WEC Ocala

[Belmont]

WEC Summer will never be a booming show circuit. Florida is hot, it storms daily at 2pm, and showing in the heat isn’t enjoyable. Locals will go (I’ve known a handful of trainers that upped and moved their businesses to Ocala the past two years. WEC isn’t the only reason, but it’s a MAJOR reason). People from around FL that aren’t going to KY & MI with 30+ clients will go. Some people from surrounding states will opt for Ocala instead of other circuits as well.

When I did WEC summer, I enjoyed it but it was hot. I’d have much rather been in MI. I noticed a lot of smaller barns and barns with sales & young horses used the Summer circuit as a more laid back circuit in lieu of going somewhere else for the Summer.

I’ve heard good things about the new HITS management, and a lot of people that both circuits this winter for different reasons.

But to answer your original question - summer will be slow, like every year, in Ocala and it’s not because people don’t like the venue. It’s because those that can, go elsewhere, for the summer where the weather is nicer and their peers are also showing.

I personally love WEC. Someone did a spreadsheet this winter, and it mostly came out costing the same between the three winter circuits.

[wanderlust]

Seconding all of this. I’ve stayed in the hotel a few times, including one of the suites. I actually liked the size of the normal king room on a lower floor, while the suite was absurdly large, sparsely furnished and also very noisy from a variety of different things.

I think Ocala is just a hard place to support a true luxury experience… but for Ocala it’s really well done.

[bamboopole]

WEC is too industrial for me. VT is fun. Traverse City is wonderful.
Would be nice to have turnout, but it’ll happen.
Nothing beats Lake Placid. Ever.

[bingbingbing]

I had been so enamored with WEC; even with some of the odd design choices, that I hadn’t been to HITS in three years. I finally went this winter.
HITS was like a breath of fresh air compared to the city WEC feels/looks like to me and there is so much more to come. I really like the changes that have been made at HITS. I was happily surprised.
I used to call it sHITS too, I no longer do. I will be showing at HITS next winter. It is where my horse and I will be happier.

[BostonHJ]

Yes, it’s an Ocala five-star I will say I had rooms overlooking the ring and having it be huge panned out on a cool evening when I had a bunch of friends come up to watch the grand prix. We could’ve used more furniture but it was the right amount of space.

I stayed there a few times in 2022 and the staff and service was great. The biggest issue at the time - not sure if it’s been corrected - is there was no way to get coffee in the wee hours of the morning, and the only way to get coffee at any time was room service or standing in the crazy line at the bakery. I know true luxury hotels don’t have coffeemakers in room but there is generally some sort of fancy beverage set up in each level’s landing. I solved this by ordering a carafe of coffee and storing it in the fridge.

[findeight]

WEC south is heavily promoting itself as a year round event center as well as offering camps and clinics in all sports, including a big soccer operation, which they are continuing to expand. That should help increase the year round staff retention on the hospitality side.

[Tha_Ridge]

@BostonHJ

I know true luxury hotels don’t have coffeemakers in room but there is generally some sort of fancy beverage set up in each level’s landing.

Oh, I’d say it’s absolutely standard for the top hotels to have some sort of caffeine mechanism in-room again. People have made it very clear they won’t tolerate anything less! (I was last at the WEC hotel in September and there was definitely a little Nespresso machine/Keurig thing in my suite.)

[BostonHJ]

Ah, my comment was based on info from a friend who works in pricing for hotels. He has told me the very top level of rooms don’t have coffee makers because guests who stay there don’t expect to do anything for themselves besides order room service Glad to hear WEC has added them because a horse show crowd clearly demands it .

[Djones]

I stayed in a $900/night boutique hotel in Palo Alto. No in-room coffee. Just down the hall was a cozy and lovely coffee and tea station and today’s paper.

[wanderlust]

@BostonHJ

The biggest issue at the time - not sure if it’s been corrected - is there was no way to get coffee in the wee hours of the morning, and the only way to get coffee at any time was room service or standing in the crazy line at the bakery.

I had the same experience in '22, and it was wild to me (and quite frustrating) that there was no other way to get coffee than to stand in the bakery line. Glad to hear that they have put coffee makers in-room, but as a coffee snob that doesn’t really replace a very large cup of fresh brewed coffee or espresso beverage of some variety.

[fivestrideline]

If they were smart, a couple coffee food trucks would probably do very well with minimal effort/infrastructure. Not sure what the food truck scene is like in Ocala though. Still they’re VERY popular here at my nowhere job!

Also I agree on the coffee machine thing - a Nespresso is pretty close but really doesn’t do it after a few days at a horse show.

[APirateLooksAtForty]

They tried that this year and got very little traction, but I think it’s because the hours were spotty and so was the staffing.

[Madison]

Makes sense. The barns I know of that went last year are going back this year. The ones I know of that might have gone or have gone in the past but aren’t going this year, it is because the jumper classes are always outside and their jumper clients understandably don’t want to show outside mid-day and afternoons in Ocala in the summer!

As far as the hotel/spa, I had a circuit stall and was in the hotel a lot - it seemed to have a lot of foot traffic, and the restaurants stayed packed, and often seemed understaffed (particularly Yellow Pony). I think the spa is probably a different question from hotel/restaurants in general - I’m someone who values massage therapy, and I tried their spa once for a deep tissue massage and it was mediocre and overpriced. My friend who went at the same time had a great service. But I was there all winter and never went back because I was busy, generally, and because I wasn’t willing to risk making time only to overpay for a mediocre service again. So, they may have to make some adjustments to pricing and service quality to get repeat customers.

I think the Riding Academy will absolutely draw some people away from the main hotel, I’ve stayed in both now and the rooms were very similar. Spacious and nice, but sparsely furnished.

[MHM]

The Horse Capital of the World Just Got Its Second Luxury Hotel — Here’s What...

[Horsehusband]

Biggest plus for us in WEC has a solid on-site campground that we can bring our RV for the season.

[OutsidersOpinion]

As someone that shows at WEC more often than I would prefer this is the reality:

Stalls are big, but not quiet and not “natural”; its hard to get every aisle to turn their lights off, non show people walk through the aisles etc.

Footing is honestly Alright. Some days we are moving jumps every time we set in the schooling rings, some days we are not. I have a barn of 30+ horses and about 5 of them had mild tendon issues spring up throughout circuit our vet thought were related to “footing inconsistencies” which is the best way to describe the footing, inconsistent. It was for sure not being managed the same this year as previously, the edges of the rings were no longer level etc.

Jumper jumps are impressive, but there is zero brush in the hunter ring.

Grand Prix entry fees are also significantly more expensive here than elsewhere in the country (PA National $100k entry fee is $1k, at WEC its $1500; Tryon the $75k Grand Prix is $900 entry, WEC it is $1100)

Some in gate staff are super knowledgeable, helpful, great people; others have no business working at a horse show of that size. Lots of unhappy staff as well due to management issues.

Food there is pretty gross to be honest and very overpriced. Cheapest thing is a $5 pizza which is fine. Anything else is $20-$35 a meal per person.

Reality is, you want to love the facility, but if you spend enough time there it is actually not a great place for the horses, logistics are nightmare, and food is extremely extremely overpriced.

[mmeqcenter]

@OutsidersOpinion

Food there is pretty gross to be honest and very overpriced. Cheapest thing is a $5 pizza which is fine. Anything else is $20-$35 a meal per person.

… and food is extremely extremely overpriced.

To be fair, pretty much all restaurant food in all of Florida is subpar to gross, and insanely overpriced.

@Madison

jumper clients understandably don’t want to show outside mid-day and afternoons in Ocala in the summer!

Agreed, this would upset me greatly. As a resident of Florida, I remember being very excited for covered show rings for summer showing upon the start of WEC’s build. Why on earth are the jumpers always stuck outside?

[Tha_Ridge]

Heh, this is actually the story I was editing that I mentioned above.

[MHM]

Small world.

I was pretty surprised to come across it in a completely-unrelated-to-horses spot.