A wing standard horse jump is usually made up of colored vertical planks on a frame. Some have boxwood hedges and flower boxes for a decorative look. Some come with pin-less jump cups and two poles.
The wings add width to the fence and help guide a horse into and over it. There are three different variations of wing standards:
Upright
When a course contains several fences, the rider must be especially accurate to ensure their horse stays straight before, over, and after each obstacle. Building small uprights around the arena is a great way to practice keeping your horse in a consistent rhythm and position before, over, and after a jump.
Some schooling horse jumps combine a solid fence and a ditch that riders must clear in one stride. These are often used at the higher levels of competition.
These fences look like brick walls, often up to six feet high. Jumping these can be challenging as they are intimidating, and horses may refuse them or run out at the bottom. The rider must teach their horse to jump calmly through the brush and to land on a solid spot at the bottom of the obstacle without running into a rail or a tree.
True Parallel
A table is a type of fence that has both height and width. It encourages the horse to jump over the whole thing rather than just aiming at it from one side. This is a good way to help a horse judge his distances better and to help him build strength and soundness throughout many jumps. A strong table should be built to support the weight of a horse jumping off it. A horse jumping off a weak table can sting his feet so badly that he is reluctant to make another big effort over the next few jumps.
A table is also a good way to teach the horse to move into and out of a stride as he approaches an obstacle. When the horse takes his last approach stride too close to a jump, he compresses his body. This increases the force it must use to push upward and may cause him to miss the fence with his front legs because he might not have enough room to raise them high.
False Parallel
When building a DIY wing standard horse jump, it’s important to make sure that the wings are parallel to one another. This ensures the horse can approach them correctly and prevents them from running out (going around the jump instead of over it). Using proper technique when jumping a standard horse jump wing is also important. Incorrect front leg technique can lead to a collision with the obstacle, making it more likely for the horse to fall into the jump or get caught under it. Measuring the distance between each jump in terms of strides is essential when setting a course. Each horse’s stride is different, so figuring out how far your horse needs to take between each jump before reaching it comfortably is essential.
Spread
The wings of the wing standard add width to the jump and direct the horse’s approach. They also help the horse to desensitize to this type of obstacle.
The horse’s powerful hindquarters propel him vertically and horizontally over the jump. He must have enough coordination to synchronize the power firing of his muscles with his elastic rebound in the air, which causes him to dip lower than normal for a few seconds on landing.
During the compression phase, the horse’s haunches sink low to his hocks, and he coils maximum energy into his hindquarters. This allows him to overcome the jump’s horizontal force and propel himself vertically up and over the top. In addition, he must flex his front legs to create forward momentum over the jump’s height.
