Young Horses October 2023

After thirteen rounds, let’s take a snapshot of how our young horses look, with just six weeks until the National Young Horse Jumping Championships, where the country’s best will descend on Hawkes’ Bay.

Five-Year-Olds

The new kids are on the block. We have seen 36 five-year-old horses start this season throughout the country, with a mean number of starts of 1.5 and a clear rate average of 26%. There are not a lot of starts for these horses yet, and a lower-than-normal clear rate, but both values are expected to increase as the season progresses. 17 geldings, 18 mares, and one stallion are the gender composition. The most popular sire so far is Chacco Silver (3), and the dam sire is Lansing (3). New Zealand Performance horses are the most represented, with four horses. The average faults is 8.6, meaning, on average, horses have two to three rails per start.

Six-Year-Olds

We have seen 25 six-year-old horses start this season throughout the country, with a mean number of starts of 1.7 and a clear rate average of 21%. 14 geldings, 11 mares, and one unrecorded are the gender composition. The most popular sire so far is Euro Sports Centavos (3), and the dam sire is Chasseur I (2). Again, New Zealand Performance Horses are the most represented, with Three horses. The average fault is 7.9, meaning, on average, horses have just under two rails per start.

Seven-Year-Olds

We have seen 14 seven-year-old horses start this season throughout the country, with a mean number of starts of 2 and a clear rate average of 27%. Six geldings, seven mares, and one unrecorded are the gender composition. The most popular sire so far is again Euro Sports Centavos (3), and the dam sire has no one dominant sire. Golden Grove Stud is the most represented, with two horses. The average fault is 5.7, meaning, on average, horses have one to two rails per start.

In conclusion, numbers are lower than usual for this season stage over all three age categories, which several complex reasons can explain. As the season progresses, we hope to see an increase in participation. Seven-year-olds, as usual, are the smaller group but currently are performing the best across various key performance indicators, whereas five-year-olds, while most numerous, are showing their inexperience in low clear rates and high average faults. The most popular events so far have been the Rotorua Spring Show and Hawkes Bay A&P.

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