Today, March 21, is Worldwide Equine Rescuers Recognition Day, so we're asking all of our friends to do something nice for an organization that assists horses, donkeys, mules, burros or ponies.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (March 13, 2012)  The Kentucky Horse Park’s 34th season is set to begin Thursday, March 15, when the park returns to its regular hours of 9am to 5pm daily through November 4. Visitors will be entertained and delighted as the park features special events and themed weekends throughout the season.

Highlights of this season will include the park’s newest attraction, the Kids Barn, which features interactive exhibits, while the park’s education department staff will host daily hands-on activities with the park’s resident horses in the Kids Barn each day.

Sylvester, Texas, March 12, 2012 – It’s the home of bluegrass, bourbon and beautiful horses . . . Kentucky. Having played host to the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games in 2010 and the site of more than 85 national equine events, including the Alltech National Horse Show, the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Ky, now welcomes the newest star in its cap, Road to the Horse.

“We are thrilled to move forward in the growth of Road to the Horse to this world-class facility,” said Road to the Horse Producer Tootie Bland. “Murfreesboro has been a tremendous host for seven years and we’ll miss our many friends here, yet the good news is our growth has made it necessary for the event to move to a larger facility and the Alltech Arena at the Kentucky Horse Park is the perfect place.”

“The improvements to the Horse Park for the World Equestrian Games were designed for events just like Road to the Horse,” said Park Executive Director John Nicholson. “From its arena to the Park’s campground, Road to the Horse fans will find the welcome mat rolled out with bluegrass hospitality.”

Furthermore, the amenities are nearly endless as Road to the Horse fans will want to make plans to extend their stay and take in the many sites around Lexington, including Claiborne Farms, the resting place of Secretariat, the Mary Todd Lincoln Home and even better, just stroll around the grounds of the Kentucky Horse Park where they can take in the many exhibits and see Breeders' Cup Champion Cigar and Kentucky Derby Winners Go For Gin and Funny Cide peeking from their stalls.

Make Road to the Horse a Family Legacy
More than 58% of Road to the Horse fans are repeat visitors each year, and now producer Tootie Bland has made it that much easier for those fans to keep their experience going.

With the move to Kentucky, Road to the Horse will offer a new level of seating to its fans termed “Legacy Seats.” Through this program, Road to the Horse will hold a certain number of seats in a certain location, determined by the purchaser, each year. Ultimately, fans will find their “home away from home” each year as they claim their spot. The seats will remain with that purchaser every year until that purchaser releases the seat by not renewing their purchase.

Dates for the 2013 competition will be March 15-17 with competitors yet to be announced. However, room blocks at nearby hotels havealready been confirmed in anticipation of another sold out event and the expectation of high demand for rooms as has been the case in the past. For more information about Road to the Horse 2013, go to www.roadtothehorse.com.
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Road to the Horse is a one-of-a-kind experience that combines education and entertainment for an all-out horsemanship experience.

World-renowned horsemen along with talented trainers discovered by Tootie Bland compete in the invitation only competition to determine the World Champion of Colt Training. Horsemen select a gelding from a remuda or herd of 10-20 American Quarter Horses and are then evaluated on their ability to establish a relationship and bring the animal to its level of comfort under saddle.

Unlike a horse show, these competitors are judged not only on a final test of skill, but the means to the end result. The goal of Road to the Horse is to teach horsemen and women that natural horsemanship is a kinder, gentler way of working with horses.

Road to the Horse enjoys the support of corporate partners such as the American Quarter Horse Association, Ram Trucks, Wrangler, Martin Saddlery, Gist Silversmiths, W-W Livestock, Nutrena, the Four Sixes Ranch and Long Branch Lakes Property Development, along with other more than 20 othervalued industry products and services. To learn more, go to www.roadtothehorse.com or call 325.736.5000.
 
-RTTH-

With a face like this, Moon must be the George Clooney of the Thoroughbred world -- and he has a bod to go along with it! 

Moon is a 9-year-old Thoroughbred gelding, 15.1-hands tall, who is coming along very well under saddle in the retraining program at the Kentucky Equine Humane Center while he waits for a new home. 

He is solid, quiet, and sound for any discipline. 

He has been used as a pleasure horse in the past, so Moon should also make a great trail horse. 

He is friendly and stands well for the farrier. 

If you adopt him now, you'll have plenty of time to get ready for spring and summer horse shows and trail rides!

If you're interested in learning more about Moon or any of the other adoptable horses at the Kentucky Equine Humane Center, contact them at 859-881-5849, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or go to www.KyEHC.org.

Breyer’s Annual Model Horse Collector Festival and Horse Fair Celebrates
Everything We Love About Horses and Cool Britannia!

Pequannock, NJ – Mark your calendars for BreyerFest British Invasion, Breyer Animal Creation’s 23rd annual festival for horse lovers this July 20-22, 2012 at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY.

Media Accreditation/Press Credentials
Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event, Presented by Bridgestone
April 26-29, 2012
and
Ariat Kentucky Reining Cup
April 27-28, 2012

CLICK HERE FOR APPLICATION

The Competitions
The Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event, presented by Bridgestone, April 26-29, 2012 will be held at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY, along with the Ariat Kentucky Reining Cup. The event draws anywhere from 50-100,000 spectators and is seen by millions more on worldwide telecasts including a live telecast on NBC in the United States.
 
The Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event features the 15th Rolex USEF Four Star Championship for the U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation Pinnacle Cup, and is part of the HSBC FEI ClassicsTM.  The world’s best horses and riders compete for their share of $250,000 in prize money as well as a shot at the $350,000 Rolex Grand Slam of Eventing which is awarded to any rider who wins the Rolex Kentucky, Mitsubishi Motors Badminton and Land Rover Burghley Four Star Events in succession. 2012 will serve as a selection trial for the London Olympics held in the Summer.
 
The only Four Star Event in the Western Hemisphere, the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event is the premier competition for the top horses and riders in the Olympic sport of Eventing. This year’s Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event features selection trials to choose the U.S. Eventing Team for the 2012 London Olympic Games.  The nation’s best horses and riders will be competing in the hopes of earning places on the team for this summer’s Olympics.
 
The Ariat Kentucky Reining Cup, April 27-28, is the only Three Star Reining competition in the world in 2012, and is a qualifier for the FEI World Reining Championship.  It is expected to draw horses and riders from around the globe, vying for their share of $100,000 in prize money as they compete in the CRI3*, along with the popular $25,000 World Freestyle Championship. 
 

LEXINGTON, Ky, USA/Imphal, Manipur, India (January 20, 2012) The Secretariat of His Excellency Gurbachan Jagat, the Governor of Manipur, and the International Museum of the Horse at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, are pleased to announce that a unique gift of traditional Manipuri Polo (Sagol Kangjei) gear has been donated by His Excellency to the museum on behalf of the people of Manipur. The donation was arranged by Dr. R.K.Nimai Singh, Secretary to the Governor and L. Somi Roy, a film and media arts curator, of New York.

The gifts were designed and fabricated by Meisnam Khelen of Khurai Thongam Leikai, former captain of the Manipur Polo team following the most authentic process and materials. They include the traditional Manipuri wooden saddle, braided bridle, braided leather whip, a full set of traditional polo player's attire, two traditional polo mallets and a ball. Mr. Roy made an additional gift of traditional Manipuri darts (arambai) with peacock feathers, also made by Mr. Khelen.

The Governor of Manipur is pleased that he was able to donate the items on behalf of the people of Manipur. Even though Manipur is the origin of modern polo, most people do not know this and he expressed that this small gift will at least provide a window to the glorious polo tradition of Manipur to the outside world. He expressed his gratitude to the museum for accepting the gifts for display.

"We are extremely grateful to the governor and the people of Manipur not only for the significant donation of ethnographic materials related to the Manipuri Pony* and polo in Manipur, but also for allowing us to do our small part to raise awareness of these historically significant animals and the current threat of their extinction," said Bill Cooke, Director of the International Museum of the Horse.

The gifts will be displayed in the museum's permanent exhibit called "The Horse in Sport." An exploration of the contemporary uses of horse in recreational activities, the exhibit features sections devoted to rodeo, polo, Thoroughbred racing, Standardbred racing and more. The exhibit was renovated in the summer of 2010 and now features a major section devoted to eight disciplines of the World Equestrian Games, which the Kentucky Horse Park hosted in 2010. Manipuri sagol kangjei will be featured alongside English polo, tracing the origins and history of modern polo. Expected to open to the public in the Spring of 2012, the exhibition panel will display Manipuri sagol kangjei and English polo in traditional attire as well as video and photographic displays.
 
In addition, the museum will add the Manipuri Pony, or the Meitei Sagol, to its online exhibit "Horse Breeds of the World" and will highlight the breed's special characteristics, its importance in the region and culture of Manipur and its present endangered condition.
The governor's Secretariat and the International Museum of the Horse are pleased to acknowledge the contributions to this addition to the museum by Dr. Evelyn Knight, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Health Behaviour, University of Kentucky College of Public Health; Becky Ryder, Director of the Keeneland Library at the Keeneland Association Race Course in Lexington; Mary Molinaro, Associate Dean for Library Technologies at University of Kentucky Libraries; and Rachel Roberts, Digitisation Studio Manager at the British Library in London.

For more information and additional press materials, please contact Cindy Rullman, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. "> This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and Dr. R. K. Nimai Singh This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. "> This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . 
 

*For more information on the Manipuri Pony click on http://tinyurl.com/6rb2bp2.

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Meet the adoptable horse of the week: Magic Heiress.

She's a 5-yr-old Thoroughbred mare, sound for any discipline, 15.2-hands, who could be a good hunter or Pony Club horse.

She is very athletic, quiet, a willing learner and is currently in the retraining program at the Kentucky Equine Humane Center while she awaits a new home.  She probably needs an intermediate rider.

For more information on Magic Heiress or any of the other adoptable horses at the Kentucky Equine Humane Center, contact them at 859-881-5849, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or www.kyehc.org.

Please repost and help us find a great home for Magic Heiress!

Contact: Marty Bauman, Press Chief, (508) 698-6810, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. "> This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Ariat Kentucky Reining Cup Also Returns After Last Year’s Sensational Debut
 
Lexington, KY — January 12, 2012— The excitement of the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event, presented by Bridgestone, and the Ariat Kentucky Reining Cup returns to the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY, April 26-29.
 
This year’s Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event features selection trials to choose the U.S. Eventing team for the 2012 London Olympic Games.  The nation’s best horses and riders will be competing in the hopes of earning places on the team for this summer’s Olympics.
 
This year’s Event also features the 15th Rolex USEF Four Star Championship for the U.S. Equestrian Team Foundation Pinnacle Cup, and is part of the HSBC FEI ClassicsTM.  Horses and riders from around the world will join their U.S. counterparts in competing for their share of $250,000 in prize money as well as a shot at the $350,000 Rolex Grand Slam of Eventing which is awarded to any rider who wins Rolex Kentucky, Mitsubishi Motors Badminton and Land Rover Burghley Four Star Events in succession.  Former Rolex Kentucky champion William Fox-Pitt of Great Britain, who won his record sixth Burghley championship last fall, will be seeking to win a second leg of the Rolex Grand Slam at Kentucky in the hopes of joining Pippa Funnell of Great Britain, who won it in 2003, as the only rider to win the Rolex Grand Slam.
 
"There's no question that 2012 is going to be one of the most exciting years we’ve had," said Lisa Ball, President of Equestrian Events, Inc. (EEI), producer of the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event and Ariat Kentucky Reining Cup.  "The fact that the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event is a selection trial for the London Olympics means that Eventing fans will have a chance to see many of the horses and riders who will be riding in this summer’s Olympics right here in Kentucky.  Adding to the excitement is the Ariat Kentucky Reining Cup that was such a huge hit when it made its debut last year and has quickly established itself as a big crowd favorite."
 
As always, the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event will feature three distinct phases: Dressage, Cross-Country and Show Jumping.  In Dressage, the first phase of the event, horses execute a series of movements while being judged on grace, harmony and precision.  During Saturday's Cross-Country phase, horses and riders gallop across the Kentucky Horse Park countryside at lightning fast speeds.  The bravery and stamina of horse and rider are put to the test in this exciting phase, as they must jump a series of imposing obstacles on varied terrain.  The final day features Show Jumping where horse and rider try to clear a course of brightly colored and decorated fences in a confined arena.
 
Past winners of the Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event, the only Four Star Three-Day Event in the Western Hemisphere, include United States Olympic Medalists David and Karen O’Connor, Kim Severson and Phillip Dutton, New Zealand’s Blyth Tait and Nick Larkin, Great Britain’s Pippa Funnell, William Fox-Pitt and Mary King, and Andrew Hoy, Clayton Fredericks and Lucinda Fredericks of Australia.
 
Spectators may purchase reserved Tailgating spaces along portions of the Cross-Country Course at the Kentucky Horse Park, giving them a chance to experience the action like never before.  The purchase of a Tailgating space provides a reserved location for a passenger vehicle plus general admission for six people.  A variety of hospitality packages is also available for both Eventing and Reining competitions.
 
After its great debut last year, the Ariat Kentucky Reining Cup returns for a second year, April 27-28.  The Ariat Kentucky Reining Cup is the only Three Star Reining competition currently scheduled in the world for 2012.  It is expected to draw horses and riders from around the globe, vying for their share of $100,000 in prize money as they compete in the CRI3*, along with the popular $25,000 World Freestyle Championship. 
 
In the 2011 debut of the Ariat Kentucky Reining Cup, members of the U.S's Gold Medal team from the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games swept the top four places in the HorsePower Inc. CRI5* class.  Winning the event was Shawn Flarida, followed by Craig Schmersal, who took second and third, and Tom McCutcheon who took fourth.  Also competing was Grammy Award winning entertainer Lyle Lovett who made his personal debut riding at the sport's highest level.
 
Reining is a judged event designed to show the athletic ability of a western type horse in a show arena. In Reining, competitors are required to run one of several approved patterns. Each pattern includes small slow circles, large fast circles, flying lead changes, roll backs, 360 degree spins done in place, back-ups and the exciting sliding stops that are the hallmark of the reining horse.
 
In addition to the world-class competition, spectators may get equally excited about the world-class shopping at the Sponsor Village and Trade Fair. With more than 175 merchants selling everything from horse-related items to clothing, accessories, jewelry and art, this is always a favorite place for browsing and buying during the Event!
 
For more information, or to purchase tickets to the 2012 Rolex Kentucky Three-Day Event, Presented by Bridgestone, please visit the Rolex Kentucky website at www.rk3de.org.
 
For more information on the 2012 Ariat Kentucky Reining Cup, or to purchase tickets, please go to www.KentuckyReining.com.