This article offers expert advice on maximizing cross-country schooling sessions before the eventing season. Key tips include selecting a venue that matches your training goals, such as practicing ditches or narrow fences, and embracing varied conditions like muddy or wet ground to build your horse’s confidence and adaptability. Trainers emphasize the importance of riding on natural terrain rather than just surfaces to maintain realistic stride lengths and reactions. Additionally, riders should start schooling with a clear plan, focusing on rhythm, balance, and gradually increasing fence difficulty while ensuring the horse remains confident and responsive.

The article also highlights the value of consistent practice, staging manageable sessions with 10 to 15 fences, and maintaining control over speed, line, and balance. Riders are encouraged to prepare mentally and physically, using technical fences early in the session and finishing on a positive note. Overall, the guidance centers on thoughtful, structured training that builds both horse and rider skills progressively, ensuring readiness and confidence for competitive cross-country events.