Can you feel when your horse is truly straight going to a fence? A lot of riders believe they’re straight when their horses are actually crooked to the right or left. Five-star eventer Sharon White, who will be competing later this month at the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event aboard Claus 63, explains that when a horse is straight, he can use his back and entire body better.

“As riders, we work for a lifetime to achieve straightness. Straightness enables your horse to use his body and track true—left hind to left front, right hind to right front—so he’s square and balanced at all times,” White said. “Straightness and rhythm create a balanced horse. And when your horse is straight, his lead changes will come easily. So it’s the building block for everything.”

Straightness, rhythm, track. Sound familiar? In her video series on EQUESTRIAN+, White stresses these three fundamental principles for success in the cross-country and show-jumping phases of eventing competition. (Plus, her advice is equally applicable to other jumping disciplines.)

Here, she explains how get your horse supple during the warm-up to set him for straightness over fences and then introduces jumping exercises to hone your ability to remain straight over jumps.

Warm-Up For Straightness

“Before you can achieve true straightness, you have to give your horse a chance to warm up. Keep your eyes up, because that is a big part of straightness. He can’t track true if you aren’t looking in front of his ears where you want him to go.

“Without relaxation, you can do nothing. When you’re relaxed, you can you use your muscles and mind better—and do your overall job as a rider better. It’s the same with your horse. Without relaxation, he’s in trouble, too.

“If you ask for more energy at the trot and your horse canters, take it. Because it’s actually not an inappropriate response. It’s him trying to give you more energy. So, don’t immediately take that energy away. Keep the canter for a bit and then go back to the trot and work to maintain the feeling of hind end to front end.

“Do lots of walk-trot transitions and strive to use less restraining aids on the walk. On your downward transitions, don’t go right to your hand. Use your body first. And constantly focus on using your inside leg to your outside rein for straightness and achieving a true track.

“If your horse tips to the inside while working on a canter circle, make sure you don’t follow him and also tip your body to the inside. Horses go the way they’re ridden, so if you feel your horse tip, go to your own body first.

“Next, sit your canter, track on a smaller circle and drop your irons. Let your leg hang long, because I want you to learn to ride with your legs around your horse so you feel like you’re of part of him. This will also help open up your hip flexors so you can stretch up a little taller in the saddle. It’s a really useful tool to drop your irons and pick them back up and do this over and over again, so if you lose a stirrup on course it becomes second nature to find it again.

“Ask him to extend and shorten his stride and focus on staying perfectly in rhythm with him. Maintain an independent seat and go on a smaller circle to find a different rhythm and different line of direction. This is how to find your aids for straightness and rhythm.

“When a horse is learning and does something well, be sure to praise him and give him a break, even it takes all of 30 seconds because he’ll feel good from it, too.”

Jump-Circle for Line of Direction

“Here we start with a little turning exercise over three small jumps on a circle, with two of the jumps set on a very quiet two stride. These are purposefully very small because I want you focused more on finding your line of direction and keeping your horse tracking true.

“We’re working on a circle to help improve your horse’s suppleness and to get him using his body more. This is also a great strength development exercise.

“Part of your horse’s development is practicing what’s harder for him. For example, if you’re riding a horse who wants to go fast, you have to go slow. If your horse wants to go slow, you have to go fast. If your horse tends to drift or pop out a bit to the outside through turns, your job is to guide his shoulders around the turn to keep his body straight.

“As you circle, focus on using your independent aids and keep your hands low since these are tiny jumps. When you land, use your inside leg to balance and your outside leg to guide your horse through the turn.

“Reverse directions and ride the circle of jumps the other way. Don’t allow your circle to gradually get bigger. Your horse should ride like he’s on rails. Don’t let him drift at all. Pay attention to every single stride and focus the whole time.”

Straightness, Balance and Rhythm on Course

“Now that your horse is more supple, we’re going to practice straightness, balance and rhythm over a course. Remember, the first stride on landing is where you can positively influence your horse’s stride. Don’t wait to make a decision. Tell him exactly what you want him to do.

“I liked the first round, but I could see every decision you made. That’s not bad. It’s actually excellent, because it shows me you’re learning. But now I want less from you. Go down in your heels and just murmur.

“The jumps are a little bigger than in our last exercise, but don’t go faster. Let him jump around and figure out on his own that they’re bigger.

“I want you to do it again, and I don’t want to see everything. I want it to be just between you and him so your aids are invisible. The next steps becomes, wow, how does she make that look so easy and fun? Horses go the way they’re ridden and the way they’re trained and if you train them well and systemically, then it all looks super easy.

“If you have a good rhythm, a good line of direction and straightness, then you don’t have to interrupt your horse because he’s already balanced so you can just maintain your rhythm up to the jump. It’s not your job to jump the jumps. Your job is to find the line of direction and rhythm.”

For More:

• You can watch Sharon White’s entire series on straightness over jumps here on EQUESTRIAN+.
• For more EQUESTRIAN+ videos with White, click here.
• For more of our coverage on the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event, click here.

About Sharon White

Sharon White is an international CCI5* three-day eventing rider, trainer and Level 4 U.S. Eventing Association ECP Certified Instructor based at Last Frontier Farm in Summit Point, West Virginia. White’s career includes over 10 starts at the Kentucky Three-Day Event with five different horses. She has also traveled overseas to contest CCI5* events at Lühmuhlen (France) and Les Etoiles de Pau (France) as well as CCI4* events at Boekelo (Netherlands) and Hartpury (United Kingdom). She most recently earned a team silver medal at the 2023 Pan American Games with Claus 63.

Thanks to Kent Nutrition Group and Blue Seal for our coverage of the 2025 Defender Kentucky Three-Day Event, including lead-up events, rider interviews, competition reports, horse spotlights, photos, videos and more!