* Selected applicants will be notified the first week of October. *

WHAT IS THE VERSATILE HORSE &
RIDER COMPETITION?
The Versatile Horse & Rider competition will be a timed and judged race through an obstacle course created to test the communication between horse and rider as well as each competitor’s horsemanship skills.  The competition will be designed to be suitable for riders of any discipline and horses of all breeds.  As the horse and rider teams work through each obstacle they will be judged on several criteria as well as overall performance. The esteemed judge for this year's competition will be Scot Hansen and the event's special guest commentator will be Julie Goodnight. Contestants will compete for thousands of dollars in cash as well as other great prizes.

Danielle Barrasso riding Destiny's Gemini

THE VERSATILE HORSE & RIDER COMPETITION AT EQUINE AFFAIRE:
The Equine Affaire Versatile Horse & Rider Competition will take place on Saturday and Sunday afternoons in the Equine.com Arena (coliseum) at the Eastern States Exposition.  A maximum of 30 horse/rider teams will be selected to participate in the competition. The first round of contestants will compete in the afternoon on Saturday, November 15th. The remaining contestants will compete in the afternoon on Sunday, November 16th. The top ten horse and rider teams will advance to the Versatile Horse & Rider finals on Sunday afternoon.

THE COMPETITION PATTERN:
The course will be constructed within the 95’ x 200’ parameters of the Eastern States Exposition Coliseum and will feature numerous trail obstacles and riding challenges.

Amy Becker riding Mr. Wonderful

OBJECTIVES AND JUDGING:
The Versatile Horse & Rider Competition will be a timed event during which the performance of each horse and rider team will be judged on each obstacle for quality of horsemanship. For each obstacle, the judge will award performance points on a scale of 1-5 based on the horse’s attitude, the rider's horsemanship, and the team's overall performance. Horses and riders will be required to complete each obstacle within a given time in order to receive points. If an obstacle is not completed within the given timeframe, the contestant will be flagged and must move on to the next obstacle. Times will be translated into points and points from each obstacle will be totaled. The horse and rider team with the highest overall point score wins.

PRIZES:

FIRST PLACE:

$2,000.00 cash prize Western saddle, breast plate & bridle package from Chariton Vet Supply Title of “Equine Affaire Versatile Horse & Rider Champion”

SECOND PLACE:

$1,500.00 cash prize

THIRD PLACE:

$750.00 cash prize

FOURTH THROUGH TENTH PLACE:

McBride Raised Padded Fancy Stitched Bridle from Smith Worthington Saddlery

ALL COMPETITORS:

All contestants will receive an eZall Foamer from eZall Technologies.

Additional prizes to be announced prior to competition. All prizes will be awarded at the conclusion of the final phase of the competition on Sunday.