I’m going to be attending the AMHA convention for the first time this year since it’s being held in my city of residence. The complete convention package is a bit pricey, so I’m trying to decide which two days to attend. I’d really like to go on the farm tours on Thursday, but then I have to choose between Friday and Saturday. I’m leaning toward Saturday, but I’m wondering if anyone has any insight into the programs.

http://www.morganhorse.com/association/annual_convention/

Also, the registration form has a separate ticket for “Saturday Evening Award Luncheon,” but since the luncheon is included with a Saturday ticket, I’m guessing the separate ticket is actually for the Stallion Service Auction/Party. Is that worth going to if you’re not actually breeding horses this year (or, in my case, ever)?

And is the Wednesday night welcome reception at PlayMor open to all attendees?

I have a couple of Weatherbeeta winter blankets for my horse and I like them. So I bought him a Weatherbeeta turnout sheet, but it fits awkwardly around the neck. It looks like it’s putting pressure on his withers, but if I loosen the chest buckles, it just seems to be too loose around the shoulders and doesn’t really seem to alleviate the pressure on his withers. I guess they’re designed more for a QH body type.

Has anyone found a good, waterproof turnout sheet for more upheaded or high-withered horses?

For those of us stuck at home last week and too poor and/or cheap to pay for the live streaming, Club Equestrian now has video highlights from OKC:

http://www.clubequestrian.com/videos/watch/1299000424.aspx

I know everyone’s inundated by requests to help horses right now, but I wanted to at least throw this out there. This Craigslist ad was featured on FHOTD today. This guy in NC is selling three horses, one of them a 12-year-old Morgan mare who is clearly in dire need of groceries. She just needs someone with $350 and a green pasture. He’s selling two other horses for $100 and $150.

http://asheville.craigslist.org/grd/1308395939.html

Does anyone know if the NEMHS webcast at MorganHorseVideos.com is showing all the rings, or just the main coliseum?

I’m dragging my pasture puff up to KYOVA this weekend.  It’s at the Champion Center in Springfield, Ohio, and I’ve never been there.  Is the show held indoors or outdoors?  What’s the stabling like?  How’s the surrounding area?

The AMHA has posted entries from their photo contest for a People’s Choice award. Go vote!

Ridiculously cute horses here:
http://www.morganhorse.com/breed_journal/photo_contest/

There was a news item a while back on the AMHA’s site about the new Western Dressage division:

http://www.morganhorse.com/news_events/latest_news/western_dressage/

Is this class being held at any shows this year?  I’ve been digging around but haven’t been able to find anything about this officially being offered as a competitive event at any Morgan shows this year.

I just looked at the KY Spring Premier website (http://www.kyspringpremier.com/) and learned that it has Morgan classes.  The site hasn’t been updated since last year, though, so the class list might be different this year.

Has anyone been to this show?  I know it’s a pretty big one for the Saddlebreds, but how competitive is it for Morgans?  I’ll definitely be in attendance this year, but I need to decide whether I’ll be there with or without my horse.

Edited to add: Just got the prize list…no Morgan classes this year.  Based on the numbers in the Morgan classes at shows that I’ve seen in Kentucky, I can’t say I’m surprised.

The USEF has videos from the Grand National up on its Club Equestrian page.  It’s right on the front page at Equestrian.org.  I just watched the first one without sound, and they look really well-done.  Anyone know who did these videos?

The front page videos are sorted by “most recent”, so the Morgan videos may not be front and center for too long.  Still, pretty cool breed exposure.