Sea-Aire, Inc.

Rocklyn stands out not only for his jumping talent and consistency, but also for his appearance. The impressive gray lost his right eye last year to an infection but returned to the show ring and is better than ever.

"He hasn't taken a step wrong since his eye was removed," said Byers, who trains with Laura Bowery and has owned the 14-year-old Zangersheide by Spartacus for four years. "I think he was being so stoic for a long time with the eye that was troubling him, and now he's just so happy that it doesn't bother him. We didn't know if it was going to be career ending. We thought, 'Are we going to be showing again?' And here we are right back."

After his surgery, Byers and Bowery brought Rocklyn back slowly to see how he would react to his new vision. 'We did the low adults after the eye injury, and he was great," said Byers, who resides in Locust Valley, New York. "Then we resumed in our regular 3' division, and it's been such an amazing year. We made it to Capital Challenge last fall and were reserve champions in the older adults. This is all like a dream come true, really. I mean, this was amazing. He just wants to win, and I'm lucky I get to ride him."​