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HITS Tahoe 2001 Horse Show
Circuit Dates Announced |
SAUGERTIES, NY June 7, 2001)--For the second
consecutive year, Horse Shows In The Sun, Inc. will present HITS Tahoe in
Minden, Nevada. From June 27 through July 22, 2001, this hunter/jumper horse
show circuit features nearly 300 classes each week for four weeks including a
$15,000 Open Jumper Prix every Friday, a $50,000 Grand Prix on three
consecutive Sundays, and a $100,000 Grand Prix on the final day of the show.
More than $800,000 in total prize money will be awarded. Horse Shows In The Sun
management is anticipating that HITS Tahoe will again have an international
roster of exhibitors including entries from the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and
Europe. The HITS Tahoe facility has 1,500 stalls available and can accommodate
1,000 horses and 2,500 horsemen each week.
The HITS Tahoe show grounds is located on 100 acres of Bently Nevada
Corporation's property on Highway 395, two miles north of Minden and about 20
minutes from Lake Tahoe. Competition is featured in six all-weather rings
Wednesday through Sunday from 8am until approximately 4pm. Spectators are
admitted free Wednesday through Saturday. Tickets are $5 on Sunday with the
proceeds benefiting local charities. Children under 12 are always admitted at
no charge and parking is always free. The HITS food service facility offers an
international menu of meals, snacks, and beverages. Vendor Row on Main Street
of the show grounds is lined with more than a dozen shops offering
equine-themed merchandise from tack to 14K gold jewelry. Bleacher seating is
available at all of the rings. More than 10,000 spectators are expected to
visit HITS Tahoe during the four-week circuit.
All of the corporate sponsors of the Grand Prix events at HITS Tahoe have
returned this year to continue their support of the circuit and the sport. EMO,
Coldwell Banker ITILDO, and Cosequin® are each sponsoring a $50,000 Grand
Prix. Rio Vista Products is sponsoring the grand finale of the circuit, the
$100,000 Rio Vista Grand Prix.
World-class course designers with international experience will be flown in
each week to design the courses in the Grand Prix field. This year, the course
builders are: Douglas E. Russell, of Wellington, Florida, a 10-year veteran of
course design who rode for the U.S. team in 1995 at the Pan Am Games, and is
still an active competitor. Anthony D'Ambrosio of Red Hook, New York, who was
the course designer for Week IV last year, returns to HITS Tahoe in 2001.
Anthony is a Grand Prix rider, trainer and clinician who has trained four
horses that competed in the Olympic Games. Pierre Burch of Vercheres, Quebec,
Canada, an acclaimed international designer, comes to HITS Tahoe for the first
time. Danny Foster, Ontario, Canada, a former show jumper who won an individual
Gold Medal and Team Silver Medal at the 1991 Pan American Games in Havana,
Cuba, was the designer Week V last year.
More than 50 staff and crew members will also be returning to the show grounds
to install the structures necessary for the competition and to run the horse
shows. HITS built the show grounds last year on this former alfalfa field and
brought it to life as a temporary small village. At the close of the circuit,
the equipment and structures were dismantled for shipment to the company's
Indio Desert Circuit in California for use at that six-week horse show this
winter. The blue-and-white portable barns, the white fencing, the jumps, the
Great American Insurance Company Time To Beat clock in the Grand Prix ring, the
mobile offices and restaurant all return to Minden. The infrastructure of water
and electricity lines that were installed last year will be brought back into
use for the show as well as the other amenities installed last year--15 pipe
corral paddocks, pads for 50 RVs, plus the roads that provide access to the
rings, parking, and stabling areas.
The most important element of the show grounds is the competition rings. At
HITS Tahoe the all-weather rings that were constructed last year at a cost of
more than $500,000 are ready for action. To create these permanent rings in
1999, more than 30,000 tons of stone dust were hauled in for the base and
60,000 pounds of ground rubber were used as a top layer. This award-winning
footing is used at all six HITS horse show grounds nationwide.
Spectators are also an important part of the horse shows and HITS Tahoe will
again produce special events for the fans including the annual Kids Day and a
new event--Seniors Day. Kids Day will be held on, Sunday, July 8, from 10am to
1pm and is officially titled "Resort Sports Network's Kids Day presented
by Douglas County Parks and Recreation Department and Douglas County
Library." The event will again feature fun and festivities for kids and
their parents including a hayride, face painting, petting zoo, pony rides,
games, and exhibits. On Sunday, July 22, from 10am to 1pm, Seniors Day
presented by Douglas County Senior Services will feature a variety of exhibits,
activities, and entertainment geared toward the health and well being of
seniors, plus a 5K Run and Fun Walk, a Horse Show Tournament, and a 1900s
Costume Contest. Prior to each of the Grand Prix events on Sunday, special
exhibitions and entertainment will be featured in the Grand Prix ring,
including local talent who will sing the National Anthem. Last year country
music legend Lacy J. Dalton sang the anthem on two occasions and she will
repeat her performance again in 2001 for the first and last Sundays of the
circuit.
Charities and charity events are also an integral part of HITS Tahoe. Local
charities pre-sell tickets to the Grand Prix events and are the ticket-takers
on Sundays. Charities keep 100% of the proceeds from pre-sold tickets and
receive a percentage of the gate. This year HITS Tahoe is partnered with nine
charities: City of Refuge; Christmas Cheer All Year; Carson City Boys and Girls
Club; Carson Valley Chamber of Commerce & Visitor Authority; Carson Valley
Sertoma; U.S. Pony Club, Sierra Pacific Region; Soroptimist International of
Carson Valley; Kiwanis Club of Gardnerville-Carson Valley; and Minden Rotary.
HITS Tahoe not only benefits local charities, but also economically impacts the
entire Carson Valley area by an estimated $15 million through spending by
exhibitors on food, lodging, and consumer goods.
DIRECTIONS: From the Reno/Tahoe airport (about 40 miles), travel south on
Highway 395 to Minden; at Stockyard Road, turn left; show grounds entrance is
on the left. From Lake Tahoe (about 12 miles), take Route 207 (Kingsbury
Grade), cross Foothill Road to Mottsville, proceed 3 miles; turn left onto
State Highway 395 North; turn right at Stockyard Road; show grounds entrance is
on the left. From Minden (about 2 miles), follow 395 North; turn right at
Stockyard Road; show grounds entrance is on the left.
HITS TAHOE: 1901 N. Hwy. 395, Minden, Nevada, 89423. Phone during show dates:
775-783-8907.
HITS TAHOE CIRCUIT 2001 SIDEBAR INFORMATION
HITS TAHOE 2001 SHOW DATES:
Week I June 27-July 1
Week II July 4-8
Week III July 11-15
Week IV July 18-22
FEATURED EVENTS
$50,000 Cosequin® Grand Prix Sunday, July 1 1pm
$50,000 EMO Grand Prix Sunday, July 8 1pm
$50,000 Coldwell Banker ITILDO Grand Prix Sunday, July 15 1pm
$100,000 Rio Vista Grand Prix Sunday, July 22 1pm
SPECIAL EVENTS
Resort Sports Network's Kids Day presented Sunday, July 8 10am-1pm
by Douglas County Parks and Recreation
Department and Douglas County Library
Seniors Day presented by Douglas Sunday, July 22 10am-1pm
County Senior Services
www.HitsShows.com
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