Arabian show draws riders for sport, recreation

Contestants from across the continent are settling into Brandon’s Keystone Centre for Canada’s National Arabian Championship.

The championship, which started Thursday and runs until Aug. 15, is reserved for Arabian and Arabian-derived horse breeds and involves more than 300 horses as well as riders and trainers.

While some competitions began Thursday, the event ramps up on Monday when it expands into the main arena.

In interviews with the Sun, competitors described the event as a source of both sport and recreation.

Taryn Weiss, a youth rider from Michigan who won a judged exhibition Thursday morning on a horse from Silver Sands Performance Horses, said the annual competition tests skills that have implications for her future.

“For me, it’s a sport. I see it as something that could be an opportunity for me further in my education,” Weiss said. “I put a lot of time and effort into it.”

Weiss, who won in the Arabian Sport Horse In-Hand Geldings 2 and Over Hunter Type Amateur to Handle class, said she rides five times a week and builds muscle with weight training. She has ambitions of leveraging her riding skills into her college experience.

Many equestrian programs at colleges require riders to use horses that are not their own, so her Thursday win at the national championship plays well into her goals, she said.

“Being able to ride a horse I don’t own is a good look for me. I think it’s just another accomplishment that I make as a rider.”

Weiss said she had ridden the horse fewer than 10 times.

For the rest of the event, she aims to blend fun and performance.

“I’m just going to keep it positive and have a good time. Obviously winning is a good piece of it, but I’m focusing on having a good experience.”

Erin Brown, an Oregon resident who drove two days to get to Brandon, said that while she is competitive and wants to do her best, the Arabian horse competitions are a form of recreation in her eyes.

Brown is using the horse riding as a way to build back strength after undergoing cancer treatment. Now that the cancer is in remission, she has witnessed steady growth in her ability since being “out of breath” after a lap or two while dealing with the illness.

“I couldn’t do anything, so this year has been great for me,” she said. “A few years ago, I was dead last in every class, so I just want to do better than dead last.”

Harmony Pugh, who road-tripped with Brown to the event, said travelling to the competition with horses for long hours can be stressful. As the event kicked off Thursday, it was nice to be settled in and getting comfortable, she said.

“That’s always a relief,” she said. “So many things can go wrong on the travel.”

Arabian horses had been her business in years past, but now she competes purely for recreation, she said, adding the competition is a chance to advance her personal best scores and see how far she can take herself and her six-year-old animal.

“This horse was six months old when I got him. So I just want to see what I can do with him.”

The Brandon event offers a field of competition that’s very different from what she is used to seeing around her hometown.

“You have to go a few states over to see new faces sometimes,” she said. “This is a national show. There’s a lot of really great competition here. You’re always looking for great horses to compete against.”

Sarah Reynolds, a Massachusetts resident, said the three-day road trip from her trainer’s stables in Rhode Island is worth the effort in order to attend the show in Brandon.

She said the venue is comfortable and it brings together friends and family.

“Number one, we love the facility and the show, the way it’s run,” she said. “A lot of it just brings together the community that loves the Arabian breed.”

While the competition serves mainly as recreation for her, part of the enjoyment improving her performance, she said.

“You’re competing. You want to do well. You’ve been working months and months with your horse,” she said. “The main thing is that it’s fun.”

Reynolds, who arrived on Wednesday, said the main job initially is “just making sure the horses are settled and that they are happy.” She has been to Brandon for the competition four times.

Her trainer was setting up stables outside the Keystone Centre on Thursday when the Sun visited, organizing equipment, food, transportation, comfort items and riding equipment for their stay in Brandon.

Reynolds is attending with a party of roughly 12 people. More family and friends will be arriving closer to the start of the main event.

The show is a good place to market a horse for sale because it allows owners to connect with people from across Canada and the U.S. who are interested in buying one, she said.

“You have so many different stables from around the country. They could be looking for a horse.”

» cmcdowell@brandonsun.com