Eventers at Land Rover Horse of the Year Show can expect to “get a bit of an Aachen” vibe when taking on the Chris Ross-designed cross country on Saturday.

“There will be some big angles and technical turns in both the 3* and 4* classes,” says Chris. Riders will need to ensure their balance and foot work is bang on.

“The time will be tight – as always at HOY – with a few new concepts I haven’t really done before which I hope will be challenging for both teams. They will have to ride by the seat of their pants in places.”

The beginning of the track is nice and open to allow combinations to get a good rhythm, but that soon switches up a few gears as riders head into the main arena where horses will feel the atmosphere with the crowd. “That is where the pressure comes on,” says Chris. “From there they head through the dressage arena and into two minutes of intense work and have a gallop for a minute before coming back into the intensity and crowds, and then it doesn’t really let up all the way home.”

The Tomana Showgrounds bring a whole new set of challenges for any designer. “A senior international official once said it was a venue on steroids and he’s not far wrong.”

The riders will be constantly trying to keep their horses focused on the jumps, rather than the many people lining the laneways. 

“HOY produces the only atmosphere like this anywhere in New Zealand with so many people all around the track, and that part is loved by riders.”

Having so many Aussies at HOY, both as individuals and as part of the Oceania Challenge, was good for both countries. “It is Olympic year and HOY is pretty renowned so both countries will be thinking it is good prep. We need each other to compete well and take measure. I am sure anyone who rides around here and does well in a good time will be regarded highly when the teams are selected.”

He took over the designing at HOY from John Nicholson in around 2017.

“It is a show like nothing else. It is a beast. The team at HOY do an amazing job for what is an incredible event. Kevin (Hansen) built this and to have it still running is spectacular. The riders should all be really grateful for that.”

Helping him once again this year is wife Shelley who he says “makes me look good with all the dressing of the course”. Also there will be assistant designer Mike Gilfould and Frank Phillips who comes out of ‘retirement’ to help at HOY.

Chris figures he’s been walking courses since he was 18, trudging behind then girlfriend – now wife – Shelley, as she tackled 3* and 4* up and down the countryside.

“I have always been fascinated by design and have certainly watched a lot of horses as Shelley has progressed.”

He’s worked for Syd and Merran Hain too, around the time the legendary rider had Bago on the station just out of Gisborne. Bago was ridden by Sir Mark Todd at the Olympic Games with Merran grooming for them. 

“At that time Shelley was grooming for Merran and her three Olympic level horses Smiley John, Chief and Bago.”

Chris and Shelley developed Woodhill Sands from a swamp in 2005 to the facility it is today. The cross country course went in almost immediately and goes back up into the valley. “That was the beginning of me really getting into it all,” he says.

“I love all the thinking that goes into designing courses, and the challenges presented to us. There is a lot of stockmanship to come into play and as a designer you also have to think about the athleticism and biomechanics of the horse.”

His passion has taken him across the globe. In 2014 he worked with the Willis brothers at Badminton, teaming up with them again for the Rio Olympic Games. More recently he has travelled to the United States, world champs in Italy (2022), Aachen CHIO and Australia to learn all he can from some of the best.

He, along with ESNZ high performance general manager Jock Paget and fellow designer Titch Massey they have formed a high performance designers group to ensure Kiwis making the trek offshore have every opportunity to do well.

“Jock’s focus is for us to help them prepare for the pinnacle events they are heading to,” says Chris. “We are constantly making sure we don’t miss any new challenges, concept or new thinking so we are up to date all the time.

“Jock has developed a really smart high performance programme and recognised that design is an integral part of how we develop down here in the Southern Hemisphere. That is all key to keeping us at the leading edge of the game.”Chris heads across the ditch in November where he is again the senior designer for the 4* at Sydney. “I feel incredibly lucky to be invited to be designing at this level on both sides of the Tasman – it is a privilege I never take for granted.”