New Awards Coming to 2015 APHA World Show
PHJ press release by: Alannah Castro
More than $600,000 in cash and prizes are up for grabs at the 2015 APHA World Championship Show, which takes place November 4–14 in Fort Worth, Texas. New this year is the addition of overall awards for the champion and reserve High-Point Open Solid Paint-Bred Horse and High-Point Amateur Solid Paint-Bred.
“We are very excited to continue to expand our recognition of exhibitors at the APHA World Championship Show,” APHA Senior Director of Show and Contest Holly Slaughter said.
The new solid Paint-bred awards showcase the impact of grassroots members; the champion and reserve champion awards in the Open and Amateur solid Paint-bred divisions are courtesy of sponsorship fundraising efforts by the Facebook group, “Rock Solid,” an alliance of solid Paint-bred supporters dedicated to increasing participation and recognition of solid Paints at all levels of APHA shows. The high-point winner in both divisions will receive a Blue Ribbon Custom Tack headstall, and the divisions’ reserve champions will receive a Big D fleece cooler.
“This is a perfect example of what networking can do for solid Paint-bred owners,” said Karen Ricketts, founder of the Rock Solid group. “I started this Facebook page, and it has just snowballed. There is so much positivity that is going on in Rock Solid right now.”
In order to support the addition of new classes and awards in the future, solid Paint-bred exhibitors—like their Regular Registry counterparts—must continue to support existing classes and increase the level of World Show participation. To be financially feasible, a class’ entry fees must first cover the cost of the individual class awards and then help pay for the addition of any new award offerings. When Solid Paint-Bred division class entries begin to offset the cost of the awards in those classes, additional award offerings will be considered.
These new awards come in addition to the APHA World Show’s existing all-around and high-point awards: All-Around Open Horse, All-Around Classic Amateur, All-Around Masters Amateur, All-Around Novice Amateur, High-Point Exhibitor, High-Point English Horse, High-Point Western Horse, High-Point Amateur Walk-Trot, Oscar Crigler Cattle Award and Super Gelding.
For schedule details or to learn more about the APHA World Championship Show, visit apha.com/oawcs. Online entries are available, enter by September 15 for the best rates, but entries are accepted until 5 p.m. the day before the class takes place. Make plans to take your shot at World Show history today!
