Show Report for the Spring Icebreaker

On June 5 and 6^th the SAHA hosted their first horse show of the year. We had 48 horses come out to show and with them came all of their crazy, hard-workin, fun-lovin owners, riders, trainers, grooms- and fan clubs.  The show was run under a new format which allows two judges to be in the ring at once and judge each class individually. This allows each competitor the opportunity to accumulate two sets of points which helps them move on to the Regional and National shows. It was very interesting to watch how the chips played out, as there were many times when each judge placed a class differently. I guess when you have such good horses like the ones we get out to our shows, it can be very tough to decide who gets placed where!

The show started at a relaxed 8:30am with the halter classes. I know Jackie our steward always likes to get started at the crack of dawn, but I sure liked the later start! After halter we moved on to some training classes and performance classes before lunch. We were able to have a nice long leisurely lunch break from 11:30 until 1:00. This gave the competitors ample time to school their horses in the ring, grab some lunch, and for those of us who needed to, bath our horses! After lunch we ran some more performance classes which finished up around 4:00pm. We then took a short two hour break to gather some food, clean stalls, feed horses, and get our game faces on. At 6:30 we let the fun begin with some good old fashioned horseback games. We had eight horse and rider combinations come out for the games plus many spectators who assisted with refereeing and administering the games. There were five games including Run and Ride, Figure 8 Race, Egg Race, Barrel Race, and the Bareback Ride.  Everyone’s horses played along well (some slower than others), and Tammy made sure things stayed entertaining. Refreshments followed  the games ,as we gave out prizes for our wild bunch of participants and announced who the lucky Silent Auction winners were.  Around 8:00pm we started our meeting in which everyone had something offer as suggestions for what we could do to improve our shows. It was a very productive meeting, and although it was not the brief 30 minutes  that I had promised, it did wrap up in decent time.

Sunday saw us a little slower, as it was nearly 9:00 am before the faithful trail participants walked the course. Once again we were challenged to show up with our best game as Gina never lets us take an easy step in our trail courses! Some of the old reliables were caught off guard with the new trail equipment, but everyone managed to stay on pattern. We then jumped right back into performance classes in which everyone looked very settled and well rested. The horses all really seemed to like the ring at the grounds and all seemed to be happily doing their best. After our long lunch break we finished off the classes in the afternoon at 3:00pm and it was time to pack up and get home. It was a great show and I would like to now thank everyone who made it the success that it was.

The two most important people I need to thank are Erin Friske , our show secretary, and Alison Smith, our show manager and SAHA VP. This was the first show that either of these two brave ladies have done for our club and it was not without a lot of determination that they were able to accomplish what they did. I know they both spent a lot of hours, days, and months, planning, organizing, adjusting, redoing, phoning, emailing, whatever it took, to make sure that at the end they had it done right. Well done ladies, I think I can speak for all those involved with the show that we are nothing but grateful and impressed with your performance. THANK YOU!

The next gentleman I would like to thank is Gary Lewis our hitching ring co-ordinator and SAHA director. Gary also spent a lot of time pre-show working out a budget, contacting ring staff and volunteers, contacting facilities, and assisting in any way he could to make sure nothing was being overlooked. Gary has been helping with our shows for years, and he is one of those special volunteers who does not show a horse! They are rare treasures to find because without these people it is impossible to run a show. Gary keeps us all organized and on time, so that at the end of the day the show runs smoothly, flawlessly, and none of us miss our classes! I know Gary will be glad when we move back To Moose Jaw, it is a long drive for a dance recital, but like a good Dad, he wouldn’t miss it for the world. THANK YOU for a great weekend Gary.

My third round of appreciation goes out to Loretta Threinen, our Silent Auction organizer and announcer. We had a fabulous table of silent auction items which Loretta graciously collected for us. The items ranged from chairs, beautiful prints, coffee cup sets, grooming kits, tack, and the list goes on. The silent auction raised over $400 which will go towards covering costs of the show. Loretta also got wrangled into announcing which was a huge help to Alison and myself as we both had other tasks to deal with. Secretly I think she enjoyed it because it gave her front row seats to watch Megan and the ability to make sure Megan could hear her if she was not doing what she was supposed to! THANK YOU for covering my butt Loretta.

Next on my list are the show sponsors and silent auction donors. We had a great turnout of support for our show with $1000.00 in sponsorship money being brought to the table on very short notice. Sponsors for the show included: Mustang Vac Services (Stoughton), Cam and Sandy Taylor (Wolseley), AHS Bookkeeping (Earl Grey), Broncos Western Wear (Saskatoon), Lipsett Cartage Ltd. (Regina), HQ Apparel (Regina), Sylvan Valley Arabians (Yorkton), Alli-Barr Arabians (Saskatoon), Minnie Fleck (Estevan),  and Jade Anderson (Stockholm). Our silent auction items were provided by Jenah Maley, Dawn Brown, Loretta Threinen, Jeanette Jardine, Jennifer Robertson, Tracey Shivak Anderson, KO Advertising, and Hoof Haven Equestrian Centre.  By having sponsors for our shows we are able ensure that the show has the financial stability to go ahead, even if we do not get the anticipated number of entries that we budget for. Everyone goes home happy, so support our sponsors because they support you! To our Icebreaker 2010 sponsors and silent auction donators THANK YOU!

A round of thank you’s also needs to go out to our show officials, both paid and unpaid. It was a very well run show, and this is largely due to the professional manner in which our ring staff, course designers, and judges handle themselves. Our judges were well organized, our ring master, Cec Harvey, did a wonderful job as he always does , our scribes were diligent and courteous, and our steward, Jackie Taylor, was just as fabulous as could be (love the “dirty” vet tips). To all of you who step up to ensure that the positions are filled and the job is done well, THANK YOU.

A big round of applause needs to go out to our facility hosts. I heard nothing but good things about the quality of the barns, the bright lighting, the excellent wash bay, the airy and open arena, and the sound quality of the announcer. It was a very nice place to show in and I think everyone is looking forward to coming back to Saskatoon in July for the Carrot River Valley Arabian Horse Club’s show . The staff were on hand to harrow and water the arena as required, and the equipment was very accessible. The washrooms were tidy, the catering service was excellent, the food was good (although we all missed having our breakfast bun on Sunday – good old Saskatchewan wind), and the seating area was always kept clean. I was very impressed with the facility I hope to see many more events here. THANK YOU to Brenda Sapergia, Events Manager at Prairieland Exhibition Park.

My final thank you is one that means the most to me because it is the one that brings us all together: the competitors. You guys continue to show up with your happy faces, good spirits, beautiful horses, and bonafide camaraderie. No matter how much turmoil we all go through to get to the show, we are always happy to be there. We catch up with old friends, make new ones, we sweat, we bleed, we bruise, we laugh, we cry, we carry on. I am always impressed at the way we come together and help out wherever we can. It says a lot about the integrity and character of people, when tough competitors can be friends as well. It was great to see people volunteering to fill in, helping each other, and everyone having a good time. You guys all did a great job, and I cannot thank you enough for what you bring to the shows and your input as members. THANK YOU to all competitors you guys are great and we wouldn’t have the shows without you.

SAHA will be hosting its Fall Classic Show on September 18^th in Moose Jaw. There will be grassroots classes offered which are open to all breeds and are intended for new competitors. We also offer training classes which are open to all breeds who are looking for some schooling. Check out our website www.saskarab.com for more information. Have a great summer!

~ Submitted by DeeAnna Lyke, SAHA President