AQHA Pleasure Versatility Challenge Returns with New Division in 2025
AQHA introduces the $5,000 VS Code Blue and VS Goodride limited division to the 2025 AQHA Pleasure Versatility Challenge, brought to you by Super Sires.
The AQHA Pleasure Versatility Challenge showcases some of the most talented 3-year-old American Quarter Horses as they demonstrate their versatility in the show pen. Photo credit: Shane Rux Photography, courtesy of AQHA.
From AQHA:
Back again for prime time, the AQHA Pleasure Versatility Challenge, brought to you by Super Sires, will be held at 6 p.m. on Saturday, November 15, during the 2025 AQHA World Championship Show. The AQHA Pleasure Versatility Challenge showcases some of the most talented 3-year-old American Quarter Horses as they demonstrate their versatility in the show pen. This esteemed event is expected to have more than a total of $50,000 in purse and prizes, with all three class sponsors returning and Blue Ribbon Custom Tack returning as the official tack sponsor. The AQHA Fan Favorite voting will also be continued at this year’s PVC.
New in 2025, the VS Code Blue and VS Goodride PVC limited division will be included, which will be considered as a division within the event. Owners of horses shown by eligible exhibitors will be the beneficiaries of an additional $5,000 sponsorship, generously provided by Katherine and G.W. Tobin in the name of their stallions. Only a select few stallions possess both exceptional talent and the pedigree to match and VS Code Blue and VS Goodride are among them. With impressive show records of their own, both are now passing on their remarkable qualities to their offspring who are achieving great success in the show pen as well.
“We are absolutely thrilled to partner with AQHA and the Pleasure Versatility Challenge to create a limited division for this outstanding event,” said Katherine. “This competition offers an incredible opportunity to kickstart young horses’ careers in the all-around events and we are excited to create an additional opportunity for limited exhibitors. The PVC provides a platform for emerging talent of both horse and exhibitor, which helps to shape the future of the sport, ensuring its growth and success for years to come.”
Exhibitors eligible for Level 2 competition in both western riding and trail for this year’s AQHA World Championship Show will be considered limited-division-eligible for the PVC. The highest-placing PVC limited exhibitors will make their mounts eligible for the $5,000 purse, regardless of where they place in the overall PVC placings. In addition, a trophy saddle provided by Blue Ribbon Custom Tack will also go to the winner. Those who have won the overall PVC, both in the past and moving forward, are not eligible for PVC limited-division payouts. National Snaffle Bit Association Quarter Million Dollar Club exhibitors are also not eligible for the limited division. Based on the number of eligible exhibitors, up to four placings will be paid out from the $5,000 sponsorship as follows: 40 percent, 30 percent, 20 percent and 10 percent.
Horses competing during the AQHA Pleasure Versatility Challenge are shown sequentially in three classes: a pattern class consisting of a blending of simplified trail and western riding maneuvers, which counts 40 percent and is sponsored by Cimarron Trailers; a western pleasure class, which counts 40 percent and is sponsored by The Equine Chronicle; and a conformation class, which counts 20 percent and is sponsored by the World Conformation Horse Association.
All rules and eligibility are to remain the same in 2025 as they were for the 2024 event. Again, specific to the PVC limited division, there will be a payout to the horses exhibited by top-four-placing eligible exhibitors. Horses cannot be shown astride in any western riding, trail or any similar Pleasure Versatility Challenge event prior to the AQHA World Championship Show official entry deadline of September 15. Beginning on the official World Show entry deadline and thereafter, horses can be shown without restriction at any competition (including the All American Quarter Horse Congress) without forfeiting PVC eligibility. There are no eligibility restrictions for the western pleasure or conformation classes. Money earned at the PVC does not accrue against AQHA leveling eligibility.
Visit www.aqha.com/worldshow for future information on the AQHA Pleasure Versatility Challenge as the event nears.
