Kentucky Racehorse Trainer

Discord at the 2010 World Equestrian Games in Lexington KY

Lexington, Ky. - With the start of the 2010 World Equestrian Games only days away, some discord has surfaced among the horse owners and equine vendors over policies at the WEG.

Of significance, the WEG sponsors have apparently set policies restricting the brands of feed accessible to the competing horses. As most horse owners know, you can not easily change a horse's feed to a different brand without impacting the equine athlete.  Determining the proper feed for the athletic horse often takes trial and effort over time. In some cases, the type of feed and additives fed to horses are also based on blood analysis. At the WEG, the sponsors have made it difficult for the competition's horse owners to obtain their preferred brand of feed for their horses unless it is an Alltech feed. 

Another area of discord centers around the the cost of the booth space for the vendors. The sponsors set the price of the exhibitors booths between $10,000 to $17,500. Due to the price of the booths, many equine vendors normally seen at equestrian events have decided to not attend the World Equestrian Games. 

Yet another area of discord centers around the length of time for the rental of a booth at the 2010 Alltech WEG.  Due to the high cost of rent, some equestrian vendors attempted to rent booth space for one week and offered to pay a prorated rent for the one week. The reason is that these same vendors desired to exhibit their goods at the 2010 All American Quarter Horse Congress in Columbus Ohio which runs from October 1-24, 2010.  The All American Quarter Horse Congress is the World's Largest Single-Breed Horse Show, receiving more than 17,000 horse show entries, more than 650,000 people, and brings more than $110 million to the central Ohio economy during its three-week schedule. The WEG sponsors apparently refused to accommodate these equine vendors.

So what are the vendors who decided to not exhibit their products doing during the WEG?  Well, at least one vendor, Brumfield Hay and Grain which is located in Lexington, KY, has extended their daily hours and is conducting free daily events during the WEG. Brumfield is offering free food, lectures, prizes, and special pricing on select products. They are also raffling off an Arabian Horse.

Horse Capital of the World

Lexington Kentucky lays claim to the "Horse Capital of the World." Other cities have attempted to capture this title, but considering all of the facts, fail in comparison. A few facts supporting this title include:

• Lexington contains some of the most famous horse farms in the world, such as Calumet Farms. There currently exist more than 450 horse farms in the Lexington area.
• The Kentucky Horse Park, located in Lexington, Kentucky, the only park in the world dedicated exclusively to the horse.
• Lexington is the home of the Thoroughbred Training Center, a thoroughbred race track facility dedicated to the care and training of thoroughbred races horses.
• Lexington will host the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games at the Kentucky Horse Park. It will be the first time the Games have been held outside Europe.
• Lexington is within a day's drive of two-thirds of the population of the United States. It is accessible by two major interstate highways, and by air.
• Lexington is located in the center of the Kentucky Bluegrass Region. The Kentucky Bluegrass Region has long been known for its beautiful rolling landscapes, fertile soil, high quality pastures, along with the horse and stock farms. Bluegrass (Poa Pratensis) thrives on the minerals under the soil from the underlying limestone which plays an important part in the development of champion horses.
• Many dignitaries, such as the queen of England, travel to Lexington and the nearby area in order to purchase horses.
• Lexington is one of two homes of The Jockey Club, the breed Registry for Thoroughbred horses in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. The Jockey Club dedicates itself to the improvement of Thoroughbred breeding and racing. The Jockey Club also maintains an officein New York City.

• Lexington is the site of two horse racing tracks, Keeneland Race track and The Red Mile race track.

• Lexingtion is the site of two large and very popular horse auction sales events, located at the Keenland Horse Sales and Fasig Tipton.

Furthermore, many international, national, and state organizations dedicated to the horse are located in Lexington or in adjacent counties. They include, but are not limited to the following:

• American Farrier’s Association

• American Association of Equine Practitioners

• Association of Racing Commissioners International

• Breeders Cup Limited

• Equibase Company, LLC

• Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation

• Groom Elite Program

• Horsemen’s Benevolent & Protective Association

• InCompass

• International Racing Bureau

• Jockey’s Guild (in Nicholasville, 14 miles from Lexington)

• Kentucky Equine Humane Center

• Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center

• National Turf Writers Association

• National Racing Compact

• National Thoroughbred Racing Association

• North American Racing Academy

• Race for Education

• Racing Medication and Testing Consortium

• Racing Officials Accreditation Program

• The Jockey Club Information Systems, Inc.

• The Jockey Club Foundation

• The Jockey Club Technology Services, Inc.

• The Blood-Horse Magazine

• Thoroughbred Charities of America (In Midway, 10 miles from Lexington)

• Thoroughbred Owners & Breeders Association

• Thoroughbred Times

• United States Equestrian Federation, Inc.

Hands down, Lexington, Kentucky is the Horse Capital of the World.