This past weekend I had the pleasure to attend the Region 6 horse show at the Big E in West Springfield, Massachusetts. The temperatures were HOT but the competition was HOTTER! Coming up to the weekend I was a little nervous about braving Pearson Airport in Toronto due to the current frequency of flight delays and cancellations across North America. While I was delayed on both the way to and back from the show, I did not let that stop me from having a great weekend.
After arriving Thursday afternoon, I jumped right into the action, first watching and then helping with the awards for the Pro-Am Challenge. This was such a cool and exciting event where a professional and an amateur teamed up with the same horse. One showed a horsemanship pattern while the other showed a showmanship pattern. The highest cumulative team score was named the winner. In another part of the challenge, each team had two minutes between the horsemanship and showmanship to unsaddle, change numbers and halter the horse before starting the showmanship pattern. Not only did the exhibitors have to hurry, but the judges and the scribes had to hustle to the center of the ring with their chairs to judge the showmanship and then back to the rail for the horsemanship.
That evening I also had the pleasure of meeting the new AQHYA president Adrianna Totten. She is an incredible young horsewoman and I was inspired hearing about her ideas for the year and also her ambitions outside of horses. The AQHYA is in great hands. During the awards for the Pro-Am and Youth Team Tournament, there was also a special presentation for the Lucille Evarts Youth Sportsmanship Award. From those who knew Lucille, she was an integral part of the Region 6 team, and this was the perfect way to memorialize her. This year’s winner was Mercedez Vize.
At the conclusion of the awards for the evening it was time for the annual aisle hop. This was such a FUN and unique event. Each barn set up a themed meal station at the end of their aisle and all the exhibitors where able to travel from aisle to aisle trying the food and mingling with other exhibitors. There was a Hawaiian station, a pizza station, a candy station, a campfire station, a baseball station, and many more. The food was delicious, but the company was even better.
Friday was the start of the Region 6 Championship portion of the show. The show numbers were incredible. We started with Ranch Riding followed by Showmanship, which had over 150 runs. The class wasn’t finished until the early evening and there was still Hunter Under Saddle and Equitation to go! That day I also had the opportunity to sit and talk with some small fry exhibitors. We had a blast chatting and running into each other over the rest of the show. During the Equitation portion, I had another horse try to eat his ribbon. We decided he was so proud of his accomplishment he wanted to hold his ribbon for himself. The show wrapped up at 11pm that day but the competition made it well worth it.
On Saturday we were back at it again at 7am starting with the halter classes before moving into the pleasure and the horsemanships and finishing with the ranch trail. It was another long hot day, but we had freezies (or ice pops) to keep us cool. I had never watched the Ranch Trail prior to this event, so it was really cool to see it in person. We ended with a shorter trail day on Sunday. It was still well attended and the competition was just as stiff by the end we were all tired but we had had a great time! I really enjoyed my time at the Region 6. I had the opportunity to meet and talk to so many people, including some who I might not normally come across in my travels. I had one exhibitor tell me that to them this show was like their Congress so they appreciated me being there because it added to that experience which really meant a lot to me. I certainly made many new friends! I can’t thank the Region 6 committee enough for their hospitality and having me at their show. I was truly sad to leave when Sunday rolled around but it was just a sign of a great horse show! I can’t wait for the next stop in my journey, the AQHYA Youth World Show. See everyone there!
