Just received an email about this. Apparently they are basing the decision on “experts who predict a second wave of Coronavirus later this year.”
In the next breath, they make sure to remind the reader that WEC - Ocala will open January 5th.
What do others make of this? It seems there is something between the lines.
The facility is fully enclosed and it would be completely impossible to socially distance there. From a perspective of not wanting to be the epicenter of another outbreak, it makes sense to just bail now. That would be a horrific PR nightmare. It also makes strategic sense for them to focus solely on their Ocala opening and naturally gives them a way to try and drive business in that direction instead. Honestly I think it’s a pretty smart business decision, and this is coming from someone would have shown there once a month this winter and absolutely will not be making the trip to their Ocala facility. This has effectively ended my show season for the year outside of what outdoor shows, theirs or others in this area, we may be able to do.
Their outdoor shows from what I have seen have been smaller than their indoor shows. They could really spread people around in the barns and all the doors would be open, so you have a much better chance of staying away from others in that scenario. Their indoor series typically sell out week after week with all the stalls full, so it’s A LOT of people crammed in there.
Let’s make no mistake though, this was a strategic business decision. It was not based on pure altruism, it may have contributed some to it, but was not the deciding factor. I see nothing wrong with that though.
Open or not it is an amazing facility. We don’t have anything like it in CA.
Their Florida facility can’t run shows when HITS is running so they want to direct people to Florida to help them out financially. I’m not sure that will happen, as a lot of the trainers that went to the Ohio location don’t go to Florida for the season and prefer to take shorter trips with clients.
A “conveniently altruistic business decision” seems about right ;). Haha
Lol. I said that on 2 other threads and some people don’t get it 
How so?
They might not be able to run USEF horse shows during Hits, but they could certainly run unrecognized shows, or AQHA shows, or other breed shows, or dressage shows or whatever. I think they mentioned the possibility of unrecognized shows in a previous email.
Unrecognized horse shows with beautiful courses, perfect footing, courteous staff, real prize money – all for trainers looking to put miles on sale horses …
Yup, there’s a big draw for Canadians to head there (in general, not because of the pandemic). Many of us only head down for a few weeks and points aren’t relevant for us.
The goal is just warm and sunny.
Personally, I’ll be nervous of leaving Canada until there’s a vaccine or until the virus is well contained. Getting stuck in a foreign country during an outbreak does not sound fun.
Hopefully the following winter I can head down.
Why would someone that usually shows at the Ohio location drive all the way to Florida for an unrecognized show?
SInce this is the HJ forum I am referring to the USEF shows that they run, which would be the biggest draw. Due to the mileage rules they can’t run those on HITS dates.
I think for the amazing facilities, nice people, well run shows, great staff… but the money is my guess. The older I get, the less A or AA means to me.
If I’m looking for a unrecognized show I’m clearly not going to drive 12 hours to Florida. It’s not feasible that someone is driving that distance for an unrecognized schooling show. Maybe they popped their green horse on an empty trailer spot and they’ll hit some schooling shows while they’re down there but that’s pretty much it. If they don’t already to go to Florida in the winter they aren’t going to start for schooling shows.
Spending the weekend in Ohio is a different tax bracket than spending the winter in Florida or even a few weeks.
The money is amazing for both hunters and jumpers, rated or not.
I don’t know if many of the people who show in Ohio would change their plans to go to Florida, but I can tell you that my friends who currently go to HITS Ocala every winter are planning to do WEC Ocala instead. They don’t care if it’s USEF rated or not and these people normally do the AO hunters and jumpers. They aren’t chasing points and they expect WEC to have better facilities and prize money even running as an unrecognized show. They’ve been looking forward to an alternative to HITS ever since the WEC facility was announced.
And amateurs who aren’t chasing points but are happy to have all of those things plus the warmer weather. They’ve put out a draft prize list and there are plenty of things to entice the clients too.
Anyone who knows the Roberts family knows that they are not trying to redirect people to their Fl facility for financial reasons. They do this for the love of the sport, and there is plenty of business for both venues. This announcement impacts me as that is where we show all winter, it’s sad for those of us that won’t be able to show as much. But, I was also at WEC when they were forced to shut down mid-show in March because an indoor show counts as a large gathering. They sent every person home from that show with no bill, not for feed, stalls, bedding, or divisions completed. I’m sure they have some insight as to how long the “no large gathering” rule will be in effect and are trying to give people time to make alternate plans.
Maybe the Ohio people will be able to show at no cost in Florida. That would be a nice gesture!
Some friends of mine were at that show. They were amazed. In a good way.
The article states they will offer an equitation Championship class with a car prize for the winner & a $100,000 bonus check for the winning trainer. That’s something that will entice all the top eq riders and top big eq barns.
This is the responsible thing to do as there will be no vaccine this year. The virus is not going away and will likely resurface in the fall even if it slows a bit this summer. But the US cases are still increasing and as we all go out and mix among others those numbers should still rise even into the summer months.
By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. You may also receive promotional emails from The Chronicle of the Horse. You can opt out at any time.
For Customers
Company
Terms of Use
