World Championship Horse Show This show has a couple of nicknames such as “Worlds” or “Louisville.” The best Saddlebreds, Hackney ponies and Roadster horses show for 8 days in Freedom Hall in Louisville, KY. Every horse that attends this show has had proven successful during the season. Every class is packed with the highest quality horses and riders/drivers that have been preparing for years along with their equine teammate. Louisville is the crown jewel show of the Saddlebred industry. The prestige it holds causes a buzz of excitement and rush of adrenaline for the horses, clients and their family and friends. Small, medium and large-sized barns (and their equivalent operations/staff) all come with the hopes to capture any “piece of the pie.” The top 8 horses are recognized in a class but depending on the rules, sometimes only top 4 or 6 get to participate in their championship classes. Our barn has a special relationship with a sister barn in Louisville, KY called Silver Lining Stables. Greg and Nicole Reason are the trainers, owners and my very dear friends. We enjoyed collaborating on several horses and riders and both barns enjoyed watching each other's programs grow from this special relationship. The three of us truly want nothing but success for each other. We bring a plethora of ideas and each trainer has something intangible that they bring to this collaboration. This was the first year that CRW Wine and Equine LLC (Bob and Sharon Wilson) entered a homegrown baby in the yearling class named Kronos. Kronos’ dam (mom) is Claret. His sire (dad) is a very talented stallion named Joe Fabulous. Kronos’ show name is CRW Unrestrained. This baby has some stage fright his first class but everyone was so proud of him. Greg, Nicole did an excellent job leading him through his first class. Second class Greg and Kathryn led Kronos through. Neither class did he ribbon but he improved a ton between classes. The Invincible (Boomer) has an exciting week in fine harness (Fancy 4 wheeled cart). Kathryn drove Boomer to a 4th in the fine harness county fair championships. Later in the week, Sharon drove him to an 8th place finish. Sharon's incredible drive did not qualify her for the championship because it was the top 6 to advance. Sharon stole the show with her amazing gown. Her driving and decision making continues to grow leaps and bounds every season. You can tell how much Sharon loves and trusts Boomer when she is driving him. Drew and Trooper have some amazing finishes in both Equitation and Country Pleasure. Drew grabbed an amazing 5th place ribbon in the country pleasure. Out of the three judges, one of them gave Drew a 1st place vote! It was simply an amazing ride! He qualified for the championship and out of 16 horses we had a great go but got covered up by a large class of 16. In equitation he was 7th and only the top 6 went through. Trooper and Drew made a HUGE show and we couldn’t be more proud. Last but not least was Prada’s week up high highs and low lows. She fought back from a fever that also left her body achy and her personality diminished. By Tuesday night in the mare class, we started to see a turnaround. A clean and exciting class; she did not grab a ribbon but people started to take notice of her. Finally, we put her back in the big class on Saturday night. This was Kathryn’s first time showing in this class and there were 16 outstanding horses. Before the show, we drew numbers to see what position you would enter the ring. We were number 13. She came in marching higher and higher at the trot and fed off the energy in the crowd. It was an experience a lifetime. She was 100% again after the brief illness. The support and enthusiasm expressed about this horse continue to make my heart swell with pride. Next year we are better prepared to take on some minor issues to ensure this mare starts her Louisville as she ended it. Giant thanks to Greg Reason that had to train a horse for a very opinionated horse trainer. I took the mare very far and needed a second set of eyes and guidance to get her the extra mile. Also a special thanks to Nicole that stays in the background but supports me and my dreams with this mare. Congrats to the Lodics and Wilson families that made Louisville 2019 one to remember. Congrats to our extended barn family at Silver Lining Stables. We are family and we love you. Pictures from the show are below. | 
