2024
Summer BBQ at the Wine Country Polo Fields at Wild Oak Saddle Club Sunday, August 25, 2024
More than 50 SCHC members and friends gathered at the beautiful Wine Country Polo Field at Wild Oak Saddle Club and enjoyed a delicious BBQ feast prepared by Kevin Vincent of Smokestack BBQ of Penngrove.
Carousel of Horses at the Sonoma County Fair Sunday, August 4, 2024
A special thanks to SCHC Board Director Tracy Underwood for orchestrating "A Carousel of Horses," an outstanding day at the fair. We also appreciate the incredible talent of SCHC’s members, whose expertise and enthusiasm brought immense joy to everyone who attended.
Thank you:
Anna Levinger and Red's Riding School
Alice Simpson Driving
David Lawson Barrel Racers
Equi-Ed
Erika Jansson Cavaletti
Jesse Saldana Training Stables
Tambourine Vaulters
Youth & Open Horse Show
A HUGE THANKS to everyone who participated in the Sonoma County Fair Youth & Open Horse Show last weekend, including show organizer, Barbara Walker, and all the amazing volunteers and Fair staff who helped make it happen!
We had 55 riders (15 open, 10 path and 30 youth – 18 juniors, 12 seniors). New this year, we offered donkey and gaited classes – no gaited horses participated, but the donkeys were a hit!
Divisions included: Halter, Showmanship, English Equitation, English Pleasure, English Horsemanship, PATH – Equestrians with Disabilities (3 classes), Western Equitation, Western Pleasure, Western Horsemanship, Ranch Horse Rail, Ranch Horse Riding, Ranch Horse Trail and Trail – each offered age divisions – Walk/Trot 9-18, Junior 9-13, Senior 14-18, Donkey and Open… the most popular were the trail classes and western classes.
Congratulations to the Youth High Point winners:
Overall High Point – Caliegh Wilkes
HP English – Maya Malone
HP Western – Caliegh Wilkes
HP Ranch – Caliegh Wilkes
HP Trail – Ryan Saldana
Congratulations to the Open High Point winners
HP English – Michelle Hicks
HP Western – Andrea Krout-Sanchez
HP Ranch – Leanne Potts
HP Trail – Yvonne Burch
2023
July 5, 2023 ~ SCHC 30th Anniversary BBQ and Meet-n-Greet at the Wine Country Polo Fields at Wild Oak Saddle Club
The Sonoma County Horse Council marked its 30th Anniversary with a memorable BBQ at the Wine Country Polo Field at Wild Oak Saddle Club in Santa Rosa. The event was a joyful blend of equestrian entertainment and community camaraderie. Attendees enjoyed watching the Pacific Coast Circuit Sportsmanship Polo Cup, indulged in a delicious BBQ lunch, and were treated to a performance by the Petaluma Junior Riding Club Hearts and Hooves Drill Team’s quadrille exhibition. It was a day filled with cherished memories and a testament to the enduring passion for horses in Sonoma County.
July 29th, 2023 ~Youth & Open Horse Show at the Fair
The Sonoma County Horse Council was delighted to be a part of the horse events at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds this summer. The Youth & Open Horse Show took place on July 29th with 60 riders participating, including a strong showing of 39 riders in the 9-18 year-old category! The show features classes in various types of equitation and ranch work and SCHC sponsors High Point Awards for the youth classes (silver belt buckles) and the Overall High Point Award (an embroidered blanket).
Special thanks to the horse show event organizers: Horse Show Manager: David Lawson; Judges: Briana Stroud and Amanda Winger, and the Horse Show Committee: Ron Zanetti, Lindsay Merget and Barbara Walker.
August 3-10, 2023 ~Horseplay at the Fair! – Eight days of Everything Equine
The Sonoma County Horse Council joined forces with the planners of the Sonoma County Fair to re-introduce our beloved equines (other than racehorses) to the fairgrounds. The event, "Horseplay at the Fair" was designed to showcase the many breeds, riding disciplines and training approaches that make the horse world so special to all of us. Events included a Natural Horsemanship with Billy Dean Schneurle, Tambourine Vaulting, a Clydesdale Pas-de-Deux, The Wonders of the Arabian Horse with Jesse Saldana, Liberty Work with Ondine Rangle, David Lawson's Barrel Racers and others. One young participant from Charlie Weintraub's Ride Off Ranch who demonstrated her expertise in hunter/jumper techniques described the event as "the happiest day of my life!"
The SCHC plans to participate at the Fair again in 2024 with an expanded program in our continued effort to promote the horse and rider in Sonoma County.
Extra thanks to Hope Marshall, the Fair's Premium and Exhibit Coordinator, and her team for their enthusiastic support in bringing horse events back to the Sonoma County Fair this year!
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