If you and your horse are used to opening and closing a metal gate, that maneuver will come in handy, as the American Quarter Horse Association is replacing rope gates with metal gates in Trail classes at two AQHA world championship shows this year.

Exhibitors can view an example on AQHA’s Youtube channel of the  type of gate to be used  in trail classes at the 2017 AQHA Select World Championship Show, presented by Adequan® (polysulfated glycosaminoglycan), and the 2017 Lucas Oil AQHA World Championship Show.

AQHA trail classes are designed to prepare competitors for trail rides and include obstacles that could be encountered outside of the arena. Gates are an important component to trail courses. This change to the course represents gates more likely to be found outside of the arena.

“The gate this year will not be a rope gate, but a more commonly used metal gate,” said Pete Kyle, AQHA chief show officer. “We encourage qualifiers to practice opening and closing your gates at home to be ready to compete in trail.”

A video that shows the type of gate that may be used in trail classes is available here.

Competitors can find more information regarding the Adequan Select World at www.aqha.com/selectworld and the Lucas Oil World at www.aqha.com/worldshow.