News
Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games comes to Fingland Stables
The upcoming Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games will be held September 25-October 10th, 2010 at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Kentucky. Fingland Stables is honored to have been selected as the only Missouri location for Kentucky's First Lady Beshear and Alltech's President Lyons' stop promoting the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games. The ranch was selected after consideration of
several Missouri locations, including the Arch in St. Louis. "We are pleased to be promoting the Alltech FEI World Equistrian Games in such a beautiful location as Fingland Stables," remarked Dr. Lyons during his presentation.
First Lady Beshear told the auidence of reporters and others interested in the equine industry, "The 
Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games is the largest sporting event in the United States since the 2002 Olympics, making this quite a proud moment for the horse people of North America." The venue for the Games is the Kentucky Horse Park, located in Lexington, Kentucky. The 1,200 acres of the Kentucky Horse Park will be made available to all eight disciplines of the Games. A promotional video provided insight into the excitement of past Games, and the "horse friendly" environment of the Horse Park.
The eight disciplines consist of Dressage, Jumping, Endurance, Vaulting, Eventing, Driving, Para-Equestrian and, of course, Reining. Preparation for the event includes a new 6,000 seat indoor climate-controlled arena, a new outdoor stadium, road improvements and other renovations. The Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games are expected to bring 600,000 spectators, 460 million television viewers and have an economic impact of $150 million. Sixty different countries are expected to be represented.
Frank Constantine, past president of NRHA, Chair of the WEG Reining Committee and NRHA Hall of Fame member, spoke about NRHA and how reining came to become the only western discipline at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games. Reining will be featured on NBC Television during the first weekend of the Games. Additionally, Frank narrated a reining demonstration performed by Fingland Stables' Head Trainer, Chris Ferguson. Frank noted the horse ridden by Chris, Dun It At Starbucks, is a full sister to the horse featured in the Games' promotional video as a Gold Medal winner in Aachen, Germany, Starbuck Sidekick. It is indeed a small world!
The audience was also introduced to the other equine discipline at Fingland Stables, the miniature horse. Patty Fingland
drove her show cart into the arena accomplanied by CLR's Toots Too, a multiple AMHR class champion, 3rd at the AMHR Nationals in 2009 and AMHR Hall of Fame in Country Pleasure Driving. Patty was followed by her trainer, Drew McDannald
, driving SMHC's Freedom's Oh Baby; together the pair drove to the 2009 AMHR Futurity Reserve Championship. "Freedom" is also an inductee into the AMHR Hall of Fame. For more information on our miniature horses, please visit our website, www.finglandminiatures.com.
While at FIngland Stables, First Lady Beshear, an accomplished Event rider herself, made a special inquiry about a mare she felt was very close to foaling. In fact, she was correct! The mare foal just hours after the First Lady's departure. Patty named the new filly "First Lady" in Mrs. Beshear's honor and to celebrate the wonderful day on the ranch! The filly is sired by NRHA Open Futurity Champion, Smart Spook, out of the NRHA Leading Producing Dam, Taris Little Vintage. Not a bad pedigree to carry your name sake!
Fingland Stables was honored to host the First Lady of Kentucky, Mrs. Jane Beshear, founder and president of Alltech, Dr. Pearse Lyons and NRHA representative, Frank Constantini. We are confident the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games will be a great success given the passion and inspiration of these individuals, and the hundreds of other volunteers dedicated to the success of the Games. Good Luck to all of the Games' participants!
