09.27.11
Posted in Kentucky Horse Park, Kentucky Proud at 8:01 pm by EPR
LEXINGTON, KY (September 27, 2011) The Kentucky Horse Park will offer a Kentucky Proud Weekend and Gift Shop/Tack Shop Sale Oct 8-9, 2011, to celebrate some of the things that make Kentucky wonderful: our military, our horse industry, our music, our food and more!
Kentucky Proud Weekend will be a great time for families to enjoy the park while getting a taste of Kentucky home-grown and home-made products. To make it even easier for families, children ages 12 and under will be admitted free of charge.
Highlights will include:
– Meet two Kentucky Derby winners,
– Cooking demonstrations with Chef Adam Wade, 2:30 pm both days,
– Kentucky Proud product sampling,
– Harvest sale at the Kentucky Horse Park Gift Shop (25% off fine jewelry, 20% off apparel, 25% off framed art, 25% off everything in the Tack Shop!),
– Bluegrass Army Depot displays – honoring our military,
– Vendors: mums, pumpkins, handmade soaps, Old Kentucky Chocolate candies, Rimmer Family Favorites, etc.,
– Kentucky performers – clogging, singing,
– Tour the Maker’s Mark Secretariat Center on Saturday to see retired, adoptable Thoroughbred racehorses in a retraining program,
– Book signing by Kentucky cookbook authors,
– Tour new $10-million Al Marah Arabian Horse Galleries with lots of interactive displays for children,
– “Ancient Bronzes of the Asian Grasslands” special exhibition in the International Museum of the Horse, a Smithsonian Affiliate,
– “Celebrities: Saddlebreds and Personalities from the Silver Screen, Cinema and History” special exhibition in the American Saddlebred Museum,
– Plus all that the park offers on a daily basis, including live equine presentations, Hall of Champions, and much more!
The Kentucky Classic Combined Driving Event will also be taking place that weekend. The Kentucky CDE is a competitive horse driving event made very popular during the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games. Visitors will enjoy watching this great competition with their park admission.
Visitors can also enjoy having lunch or a snack in the Kentucky Horse Park’s new Bit & Bridle Restaurant.
For more information on Kentucky Proud Weekend, call our switchboard, 859-259-4200 or our Kentucky Horse Park Gift Shop, 859-259-4234.
Park Hours and Rates: Through November 6, the park is open seven days a week. Admission is $16 for adults, $8 for children 7-12. From November 7 to March 14, the park is open Wednesdays through Sundays. Winter admission is $10 for adults and $5 for children ages 7-12. Children age 6 and under are always admitted free of charge. Admission includes the International Museum of the Horse – a Smithsonian Affiliate, and the American Saddlebred Museum and Gift Shop.
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09.25.11
Posted in 2010 Games, 2026, Alltech, My Thoughts, Opening Ceremonies, Reining, World Equestrian Games at 7:45 pm by Thomas
It was one year ago today that the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games 2010, or as you know I always refer to them as, The Kentucky World Equestrian Games started. I went back and read the posts I made from those initial days and remembered the excitement and nervousness of that first day.
The weather today was fairly similar to what it was last year, cool in the morning but warmed up nicely later in the day. It is all still amazingly fresh in my memory now when I think back, which I hope remains the case for the rest if my life because it was certainly one of those Great Experiences in my life.
The big news of that first day was that the turnout for the Opening Ceremonies was better then had been expected, though the expectations had been tempered by the economy. The other big news of that day was Italy taking the lead in the Reining World Championships in the first part of that competition.
It is bitter sweet in some ways to think back to the 4 1/2 years preparing for the Games, and then they were here and gone and now another year has passed. Though some or maybe even many people will think I am off my rocker to say definitively that the Games will again return to Kentucky, maybe not in 2018 or even 2022, but by 2026 I think we have a good shot of getting them back and you know I will be there again.
In closing on thinking back on this first day, I must as I have in the past give great thanks to many people starting with Dr. Pierce Lyons of Alltech, without whom I don’t think these Games would have taken place, and then all the staff and certainly the Volunteers without whom I do not think the Games could have been the success they were.
Kentucky Colonel
Thomas Demond
KyWEGO®
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09.24.11
Posted in Fort Harrod Back Country Horsemen, Kentucky Bred, Kentucky Horse Council, Kentucky Proud at 11:13 pm by Thomas
I had the great opportunity to be a part of the Kentucky Horse Council Equine Industry Planning Session today at the Fayette County Extension Office. This was scheduled as an all day event starting at 8 AM so it was wonderful to see a solid group of close to 50 participants. This was a varied group across all areas of the horse industry from Thoroughbred breeders and members of several Equine Departments of our major Universities and Colleges to small local organizations like myself representing the Fort Harrod Back Country Horsemen.
The facilitator was Colonel Walter Herd (Retired U.S. Army) who is also on the KHC Board. He did an excellent job and was very engaging which set a very positive tone for the day. The primary topics of discussion were coming up with ideas to bring Kentucky closer to that idea of a “haven for horses” that we all dream of by developing the “culture of the horse in Kentucky”. Ultimately in simple terms, we are the Horse Capital of the World, which is derived from the impact of the Thoroughbred Horse, how do we expand that definition to be all inclusive of everything Equine in the State or at least that was my take.
I am not going to go into all the details because there was lots of great discussions and ideas. One tidbit I will report on, we did hear from a member of KEEP that the Kentucky Proud Program was being expanded to include horses and that specific program would be called Kentucky Bred.
At the end of the day we voted on all of these and the KHC is going to digest those results and come up with an action list to start working on in November when they are planning on scheduling the next set of meetings. I will report on what comes out of those meetings as we get more concrete objectives to act on.
Kentucky Colonel
Thomas Demond
KyWEGO®
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09.22.11
Posted in Alltech, Alltech National Horse Show at 6:57 am by Thomas
Lexington, KY – Similar to the call center Alltech ran before last year’s Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, a hotline is now open to answer any questions regarding the Alltech National Horse Show taking place November 2-6.
Eager to assist with any questions the public has about the Alltech National Horse Show, Alltech has opened a toll-free call in number answered by live, local staffers who can assist callers with information on the venue, tickets, charity involvement, parking, hotels, and more. The call center will be open from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday-Friday (EST). The number to reach the call center is 1-855-255-ANHS (1-855-255-2647).
Personnel may also assist callers with the ticket ordering process. There are nine ticketed events during the five days of the event, all taking place at the Alltech Arena in the Kentucky Horse Park.
“Alltech received an overwhelmingly positive response to the call service established for the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, and we knew that this was a service that would once again be beneficial for the Alltech National Horse Show. Our goal is to make the process of purchasing tickets as convenient for the customer as possible,” said Jonathan Lang, promotions manager at Alltech.
Alltech National Horse Show tickets, ranging from $10-$30, are on sale and can be purchased through Ticketmaster at 1-800-745-3000 or www.ticketmaster.com. Fifty percent of each ticket sold benefits certain local and national charities. Parking at the Kentucky Horse Park is free.
The Alltech National Horse Show, 128th Edition, will be held from November 2 – 6, 2011, at the beautiful, new Alltech Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington.
This year’s show, designated CSI4*-W, will feature a complete schedule of ‘AA’-rated hunter divisions, including the Pony Lane Farm High Performance Hunter section. Also on the agenda, a big money Open Jumper division highlighted by the Sasco Creek Farm $50,000 Welcome Speed Class, the $75,000 Double H Farms Thursday’s Jump-Off class, the $60,000 Spy Coast Farm Faults Converted Speed class on Friday and of course, the $250,000 Alltech National Horse Show Grand Prix, an FEI World Cup qualifying event. $100,000 will be up for grabs for the Junior and Amateur Jumper divisions, including the $50,000 SJHOF Junior/Amateur Championships, sponsored by Sleepy P Ranch, Chansonette and Deeridge Farm. The final Sunday is highlighted by the signature event of the National Horse Show, the ASPCA Alfred B. Maclay Finals, presented by C.M. Hadfield’s Saddlery.
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.свети георги
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09.20.11
Posted in 2010 Games, Equestrian Events Inc, World Equestrian Games at 9:52 pm by Thomas
I wanted to put out the word on the wonderful programs that Equestrian Events, Inc. (EEI) supports here in Kentucky and abroad. For those that don’t know, EEI is the organization that produces the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event Presented by Bridgestone. EEI which itself is a non-profit, charitable organization makes donations to other charitable organizations, among that list for 2011,
Kentucky Children’s Hospital – $15,000, primary for 2011.
Others supported during the year,
Central Kentucky Riding for Hope (CKRH)
Equine Land Conservation Resource (ELCR)
Midway College
Boyd Martin Fire Relief
University of Kentucky Equestrian Team Fund
The Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event is a great event, and I highly recommend people to get out to it if they have the opportunity. Certainly the efforts that EEI has put forth over the years in making The Rolex Kentucky such a success laid the ground work for the World Equestrian Games to come to Kentucky, so my hat’s off to them.
Kentucky Colonel
Thomas Demond
KyWEGO
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09.15.11
Posted in My Thoughts at 7:37 pm by Administrator
I wanted to put out a recommendation for Cumberland Falls for anyone looking to do some last minute camping. The leaves have just started to turn and they have great camping sites.
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Posted in Kentucky Horse Park, News Release at 11:58 am by EPR
“History Heritage Days”
at the Kentucky Horse Park will Include Demonstrations with Teams of Oxen from Maine
LEXINGTON, KY (September 16, 2011) The Kentucky Horse Park will host the first History Heritage Days, Nov 9-12, which will include eight teams of special oxen shipping in from Maine.
The four-day schedule will include demonstrations of various uses of oxen such as plowing, log hauling, use of a stone boat, maneuvering an ox cart through an obstacle course, driving a single ox, driving a team from behind with reins and yoking-up a team.
John Nicholson, executive director of the park observed, “Teams of horses and oxen have worked side-by-side throughout history, and certainly both have played a huge role in the development of our country. So we are pleased to welcome these fine animals to the Kentucky Horse Park to demonstrate their skills and remind us of the invaluable contributions that oxen have made to opening up the west, farming, the successful outcome of the Revolutionary and Civil Wars, and so much more.”
One of the highlights of the exhibit will be the eight teams representing different breeds, all hitched together maneuvering a Big Wheel Log Hauler around the spacious Dressage Complex (Big Wheels were used in the early 1900s by loggers working in the Midwest and west coast woods). The oxen will also be hitched to the park’s three trolleys for visitors to ride around the park.
The coordinator of the event, Dan Midkiff, purchased his first team of oxen in 2007 and has found them to be very special and interesting animals. He wanted to share this fascination and appreciation with the public, and particularly children. He has been working with the Kentucky Horse Park to make this oxen exhibition a wonderful, educational experience, so schools, 4-H and FFA groups are encouraged to attend.
Dottie Bell, who will participate with her flashy team of Ayrshire cattle, stated, “History shows oxen have been used in agriculture all over the world for centuries. Maine oxen in particular are still hauling from the pine woods of Maine to the Midwest. They helped build New England and move us west, so now we’ll enjoy showing Kentucky Horse Park visitors what our Maine oxen can do.”
Demonstrations will take place daily beginning at 9am and ending at 4pm.
The History Heritage Days are included with park admission. Through November 6, the park is open seven days a week, 9am to 5pm. Regular admission is $16/adults, $9/children ages 7-12. From November 7 to March 14, the park is open Wednesdays through Sundays. Admission is then $9/adults, $6/children ages 7-12. Children ages 6 and under are always admitted free of charge. Special group rates are available for schools and other groups by contacting the Group Sales Department, 859-259-4225 or groupsales@kyhorsepark.com.
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09.12.11
Posted in My Thoughts at 1:51 pm by Administrator
Its a beautiful morning, what shall we do with it?
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09.11.11
Posted in My Thoughts at 2:48 pm by Administrator
I have changed my profile picture just for today to the image of the World Trade Centers, to remember what use to be and what we still have. I am just going to throw this idea out there, if you want, everyone change your profile picture just for today.
GOD Bless America.
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Posted in My Thoughts at 11:50 am by Administrator
We Shall Never Forget!
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09.05.11
Posted in My Thoughts at 8:01 pm by Thomas
I want to wish everyone a productive labor day, that may seem a little backwards for a day that is supposed to be a holiday from work, but in this economy, none of us can take it too easy. I have made the point before and I will make it again that I feel we all should do some form of voluntary labor that we do not expect to gain monetarily from, many times we gain more from those efforts.
I know that is tough in this economy, most of us that still have jobs are working more hours at our “Jobs” because of the reductions in force that have occurred. Those of you who have become unemployed, I feel for you and wish there was more I could do, so I am going to try and not get on my soap box and say you should volunteer. What I will say is volunteering isn’t only a good way to network it can also be good therapy because I think a lot of us equate our level of worth to what we are doing. So when you volunteer you know you are not doing it for the money, you are doing it because its something that matters to you and you are making a difference, no amount of money can replace that feeling.
I wish everyone a Terrific Tuesday!
Kentucky Colonel
Thomas Paul Demondиконииконописikoni
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