There is no real black magic to a hunter round. Hunter is a style. Hunter rounds consist of at least eight fences and no more than ten fences and usually in a simple figure-8 pattern. These rounds are marked by the judge and given a score based on the form of the horse. The horse with the best form over fences wins.
Show Ring Basics
As soon as the horse enters the ring the judging begins. Manners, way of going and movement are all considered in the hunter ring. Manners, including tail swishing, ear pinning and general impression could be tie breakers if all horses jump equally.
The horse’s movement should be effortless and ground covering. The form over fences must be neat and conventional. Jumping conventionally with knees up and an even bascule are the priority of a good hunter.
Hunters are judged on their form and should not be confused with jumpers. Jumpers are judged, basically, on whether or not they leave the jumps up and if they make it in under the time allowed.
Top No–No’s in Hunters
Here are some things that will completely knock you out of the ribbons in the hunter ring;
- Refusals– Refusing to go over the fence is considered a major fault. A run-out, or running by the extended plane of the jump, or refusing, stopping directly in front of the fence, are usually marked with an ‘R‘ on the judges sheet and will not be used in the placing of the class.
- Knock Downs– A pole which no longer rests on its supports is considered to be knocked down. A knockdown is a major fault and sometimes an unfortunate rail can remove a great horse out of the placings. A horse that registers a ‘K’, for knock down, will not place in the ribbons.
- *Breaking into a Trot– Breaking the rhythm of the canter and falling into a trot is a major fault and will be marked with a ‘Broke’ or ‘Trot’. Any competitor that has broken into a trot will unfortunately be placed low in the class.
- *Poor Form– A horse should jump out of stride with its knees up and even. If a horse ‘hangs’ a leg or drops his knees will lose points on the score of the round. A horse that ‘hangs’ is considered dangerous and will be placed lower than a horse that has good form over fences.
As the judge watches the competitors, they keep score with a series of shorthand notes representing the way the horse has completed the round. Each fence is marked with a code. A check mark or dashed line ‘-‘ means that the jump was okay but a jump with ‘K’ ‘R’, or ‘Broke’ outlines serious mistakes and is scored as such.
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