The county Fair is the place to be!

RH2 wrote this piece and sent it to me the week that I was at our county fair. I must admit to "loosing" it in my emails at that time :( Being a 4-H leader in our horse program and being very active in working at all the different events I was a little busy and distracted at the time. I enjoyed reading this and very much related to it. I feel we owe our readers something positive and enjoyable once in a while :) While I find my time at the fair grounds to be exhausting by the end of the week I also find the whole experience with the kids and animals to be worth the exhaustion. I'm sure some of our readers can relate and I hope all of you enjoy this piece as much as I did.
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The County Fair Is The Place To Be!

A few weeks ago, I attended our County Fair. We have some pretty active Equine groups in our area, so there are a lot of Horse related events to attend. And the bonus is they're all free! Whether you're a fan of English or Western Riding, Driving, Miniature Horses, Draft Horses, Halter Class, Eventing, Team Penning, the new Ultimate Ranch Race, or just want to see all the different breeds, the Fair's the place to be. It's been a few years since I've attended, so I was a little surprised at the Western Pleasure classes. I think there wasn't a saddle and bridle set valued under $3000 out there. And the outfits were those you'd normally see in sanctioned shows. There were two kids out there in Jeans, pressed shirts, with their everyday working saddles and bridles, and boy were they cute! That's why I really enjoy the classes. I also like to see them try new things. Whether it be the egg and spoon race, the key hole, or Team penning, the Fair gives riders and their horses the chance to expand their horizons a little. All ages are welcome, and everyone is cheered on. I'm a huge fan of good sportsmanship. I also enjoy just walking through the barns. The 4-H groups do a really great job of educating these children. Not only is horsemanship taught, but proper care. At our fair, you'll never see a horse with so much as a mud spot or a hair out of place. These kids take such an immense pride in their horses, and it shows. During the day, the wash racks are always in use, and everyone's always busy grooming, checking tack, cooling their horse out, or preparing for the next event. You can see the pride of ownership in the evening too. While you can walk through the barns and see the kids happily sitting around talking and laughing, you'll notice each and every horse groomed and stalled with plenty of hay and water. I'm proud to see these kids as our future horsemen and women!If you haven't had a chance to, you should attend an Ultimate Ranch Race demonstration. What a great time! The riders and their horses complete a timed obstacle course that tests the ability and trust of both horse and rider. The stands and arena were packed to see this, and the horses and riders competing did an awesome job! The youngest rider I saw was 14, the oldest horse 20, so this is truly an event for everyone. Your success depends on how well you've trained your horse, and you don't need any fancy training and riding equipment. Anyone can set up a course at home. We're getting ours together, and can't wait to get to work on it. As always, the weekend flew by, and the reminder that Winter is coming came at the end of it. I've got my list in hand of the "to-do's" to get the barn, pasture, and run ins ready before the snow flies. But I've also got my mind set on that race next year at the fair-something to look forward to!
Written by RH2