What is a hack class in hunters?

A hack class in the hunter division is a class in which horses are evaluated on the flat — walking, trotting, and cantering before the judge — without any jumping component, similar to the hunter under saddle class but often with slight differences in format, emphasis, or the specific horses eligible to enter. The term hack derives from the British tradition of hack classes for pleasure riding horses evaluated on movement quality, manners, and suitability as an all-around pleasure mount, and its use in the American hunter division reflects the discipline's British fox hunting heritage. In contemporary American competition, hack is sometimes used interchangeably with hunter under saddle, though at some venues and in some divisions the terms are distinguished — hack may refer to a specific type of flat class within a division while under saddle refers to another, or one term may be used for a specific eligibility category while the other is open. The judging criteria for hack classes are essentially the same as hunter under saddle classes: movement quality at all three gaits, rhythm and pace consistency, and the manner and way of going that indicate a horse that would be safe and pleasant to ride as a hunter. The class is typically performed as a group in the arena rather than individually, with the judge watching each horse as the group works on both reins at each gait. Hack classes provide an opportunity for horses that move exceptionally well on the flat — including horses whose jumping style may be developing or whose fence height is limited — to compete and be evaluated on the qualities that their flat movement demonstrates. They also allow judges to assess qualities that may be difficult to evaluate during a jumping round where the jumping itself dominates the overall impression.