“It’s only a 3″ difference,” said no one ever. Bridging the gap between the two heights can prove a challenge for many riders, so we talked to three trainers about how to decide if you’re ready to make the leap.
Jim Hagman
If a student is ready to move up from the 3’3″ to the 3’6″, they should have a strong seat (they can stay with the horse over 3’6″ fences, and they get across the wide oxers without being unseated), they should be able to land and collect to make things happen, and they should have a brave, good horse that can get it done. If one of those things is missing, then they are not ready.
At the Dover Saddlery/USEF Hunter Seat Medal Final [Pennsylvania] this year, I saw a bigger percentage of kids that were not ready for that final. You could tell that by how they started the course: half of them were loose in the tack; they were only aiming their horses for the strides [in the lines] and not putting the horse where they wanted them, and those riders were victims of circumstances and passengers. They were not in command of the ride; at that level, you have to be in command of the ride.
That is on the trainers to teach [the riders] to be in command. If the trainer cannot do that because the kid goes to prep school, and they do 14 other sports along with horseback riding, and they go on long vacations, or whatever it is, then you [as the trainer] have to look at the parents and go, “Look, this is not a happening thing.” And it’s hard because you might lose the customer; they may go to another barn. But I would rather not have the client be disappointed with me because they’re not ready for that level. I want people to do well and succeed. This sport is so hard to do even when you have everything on your side, let alone when you’re missing pieces. You always want to set your students up for success.
“If … the kid goes to prep school, and they do 14 other sports along with horseback riding, and they go on long vacations, or whatever it is, then you [as the trainer] have to look at the parents and go, ‘Look, this is not a happening thing.’
Jim Hagman
Nowadays, I see a lot of weak riding. I think the kids get advanced too quickly, and they don’t spend enough time in the tack. Our sport now is too much about getting a horse, getting the rider on, and then getting to a circuit. But you need to do the riding—keep riding and riding and riding. Sit in the saddle and go ride, and then ride more! That’s the key. That’s what we’ve lost over the years.
It doesn’t matter what you sit on: warmbloods, Thoroughbreds, whatever. The main thing is that you are in the saddle riding horses. They don’t have to be special or fancy; it could be anything at home. Get on, and go and go and go and go, and get a seat. Have a command of feeling. Every ride, ask yourself, “What is the horse trying to tell me?” In the show ring, there’s no time to translate these thoughts; you have to react in the moment. It’s feeling and reacting without even thinking about it. That’s the point. It takes years to get there, but it takes years of getting in the saddle and riding anything.
Do you know what Nick Haness and Halie Robinson have in common, besides being passionate for this sport and being as gifted as can be? The thing they have most in common is that they rode as many horses as they could, and it didn’t matter what kind of horse it was. They both went around and around the [show] rings at the smaller California shows, and that helped them develop feel.
One day at the Winter Equestrian Festival [Florida], Nick was reminiscing, and he said to me, “You know, Jim, you know what the biggest difference maker for me as a kid was?” I said, “No, what, Nick?” And he said, “Remember that Thoroughbred, that old one you had that you retired?” Yes, of course I did. I had bought that horse out of the paper for minimal money. Nick said, “I rode that horse every day after school, and I would just pop over rails or little cavalettis. And I would just ride him every day, and that’s what did it for me.”
You need to feel what a horse is, and you only get that from having time in the saddle. The people who don’t want to ride the older horses or the not-as-fancy horses—they’re missing the boat here because it worked for Halie, for Nick, and for many other riders. Find a place where you can go that they just have everyday horses, and you can just ride them.
It could be the hack stable down the street from your house. Help them out and get on those horses. The amateur that can’t get to the barn and needs their horse exercised— offer to do it. Don’t get on a crazy horse, like one that wants to rear up and go over backwards on you. That isn’t an ideal practice horse, and that’s not worth it. But they don’t have to be fancy horses. If it doesn’t have lead changes, who cares? Trot the lead changes. It doesn’t really matter what kind of horse it is as long as it’s got three gaits. It could have four even, as long as it goes. Then you develop a sense of innate feeling, like you know without thinking about it. Then you’re just riding, even at the shows.
My dad used to say, “Riding is really hard, but it’s really simple. You need good pace, good balance; you have to get to a good take-off, and then you have to look good doing it.” Hard to do, but it starts off with just riding as much as you can. If you’re in a controlled environment all the time, you cannot learn all the things.
On each horse you ride, you’re learning sense of pace, timing, and distance. What else are you going to do with your time, look at your phone instead?
After riding his family’s ranch horses and showing on the hunter/jumper circuit as a junior, Jim Hagman began his training business and riding school, Elvenstar, in Moorpark, California, in the 1980s. Many of Hagman’s students, such as Paige Walkenbach, Cassandra Kahle, Katie Gardner, Avery Glynn, Nick Haness and Halie Robinson, have found successes in the hunter, jumper and equitation rings on both coasts. Hagman has been a member of the U.S. Hunter Jumper Association Equitation Task Force since 2016.
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Emily Esau-Williams
The way I approach this with my students is that I feel strongly that they need to master each height. They need to be able to face any challenge that might come up, and they need to be able to answer those questions consistently and with strength and confidence in their horses so that the jump height is not the question.
In the equitation, we are so fortunate now to have so many 3’3″ medals that really prepare the kids to move up to the 3’6″. It’s not about results or winning a class or a final, but more you just need to show that you are more than competent at answering the questions that are being asked on a very consistent basis. I also have to see that your horse can answer those questions with you before I allow you to move up. As you move up, the questions get harder, and a wrong answer can have more devastating effects.
Other skills you need for the 3’6″ are the ability to make those split-second decisions, to react, and to be able to not second-guess your choices. At the 3’6″ height, you have to make a plan and execute it from the moment you walk in the gate to the time you walk back out of the gate. That is one of the biggest differences between the two heights: The 3’3″ riders, you see that they have a plan, and they mostly follow it. But the 3’6″ riders, they follow it from the moment they cross into the gate, and those are the ones that are the most successful.
“At the 3’6″ height, you have to make a plan and execute it from the moment you walk in the gate to the time you walk back out of the gate.”
Emily Esau-Williams
That’s where the 3’3″ has become a great steppingstone for some riders, while for others, it’s a great height to make their goal, because doing the 3’6″, whether it be the hunters or the equitation, requires an equine partner that these days costs quite a bit of money. The 3’3″ is much more attainable, not only financially but for skill level as well.
In years past, the 3′ to the 3’6″ was such a big jump that you were seeing less people do it successfully. Now you’re seeing more people make the steps from 3′ to 3’3″ to 3’6″ successfully, because it is now a steppingstone versus a big leap.
The 3’3″ height is also great for the horses stepping down from the 3’6″. My philosophy is that whatever level you want to do, your horse has to have the stride and scope to go above and beyond that. We don’t want a horse to feel like they’re stretching to do something. You want it to be easy enough for the horse, so that if and when the rider makes mistakes, the horse can compensate and get the rider out of it. It still might be a chip or a long distance but hopefully it’s not with consequences that cause a fall or a stop.
So if you have a 3’6″ horse that’s stepping down, then the 3’3″ is a nice way to gradually ease them out of the 3’6″. And then the flip side is that if a professional is bringing a green horse along, and the amateur or junior wants to show it, and it’s doing 3’6″ greens with the pro, the 3’3″ is a nice way for that horse to get in the ring in a rated division. [The 3’3″] is a super division for both the amateurs and the juniors.
If your equine partner is not capable of moving up [from 3’3″ to 3’6″], the answer could be that you need to get a new horse. But we need to do what’s best for your horse and put them where they are going to shine the most. And if that’s at 3′, then you stay at 3′ to showcase your horse until he’s leased or sold, and then we will get you another one to move up on. But you can’t put your own agenda ahead of what’s best for your horse. It’s an easier conversation [to have with a client] than you would think, because it’s the truth.
When someone has goals and things they want to achieve, we have to look at the whole picture. Are you and your partner set up to achieve this? Is that how we can make this work? You as a rider have to have the skill, ability and the confidence to tackle whatever the course is, but the horse has to have the physical ability and the character to have your back. It’s not a “me” or “him” kind of thing; it’s you both as a team. I hate to see people fail, and our job is to help the riders become better horsemen. And that’s part of it—as a rider, you need to recognize what is best for your horse. So the real question is: Can this team, working together, accomplish whatever the rider’s goal is?
Emily Esau-Williams started riding as a child with her parents, Chuck and Lindy Esau, who were both horse professionals. Her junior successes included winning the USET Talent Search Final—West (California) and WCE Junior/Amateur Medal Finals (California). Esau-Williams runs her EE Show Stable in Rancho Santa Fe, California, and her students have ridden to major wins in all three rings.
Caitlin Venezia-White
Back when I was a junior, you did everything from 3′ to 3’6″: children’s hunters to junior hunters, 3′ medals to Medal/ Maclay. So now, I think it’s changed dramatically with the offering of the 3’3″, and I’m a huge proponent of having all the finals [that are offered at that height]. I’m a member of the USHJA Equitation Task Force, so we see all the proposed finals, and each one asks different questions that align with what the 3’6″ finals ask. You’re trying to prepare kids for 3’6″ without having it be as difficult.
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When you’re going from 3’3″ to 3’6″, it’s not just a height question. You’re not just going up one hole on meter-measured jumps. You’re changing tracks; you’re changing the width of the jumps; the courses in general ask more questions; the combinations are scopier, sometimes spookier. There’s an expectation level that comes with 3’6″ that kids at the 3’3″ haven’t met yet.
It’s not an age thing; it’s really an ability to troubleshoot in the moment. You also have to be able to do something well before you can move on to the next step. And you cannot expect to move on to the next step and have it go well right off the bat.
“It’s not an age thing; it’s really an ability to troubleshoot in the moment. You also have to be able to do something well before you can move on to the next step.”
Caitlin Venezia-White
You know, my biggest thing for our kids moving up is I need a really solid understanding of track. Track is huge when it comes to bending lines: You need to know how to meet a combination correctly. You can make it very easy on your horse if you meet something scopey correctly, or you can make it very hard or near impossible if you don’t meet it correctly. If a rider has a super solid understanding of track, you’re getting there.
Some riders are fortunate enough to keep the same horse [to move up on], but that’s not always the case for every horse-and-rider pair.
Overall, it’s a mature understanding of the questions being asked by the course designer, and with practice and competing comes the mature responsibility that you owe your horse to do it right. I’m a big proponent of doing the best by your horses, and part of that is not just saying, “I want to jump 3’6″ courses,” and then putting your horse in a position that they cannot get you out of. And maybe your horse will get you out of it time and time again, but there are a finite number of times he will do that. Each horse has their finite number—some are sooner
than others—but without fail, every horse has a number. So you don’t want to send a kid into the 3’6″ finals without feeling confident that they can answer questions in the moment that are being asked by the course designer.
I have kids that have started dabbling in the 3’6″ at the Winter Equestrian Festival [Florida], Kentucky, and other [East Coast] shows, but they’re not quite ready for the questions at the 3’6″ finals yet. So one of my ways of handling that big move-up is that I’m not just going to say, “This year you are a 3’3″ kid; next year you are a 3’6″ kid.”
For me, there’s a transition year where, however old you are, you’re just 3’3″; you’re figuring that out, and you qualify for the [3’3″] finals, and you answer most of the questions. You might not answer all of them, or you might answer all of them. But you’re safely answering enough of the questions that you know you can compete.
And then the next year, I’m going to put you in the 3’6″ a little bit at horse shows that ask enough hard questions. And you’re going to start to feel out what it’s like to have your horse jump a little bit higher, jump a little harder, and land a little further into the line. Horses may not be as soft at 3’6″, because they’re using more power. So there are riding questions that you have to be able to answer. Then at the end of that year, you’re not going to Medal or Maclay finals. You’re going back to the 3’3″ finals, but with a stronger understanding of how to manage your horse and a stronger understanding of how to manage your own nerves and the pressure.
Then next year, you’re a 3’6″ kid if you proved yourself while you were dabbling [in 3’6″] the year before. Then you’re going to continue in the 3’6″ that year and on to Medal/ Maclay finals.
Obviously, every program has their own system, but for me, I need horse and rider to answer the questions enough that I feel confident in not just their performance but in
their safety as well. Safety is a huge factor for me. And under no circumstances does a trainer want to set a rider up to fail. It’s so important that we as trainers give kids confidence in themselves so that they can then have confidence to go in the ring when no one is chirping in their ear and tell them how to get from A to B, and so on.
There is no pat answer on whether you’re ready to move up from the 3’3″ to the 3’6″ equitation, but there are a combination of questions that you have to answer.
Caitlin Venezia-White grew up on the hunter/jumper circuit as a trainer’s kid and competed successfully in all three rings before turning professional. She’s now a rider and instructor at Holly Hill Farm (which is based out of several locations in Massachusetts, including Cape Cod, plus Wellington, Florida) alongside trainer Patricia Harnois, with the team taking riders to top shows all over the country. Venezia-White is also a U.S. Equestrian Federation ‘R’ judge and an active member of the USHJA Equitation Task Force.
This article originally appeared in the November 2024 issue of The Chronicle of the Horse. You can subscribe and get online access to a digital version and then enjoy a year of The Chronicle of the Horse. If you’re just following COTH online, you’re missing so much great unique content. Each print issue of the Chronicle is full of in-depth competition news, fascinating features, probing looks at issues within the sports of hunter/jumper, eventing and dressage, and stunning photography.
