Entries Now being Taken for Thoroughbred Horse Show in October
Written by Cindy Rullman
Prize money will reach $3,000 for the Thoroughbred Horse Show Association's Fall Show on October 6-7 at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington. Entries are being accepted for the show, TBHS's second event following its successful inaugural Spring Show on April 14 in which more than 100 Thoroughbreds of all ages competed in 39 classes using their registered names with The Jockey Club.
TBHS was founded in 2011 by a group of Central Kentuckians interested in creating opportunities to showcase the talent and competitive spirit of off-the-track Thoroughbreds. Its shows are affiliated with The Jockey Club Thoroughbred Incentive Program (TIP), which encourages the retraining of Thoroughbreds into other disciplines upon the completion of their careers in racing or breeding.
TBHS' Fall Show builds on the success of the Spring Show in April and will be a fundraiser for Boys & Girls Haven in Louisville (boyshaven.org). The nonprofit organization works to teach young people to become productive and healthy members of the community. Its equine program enables young people to work with Thoroughbreds.
“We are really excited about supporting Boys & Girls Haven,” said TBHS Executive Director Jan Roehl. “They have a very successful equine program, and our show will give the kids job training and a chance to work with horses while they help us with the many tasks required to conduct the show."
The Fall Show will offer enhanced prize money, thanks to The Jockey Club Thoroughbred Incentive Program (TIP). Classes include a Hunter Classic and a Jumper Classic, both of which will award $500 to the winner. TBHS also is hosting a $1,000 Dressage Challenge and a $500 Gamblers Choice, and is encouraging people and organizations to become sponsors of these events.
“In the Gamblers Choice class, jumps have a point value based on difficulty and riders have a time limit in which to complete the course,” Roehl said. “Riders choose which jumps to attempt and the order in which to take them. The rider with the highest number of points wins. Spectators will find the class fun to watch.”
Information about the Fall Show, including an entry form, is available on TBHS website, tbhorseshow.com.
For more information, contact executive director Jan Roehl at (859) 559-1409 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
PHOTO: Participating in the Thoroughbred Horse Shows Association's “War Horse” in-hand class during the April 14 show at the Kentucky Horse Park were (from left) Red Zipper, a 9-year-old stakes-winning gelding by City Zip who earned $303,935, with Michelle Parish; Prayer Service, a 10-year-old winning gelding by Stephen Got Even who earned $162,961, with Morgan Adams; and Train Robbery, the 25-year-old, Grade 3-winning dam of Breeders' Cup Classic (G1) winner Cat Thief, with Martha Murdock. Photo (c) Debbie Savage
The first day of the schoolyear for Fayette County Public Schools (FCPS) on Wednesday, August 15, marks the start a unique program called The STABLES, which incorporates horses in the curriculum. Located at Central Kentucky Riding for Hope, which offers equine-assisted activities and therapies at the Kentucky Horse Park, The STABLES is for students in grades 7-12 who struggle with academics or vocational skills and need additional support in a more individualized setting. The STABLES allows students to participate in a work program, recover credits and take ownership of their education.
“The goal is to help the students successfully transition to employment, post-secondary education or back into their home high school,” CKRH Executive Director Pat Kline said. “This program represents an exciting challenge for us, and we are confident these students will benefit from an environment that will enable them to work with horses.”
“The STABLES will provide an amazing learning opportunity for our students, and we could not be more excited to launch this new venture with Central Kentucky Riding for Hope,” said Fayette County Schools Superintendent Tom Shelton. “This is an example of the kind of partnerships our school district hopes to build as we seek to meet the individual needs of every single student we serve.”
The STABLES, which will use classrooms and designated common areas at CKRH, will offer an academic setting while addressing students’ mental health and behavioral barriers to learning. The academic focus will remain social studies, math, English and science; however, the application aspect at CKRH will involve job responsibilities, mentorships, job shadowing and exposing students to real work. Students will have a daily equine component that includes learning about the care and management of CKRH's herd of therapy horses, the CKRH facility and the equine industry. Opportunities for students will include animal care, showmanship, construction, culinary programming, administrative assistance, service industry, filming and task analysis of problems.
The STABLES replaces the FCPS' Rebound and AIM programs. CKRH, which has accommodated small groups of AIM and Rebound Students for the past two years, has written the curriculum and syllabus for all daily equine-related programming in The STABLES. The FCPS staff from those programs will relocate to CKRH, and CKRH will provide necessary staff support.
“Fayette County Board of Education has embraced forward thinking in encouraging our partnership,” said Rachel Baker, Director of The STABLES program. “My staff is so excited to be able to encourage and educate students with such a fresh new perspective. We know we are part of a true community partnership which allows our students, and in the future many schools in Fayette County, the opportunity to really experience education beyond the classroom while investing in the heart of their community.”
About CKRH
Central Kentucky Riding for Hope, founded in 1981, is dedicated to enriching the community by improving the quality of life and the health of people of all ages with special physical, cognitive, emotional and social needs through therapeutic activities with the horse. A PATH Intl. Premier Accredited Center, CKRH offers year-round activities, including a program for military veterans called Horses for Heroes. To learn more, visit www.CKRH.org and find CKRH on Facebook.
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Contact
Pat Kline, Executive Director
Central Kentucky Riding for Hope (CKRH)
(859) 231-7066
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Photo by Brian Roberts
Gov Beshear Recognizes Ky Horse Park as Top International Equestrian Facility
Written by Cindy RullmanHorse Park regularly hosts Olympic-caliber athletes
FRANKFORT, Ky. (Aug. 13, 2012) – As the 2012 Olympic Games in London close, Gov. Beshear today recognized the Kentucky Horse Park as an elite international equestrian facility for consistently hosting world-class and Olympic-caliber athletes.
The Horse Park is also a significant economic contributor to the Commonwealth, with an estimated economic impact of approximately $180 million each year. 
“The Kentucky Horse Park is the only place in our state—and one of the few places in the world—where visitors can see world-class equestrian competitions on a regular basis,” said Gov. Beshear. “We are not only the Horse Capital of the World, but Kentucky is also one of the premier homes for high-level equestrian sports. I encourage Kentuckians and visitors to attend one of the many top-rated shows held at the Kentucky Horse Park and witness elite competition firsthand.”
More than 115 athletes who participated in equestrian events in the 2012 Olympics have competed at the Kentucky Horse Park. Seventeen of those athletes earned a medal in the London Olympics.
Athletes frequently travel from Australia, France, Great Britain and many other countries to the Lexington facility to contend for top honors in equestrian sports such as dressage, jumping and eventing.
The Horse Park also hosted the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, which marked the first time the elite competition was held outside of Europe. That event placed Kentucky in the international spotlight and generated more than $200 million in economic impact, and also built on the park’s international reputation as a signature event site. The new facilities added to the Horse Park for WEG continue to attract competitors and tourists to Kentucky from across the country and around the world.
"We appreciate the continued support from the Governor and First Lady. We are exceedingly proud of our facility and the competitions that bring in visitors and athletes from around the globe,” said John Nicholson, executive director of the Kentucky Horse Park. “The Kentucky Horse Park is clearly one of the leading equestrian competition facilities not just in North America, but anywhere in the world. We expect the tremendous growth of the sport horse industry in Kentucky will accelerate in the years ahead."
The Kentucky Horse Park is a 1,200 acre competition facility and tourist attraction recognized as the epicenter of equestrian life, sports and business. Most notably, the park annually hosts the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event. The event is ranked at four stars, which is the highest level in international competition.
The Horse Park hosts a number of other award-winning shows as well. The Alltech National Horse Show won the National Show Hunter Hall of Fame’s Show of the year. They were also named the top U.S. show by the North American Riders Group. North American Junior and Young Rider Championships and the two weeks of Kentucky Spring Hunter Jumper were named among the top 25 events in North America.
This year, the facility will host 21 grand prix jumper classes as well as seven national or international hunter derbies, with more than $1 million offered in prize money.
The Park will host three upper-level dressage events in 2013, including the U.S. Dressage Finals.
For more information on the Kentucky Horse Park and its world-class events, please visit http://kyhorsepark.com/.
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Photo above from Rolex Kentucky, by www.PixBySteve.com.
High Stepping and High Jumping at the 2012 Alltech National Horse Show
Written by Cindy RullmanLexington, Ky (August 13, 2012) The Alltech National Horse Show announced today that this year's show has added a variety of exhilarating American Saddlebred events to the agenda for the 2012 show, joining the top flight show jumpers and world-class hunters classes already on the schedule.
Following a successful debut last year, the second edition of the Alltech National Horse Show in Lexington, Kentucky, is set for October 30 through November 4, 2012. The show will once again be held at the Alltech Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park.
The Saddlebred Horse division at the Alltech National Horse Show will feature four sections: Amateur and Open classes for Five and Three Gaited Horses, Fine Harness Horses and Amateur classes for Three Gaited Park Horses.
In addition to those Saddlebred classes, in what should be a tremendous crowd pleasing favorite, the dynamic Roadster Horses will compete in one electrifying class for a huge prize money jackpot in the $25,000 Equine Services Roadster Cup sponsored by Walsh Harness and Equine Services LLC.
"High stepping and high jumping in Lexington!" said an animated National Horse Show Association President, Mason Phelps, Jr. "We are very excited about the American Saddlebreds returning to the National Horse Show. This is just another giant step forward in recreating the amazing excitement of the days of the National in New York. Part of the magic in those days was the variety of Show Jumping and the Saddlebreds, all in one session at the show," he said.
In addition to excellent prize money, many of the legendary and fancy old trophies from the days of the National Horse Show in New York will be up for grabs for the Saddlebreds at this year's Alltech National Horse Show.
Misdee Miller, a fourth-generation horsewoman, who drives carriages and is a top Saddlebred competitor, riding out of Hillcroft, her Bourbon County, Kentucky horse farm, has been a major force behind the Saddlebreds returning to the Alltech National Horse Show. "I am thrilled that the American Saddlebreds will once again be part of the grand tradition of the ANHS. It is a show that is special and unique in that it combines top competition in a glamorous setting, and now that it is set to go in the heart of Saddlebred country, it will attract some of best horses and riders in the country who will be in top form for a great audience," she said.
James LaHood, coordinator of the Saddlebred competition, comes to the Alltech National Horse Show after previously managing the famed Lexington Junior League Horse Show for twenty-one years and for the past thirty-two years has managed the much celebrated Eastern States Exposition. LaHood is excited about the return of the American Saddlebred to the National. "The Saddlebred horses will go a long way in increasing national recognition with the inclusion of the their classes at the Alltech National Horse Show."
Last year's Alltech National Horse Show closed with great excitement, receiving unanimous approval from the horse show community. The Show was a great success with the thousands of attendees, in addition to nearly half a million viewers who watched the events unfold online.
More than 560 horses and 350 riders from nine countries, including nine Olympic veterans competed last year.
"With bigger prize money, an extra competition day and these exciting new classes," Phelps said, "we are very optimistic about the future."
The 2012 Alltech National Horse Show takes center stage on October 30 through November 4, 2012 at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky. In addition to the top rated hunters and the ASPCA Maclay National Championship, the show features world-class international, open, junior and amateur-owner jumpers competing for the biggest prize money on the United States indoor tour.
Founded in 1883 at the original Madison Square Garden, the National Horse Show is America's oldest indoor horse show, firmly established as a major fixture on the national and international sports and social event calendars. The National Horse Show Association's primary activity is the annual production of the National Horse Show and all ancillary events. Over the years, the National Horse Show has provided financial aid to many worthwhile charities.
For more information on the National Horse Show Association of America, Limited, please visit www.nhs.org.
Lexington, KY - More than 500 of the very best ponies in the U.S. are in Lexington, Kentucky right now to compete at the 2012 US Pony Finals. Starting Tuesday they will be ridden into competition at the Kentucky Horse Park by youth riders from around the country.
Over the next six days riders will take aim at the US Hunter Pony Championships presented by Sallee Horse Vans in Small, Medium, and Large Regular Hunter and Green Hunter sections and at an overall Regular and Green Hunter championship. Starting Wednesday and continuing through Friday pony jumpers will go after Team and Individual jumping championships. On Sunday, August 12th the week will end with the awarding of the Equisport Insurance/US Pony Medal Championship.
The full 2012 U.S. Pony Finals schedule is available here.
Though a National Pony Championship has been held in the U.S. since 1967 the popular and cherished Pony Medal has only been awarded since 1984. Since then the equitation competition that determines the medal winner has been a highlight of the week. Riders qualify by earning a blue ribbon or by earning 30 points in any U.S. Pony Medal Qualifying class. During the championship they will be judged head-to-head over a demanding course of fences.
2012 is the 11th year that the National Pony Jumper Championships are being held as part of the US Pony Finals. To qualify rider/pony combinations need to be one of their zone's top four. Zone 7 won last year's team championship and last year's individual winner Julia Curtis is back with her winning mount, The Waterboy.
The Hunter Pony competitions are held in three phases in which a pony's conformation, movement under saddle, and jumping ability are judged. The first Hunter Pony classes begin Tuesday in the Walnut Ring at the Kentucky Horse Park.
USEF Network will post results and videos from the US Pony Finals daily at http://usefnetwork.com/featured/2012USEFPonyFinals/
Find out more about the Pony Finals at www.usef.org.
Join us for the USEF/AVA National Championships Aug 2-5 at the Kentucky Horse Park!
Vaulting competition will be in the Alltech Arena Thursday through Sunday. They have more than 350 competitors from 20 states across the country (CA, WA, IO,NM, TX, UT, WI, MI, IL, MN, TN, GA, NJ, VA, CT, NH, CO, NY, NC and OR).
Inexperenced Vaulters range in age from 6 to mid- thirties. Average age range of vaulters is 12-20. The youngest inexperienced will compete in the unrecognized classes on our "Festival Day" on Thursday.
They have vaulters at levels in trot and canter. They compete in different divisions: Individual, Pas de Deux (2 on the horse) and Team (a group of 6 vaulters, with a maximum of three on the horse at one time.)
Detailed schedule: http://vaulting.swcp.com/orderofgo/acorn27/NATOOG12.pdf
Summary of classes by day: http://www.americanvaulting.org/Nationals2012/schedule2012.pdf
Included with park admission!
Bid on some WONDERFUL items to Support KHP Foundation and Ky Equine Humane Center!
Written by Cindy Rullman
You don't have to be here to bid!!
Hats Off to Kentucky’s Horse Industry Day and the Rood and Riddle $50,000 Kentucky Grand Prix will take place on Saturday, August 4th here at the Kentucky
Horse Park. This event includes both live and silent auctions and donates 100%
of its proceeds to two very worthwhile charities, the Kentucky Horse Park Foundation and the Kentucky Equine Humane Center.
This year, for the first time, all live auction items and some silent auction items
will be offered through proxy bidding for those who cannot attend the event.
There are some very exciting and unique items available, including a Zenyatta package, so check out this partial list and fill out your proxy bid form!: http://www.hatsoffky.com/images/files/ProxyBidSheet.pdf
We hope you'll attend the Rood & Riddle Kentucky Grand Prix in person to also bid on a great selection of silent auction items! For more information go to:
Warm Beach Vaulters to Perform this Weekend, July 27-29
Written by Cindy Rullman
As a special treat for our guests this weekend, we have the Warm Beach Vaulters here to perform, Friday through Sunday, Jul 27-29 in our Horses of the World show.
They are the third largest vaulting club in America and we guarantee that you will be impressed!
Come and see them - it's included with park admission. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&;v=VzDdx1P84yk#at=154
Adequan/FEI North American Junior & Young Rider Championships presented by Gotham North Welcomes 261 Athletes in Five Disciplines
Written by Cindy Rullman
Lexington, KY (July 17, 2012) - The 2012 Adequan/FEI North American Junior & Young Rider Championships presented by Gotham North (NAJYRC) is proud to welcome all of the 261 young athletes that will compete in five disciplines over the next five days. The NAJYRC is held at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY. Today, the NAJYRC hosted the athletes, trainers, friends, and family at the Opening Ceremonies.
Five disciplines (a total of 9 championships for juniors and young riders) will take part in the only FEI Championship to be held annually in North America. The NAJYRC is the premier equestrian competition in North America for junior and young riders, ages 14-21. This year, young equestrians have come from the United States, Canada, Mexico, Colombia, and Guatemala to vie for team and individual FEI medals in the three Olympic equestrian disciplines of show jumping, dressage, eventing and the FEI World Equestrian Games disciplines of reining and endurance.
The competition is run under rules of the FEI (Federation Equestre Internationale), the international governing body for equestrian sport. Many of North America's best equestrians who now regularly represent their country on Olympic, World Championship and Nations Cup teams got their first taste of International experience at NAJYRC. These include show jumpers Greg Best, Chris Kappler and McLain Ward, five-time Olympian and three-day eventer Karen O'Connor, and dressage rider Todd Flettrich.
The NAJYRC began in 1974 as an eventing challenge between the United States and Canada. A dressage championship was added in 1981, and show jumping was added in 1982. The first complete Young Riders championship was held in British Columbia, Canada, in 1982. The Championships were expanded to officially include a championship division for juniors in 2006. The discipline of reining was added to the official schedule in 2008; endurance joined the championship for the first time in 2011. Vaulting competition is held at the NAJYRC, but is not officially part of the championship.
The opening ceremonies featured all of the teams from the six disciplines in a parade to honor the members and their Chefs d'Equipe. The teams posed for photos before leaving on a golf cart parade to sponsor Spy Coast Farm for an exhibitor barbeque. The golf cart parade featured many brightly decorated carts all vying for the win as "Best Dressed."
Held at the site of the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games (WEG), the NAJYRC brings together a multitude of disciplines similar to the WEG. Show jumping and dressage had their jogs today, where horses were tested for soundness before the officials and veterinarians. This is a key part of FEI level competition, and the junior and young riders of all disciplines here at NAJYRC are learning valuable information about international rules and regulations that will serve them well when they go to represent their country at senior-level events.
Dressage kicks off the competition tomorrow morning at 7 a.m. with the junior and young rider team tests. There are 80 dressage riders slated to ride at the NAJYRC this year. In the afternoon, medals will be awarded to the junior and young rider dressage teams, with the winning team honored with their national anthem. On Friday, the individual tests are held, and riders return on Saturday for their freestyle tests. Both days' competition will award medals to the top three finishers.
Show jumping will hold their first individual qualifiers on Wednesday afternoon with 58 starters and will return on Thursday morning to compete in their team finals. Medals will be awarded for the junior teams, followed by the young rider teams. The individual finals will be held on Saturday.
Three-Day Eventing starts on Thursday with dressage tests for both the CCI 2* and CCI 1* riders (which total 59 in all), and the always exciting cross country will take place on Saturday. The eventers wrap up their competition on Sunday morning with the stadium jumping phase and receive their individual and team medals.
Reining composes 20 riders, and they will start with a welcome competition on Wednesday afternoon in the Alltech Arena. Their team championship is held on Thursday where they will receive medals in a podium presentation, while individual medals will be contested on Saturday.
Seventeen Endurance riders will travel on a 120 kilometer course around the Kentucky Horse Park bright and early on Friday morning at 6:30 a.m. Awards for the Best Conditioned Horse and the team and individual medals will be awarded on Saturday morning.
Vaulting competition will be featured in the Mary Murphy Ring on Thursday morning. The 26 vaulters will return on Friday morning for their final competition.
More exciting news and results will be forthcoming as the week progresses. To learn more about the Adequan/FEI North American Junior & Young Rider Championships presented by Gotham North, please visit www.youngriders.org.
NAJYRC showcases the best young rider and junior horse/rider combinations in dressage, eventing, jumping, reining, and endurance. Young equestrians from across the continent will descend on the Kentucky Horse Park to vie for FEI medals at these Championships.
For sponsorship information visit www.youngriders.org/Sponsors.aspx.
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