EXTREME MUSTANG MAKEOVER ROLLING INTO MURFREESBORO
More than 75 Mustangs set to compete and then be available for adoption.

Georgetown, Texas, October 13, 2010 – The famous Extreme Mustang Makeover is returning to Murfreesboro, Tennessee, October 22-24. Wild American Mustangs previously untouched by humans have been training for the competition since July when they were picked up from a Bureau of Land Management adoption facility. Following the competition, all the Mustangs will be available for adoption.

When trainers arrived to claim their Mustangs approximately 100 days ago, they had been untouched by human hands. In the designated time, the trainers have worked with their Mustangs using natural horsemanship techniques in order to win the Extreme Mustang Makeover. At the conclusion of the competition, the Mustangs will be available for adoption through a competitive bid process. The exciting action will take place at the Tennessee Miller Coliseum in Murfreesboro. Visit https://t2.clicknprint.com/tix/SilverStream/Pages/pgIndex.html?siteID=2156 for tickets or visit www.extrememustangmakeover.com/emmtennessee.php for more information on the event.

During the competition the trainers will be judged on their Mustangs’ overall body condition as well as “in hand” maneuvers such as grooming, loading in a trailer and obstacle courses. Following the “in hand” class the trainers will then mount their mustangs to complete the “horse course” which requires the pair to ride successfully through obstacles similar to those found on a trail ride.

In addition to the more than 50 adult trainers competing at the event, 25 youth will demonstrate their horsemanship skills with Mustang yearlings as they compete in the Extreme Mustang Makeover Yearling Edition.

Featuring the top-10 finalists, Saturday’s evening performance will begin at 7 p.m., and tickets cost $20. Trainers will pull out all of the stops in an attempt to win. Past freestyle events have included everything from riders standing on their Mustangs’ backs cracking a bull whip to spinning and sliding stops sans bridle. Riveting and unknown, the freestyle finals are without a doubt the one class you can’t miss as riders compete for their share of the purse and the custom Gist Silversmiths trophy buckle. Preliminary classes on Friday, October 22 and Saturday, October 23 (until 6 p.m.) are free to the public.

As an added bonus, the world renowned Kentucky Horse Park Mustang Troop will perform at the October 23 final. Since 1993, the Kentucky Horse Park Mustang Troop program has teamed inner-city youth with adopted Mustangs. The Mustangs used in the program were adopted through the BLM's Adopt-A-Horse Program. Every trooper's goal is to become a member of the Mustang Troop precision mounted drill team. Troopers have won ribbons and awards for their performances at many festivals and equestrian events. They have appeared in many parades including President Bill Clinton’s 1997 Inaugural Parade in Washington, D.C.; the parade at the 1998 dedication of the “Spirit of Freedom National Memorial to African American Civil War Soldiers,” sponsored by the African-American Civil War Memorial Freedom Foundation in Washington, D.C.; and the 2003 and 2006 Gator Bowl Parades in Jacksonville, Florida.

On Sunday, the public will have the chance to adopt the Mustangs that competed in the Extreme Mustang Makeover event. Each Mustang goes to the highest bidder. Adopters must be preapproved by the Bureau of Land Management. Interested adopters can learn more about the BLM adoption requirements at www.wildhorseandburro.blm.gov. Adoption applications will be available on site, and BLM representatives will be available to answer any questions.

The Mustang Heritage Foundation in cooperation with the Bureau of Land Management created the Extreme Mustang Makeover event to highlight the recognized value of Mustangs through a national training competition. The events will give the public a unique opportunity to see the results of wild horses becoming trained mounts and then have the opportunity to adopt one of these treasured animals.

Since the inception of the Extreme Mustang Makeover event in 2007, the Mustang Heritage Foundation has placed nearly 2,000 Mustangs, and an estimated 100,000 fans have filled the stands and walked the barns of events held across the United States. For more information on the Extreme Mustang Makeover event at the Tennessee Miller Coliseum in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, visit www.extrememustangmakeover.com/emmtennessee.php.

-30-