Pole bending is a rodeo timed event that features a horse and one mounted rider, running a weaving or serpentine path around six poles arranged in a line.

This event is usually seen in youth and high school rodeos, 4-H events, American Quarter Horse Association, Paint and Appaloosa sanctioned shows, as well as in many gymkhana or O-Mok-See events.

The Nez Perce Stake Race is a type of pole bending race which is also a match race: two horses race on identical courses laid out side-by-side, with the loser eliminated and the winner moving up the brackets to race the other winners.

[1] It is one of five game classes approved for horse club shows by the Appaloosa Horse Club (ApHC).

[2] The ApHC rules state that racing competition is traditional to the Nez Perce Native American people.