What Do I Need to Convert My Single Harness for a Pair?

Once you get started in carriage driving and have experience with a single horse, you might want to try the challenge of driving a pair; two horses side by side.  In the draft horse world, they call that a team. (In the carriage world, a team is a four-in-hand.)  We often get the question, “What do I need to use my single harness for a pair?”

We are going to discuss this challenge as it relates to breast collar harness verses full collar harness, as the vast majority of drivers use breast collar harnesses. First, you will need two complete harnesses.  We will start from the front of the harness and work backwards.  We are not going to get into detail about how each piece attaches as that will vary from harness to harness depending on how the harness was made.  There is also a myriad of adjustments to harness settings that need to be made with a pair of horses, much more so than with a single horse.  This really requires an experienced person to help make those adjustments. 

Single harness usually doesn’t have a way to connect the horses to the pole on the vehicle.  The breast collars need pair rings on each collar.  These are sewn into the collar, so they are not something that can be added to existing collars.  This is one part of the single harness that will be necessary to replace in order to use the harness correctly with a pair.  Pair rings really can’t be added later to look right and function correctly.  They need to be sewn in when the breast collar is being constructed.  When purchasing a single harness from a harness maker, it can be beneficial to have the pair rings sewn into the breast collar right from the start if you intend on using that harness as a pair someday. 

You will also need pole straps to attach the breast collars to the pole head or yoke on the pole of the carriage.  There are various attachment styles depending on the vehicle.  In the photo above, the yoke on the pole has snap shackles that connect directly to the breast collar pair rings, so there are no pole straps.  Our other vehicles that just have a pole head require the pair pole straps.

The breeching on your harness still acts as somewhat of a braking system on a pair, but the breeching straps can’t be connected to the pole like they are on the shafts.  They need to be attached to the breast collar, which becomes part of the braking system.  The breeching straps need to be replaced with side backer breeching straps that attach from the breeching to the breast collars under the traces. 

Since the breast collars become part of the braking system, it is imperative that false martingales are used to keep the breast collars from pushing forward with the pressure from the pole in a down transition, especially if the harness doesn’t have breeching.  The Hungarian neck strap that goes around the neck also stabilizes the breast collar in the down transition as well.  It is also helpful to somehow have the breast collars attached to the saddle.  There are straps made for this depending on the style of the harness.

It's helpful to replace the shaft tugs on the saddle with trace bearers, but not absolutely necessary, as the tugs could actually be used as trace bearers.  The last thing you need, of course, are pair reins. 

This is a very simplistic description of the parts you need.  Again, this could also vary from harness to harness.  We highly suggest that you become very proficient in the driving of a single horse before trying a pair.  There is so much more to consider in terms of adjustments and training considerations with a pair than a single horse.  It’s not as simple as just placing another horse alongside the first.  And driving a pair of horses should never be attempted alone, even with well-broke horses.  It is an activity that should always be shared with a knowledgeable friend.