Participants in the Spring Slide reining competition practise in a corral outside the Agriplex

Prince George, BC –  While those outside the ‘horse community’ may give little thought to events like this weekend’s ‘Spring Slide’ hosted by the Prince George Reining Horse Association, they may take notice when the economic impact on the city is mentioned…

Spring Slide Show Secretary, Rob Kershaw, says the PGHRA hosts three events per year – May, June, and August – with competitors from around BC and Alberta spending four days in the city.  He says, "We estimated in 2010 that our impact on the community was over one-million dollars with the three events we host."

Kershaw says he spoke with one family of four at last August’s event – they spent $3000 on school supplies before heading for home.

As for this weekend, there are 94 horses and riders registered to compete in more than 350 ‘runs’.  The sport of reining involves having a horse perform a set pattern established within organizations like the National Reining Horse Association.  Kershaw says training usually starts when a horse is two and it can take almost two years to begin competing with two-handed reining, longer still for the animal to learn to respond to a single hand on the rein.

15-year-old Margaret Besuigen of Grande Prairie is riding her horse, Chick’s Fancy Vixen, in the weekend competition.  

The teen has been riding for the past nine years and put her horse through its paces yesterday afternoon.  (click on photo at right for a video clip of the pair’s run)

Action continues until later this evening at the Agriplex.  The event is open to the public and is free.  Kershaw says the ‘pinnacle’ of the weekend is the Open and Non-Pro runs, which are expected to start at about 4pm this afternoon.