Some basic cross country obstacles
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| Natural fences, like fallen trees or jumpable field boundaries such as rails, hedges, walls, banks, ditches, streams, gates, are not often available as jumps, but similar obstacles can be constructed for schooling at home. Obstacles designed to be jumped from either side are particularly useful. All the fences seen here are "reversible", except the gate and sleeper wall, which both slope away. If jumped in reverse, the false groundline would make them dangerous. The frame and brush fence is made with the front, visible, rail slightly higher than the back rail, which a horse would not see. "loose" log piles and cans must be fixed in place: if any part of a jump becomes tangled in the horse's legs, it could bring him down, or at least frighten him. The top rail of a gate usually needs strengthening with an extra pole at the back. |
  Log Piles |
  Natural Hedge Stone wall, Reinforced |
   (a) Brush Frame (b) Packing the frame (c) Brush/birch fence, trimmed |
Cross Country Fence Construction
| A simple, adjustable, upright fence can be made by sinking two pairs of stakes or posts 9-12 ins (27-36cm) apart, at either end, and drilling pairs of holdes at various heights, so that a metal bar can be inserted between the uprights at the chosen level. To make a spread, poles can be positioned on a horizontal or sloping bar which runs between pairs of stakes about 4ft apart (1.2m). It is then easy to move the pole to make the fence narrower or wider. The poles are kept in place with ropes or blocks of wood. More permanent obstacles may be constructed by fixing rails to posts. Sturdy posts are even more important than the rails they support because they have to withstand most of the impact when struck by a horse at speed. |  Roping rails to posts is safer than using nails, bolts, or wire. Polypropylene 1/4in (6mm) diameter rope does not break, is easy to handle, and can be cut in an emergency. After roping, trim the posts. |
 Strong, inviting post and rails: the top rail is roped to the main post and supported on an adjustable "dummy" post. The lower rail, sligntly prominent, rests on a chock at one end, for quick release. |
 a) Post and rail halved, then roped. b) Rail notched into top of post, secured with rope, or wire, then stapled to post. c) Rails halved, and d) cut diagonally, then butted together. e) roping a corner. |
  Triple Bar Bench/seat
|   Stile Shark's Teeth
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  Horizontal Rails Ditch and Rails |
  Hanging log Coop/pheasant feeder |
Guidelines for size:As per the D Rally Rules, the cross country jumps at the D Level are to be within the following maximums:
ALL JUMPS MUST BE 10 FT LONG THE BASIC FRAME MUST BE CONSTRUCTED OF 6" ROUND POLES (LUMBER), JOINED WITH 12" SPIKES CEDAR RAILS OR 1/2 OF 6" POSTS, OR FLAT WOOD, CAN BE USED AS FILLER FILLERS SHOULD BE EITHER 12" APART SO THAT A HORSES FOOT CAN PASS IN AND OUT OF THE JUMP OR NO MORE THAN 2" APART SO THAT IT CANNOT PASS THROUGH THE JUMP AT ALL. JUMP EXAMPLE: IF USING A BASIC TRIANGULAR SHAPED JUMP, THE DIMENSION FO THE TRIANGE SHOULD BE: HEIGHT = 18" THE BASE WILL BE 2' 3" HEIGHT = 24" THE BASE WILL BE 2' 6" ANY QUESTIONS REGARDING THE BUILDING OF THESE JUMPS CAN BE DIRECTED TO HELEN ELGIE OR FILOMENA HUMPHRIES. |