'unexpected' changes of course to ensure that our horses are listening to our aids and not just anticipating what we want. The more our horses are listening to us the more chance we have of getting the results we want as soon as we ask (regardless of if we're asking for a calm straight line, or a very tight turn).

MORE tips:

You can change the simple verticals to oxers - this means your horse has to put in a larger jumping effort, but still come back to your aids when asked. To add variety you can keep the jumps small and simple, but ask for a halt somewhere on your 20m circle (especially handy if your horse gets "tanky" or heavy on the forehand when not listening to you).

Thanks to Debbie for this exercise!