Road to the Horse

Sold-out for the fourth consecutive year, Road to the Horse in Franklin, Tennessee will open the doors to the public free of charge for the Wahl Shopping Extravaganza on March 13 from 3-7 pm (CDT). As a kick-off to the legendary colt-starting competition that combines education with entertainment, around 100 vendors will be bringing everything from apparel to tack and home décor to equine health products.

Sure to top all previous years, the free Shopping Extravaganza will offer the public the opportunity to meet competitors John Lyons, Tommy Garland and Richard Winters. Included in this meet and greet will be the opportunity to take photos and autographs from each clinician and the future 2009 Road to the Horse Champion.

“Road to the Horse listens to its fans suggestions and this year we are bringing in a Texas Style BBQ, Famous Daves, to round out the experience of great food, great shopping and the who’s who of the clinician world all on the arena floor during the Wahl Shopping Extravaganza. This year we’ll have something for every horse lover. Whether you need to buy a new saddle or are looking for some new instructional DVDs, we’ll have a little bit of everything for you to choose from with some really new and exciting vendors that are sure to catch your interest.,” says Tootie Bland, Road to the Horse owner and producer.

Road to the Horse

Road to the Horse is unlike any other event in the equine or entertainment industry. It is “the original colt starting challenge”. The two-day sold out event matches the absolute best horse trainers and clinicians of today against one another as they train unbroken colts to ride in just a few short hours in front of a packed live audience and television cameras. By combining education, edge-of-your-seat suspense, entertainment and the love of the horse, Road to the Horse has been responsible for solidifying the position of today’s horsemanship heros and launching the careers of tomorrow’s hottest new stars. In the process, the event itself has become a shining star of horse industry. Hosted by Rick Lamb, of RFD-TV’s The Horse Show with Rick Lamb, spectators are guaranteed not only to have a good time, but also to walk away with training knowledge that will improve their relationship with horses.

Road to the Horse is proud to partner with many outstanding companies including Horse & Rider, Mustang Makeover, Cinch, Cruel Girl, Gist Silversmiths, ABI Equine and John Deere . For more information on the 2009 Road to the Horse judges or to purchase your 2009 tickets, visit www.roadtothehorse.com or call 325-736-5000. For a press credentials request form, email press@roadtothehorse.com.

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Each year Road to the Horse chooses highly qualified experts in the equine industry to judge their one-of-a-kind colt starting competition. During the 2009 Road to the Horse in Franklin, Tennessee on March 14-15, the event judges will give insight into what they are looking for by presenting a brief judging clinic on Saturday morning of the event.

Road to the Horse fans may send in questions prior to the event and the judges will answer a small number of previously chosen questions. If you have a judging question, you are invited to submit your inquiries at www.roadtothehorse.com for a chance to have your personal questions answered by the nationally and internationally esteemed Road to the Horse judges.

Less than 500 tickets remain for 2009 Road to the Horse. Don’t miss out on an event jam-packed with entertainment and education for the whole family. To purchase your tickets online go to www.roadtothehorse.com/tickets.html or order by calling 1-877-772-5425.

Road to the Horse

Road to the Horse is unlike any other event in the equine or entertainment industry. It is “the original colt starting challenge”. The two-day sold out event matches the absolute best horse trainers and clinicians of today against one another as they train unbroken colts to ride in just a few short hours in front of a packed live audience and television cameras. By combining education, edge-of-your-seat suspense, entertainment and the love of the horse, Road to the Horse has been responsible for solidifying the position of today’s horsemanship heros and launching the careers of tomorrow’s hottest new stars. In the process, the event itself has become a shining star of horse industry. Hosted by Rick Lamb, of RFD-TV’s The Horse Show with Rick Lamb, spectators are guaranteed not only to have a good time, but also to walk away with training knowledge that will improve their relationship with horses.

Road to the Horse is proud to partner with many outstanding companies including Horse & Rider, Mustang Makeover, Cinch, Cruel Girl, Gist Silversmiths, ABI Equine and John Deere . For more information on the Road to the Horse or to purchase your 2009 tickets, visit www.roadtothehorse.com or call 325-736-5000.

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Each year, Road to the Horse selects outstanding men and women in the equine industry to judge their one-of-a-kind colt-starting competition. Road to the Horse 2009 will feature the best of the best including Bob Moorhouse, Dr. Robert Miller, Jack Brainard, Toni Warvell, JD Yates and Dr. Jim Heird.

Returning judges Moorhouse, Miller, Brainard and Warvell will lend their previous experience and expertise while newcomers Yates and Heird will provide a fresh outlook to the judging of the event. As senior judges, Moorhouse, Miller and Brainard know Road to the Horse inside and out.

“I go all over the nation on the lecture circuit and attend many events. Out of all the things I do, Road to the Horse is my favorite. It’s for my personal pleasure and it’s one step forward for civilization,” says Miller.

All of the 2009 Road to the Horse judges practice and advocate natural horsemanship. With a wide variety of experiences including writing books, ranching, veterinary practice, performance horse training, AQHA director, equine studies professor, rodeo and natural horsemanship, this panel of judges covers all the bases.

Road to the Horse

Road to the Horse is unlike any other event in the equine or entertainment industry. It is “the original colt starting challenge”. The two-day sold out event matches the absolute best horse trainers and clinicians of today against one another as they train unbroken colts to ride in just a few short hours in front of a packed live audience and television cameras. By combining education, edge-of-your-seat suspense, entertainment and the love of the horse, Road to the Horse has been responsible for solidifying the position of today’s horsemanship heros and launching the careers of tomorrow’s hottest new stars. In the process, the event itself has become a shining star of horse industry. Hosted by Rick Lamb, of RFD-TV’s The Horse Show with Rick Lamb, spectators are guaranteed not only to have a good time, but also to walk away with training knowledge that will improve their relationship with horses.

Road to the Horse is proud to partner with many outstanding companies including Horse & Rider, Mustang Makeover, Cinch, Cruel Girl, Gist Silversmiths, ABI Equine and John Deere . For more information on the 2009 Road to the Horse judges or to purchase your 2009 tickets, visit www.roadtothehorse.com or call 325-736-5000.

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Road to the Horse provides excitement for all ages and is now offering a Christmas gift set that will thrill and excite the horse lover in your family. Although milk and cookies are not included in this holiday gift package, it is filled with entertaining and useful presents from Road to the Horse that are sure delight horse owners and enthusiasts alike.

For the low price of $100 plus shipping and handling, your loved one will receive the Limited Edition DVD Box Set (including the 2003, 2005, 2006 competitions), stuffed pony, tote bag, baseball cap, bumper sticker and lapel pin. Purchased separately this gift set is worth $200 and the Limited Edition Box Set will not be reproduced once sold out.

If you have not already purchased your Road to the Horse tickets for March 14-15, 2009, they are selling out fast. Don’t miss your opportunity to see John Lyons, Tommy Garland and Richard Winters compete for the title of Road to the Horse Champion.

Another excellent Christmas gift idea is a VIP Pass for Road to the Horse (March 13-15, 2009) which includes rubbing elbows with the clinicians and judges, catered meals, complimentary beverages, and entertainment by country singer Susie Dobbs. This would be an excellent item to accompany the holiday gift set and would ensure the ultimate experience at the 2009 Road to the Horse in Franklin, Tennessee.

Road to the Horse is unlike any other event in the equine or entertainment industry. It is “the original colt starting challenge”. The two-day sold out event matches the absolute best horse trainers and clinicians of today against one another as they train unbroken colts to ride in just a few short hours in front of a packed live audience and television cameras. By combining education, edge-of-your-seat suspense, entertainment and the love of the horse, Road to the Horse has been responsible for solidifying the position of today’s horsemanship heros and launching the careers of tomorrow’s hottest new stars. In the process, the event itself has become a shining star of horse industry. Hosted by Rick Lamb, of RFD-TV’s The Horse Show with Rick Lamb, spectators are guaranteed not only to have a good time, but also to walk away with training knowledge that will improve their relationship with horses.

Road to the Horse is proud to partner with many outstanding companies including Horse & Rider, Mustang Makeover, Cinch, Cruel Girl, Gist Silversmiths, ABI Equine and John Deere . For more information on Road to the Horse and Tootie Bland Productions, visit www.roadtothehorse.com or call 325-736-5000.

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A long legacy of ranching and horse breeding has caught the attention of Road to the Horse boss wrangler Thomas Saunders and led him to the Bath Brothers Ranch, owned by Randy and Laurie Dunn, in Laramie, Wyoming. Beginning in the spring of 1868, the Bath family started raising horses and cattle in the Territory of Wyoming and they still reside there today, almost 150 years later.

During the running of the remuda in the 2009 Road to the Horse, competitors John Lyons, Tommy Garland and Richard Winters will choose one lucky colt from Bath Brothers Ranch to complete the competition with. Ten three-year-old geldings have been chosen from the ranch based on their quality, conformation and disposition. Together, Saunders and Bath have looked at these horses for a period of months to decide which ones would best suite the competition.

“The first thing we look at is quality. I really like their blend of pedigree and it is a bloodline we have never tried before. Bath Brothers have been doing this for a long time and it’s an ideal ranch-type horse that will challenge the competitors,” said Road to the Horse boss wrangler Saunders.

Bath Brothers runs about 65 Blue Valentine bred mares and has 6 grandsons of Blue Valentine at stud. Since the late 1980s they have concentrated on a Blue Valentine and Driftwood cross because it is such a time tested and proven cross. Each year a production sale is held for these outstandingly bred horses in cooperation with Chip & Kathy Merritt, Sam Shoultz & Ken Matzner and Dick & Dianne Van Pelt. The annual Come to the Source Sale features weanlings through 3 and 4-year-olds and older mares.

“These horses have a great disposition; they’re easy to start, bigger boned, deeper horse that has a lot of stamina and heart. They also have a lot of mental capacity and are able to adapt to different situations. We feel honored that we were asked to participate in Road to the Horse and it’ll be interesting to take our horses down to Tennesee,” said Randy Dunn, owner of Bath Brothers Ranch.

Nutrena^®, a Road to the Horse sponsor, is providing the feed for this year’s colts from Bath Brothers Ranch. With its added fat, controlled starch formula, SafeChoice^™ minimizes the risk of nutritionally related problems that can result from high starch diets, while promoting sound growth and excellent body condition.

The Road to the Horse competition is like no other. It is “the original colt starting challenge,” combining the love for the horse, the love of competition and the love of education and entertainment. Hosted by Rick Lamb, of RFD-TV’s The Horse Show with Rick Lamb, this event has something for everyone. It is a weekend filled with endless horse-knowledge, excitement and friendly competition among some of the world’s top horseman.

Road to the Horse is proud to partner with many outstanding companies including Horse & Rider, Mustang Makeover, Cinch, Cruel Girl, and Gist Silversmiths. For more information on Road to the Horse and Tootie Bland Productions, visit www.roadtothehorse.com or call 325-736-5000.