After a hundred plus year run in the heart of New York City at Madison Square Garden, the nation’s oldest indoor horse show has been somewhat nomadic for the past decade, having landed on the Piers in New York for two unsuccessful seasons following the departure from Madison Square Garden, and then stopping in Wellington, Florida, for four years before finally landing in Syracuse, NY, four years ago.
Then, after numerous complaints by a large segment of the National Horse Show exhibitor base, Mason Phelps, Jr., along with the progressive thinking members of the Board of Directors of the National Horse Show, spearheaded the drive to finally give this national equestrian treasure a permanent home. The site they chose was the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky.
“It was the logical and perfect place for the National,” Phelps said. “It’s quite simply one of the outstanding venues in the entire world. Also, the excellent management infrastructure that Hugh Kincannon has had in place for years makes this a seamless transition,” he noted.
The Alltech National Horse Show, 128th Edition, will be held from November 2-6, 2011, at the beautiful, new Alltech Indoor Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington.
“I speak on behalf of the entire Kentucky Horse Park in saying that we are honored to be chosen as the venue of the Alltech National Horse Show and it is our sincere wish that it will be a long and happy association,” said John Nicholson, Executive Director of the Kentucky Horse Park.
Hugh Kincannon, who helped direct the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games, will manage the Alltech National Horse Show. “I couldn’t be more excited about this great American event coming here to the Horse Park. When I was much younger and attended the National Horse Show during its heyday in New York, it was so very special. For our hunter and jumper industry, the National was the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. The National rewarded a year’s worth of excellence. We’re going to restore that very special feeling,” he noted.
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 $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, 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.
Historic ASPCA Maclay National Championship Finds a Home in Kentucky
Along with all of the glitz, the glamour, the prestige and the big money classes that the 2011 Alltech National Horse Show will bring to Kentucky, the show will also feature one of the nation’s longest running and most coveted national championships, the ASPCA (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) Maclay National Championship.
Over the years the ASPCA Maclay Finals have been termed the “proving ground of champions” and the ultimate test for America’s young riders. And in the case of this classic test of horsemanship skills, that’s certainly more fact than hype.
“It’s the culmination of a long year of competition, it’s the final national championship, and with all of the history behind it, it’s just a great event to be a part of,” said top trainer Missy Clark, who, during the course of her stellar career as one of the nation’s very best teachers, has sent nine different ASPCA Maclay National Champions to the ring. “If you look back at the names on the Maclay trophy, you see so many names of riders that have gone on to do great things in their careers. If you can get through the Maclay Finals, you can go on and do anything. If you win that class, you’ve got the goods; you’ve got the ingredients to do great things.”
The ASPCA Maclay Horsemanship Trophy contains the names of some of America’s great riders. Previous winners include United States Equestrian Team superstar William Steinkraus in 1941 and his teammate and longtime Chef d’Equipe of the U.S. team, Frank Chapot in 1948. World Cup Champion and Olympic Gold Medalist Conrad Homfeld won the championship in 1967 and fellow Olympians Leslie Burr Howard (1972), Peter Wylde (1982) and Katharine Burdsall (1975) all got their start with a victory in the ASPCA Maclay Finals. The ASPCA’s own Equine Welfare Ambassador, Brianne Goutal took home the coveted title during the 2005 show season.
Probably, the most impressive name of all on the trophy is that of the legendary George Morris who led the victory gallop at Madison Square Garden in 1952. Morris, the current Chef d’Equipe of the United States Equestrian Team and often called the founding father of horsemanship in America, said of the Maclay Finals, “It’s an American heritage, a real tradition in our sport. The purpose of this wonderful discipline of equitation is to encourage good horsemanship. Horsemanship is caring for your horse, whether you have a pony or an Olympic jumper.”
“The Alltech National Horse Show is going to make an all-out effort to make sure that Maclay Sunday is an extraordinary day,” said Mason Phelps, the President of the National Horse Show Association of America. “In fact, that entire weekend is going to be one that equestrians will remember for a long time to come. We are pulling out all of the stops to make sure this event is superb at every level.”
“Maclay day is simply intense,” Clark affirmed. “You’ve prepared harder, and in a more concentrated manner than you have for any other championship. Just like when you’re preparing for the Super Bowl, you train harder, right?” she asked. “You’re pretty much up all night in preparation, and then competition day is a full day of just intense concentration, with plenty of highs and some lows too. With the Maclay, there’s really nothing like it. It’s a year’s worth of work all boiled down to one intense day of competition.”
This year’s championship will be judged by Kip Rosenthal and Cynthia Hankins.
ASPCA MACLAY CHAMPIONS OVER THE YEARS
1933 Audrey Hasler Chesney
1934 Elizabeth Hyland Molony
1935 Lillian M. Chambers Lindemann
1936 Ellie Wood P. K. Baxter
1937 Walton Perry Davis, Jr.
1938 Archie Dean, Jr.
1939 Hugh Dean
1940 James Thomas, Jr.
1941 William C. Steinkraus
1942 William P. Dunn, III
1943 Anne Morningstar
1944 Alice Babcock
1945 Nancy Dean
1946 Elaine Moore
1947 Frank Chapot
1948 Charlotte Hanlon
1949 Myrna Jackson Felvy
1950 Mary Gay Huffard
1951 G. Baker Schroeder, Jr.
1952 George Morris
1953 Glena Lee Maduro
1954 Ronnie Martini
1955 Wilson Dennehy
1956 Barbara Friedemann
1957 J. Michael Plumb
1958 Wendy Hanson
1959 Hank Minchin
1960 Mary Mairs
1961 Bernie Traurig
1962 Carol Altman
1963 Wendy Mairs
1964 Lane Schultz
1965 Chrystine Jones
1966 Debbie Wilson Jenkins
1967 Conrad Homefeld
1968 Brooke Hodgson
1970 Fred Bauer
1971 Anna Jane White
1972 Leslie Burr
1973 Michael Patrick
1974 Alex Dunaif
1975 Katharine Burdsall
1976 Collette Lozins
1977 Francie Steinwedell
1978 Michael Sasso
1979 Gary Young
1980 Laura Tidball
1981 Lisa Castellucci
1982 Peter Wylde
1983 Linda Kossick
1984 Francesca Mazella
1985 Steve Heinicke
1986 Scott Hofstetter
1987 Stacia Klein
1988 Christy Conrad
1989 Raymond Texel
1990 Lauren Kay
1991 Peter Lutz
1992 Nicole Shahinian
1993 Kelley Farmer
1994 Leslie Fishback
1995 Megan Johnstone
1996 Lauren Bass
1997 Keri Kampsen
1998 Erynn Ballard
1999 Emily Williams
2000 Avery Dimmig
2001 Brian Walker
2002 Erin Stewart
2003 Mathew Sereni
2004 Megan Young
2005 Brianne Goutal
2006 Maggie McAlary
2007 Kimberly McCormack
2008 Jessica Springsteen
2009 Zazou Hoffman
2010 Haley Barnhill
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.
Alltech National Horse Show, 128th Edition – Fast Facts
What:
The Alltech National Horse Show, 128th Edition, is a weeklong championship event featuring “AA”-rated hunters, open jumpers, junior/amateur jumpers, and the ASPCA Alfred B. Maclay Finals. The event will run November 2-6, 2011, in the Alltech Indoor Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY, site of the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games(TM).
Parking:
Horse Show Exhibitors may purchase a weekly parking pass at the main Horse Park entrance for $5.00. Dogs are permitted at the Kentucky Horse Park on a leash.
Directions:
The Kentucky Horse Park is located 8 miles northeast of Lexington, Kentucky at Exit 120 on Interstate 75.
Information:
Carolyn Vincent
National Horse Show
PO Box 386
Greenvale, NY 11548
Telephone:
Phone: (516) 484-1865
Fax: (516) 484-1982
Email:
NationalHS@aol.com
Website:
www.nhs.org
Shopping:
Vendors offering equestrian equipment, apparel, jewelry and home furnishings are located in the Alltech Arena.
Additional Contacts:
Vendors – Matt Morrissey at Mmorri4398@aol.com or 941 915-3457
VIP Table Sales – Kiki Umla at KIKIUMLA@aol.com or 904-606-5541
Advertising – Laura Reed at reed.laura@insightbb.com or 859-321-7687
Sponsorship – Mason Phelps at mpjr@phelpsmediagroup.com or 561-753-3389 or Susie Webb at webb_susie@yahoo.com or 301-520-6162
Hotels:
CLARION HOTEL (formerly Holiday Inn North) – 859 – 233-0512 – Approximately 4 miles
FAIRFIELD INN & SUITES BY MARRIOTT – 859 -977-5870 – Approximately 4 miles
FOUR POINTS SHERATON – 859-259-1311 – Approximately 4 miles
LA QUINTA – 859-231-7551 – Approximately 4 miles
KNIGHTS INN – 859-231-0232 – Approximately 4 miles
EMBASSY SUITES – 859-455-5000 – Approximately 4 miles
MARRIOT GRIFFIN GATE – 859-231-5100 – Approximately 4 miles
RESIDENCE INN – 859-231-6191 – Approximately 5 miles
COURTYARD BY MARRIOT – 859-253-4646 – Approximately 5 miles
HOLIDAY INN GEORGETOWN – 502-570-0220 – Approximately 6 miles
RAMADA INN – 859-299-1261 – Approximately 6 miles
RED ROOF INN – 859-293-2626 – Approximately 6 miles
HAMPTON INN – 502-867-4888 – Approximately 6 miles
SUPER EIGHT – 502-863-4888 – Approximately 6 miles
MICROTEL INN & SUITES – 502-868-8000 – Approximately 6 miles
Management:
Kentucky Horse Shows, LLC
P. O. Box 11428
Lexington, KY 40575-1428
859-233-0492 (phone)
859-233-0495 (fax)
email: hakshows@earthlink.net
website: www.kentuckyhorseshows.com
ALLTECH MEDIA CONTACT:
Susanna Elliott
Corporate PR Manager, North America
Alltech Corporate Headquarters
3031 Catnip Hill Pike
Nicholasville, Kentucky
Telephone: (859) 887-5144
Mobile: (859) 473-2696
Email: SuElliott@alltech.com
Web site: www.alltech.com
NATIONAL HORSE SHOW MEDIA CONTACT:
Phelps Media Group, Inc.
12230 Forest Hill Blvd.
Suite 214
Wellington, FL 33414
561-753-3389 (phone)
561-753-3386 (fax)
pmginfo@phelpsmediagroup.com
www.phelpsmediagroup.com
About Alltech:
Founded by Dr. Pearse Lyons, Alltech is a global animal health and nutrition company with 31 years’ experience in developing natural products that are scientifically proven to enhance animal health and performance. With more than 2650 employees in 128 countries, the company has developed a strong regional presence in Europe, North America, Latin America, the Middle-East, Africa and Asia. For further information, visit www.alltech.com. For media assets, visit www.alltech.com/press.