AQHA Magazine January / February 2019 Jan_Feb_2019_WEBSITE | Page 30

Holly Hover’s opinion has long been sought when it
comes to showing horses. The AQHA Professional Horse-
woman has been training horses since 1980. In that
time, Holly has produced 18 All American Quarter Horse
Congress and AQHA world champions and reserve cham-
pions in various pattern events. She started judging 25
years ago, and most recently, she was named the 2014
AQHA Most Valuable Professional.
Holly had this to say about her decision to get her
judge’s card: “Judging absolutely changed my training
program in that it sharpened my eye. I realized that
correct execution in all classes is first and foremost fol-
lowed by position, confidence and style. As a judge that
seems to be my thought process in scoring and it became
my process as a trainer.”
must spend time to develop the feel and timing required
for proper execution of maneuvers. To show effectively
requires an established partnership between the horse
and rider,” Holly says.
“We have outstanding horses and outstanding trainers,
yet riders have a poor understanding of underlying fun-
damentals,” Holly adds. She suggests that to be a good
rider, you must understand where the horse begins.
Holly often has her riders ride a green horse, then asks
the rider to teach the horse. In this way, her riders learn
to break down each element and understand where
the horse needs to be to correctly
perform the required task.
Holly’s approach is just one of the reasons exhibitors
love to show to her. In addition to her ability to quickly
and efficiently assess a rider, she is always happy
– quick to get a laugh and unafraid to stand on
her principles.
Her popularity as a judge is evidenced by her
resume – she has judged world championship
shows for AQHA and the American Paint Horse
and National Snaffle Bit associations, as well as the
Congress numerous times, plus every other major
show in the U.S. and abroad. It’s no wonder everyone
wants to know what’s on Holly’s mind when she steps
into the pen.
With all of her experience, you might expect Holly to
have a laundry list of likes and dislikes, pet peeves or
tricks of the trade. On the contrary, her views on judging
and showing horses are straight forward and matter of
fact. She believes the fundamental principle of riding –
being connected with your horse or riding with feel – is
the single most important aspect of showing horses.
“Many riders today simply do not ride the horse under-
neath them; they ride without having a full understand-
ing of their aids,” Holly says. She considers this to be one
of the biggest mistakes she sees in the show arena. “It is
as though they understand the reason but their actions
do not match the horse.”
Holly also finds that many riders outsmart the pattern
and do not use the arena effectively. Their decision-mak-
ing is poor. A rider may make lopsided circles, ride past
their stop or miss a transition. Because the rider is out
of position, the horse is out of position and not correctly
set up for the next maneuver.
Holly feels that riders today are short on time, ride less
and have less practical experience in the saddle.
“Kids sit on the fence and watch the trainer prepare the
horse, then jump on before going in the pen. Trainers
cannot ride the patterns for their students and will have
a different sense of timing than the rider. The exhibitor
This goes along with Holly’s philosophy
that each element must first be
correct. Holly believes “correct-
ness is difficult to achieve. If you
are correct, you are doing well
by the horse.” She is certain
“riders must first produce a
correct pattern before
considering riding with
speed.” At the same time,
Holly expects “better rid-
ers to attack the pattern,
to be gutsy. But never
should a rider sacrifice
correctness for speed or
fanciness.”
30 • The Australian Quarter Horse Magazine • January • February • 2019
30 • The Australian Quarter Horse Magazine • January • February • 2019