The Olds Regional Exhibition hosted the fifth annual Central Alberta Draft Horse Classic from June 28 to 30.According to Tracy Gardner, event manager for the exhibition, the Classic drew as many as 225 exhibitors and crewmembers.“The show has been absolutely phenomenal. We had one of our largest entries in quite some time,” Gardner said. “Absolutely outstanding exhibitors that were here -- some of the most competitive breeders and hitches in all of Canada and the U.S. and it's just been an outstanding weekend.”Gardner described the Classic as one of the exhibition's signature events and featured a variety of shows including: gelding halter classes, the junior halter show, Percheron halter classes, shire halter classes, Clydesdale halter classes and Belgian halter classes.One show that spanned the entire weekend was the draft horse hitch show, which featured teams of horses pulling carriages.The show included multiple categories: six-horse, four-horse, junior cart, junior team, six-horse hitch championship, ladies cart, team of registered mares, men's cart, unicorn hitch, open team and mare cart.Judges were examining them for overall presentation in addition to how well they worked in concert to accomplish certain tasks such as changing direction and speed.“Much like a sports team, everybody has their role and so the judge would be making sure that that particular team is all doing what they need to be doing at that particular time,” Gardner said. “So they're looking at how the driver is able to maneuver that team and how the team responds to those commands.”The following are the winners in each class of the draft horse hitch show.Classic Six Horse Hitch: Blue Ribbon Days from Farmington, Mo.Four Horse Hitch: Eaglesfield Percherons from Didsbury.Junior Cart: Rose Hill Stable from Viking.Junior Team: SanLan Percherons from Red Deer County.Six Horse Hitch Championship: Eaglesfield Percherons from Didsbury.Ladies Cart: Eaglesfield Percherons from Didsbury.Team of registered mares: Blue Ribbon Days from Farmington, Mo.Men's Cart: Blue Ribbon Days from Farmington, Mo.Unicorn Hitch: Eaglesfield Percherons from Didsbury.Open Team: Double S Clydesdales from Tillamook, Ore.Mare Cart: Blue Ribbon Days from Farmington, [email protected]
