A Day At The Horse Shows – Wednesday, July 16, 2014

When we made our reservations at the Kentucky Horse Park, we thought 4 nights would give us enough time to see the Horse Park and ride the Legacy Bike Trail.  We figured, Monday and Tuesday at The Horse Park and Wednesday on the bike trail. 
 

 

The Legacy Bike Trail can be accessed from the Horse Park Campground.

 

The trail is the sidewalk just above the fence and it begins at the KHP Campground entrance!!

 

 

Click on any photo to enlarge or hover your mouse on any photo for a description.

 

 

However, on Monday  I wasn’t up to going anywhere yet, so Bill went to The Louisville Slugger Museum.  Then on Tuesday, we saw the attractions at The Kentucky Horse Park  and we thought we could ride the trail today. However, we decided to skip the bike trail this visit and attend the two Horse Shows at the park.  The bike trail will still be here next visit, the Horse Shows will not!!

 

 

There are two championships at The Kentucky Horse Park this week.

 

 

Pony Club is an organization devoted to educating youths about horses and riding.

 

Typically held every three years, the Pony Club Festival is a week-long celebration that brings together more than 4,000 Pony Club members (and their families) from across the country. Its purpose is to provide a National Championships competition combined with a unique educational learning experience.

 

 

 

 

The North American Junior and Young Rider Championships is the premier equestrian competition in North America for junior and young riders, age 14-21.

 

 

 

Both championships were being run at the same time in different venues of the park.  We just walked around and stopped at different events to enjoy watching these remarkable young athletes!!  Since we really don’t understand the rules and requirements of the events, we just enjoyed watching:o) People sitting near us were always willing to answer any questions we might have. 

 

 

We spent the entire day wandering around the Horse Park just taking it all in…

 

 

First event of the day was at The Rolex Arena. 

 

The young riders were competing in Dressage.

 

Dressage is a French term, most commonly translated to mean "training." It is a competitive equestrian sport, defined by the International Equestrian Federation as "the highest expression of horse training", where horse and rider are expected to perform from memory a series of predetermined movements.

  

 

 

 

 

We moved to the next arena where the Pony Club was competing in Tetrathlon.

 

 

This Pony Club Competitor was totally focus on what she needed to do.

 

 

There are Four Phases to Tetrathlon:

 Ride-The Ride phase of competition provides an opportunity for the rider and mount to demonstrate equestrian skills over a predefined course. Courses are designed as Stadium, Cross Country, or a combination, where the course incorporates Stadium fixtures as well as natural terrain.

Run-The Run phase of competition challenges each competitor's physical stamina and endurance. The course is designed over cross country terrain and may include obstacles that must be negotiated, such as hay bales, logs,  low event fences, etc.

Shoot-The shoot phase of competition tests a competitor's skill, in a standing position, using an air pistol on a 10 meter course. Any type of compressed air or CO2 pistol is permitted which does not exceed the specifications outlined in the Tetrathlon Rule Book.

Swim-The swim phase of competition allows competitors to demonstrate their swimming skills over a pre-defined course length, measured in either meters or yards.

 

We only got to see the Ride phase today.

 

  

 

 

 

There was so much to see just walking around the Horse Park!!

 

Click on any photo to enlarge or hover your mouse on any photo for a description.

 

 

 

The farm and the horses were spectacular!!

 

  

 

 

 

We got to see the practice sessions for Horse Jumping and Team Dressage.

 

  

 

 

As we were leaving at the end of the day,

 

we stopped back at the Rolex Arena and saw the Awards Ceremony for Team Dressage:o))

 

     

 

IT  WAS  A  SPECTACULAR  DAY !!