Trakehner
A ditch with a tree trunk over it is called a Trakehner. The tree trunk is positioned over the centre of the ditch, which should be wide enough to be visible on each side of the tree trunk. The inexperienced horse and rider should be well capable of jumping the full width of the obstacle before attempting it.
Coffin
A coffin is a combination of three elements: a jump in, a ditch, and a jump out. The jump in is usually a tree trunk or another solid obstacle.
Posted in Whether one begins by jumping up or down a step depends on what is available to you for training. For example, if your schooling area has a suitably wide ditch, you may be able to use this to jump in and out of. Another variation is a bank, which one jumps up onto first, and then down again.
Whatever you use, it is important to start with low steps. Also, the ground you will be landing on should not be too hard and should have no holes.
Wet areas for the dressage horse would be puddles in the arena, for the showjumper, a water jump, and for the eventer a water complex.
– A suitable place to accustom the horse to water should fulfil the following criteria:
– The water should be no more than 20 cm deep.
– It should not have an uphill approach, as the young horse would not see it until the last moment and would be afraid.
– The underlying ground should be firm and without holes or large stones. Deep or muddy going makes the horse feel insecure and he will easily lose confidence about stepping into water.
Ditches appear in almost every cross-country course. They can seem very imposing when they are deep or filled with water. It is important not to make any mistakes the first time they are included in training. The inexperienced horse needs an experienced rider. If the rider is worried, this will transfer to the horse. It is by no means unusual for the horse to stop the first time he sees a ditch. He must be encouraged with determined driving aids (and follow a lead horse until he has the confidence to go alone).