Step-by-Step Gate Training for Stockman's Challenges

with Lynda and Wayne Field

In this article, Wayne and Lynda demonstrate the in their training towards stockman’s challenges, specifically focusing on gates. “You should only move onto this once you have mastered the foundational exercises discussed in the previous article. We don’t want to over-face our horses, and you want to ensure you have full control of their whole body,” says Lynda.

Now, at the beginning of gate training, we break everything into small, easy-to-understand steps.

Identifying Gates

Approach the gate so the horse’s nose is toward the gate latch and the horse’s body is parallel to the gate with their hindquarters closest to the hinge.

1. Approach the gate calmly. Walk in a circle up, alongside and towards the latch of the gate. If your horse is concerned and not wanting to approach the gate, give them confidence by putting your legs on. Once at the gate, keep them as close to the gate as possible. The gate latch should be approximately even with your leg. From here, ask the horse to stand still and calm in this position. The most common problem we see with gates is that horses won’t stand; they don’t wait and they anticipate the next move; this can become a safety concern, so it is imperative that we teach our horses to stand and wait in a relaxed, soft manner. Note: If your horse is nervous in the approach or won’t stand still near it, repeat this process a few times. There is no point leaning over and unlatching the gate if the horse doesn’t want to stand. To do this, take them back out on the circle and ask the question again. Repeat this until they are comfortable. Remember to reward when they do stand.

2. Once you are in the position mentioned in step one, and your horse has stood calmly, bend at the waist to reach down and unlock the latch. Ensure you keep your seat in the saddle as best you can, and don’t put your legs on as you bend over. It is also important that you don’t pull on the opposite rein and, as a result, twist your horse in the opposite direction. All of these can result in the horse thinking you want them to move forward as well as off-balance them and can result in you falling off into the gate. Bend over, unlatch the gate and push it open; once complete, continue to stand stationary for a few seconds.

3. Back your horse up a few steps from here, then ask your horse to stand again. This process of standing still between each movement allows your horse to process what you have asked them to do while teaching them to wait for your next request. This also allows you, as the rider, to give clear, concise aids for each of the movements required.

TIP: Opening and closing gates are all about the fundamentals of controlling the whole horse. If you have trouble with this, go back to the exercises described in Mastering the Foundations of Stockman’s Challenge: Essential Groundwork Techniques.

4. Now that you have backed up a few steps, you must ask the horse to move his shoulders across into the opening of the gate. To do this, pick up and open the rein closest to the gate, take that same leg off the horse while you drop your opposite hip and gently apply the outside leg and close the outside rein against the horse’s neck, which in turn is asking the horse to move away from the pressure and towards the opening of the gate. Ideally, we want the horse’s outside front leg to cross over and in front of the inside front leg while the hind legs stay in place. Once your horse has moved their shoulders into the opening of the gate, ask them to stand for a few seconds while you reward him.

5. Walk forward through the opening, but not all the way through, you want to stop where the gate is just behind your leg.

6. From here, you need to move your horse’s hindquarters over. To do this, apply pressure to the leg closest to the gate, just behind the girth. Similar to moving the shoulders, we want to release the pressure as soon as the horse steps across; the idea here is that the horse’s inside hind leg (the leg you are asking to move across) crosses over and in front of the outside hind leg while the front legs stay in place. You should only require the horse to move his hind legs across a few steps in order to be parallel with the ‘fence’ of the gate and once again ask your horse to stand before moving on to the next movement.

7. Now, the corner of the gate should be close to your horse’s shoulders; here, you will need to lean down and push the gate closed. Remember, don’t put your leg on as you lean forward.

8. The gate is now semi-closed but not latched, and you should be a few steps away from it. The next step is to side-pass towards the gate so you can latch it. To do this, open the rein and leg that is closest to the gate while closing the opposite rein and leg against the horse, asking them to step across, ensuring you release the pressure when they do so. Again, ask them to stand before leaning down to latch the gate back up.

9. Lean down and latch the gate. Once again, ask the horse to stand and wait once complete before moving off.

Once you have mastered opening and closing the gate from both sides, with the steps broken up, you can then advance your skills by opening and closing the gate in one swift motion, without removing your hand off the gate, which is required in competition to gain full marks. The same steps apply, but this time, you just don’t stop in between each step, and you will stay in a bent position as you glide your hand back and forth along the top of the gate. In this approach, you also won’t need to approach from a circle; you can come in a more straight-on approach.

Remember: Every gate is different!

Here, Wayne is demonstrating the end result.

Wayne and Lynda Field, from Glencoe in the Lower South East of South Australia, specialise in Stockman’s Challenges and have won numerous challenges over the years. With a background in showing, polocrosse, clerking at trotting meets and starting young horses, the couple takes Challenges seriously, with dedicated training and education at the forefront of their success. Horse Deals is fortunate to share some of their challenge wisdom with our readers this month.

Article: Safari Smith - Horse Deals

More articles on Stockman's Challenges with Wayne & Lynda:
Foundations of Stockman’s Challenge: Essential Groundwork Techniques
Training Obstacles for Stockman’s Challenge