Felix was (badly!) shod when we bought him, but had probably only had shoes on for a few weeks.
In shoes, he overreached badly, and often tripped or stumbled.
Once barefoot, these problems disappeared immediately, probably because he was able to feel his feet much better.
He was immediately capable of the same level of work, and was hunting on Exmoor within 3 weeks of his shoes coming off.
He hunted lightly all season and was 100% sound throughout, despite working at times on very rocky, flinty ground.
In fact I believe that the improved shock absorption and traction that comes with bare feet has been a huge benefit to him.
Hard and rough going has never been a problem for him, and he is a model barefoot horse!
Felix regularly events, hunts and has also done some endurance rides.
