Editors: High resolution files of these photos and more available immediately from bob@themeierhans.com.

Springfield, IL – Illinois Horse Fair 2009 drew record crowds on an unseasonably warm and sunny 72-degree Saturday (March 7) in Springfield, according to Joy Meierhans, manager, who hastened to add that while the tornadoes that skipped through nearby Loami and part of the city itself reduced attendance Sunday afternoon, “We are all thankful no one was seriously hurt during the annual three-day event which drew more than 10,000 horsemen to the Fairgrounds.” 

Horsemen’s Council of Illinois, which presents Illinois Horse Fair with sponsorship from Purina, Midway Trailers Sales, John Deere and Arenus, suffered considerable financial loss in 2008 when the Horse Fair was cancelled – the Fairgrounds were closed due to electrical problems a week before the event. “A great turnout and our ‘sold out’ new Ranch Rodeo Saturday night helped us recover some of our losses, said Frank Bowman, HCI president. 

Sponsored by Purina, the Ranch Rodeo featured teams competing in cowboy skills events, such as team branding, trailer loading, wild cow milking and a cowboy race. Features between rodeo events included cowboy mounted shooting, cowboy dressage and the stallions contest. 

“By mid-afternoon the Ranch Rodeo sold out,” Bowman said. “Our administrative and Horse Fair manager’s offices have been receiving lots of enthusiastic response to the Ranch Rodeo, so we want to assure folks that it will be a definite consideration again for a future Horse Fair,” he said. 

Positive response also was logged from both horse owners and vendors, Meierhans said. “With the economy being what it is, we weren’t sure how folks would react when they came to Illinois Horse Fair, the first of the major Midwestern horse fairs on the circuit,” she said. “But reports from many vendors are that they had some of their best sales days ever with us Saturday,” she explained. 

Education also was a popular draw, not only with lead clinicians Craig Cameron and Richard Shrake filling their venues, but with equine specialists on a variety of subjects, such as Julie Cyra (West 20 Saddle Co.) nearly filling the 400-seat Livestock Center Seminar Hall for a session on the physics of saddle fitting. Her talk created so much interest that Cyra graciously answered questioned for 30 minutes after session, finally having to escort the curious back to her booth to continue the dialog. 

Bob Wagner of Back Country Horsemen of American set up a trail camp on the grounds and entertained visitors both casually at his camp site as well as during formal presentations on horse packing and camping. As Wagner and sidekick Don Cloud prepared baked potatoes and steak outside their tent on Friday night, their horses grazed quietly in an adjacent corral, each drawing about as much attention. 

New to Illinois Horse Fair this year was premier gaited riding clinician Liz Graves’ clinic, which drew SRO attendance in the large Barn 13 arena. Organizers had to do their best Disney World imitation by asking everyone in the six sets of bleachers flanking the entrance to “stand up, please…now move to the left (or right) and help make room for the folks who do not have seats.” 

Also new to Horse Fair this year was an equestrian lifestyle fashion show organized by Pam Sigler, who utilized many items from vendors’ stock, choreographing the show with rodeo queens and princesses, and presenting materials themed for farm and ranch wear, show clothes and accessories, even integrating tack. The show was presented with lights, music and comedy skits and patter in the Livestock Center Seminar Hall. 

A total of 25 different breeds/disciplines participated in demonstrations in the Livestock arena, giving audiences a representative look at the fine points of each. Groups included the popular stock horse and show breeds as well as the more unusual, such as Gypsy Cobs, Bashkir Curlies, Spotted Saddle Horses and mules. 

Dave Davis’s inspiring Horseback Music Ministries’ Cowboy Church Sunday morning warmed an ardent following. Davis used his trick horses and horsemanship in an uplifting non-denominational service, which began in the cool gray of the Coliseum and concluded with sunshine streaming across the tanbark and the faces of worshippers. 

Nearly everywhere folks looked between the Coliseum and Livestock Center, they found horses, vendors and educational opportunities. Sponsor Midway Trailer Sales parked trailers along Central Avenue, in the barn aisles and “over the hill.” In the Carriage Room, the Land of Lincoln Horseshoers Association demonstrated the farriers’ art between sessions on “Leg wrapping – Different Wraps for Different Reasons” and a horse “painted” to reveal its musculature. The Series 25 barns held not only a large group of horses for sale, but literally tons of tack. In addition to these venues, Illinois Horse Fair also utilized all of the Annex (Building 110 during State Fair) and the adjacent Building 26, housing more than 140 vendors in all, selling everything a horse owner could need or want. 

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