When a fence is set three feet or lower, the horse should leave the ground about five feet from the center of the fence and land the same distance from the center. For example, on a three-foot vertical fence, the horse takes off five feet from the the rail and lands five feet from the rail; but on an oxer that is three feet high with a three-foot spread, the horse would take off three-and-a-half feet from the front rail of the oxer and land three-and-a-half feet from the back rail of the oxer, for the center of the fence is halfway between the two rails. When the fences are set higher than three feet, the horse should take off six feet from the center of the fence and land six feet from the center of the fence. Again, this means that the point of take-off is closer to the fence for an oxer than for a vertical. It is also important to note that since the landing and take-off distances are shorter over lower fences, a horse must lengthen its stride more to get down the line in the number of strides designated by the course designer when the fences are set low than when they are high.