Jodie Hall McAteer: ‘Why appreciating our grooms is key – we can’t do it without them’

British showjumper Jodie Hall McAteer on appreciation for grooms and getting her mojo back after a disappointing time at Dublin

I was recently invited to speak at the Association of British Riding Schools (ABRS) annual conference about my upbringing in a riding school. One of the subjects I touched on was the problem of attracting staff to the industry, not just at the elite level, but also at grassroots level, in riding schools and show centres.

They are one of the entry points for involvement in the sport, and where people learn to uphold the necessary standards of behaviour. We live in an era of greater scrutiny and we all need people around us that we can trust.

It’s really important that we value our staff, are respectful to them and make them feel a part of something, because keeping the show on the road is a real team effort.

Conditions at shows have improved for grooms and it’s good to see them being better recognised. Now, at the Nations Cup final, the groom’s name is displayed when horses go in the ring and written on the start list.

At bigger shows, they are usually provided with meal vouchers for breakfast, lunch and dinner, which used to just be for riders. However, there’s still a lot more to be done as it’s a demanding job.

I was pleased to see grooms being recognised at Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) recently. When I won the accumulator, my groom Kristina Ribicic was called into the ring, and she received a photo, which is a massive step forward.

Given this progress, I was surprised to discover the grooms’ prize at HOYS was a year’s supply of shampoo for the horses.

While it was nice they were being acknowledged, it did seem tone-deaf. Shampoo is something that should be provided by your employer and it would have been more appropriate to offer something the grooms themselves would appreciate.

Time for an upgrade?

I spoke to Graham Fletcher at HOYS, who mentioned what a huge show it used to be and how comparatively empty the seats now looked.

HOYS still has a great buzz about it and it’s a week I always look forward to but it does need support.

Julien Anquetin, who won the grand prix, was the only international rider who made the trip. He said it could easily have been a four-star or five-star show. He had a great weekend, paid his way and made it worthwhile, but for most continental riders, Brexit has really impacted cost-effectiveness. Riders just won’t make the journey for a three-star.

HOYS has the scope to be both bigger and better, so perhaps there is the opportunity to upgrade – which all comes down to funding and sponsorship for the organisers.

Time to regroup

I am currently competing in Spain with some of the younger horses who have had less opportunity to jump this year.

Since I moved back home from Holland, I have probably doubled the amount of horses on my list and it’s sometimes hard striking a balance between being competitive with the more established horses and producing the younger ones.

I’ve been trying to develop my own system and it is a learning curve. I didn’t have the best time at Dublin this year and it knocked my confidence going to bigger shows and not having a result.

I focused on some smaller shows during the summer to get my mojo back and regroup, and HOYS was my first big date back.

It can be hard with horses going from hero to zero and I learned to stop checking my ranking, which had dropped 150 places. All that matters is still being able to get into some nice shows while we develop a strong system and are patient with the next generation of horses coming through.

● What more can be done to recognise the value of grooms? Let us know at hhletters@futurenet.com, including your name, nearest town and country, for the chance for your letter to appear in a forthcoming issue of the magazine

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