Professionals' GP horses - programs, schedules?

[Blugal]

Coming over from Eventer-land, I like to follow show jumping and was curious what the “average” life of a GP horse with a pro who travels around for FEI shows looks like.

I casually looked up a GP horse because of a blurb in a magazine and I was interested in his breeding. He is not with one of the TOP pros, but the rider had 15 FEI horses registered for 2024, and campaigned in western Europe. As a 10-year old, this horse did 72 FEI classes between Jan. 1st and Dec. 29th last year.

It seemed he usually did 3 classes at a show, maybe 4, usually with one day off in the middle. Then would usually have either ~10 days or ~4 days until the next show. The classes varied from 1.35 to 1.60 (only a couple of these). I could see for instance, if he’d had a poor round of 2 or 3 rails, he would often get moved down in his next class to 1.35 for a 2-phase and aim for a double clear, which I assume is to help with confidence as well as tweaking anything that needs work.

I would imagine a more seasoned horse at top-level probably does fewer classes. If anything, I am curious what the fitness, training, physio, etc. programs are to maintain performance so regularly.

For fun I looked up Olympic Gold medallist Ben Maher to see if there was a 10-year old I could compare: Enjeu de Grisien came up. He had been doing 1.60s as a 9 year old, so perhaps more advanced than the first horse, already. He did 44 FEI classes in 2024, including shows outside Europe - but could there be more results/shows I’ve missed? (I need help on the Global Champions Tour, League, & FEI - did the former come under the umbrella of FEI now?) And would a TOP rider’s schedule which includes these top-end classes (including the Olympics) dictate a less intense schedule for their up-and-coming horses?

What can you tell me about the programs, schedules, expectations etc. at this level?

[MHM]

Typically at the top level, there will be a qualifying class for the Grand Prix each week.

So anyone who wants to do the GP has to show and do well in the qualifier first, then the GP. That’s a minimum of two classes a week.

Depending on the age and experience of the horse, they might do more classes as well if they need more mileage in the ring.

The frequency of shows depends a lot on the rider and what’s in the barn. A rider with multiple horses may rotate them from week to week, both to keep the horses fresh, and because they are only allowed to show one horse in some of the big classes.

A rider with just one horse at the top level might show it a little more often, but of course, it depends a lot on the horse’s soundness and experience level.

The barns that have enough top horses to send different groups to different shows where the rider travels to meet up with them must have somebody on the staff with logistical skills that would put most people to shame. Lol.

I think the eventer who just switched to straight jumpers mentioned in his Chronicle interview that if he has a bad class in a Grand Prix, he can come back and try again in a week or two, unlike with an event horse, where it might take months before he can compete that same horse again.

[Irene2022]

That’s a pretty hard question to answer because every horse has its own personalized regimen and trainers/riders have their own programs on what they think works. I’ve had trainers who love PEMF and others who hate it. Or like we’ve seen in the news, some trainers love turnout, and others prefer to just manage out of stall time. There are some universal truths that anyone who is acting in the best interest of the horse will do (i.e., get them out of their stall minimum 3 times a day, don’t overshow a horse to the point of exhaustion, etc.). Some of those things have FEI/USEF rules but most don’t…

I can only speak to the program I keep my horse is in (national GPs, not FEI). This doesn’t get to your question about top riders who have Olympic level goals but maybe can give a bit of insight into a similar height range. My horse is colder and a very easy keeper and so I focus my training at home to keep him in shape with good cardio and not much jumping. And then at shows I do a light hacks each day and show in 2 -3 classes. I chose my shows (8 last year) and classes (total 23) to balance on my goals of getting confidence and pushing myself to bigger levels and being competitive and winning moneyyy. I pull his shoes in the winter for a couple months and he gets 8 hours of turnout with a friend.

The best way to learn the details is to ask someone you look up to. Now a cold call to a random FEI rider might not be the most productive but absolutely use your connections to see who may know a rider/trainer on a more personal level.

[Blugal]

Thank you for your perspectives!

I’m unlikely to be able to ask anyone directly, so appreciate being able to ask here.