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Best in Equestrian Sport at Collingwood

August 7, 2005

Collingwood, Ontario --- One of Collingwood’s premier annual summer events is set to begin Wednesday. The Collingwood Horse Shows offer ten days of exciting equestrian competition and spectator events at Fisher Field in the centre of the Collingwood resort area.

The first of two events, the Collingwood Festival, runs Wednesday through Sunday with competition taking place in four show rings beginning at 8:00am each day. Each will feature a different version of the same sport. The “hunters”, which are judged on technique and the riders’ ability to guide their horses over fences and around the ring correctly, will be competing at Collingwood Field and Bay Ridge Field. Some of the fiercest competition will be seen Friday and Saturday when the youngsters compete with their ponies.

In the two Jumper rings it is all about speed and negotiating the obstacles while leaving them standing. Riders and horses of varying experience will be testing themselves over the five days, with feature classes running on the weekend. On Saturday the Grooms’ Class reverses the order of things – the people who usually ensure that the horses and riders they work for are prepared for the show ring will themselves be in the spotlight. They will be riding and competing while their employers will be working for them!

On Friday and Saturday, both weeks, the top Grand Prix riders and the “up-and-comers” can be seen in action in the Grand Prix Ring. The $10,000 Nobleton Feed Mill Open Welcome starts at 2:00pm on Friday. Saturday is the $10,000 Carmarthen Lake Farms Modified Grand Prix.

The Collingwood Festival culminates Sunday at 2:00pm with the $50,000 Scotia Private Client Group World Cup Qualifier presented by Intrawest, The Village at Blue and The Town of Collingwood. Canada’s top show jumpers will be looking for points to qualify as one of the two Canadians who will represent this country at the World Cup Final next year in Malaysia. This is show jumping at its best, and the stakes are high! International course designer Guilherme Jorge of Brazil is sure to set a challenging track that will test both horse and rider.

After a couple days’ break at Fisher Field, The Kubota Collingwood Classic gets underway Wednesday, August 17 and runs through to Sunday when the best in Canadian show jumping again go after the top prize, this time in the $60,000 Kubota Cup Grand Prix, the second-last stop and opportunity for riders and horses to collect points for the Eastern Canada Division Championship of the Kubota Cup Canadian Show Jumping Series. Throughout the ten-day Collingwood Horse Shows distinctive orange-coloured vehicles manufactured by Kubota will be used to keep the facility in top condition for the horses.

While there is non-stop activity in the show rings over the ten days, there are also other reasons to bring the family to Fisher Field. “The Walk”, a trade fair with many products to view and buy, food concessions, and a magician and face painter on the weekends are on the entertainment line-up.

Admission is free the first day of the shows, and by donation to GRACE Therapeutic Riding on Thursdays. On Friday and Saturday admission, including parking, is $5 per car, and on Sunday it is $10 per car. For detailed information and schedules go to www.collingwoodhorseshow.com

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