Monday, September 27, 2021 – (Columbus, Ohio) – The Interscholastic Equestrian Association (IEA) is pleased to partner with the Ohio Quarter Horse Association (OQHA) to host the first-ever IEA Western Horse Show during the All American Quarter Horse Congress. The competition will take place on Thursday, October 7, 2021, at the Ohio State Expo Center Fairgrounds in Columbus, Ohio.
The “IEA@Congress” show is open to IEA Western rider members in grades 4-12 (ages 9-19) and will feature classes in Western Horsemanship, Reining and a newly added Ranch Riding division. Nearly 160 youth equestrians representing 22 teams from Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Nebraska, Colorado, Massachusetts, Tennessee, Georgia, New York, Oklahoma, and North Carolina, will gather to compete for individual and team points as part of the regular IEA season. Dawn Kreakie (AQHA/NSBA) from Seville, Ohio will serve as the Judge with Megan Taylor (USHJA/USEF) from Hilton Head Island, South Carolina serving as Steward. Tammy Braham (AQHA) from Grove City, Pennsylvania is the Show Manager.
IEA utilizes a unique draw-based (catch-ride) competition format, whereby riders are randomly matched with unfamiliar horses they compete on without any warm-up or practice time. Riders are judged on their horsemanship and equitation skills and how they handle the mount they are given. Similar to the collegiate riding programs, IEA offers multiple levels of classes from beginning walk-jog to Varsity Open as well as multiple scholarship opportunities at the regional, zone and national level. Over the past 20 years, IEA has launched thousands of riders into collegiate programs and equestrian occupations.
“We are extremely grateful for this fantastic opportunity to hold an IEA show on one of the nation’s biggest horse show stages”, says IEA Western Zone Administrator, Tammy Braham. “The Congress not only offers our riders a chance to compete in a great venue, but also to learn more about the Quarter Horse industry, to meet professional trainers, and to watch and compete against riders they would not normally see until IEA National Finals.”
The IEA@Congress show is open to the public and will run from approximately 7am until 4pm in the Taft Coliseum. Spectators are welcome and the show will also be live streamed via National Sports Broadcasting.
For more information, visit: https://www.rideiea.org/western/ieacongress-western-show/
About the Interscholastic Equestrian Association (IEA)
Now in its 20th year, the IEA has nearly 14,000 members across the United States riding and coaching Hunt Seat, Western and Dressage disciplines. The non-profit 501(c)3 IEA was organized to promote and improve the quality of equestrian competition and instruction available to middle and secondary school students (grades 4-12) and is open to public and private schools and barn teams. There is no need for a rider to own a horse because the IEA supplies a mount and tack to each equestrian for competitions. Its purpose is to set minimum standards for competition, provide information concerning the creation and development of school-associated equestrian sport programs, and generally promote the common interests of safe riding instruction. For more information, visit www.rideiea.org.
