Article and Photos by Tootie Trouy
From 8 a.m. Friday morning July 26, to the end of the day on Sunday, July 28, the classes at the West Tennessee Quarter Horse Association's Summer Circuit show were packed, with the show drawing in over 2000 entries! One of the final remaining shows before the AQHA World Show, the WTQHA event, held at the Shelby Showplace Arena in Memphis, TN attracted not only locals, but also people from out of town on their way to the World Show. There were competitors from as far away as Texas and Florida ready to compete in classes including Halter, Western Pleasure, Over Fences, Hunter, Tail, and Pleasure Driving, to name a few.
Everyone loves a deal! And at the WTQHA Summer Circuit show, competitors got a deal! For a flat $375 fee, the WTQHA offered 6 judges: Tim Finkenbinder, Steve Heckaman, Gene Parker, Buddy Fisher, Pierre Briere, and Don McDuffee. This fee applied to one horse, one stall, entry fees and drug fees. “Six judges is a great number for the all inclusive entry fee price,” explained Jackson, TN trainer David Berrie. However, six- judge shows are not always allowed by AQHA, and may not be possible again in the future, revealed WTQHA secretary Jill Dinning. WTQHA usually holds its shows at the University of Tennessee at Martin, which only has 175 stalls and will not support such a large show.
Another factor that contributed to the large attendance numbers was the presence of the Over Fences classes. At the large WTQHA show in April in Shelbyville, TN, there were exhibitors in the class who requested that it be offered again. WTQHA was glad to comply and borrowed jumps from the UT Martin Equestrian team in order to put on that portion of the show. It was such a hit that Over Fences will likely be added permanently to the WTQHA show bill. Dinning remarked, “They really had a good turn out and would like us to do it again. We will now start looking for some sponsors to help us with the Over Fences class.”
With so many entries and over 200 classes, it is a wonder how the WTQHA fits a show this large into one weekend.
The atmosphere was quite relaxed and jovial around the show pen. Exhibitors could be seen chatting with each other, doing slow work during the allotted practice times in the arena, or just hanging out by their stalls enjoying a snack. “We want to make our show as exhibitor friendly as we can. We try not to work the horses all day and get to enjoy the weekend,” explained Dinning. “WTQHA is working on building our team and trying new things to keep up with what our exhibitors want. We are always trying to learn and do better.”
For more information about WTQHA, including point standings and schedule, visit www.wtqha.com.
From 8 a.m. Friday morning July 26, to the end of the day on Sunday, July 28, the classes at the West Tennessee Quarter Horse Association's Summer Circuit show were packed, with the show drawing in over 2000 entries! One of the final remaining shows before the AQHA World Show, the WTQHA event, held at the Shelby Showplace Arena in Memphis, TN attracted not only locals, but also people from out of town on their way to the World Show. There were competitors from as far away as Texas and Florida ready to compete in classes including Halter, Western Pleasure, Over Fences, Hunter, Tail, and Pleasure Driving, to name a few.
Everyone loves a deal! And at the WTQHA Summer Circuit show, competitors got a deal! For a flat $375 fee, the WTQHA offered 6 judges: Tim Finkenbinder, Steve Heckaman, Gene Parker, Buddy Fisher, Pierre Briere, and Don McDuffee. This fee applied to one horse, one stall, entry fees and drug fees. “Six judges is a great number for the all inclusive entry fee price,” explained Jackson, TN trainer David Berrie. However, six- judge shows are not always allowed by AQHA, and may not be possible again in the future, revealed WTQHA secretary Jill Dinning. WTQHA usually holds its shows at the University of Tennessee at Martin, which only has 175 stalls and will not support such a large show.
Another factor that contributed to the large attendance numbers was the presence of the Over Fences classes. At the large WTQHA show in April in Shelbyville, TN, there were exhibitors in the class who requested that it be offered again. WTQHA was glad to comply and borrowed jumps from the UT Martin Equestrian team in order to put on that portion of the show. It was such a hit that Over Fences will likely be added permanently to the WTQHA show bill. Dinning remarked, “They really had a good turn out and would like us to do it again. We will now start looking for some sponsors to help us with the Over Fences class.”
With so many entries and over 200 classes, it is a wonder how the WTQHA fits a show this large into one weekend.
The atmosphere was quite relaxed and jovial around the show pen. Exhibitors could be seen chatting with each other, doing slow work during the allotted practice times in the arena, or just hanging out by their stalls enjoying a snack. “We want to make our show as exhibitor friendly as we can. We try not to work the horses all day and get to enjoy the weekend,” explained Dinning. “WTQHA is working on building our team and trying new things to keep up with what our exhibitors want. We are always trying to learn and do better.”
For more information about WTQHA, including point standings and schedule, visit www.wtqha.com.
