*Opinion* Robert Walker: ‘The new HOYS format removes speculation’

Robert Walker weighs up the new judging system set to premiere at HOYS

As a team, we’re gearing up for the biggest occasion of the year, the Horse of the Year Show (HOYS). Our season has shifted a bit towards the end given my wife Sarah’s recent fall at the Sports Horse Breeding of Great Britain championships, meaning she’s been out of action. However, we’re grateful to have good people around us who have been mucking in when and where they can to keep the show on the road.

We had a good run at our last show, the British Show Horse Association championships, and our main focus now is keeping our HOYS contenders sound, happy and healthy.

There is to be a new judging format this year, whereby the judges of each final won’t be announced until the morning of the class. When this change was announced at the beginning of the year I was enthusiastic about it. There was less pressure in a way, as it took away all the usual speculation that goes on in modern showing on social media.

As we move towards HOYS, though, I do have a couple of concerns. As a show horse producer, the main part of my job is to produce a horse for a particular ride judge. Each judge has a different riding style and preference, and preparing a show animal for a certain rider is an art for my fellow producers and I.

Ideally, every horse will carry anyone well, but knowing who is to be riding could be the difference between giving something a bit more work as you know a judge prefers something on the steadier side, or leaving it fresh so it goes on more. The atmosphere at HOYS is also so unique that it can be tricky to prepare a horse even without the unknown of who will be sitting on it.

Looking at the initial list of judges, all of the potential ride judges look to be very good riders, which is a positive. At this year’s HOYS, at least, we’ll all be going in the ring with a blank canvas, and we’ll have to see what happens on the day.

A showing spectacle

It’s evident that HOYS is still the main aim for all showing riders. The last few qualifiers of the year have been exceptionally strong with good combinations still clambering for those elusive tickets. There’s a passion around going to HOYS that you just don’t get at any other show.

The appeal to ride there is still as strong as when I first started out and it’s the one show that all my customers want to aim for. The buzz is like no other and while it’s been a very lucky show for us results-wise, the spectacle of it creates an incredible occasion outside of the show ring too.

This type of event is only positive for our sport – it’s the ultimate showcase of our best animals.

While Sarah’s accident has certainly put things into perspective for us this year, we’ll still be trying very hard to have a successful week at HOYS. I wish everyone competing there the very best of luck.

● What do you think of the new judging format at HOYS 2024? Let us know at hhletters@futurenet.com, including your name, nearest town and country, for the chance for your letter to appear in a forthcoming issue of the magazine