USHJA On Course Episode 27

USHJA: Welcome to another episode of USHJA On Course! I'm your host, Terisé, and this month we are getting excited for a week of top Hunter competition during the 2023 Platinum Performance/USHJA Green Hunter Incentive Championships and Platinum Performance/USHJA International Hunter Derby Championship by chatting with a Hunter Week veteran, Nick Haness. The country's best Hunters will take to the Kentucky Horse Park on August 15-19 to compete for thousands of dollars in prize money and the championship titles. Catch all the action in-person or stream both Championships from anywhere for FREE on ClipMyHorse.TV.

Nick Haness's name has been gracing the top Hunter ring leaderboards for years. The California-based rider recently won his second consecutive USHJA WCHR West Coast Hunter Spectacular after topping the 2022 USHJA WCHR Professional Finals. In 2019, he finished second in Section A of the Platinum Performance/USHJA International Hunter Derby Championship and was Champion in Section B as a Tier II rider. Among those wins, he has brought numerous Green Hunters to the Platinum Performance/USHJA Green Hunter Incentive Championships and has earned an array of tricolors across the country.

Listen in as we discuss what he looks for in a Hunter prospect, how he finesses the Handy and which Derby horse in his string is one to watch.

USHJA: So, start us off; when and how did you first get started in the horse world?

Nick Haness: I started riding horses when I was four years old. I've always had a passion for horses and loved, loved the horses since a young age. And I kind of became more involved with my show career when I was doing small ponies when I was about 12 years old.

USHJA: You've done a lot of catch riding. How has that shaped you as a rider and then as a trainer once you went pro?

Nick Haness: I started catch riding at a very young age when I was a young child. I used to take my bike to the local equestrian center, put my saddle on the handlebars and drive around the barn and literally asked the trainers there if they had any other horses they wanted to be ridden for the day. And I loved doing that. It was so much fun.

I think being that that was how I started catch riding from a young age, it kind of just gave me the desire and I think the upper hand later in my career when I was catch riding more on a professional level. You know, for me, I love to catch ride, right? I think it's something I really enjoy to do. And I think getting on new horses for the first time and learning them quickly and understanding the horses is kind of a strong suit for me. So I've always really enjoyed the process of catch riding and it's kind of exhilarating and exciting to get on a new horse and as long as the, the people are telling you, you know, as much as I can tell you about that horse, it's usually a good experience.

USHJA: Mm hmm. So, you went pro and then you took some time off and then you came back. Did any of that time away alter your path in the industry or change anything?

Nick Haness: No, you know, I was very busy as a junior rider. I competed a lot. I was very active in the sport and traveling a lot for horse shows. So, when I turned professional, I went kind of gung-ho right for it and competed a lot and got an idea of how the industry, you know, works and having clients. And it was a great experience. And I was working for another barn at the time. And I think that it was really important for me to take just a few months off and evaluate how I foresee the rest of my future going. And that's when I decided to open my own business and come back. So, during that time off, I really feel like it was just, really good for me to, you know, see outside things in the world and then really remember and understand how much I missed the horses and knew that this was going to be the path for the rest of my life.

USHJA: You mentioned then you started Hunterbrook. How did that come to be? What was the beginnings of all of that?

Nick Haness: Yeah, that was quite some time ago. I think it's been probably 14 years, I think, since I started Hunterbrook. So, you know, it was just one of those things where all the right things fell into place at the right time. And there was a facility available with stalls and turnouts and a barn. And I had a lot of contacts and friends in the area that had been asking me to start my business. And if I ever did, they would for sure be clients of mine. So that's sort of how it all began. And then started off pretty small and escalated pretty quickly and needed to expand quite a bit. So, I ended up renting another facility down the street and just kind of building on top of everything that we had.

USHJA: You now have quite the impressive record, I mean, across WCHR, Hunter Derbies, a slew of things, especially USHJA. What draws you to focus on Hunters? I know you also do Jumpers, but what about the Hunters really pulls you in?

Nick Haness: The main thing about the Hunters that draws me in and just kind of keeps me so excited to keep producing young Hunters and winning at the highest levels, it's just the amount of preparation and the masterful art it is to create a perfect Hunter round. You know, it's something that when it goes right, there's just no better feeling, you know, I appreciate beautiful horses and I appreciate the effort and time it takes to produce beautiful horses.

And, you know, there's a lot of behind the scenes work that goes into it. So, when you're in that moment on the big stage and on a beautiful shiny horse that's turned out perfectly and they jump their best and move and look beautiful, it's just such a special feeling. And it's just such an incredible journey and process.

You know, for me, I like to pick my own horses in Europe generally and bring them over here kind of as unknown horses and then make them into famous horses. And that process is a very fun process for me. And I really enjoy that feeling after it's all said and done, you know, it's a really proud moment.

USHJA: You mentioned finding something overseas and then importing. What do you personally look for in the ideal Hunter prospect?

Nick Haness: In the ideal Hunter prospect, I look for, first and foremost, looks. I mean, I think a beautiful horse is important in the big picture. Of course, there are exceptions with certain horses that jump exquisitely but aren't probably the most beautiful horse. But in general, I look for a really beautiful horse.

I think that their eyes are very important. That's one thing I look for immediately is the horse's expression and the way that they look through the bridle and how they wear their ears and their top line, their neck. Those are all really important factors for me when I ride a horse.

And then, when I ride the horse, just kind of, you know, learning their demeanor and their character is also a very important factor for me. I think that a horse that has a willing attitude, it can become a very good horse and learn how to jump better, can learn how to look better, can learn how to do all the things we want in a Hunter and the Hunter ring. So, I think that their demeanor and character is very, very important as well.

USHJA: You've brought up a fair share of green Hunters at this point. What is your training philosophy through that process?

Nick Haness: Yeah. You know, I strongly believe that happy horses are successful horses. So, anything from just, you know, giving them the right supplements and taking care of them. But I feel like horses really thrive on being happy.

I personally like to get to know my horses myself very well. I'm very hands on with the horses all the time. You know, of course I have grooms and I have staff that help with the day-to-day stuff, but I tend to be in the barn aisle and in the barn at Hunterbrook at night a lot.

I like to turn them out a lot. They get a lot of time to relax and be happy horses. And I feel like my horses have an upper hand and win a lot because of the fact that they're very happy and they know that they're well cared for and loved.

I'm patient with the horses and let them kind of tell me when they're ready to do the things we're ready to do, and some of them take longer than other ones, so kind of go on there on their timeframe.

USHJA: So, we are preparing for a week of top Hunter competition in Kentucky. We've got the Green Hunter Incentive and International Hunter Derby Championships next month. You have experience in both. Do you have a favorite of the two?

Nick Haness: I love each of these championships separately for what they are. They're both incredible finals for the horses. I mean, Derby finals is exceptional. It's on the big stage in the Rolex stadium in Kentucky. And it's a really special event because it really draws the best horses of the country together. The course is usually big. It's tall. It's full of beautiful flowers and decorations. The course always looks just incredible at Derby Finals. And it should, it's a championship, and it's a hard class. You want to win fair and square.

I love competing in the Derby finals. It's something we look forward to every year because it's a great place. You don't know what new jumps they're going to add to the course or how big the jumps are really going to be. So, you kind of prepare all year long and taking your horses to horse shows that have, you know, maybe some challenging courses and jumps to jump to prepare you for the final. So that's a very exciting, very fun finals to be a part of. I feel like the horses go really well there, but it's definitely a class that you get your hopes up for and get excited for.

On the other side of things, the Green Incentive finals for the younger horses is another place where it's just so much fun to see all of the country's best horses in one place, kind of at the same time. I think a lot of people gear up for that finals for the young horses, and it's so important for our Hunter sport to have these young Hunter classes. It's great for our owners. Because of the future of the Hunter sport to see these, you know, young, maybe 5-, 6-, 7-, 8-year-old horses competing against each other in a format where, it's really a class that the best horse wins, you know, they need to move beautiful, jump beautiful and have the stamina to make it through a couple of rounds and really prove they can be the winner.

USHJA: What does your training and preparation leading up to that event look like?

Nick Haness: My training and preparation for Derby finals is really to have the horses fit. You know, they've got to be very fit and have a lot of hill work before the finals. I think that the Derby finals can include some pretty large obstacles and Hunters need to be athletic. And, you know, I think a lot of people get that confused and they think that Hunters are just horses that don't have any scope and that's not the case at all. Especially for Derby horses, they have to have a lot of scope, a lot of stamina, have to be very fit, have to be ready to go canter 10, 15 obstacles that could be four feet or higher. So, it's definitely a part of our strategy to have horses in really good condition for Finals.

And for the young horses, I think that it's a finals where I try not to overthink it. They're young horses, and they're not quite on the same level of stamina or fitness that we would want the Derby horses to be in. So, it's more about having each horse dialed into what is going to make them perform their best and every horse is different. I always say that, you know, it's not a one trick pony. All the horses have their own ways of going and what they like and what they don't like. So, for me, for pre-green finals, we just try to get the horses acclimated to the environment maybe a few weeks early. We're going to go show in Kentucky two weeks before the finals go this year. So, the horses are already kind of there on the showgrounds and get an idea of the surroundings and get a view of the sights, there's flags and stands and lots of other things that they need to kind of be adjusted to before the finals. And I think as long as they are comfortable and happy, they're going to go in and perform and jump great for the final.

USHJA: It's a big week, but you're not new to it or to the competition ring. Do you get nervous or anxious at all?

Nick Haness: I think it's very normal for anybody to feel a little bit nervous before any of these big finals, we all want to do very well. I know every rider that's there wants to win. You know, we want our owners to be proud of their horses and we want to have the best run we can have. So, there's certainly a level of pressure that is added for these finals. I wouldn't call it nervousness, but definitely pressure.

I know for myself, I hold a lot of pressure on myself to make sure the horses go as best as they can go. So, I am going to be very stressed a few days leading up to the events. And then once the horses go in and have a 90+round, then I can finally take a deep breath and put a smile on my face.

USHJA: You're known to lay down an impressive Handy round. How do you go about planning the perfect Handy track in your head before you enter the ring?

Nick Haness: You know, honestly, every Handy round is different, and I feel like the course designer sets up certain props in the arena or decorations or options that would either invite the rider to take a chance and make a very tight inside turn or a hard turn or a blind turn. And then they give you the option always to go around and play it safe.

So when I'm walking a Handy round, I just try to generally look and see, in my mind, where was this course designer thinking when they made this chart for us for the day, this plan, and try to strategize what the hardest track would be and try to execute it to win the class.

USHJA: Do you have a favorite element that's typically in a Handy course?

Nick Haness: My favorite element in the Handy course is the hand gallop. If they write on the course they want to see a hand gallop, I don't take that lightly. I feel like if they ask for a hand gallop, you should hand gallop. So, fortunately I really enjoy and have a good eye seeing a long distance, I think from a far away track. So, if there's a hand gallop jump, I usually pick up the pace pretty early and let the horse really open up their stride. I feel like it's a really good place to demonstrate a difference in your pace and a difference in the other people in the class that aren't maybe going to take that chance or let their horse gallop. So I love when they say hand gallop, I really make a big effort out of, you know, going for it and, and really galloping and trying to earn a couple of extra points by making the judge go, wow, like that was a really, that was a good gallop.

One of my least favorite things in a Handy round generally is the trot jump. I don't know why, I could not explain it, but it's just never been my favorite. I've tried every philosophy—patience, I've tried leg, I've tried no leg, I've tried eyes up, eyes down, sit the trot, post the trot—it's sort of one of those things where, you know, you're just going to kind of have to hope for the best.

It's kind of maybe something for me, that's harder because it's out of my control. You know, it's not a controlled gait like a canter stride where you can really place the horse. The trot jump is such a jump that you just never really know where you're going to leave the ground. So that's my least favorite part of the Handy, but most of the time it goes okay, but there's certainly lots of blooper videos of my trot jumps.

USHJA: I don't think you're alone in that thought either.

USHJA: Do you have a favorite way to celebrate your success after that week?

Nick Haness: Yeah. It's actually more rewarding for me after these big finals weeks to get to take the horses back to the layover farm and watch them go out and turn out in a big grass field and, and just be horses again. That's the most rewarding part. I love to see their expressions when they get to go eat, especially being from California, we don't have a lot of access to large grass fields that when we're back here for the finals and we're laying over nearby, it's really fun to see the young horses and the Derby horses get to go out and spend some time out.

But for me personally, I like to go to a nice dinner in town and celebrate with clients, with friends as well.

USHJA: That's a good celebration.

This year, the 3'0"/3'3" Green Hunter Incentive Championships are debuting a new format. There's a new bye system to the final round—you have three ways to get there: you can be top 10 in the first or second round or based on the two round scores. How do you think that affects competition?

Nick Haness: You know, I absolutely support and stand behind what they've done with the changes this year for the specs on the qualifying for the final round. I think it's actually really great. And the reason why I think that is because as I mentioned before, not every horse is a one trick pony. They don't all go the same. And some horses, especially young horses like we have in this finals, they don't need to jump three days. I think the ultimate goal is we're trying to find the best horse in the class that moves the best, jumps the best. And whether that's jumping one day or two days or three days, I think that that kind of helps us get to the end goal the same way.

So if you have a really special horse that, you know, goes in the first day and wins and is a really brave, good young horse, and you want to save their jumps and give them the best chance to shine on the third day, I think that's a great opportunity for those type horses.

And on the flip side, if you have a horse that maybe is a little bit less experienced and has a little bit more spook or something, and they need two days in a row, you're welcome to do that. And maybe that's the best strategy for that horse to get to the third round and do the best on the third day.

So, I think it's a great format. I think it's really great that we have given the trainers and the riders and the owners an opportunity to kind of format what's best for their own horse to trigger the best result on the third round.

So, I'm really excited about this year. I'm really excited to see how that works out and what kind of a class we have for the third day.

USHJA: We're excited to see how it plays out.

The Tier II awards are also expanding. A few years ago, you were a Tier II rider who I believe actually left the championships with more money than the Tier I riders did. You've seen the direct benefits of that system that really supports those Tier II riders. What was that like that year?

Nick Haness: You know, I had not had too much knowledge about the difference between Tier I and Tier II and I was pleasantly surprised with the outcome being a Tier II rider having a really successful week that week. It was not my plan to earn money, and the money on top was just an incredible, huge, big bonus. And it was very, very exciting and very rewarding to be recognized and be rewarded for it. For having that kind of a result and being a Tier II rider. So, I think the program is great. It certainly proves that anyone can come in there and have a great week and still walk away with a nice prize money and some bonuses.

USHJA: Absolutely.

So, the whole event is live streamed. Of your string you've got coming this year, who should those listening keep an eye on?

Nick Haness: This year for Derby finals, I'm not sure exactly which horses I'm going to be competing. We're still kind of making a game plan. but I think that Estimated Profit is one of my most favorite horses to show in the Derby finals this year. I think he'd be one to really keep an eye on.

USHJA: What are you most looking forward to this year during that week?

Nick Haness: I'm most looking forward to being in the final situation again. And I think I have a really good group of horses that could do very, very well at Incentive finals and as well as Derby finals. I'm looking forward to seeing the new courses that they have for us this year.

And I'm most looking forward to the new format and the pregreen finals to see what that third round looks like. And I think it's going to be a very competitive year being that everyone can strategize the best way to try to win that third round. It's going to be very exciting.

USHJA: Definitely.

So, in addition to horses, you have quite the menagerie of animals at your farm. Just how did all of that happen?

Nick Haness: I don't know how, it's kind of funny how it all happened. It was sort of, I guess, just an accumulation of one decision after the next to get more animals. I obviously am an animal lover. I had always had a dream as a kid when I grew up one day, I wanted to be a horse trainer and I wanted to have my own farm, which I'm very blessed and lucky to have my own farm now. And I always said to my mom, “when I grow up someday, I'm going to have a farm full of animals and horses.” And she kind of said, “okay, well, whatever you want.” And so, when it became a reality and I was able to have the space, it's just been really fun to have the animals and, you know, it's kind of started off as a purchase of a few animals and then it escalated to rescuing animals. And now at this point, it's on a really larger scale and we have close to 75 animals at the farm.

USHJA: Wow. 75.

Nick Haness: Yeah, all between, let's see, zebras, camels, pigs, goats, alpacas, miniature ponies, birds, emus—you name it.

USHJA: They have some exotic names as well?

Nick Haness: Yes, they all have celebrity names because they all have names that reflect their personality. So, we had like a Justin Bieber because he's kind of blonde. So, he's Justin Bieber. Another one is Zac Efron because he's got blue eyes. So, we kind of just make these fun names based off of like their personalities and what their physical appearance looks like. And it's just kind of fun. I don't really have a specific reason why we named them celebrity names, but it just was kind of like a fun idea and made it easy for us to identify all the different animals.

USHJA: And now it's taken off and now you have 75 celebrities at your house.

Nick Haness: Oh yeah, it's really funny too I'll call my mom or I'll text my mom about like, Julia Roberts got loose and ran down the street and people are like, "Oh my gosh, Julia Roberts is at your house?" And it's like, no, not really, just her alter ego.

USHJA: I love that.

So, we've listed a few of your accomplishments. I think we could be here all day. I mean, from WCHR Hunter Spectaculars, you've won WCHR Pro Finals, you were our Section B Champion, a national equestrian of the year with USEF. We could list them all and this could be an hour-long episode, but what is next for you? What's your next goal?

Nick Haness: I always had wanted to win the Pro Finals and I'm so fortunate and blessed to have won that last year. I would love to win Section A of the Derby finals. I was champion of Section B the one year, but I would love to be the overall champion of Derby finals. That'd be a huge goal of mine.

And I think the next chapter for me is to start to progress more in the Grand Prix ring. That's one of my goals. You know, I've had a love for the Hunters and the young Hunters and stuff and will continue to always have pre-green horses and Derby horses, but I'd love to be at the top of the Grand Prix level next.

USHJA: Well, we'll have to keep our eyes out for that.

We have one final bit of our interview. We call it the Victory Gallop.

So, bay, gray or chestnut?

Nick Haness: Bay.

USHJA: I think I already know the answer to this one, but would you rather jump the long approach oxer or the trot jump?

Nick Haness: Long approach oxer, for sure.

USHJA: If you got to live a day in the life of any other rider, who would you pick?

Nick Haness: Scott Stewart.

USHJA: What is the last TV show or movie that you watched?

Nick Haness: Manifest. I'm loving it. We're watching on Netflix right now.

USHJA: What horse would you love to ride that's not yours?

Nick Haness: Babylon.

USHJA: What is the most used app on your phone?

Nick Haness: WhatsApp. For watching videos of horses in Europe.

USHJA: Finally describe your dream horse in three words.

Nick Haness: Big, beautiful, scopey.

USHJA: All solid no matter what ring you're going into.

Well, that is all I have for you. Thank you so much for taking some time out of your day and we will see you in Kentucky soon enough.

Nick Haness: All right, thank you so much. We'll see you soon.

USHJA: Thanks for tuning in to this episode of USHJA On Course! Subscribe so you don't miss the next episode and follow us on social to stay up to date on everything USHJA!