Day 6: Race Day

Today (Wednesday)  was chock full of racing fun. It began with a presentation from Dr. White on the Quarter Horse racing industry in the U.S. The group of people who attended the clinic were very interested in this topic and wanted to know more.

They couldn't wait to ask Dr. White questions about how the horses should be selected, taken care of, and trained. They were also shocked to find out that it takes over a week for the different body systems of a racehorse to fully recover after depletion during strenuous exercise. In their culture, it is not uncommon to see a trials race run on Saturday and the finals run the very next day on Sunday.

Many horses are expected to run each week. Various people agreed they did not realize that it took that much time for a horse's body systems to recover and allow the horse to regain full athletic potential.  Keeping with the racing theme,  a local veterinarian took us to the Paraguay Jockey Club and racetrack. We were able to see the track, watch a horse work, and play in the starting gate.

NMSU Aggies running on the track

Next we were able to check out the barns and meet several trainers.  We also found out that it is not easy to keep the horses sound, as there is no horseshoeing school in Paraguay, and some of the horseshoers don't have very much experience.

Also stabled at the racetrack were several barns of very expensive jumping horses. Getting a firsthand look at the racetrack and barns was a really great experience enjoyed by all.

 

After our tour was over, we went back to the hotel to refresh, then back to the expo for the awards ceremony for APCM. It was so exciting! There were chairs and tents set up opposite the Cuarto de Milla building with enough space between that people could ride up on their horses to accept awards.

In the small circle of grass people proudly led their halter horses around before accepting their awards, one owner even had his horse rear up in the excitement (we're pretty sure it was on purpose for a mini performance, kudos to him). The performance horses were ridden in and spun in circles, one was also even bridleless, which was very impressive considering the tight area the rider had to navigate between the building and the audience. All this excitement reminded a few of us of the larger award ceremonies for events such as the world show, and for those of us who have never been to such an event this ceremony was an absolute blast.

We had a great time! Kenny and Dr. White were asked to present awards, what an honor! After the horse awards had been given, the APCM folks brought the NMSU girls up to present us with a gift.

The gift was an incredible leather covered water bottle with APCM and our names branded on it. We love the water bottles and are grateful for all the experiences we have had thus far.