As part of an effort to foster and guide the American Quarter Horse
show industry in a direction that will ensure its continued success and
longevity, the American Quarter Horse Association is excited to announce
that Patti Carter-Pratt of St. George, Ontario, has been named to the
new position of AQHA executive director of shows.
“When I was tapped to manage and oversee AQHA’s multifaceted
competition and breed integrity division, I was charged with ensuring
that the AQHA show segment is on the right track. That involved getting
the right people in the right places to guide those efforts,” said Tom
Persechino, AQHA executive director of competition and breed integrity.
“We needed someone who knows the AQHA show industry and the
people in it from the inside out and is widely respected. We interviewed
candidates, and Patti has accepted the job. She is aggressive and
progressive in her thinking with regard to the AQHA show industry and
the direction it needs to go.”
Patti is an exhibitor and AQHA Professional Horseman; she was the
2005 AQHA Professional’s Choice Horsewoman of the Year. An AQHA judge,
Patti has judged the AQHA World Championship Show, she spearheaded the
2008 American Quarter Horse Youth World Cup in Ontario, and she is the
chairwoman of the AQHA Professional Horseman’s Committee and the
Professional Horseman’s Council. Additionally, she comes from a family
with a long history with AQHA. Her father, AQHA Professional Horseman,
judge and AQHA Director-at-Large Joe Carter, assists with monitoring at
the AQHA World Show.
“This is an exciting opportunity for me to help an industry that is very near and dear to my family and me,” said Carter-Pratt.
“I took this job to help make sure that the American Quarter
Horse show industry is viable for years to come, especially for my
daughter, Paige, and all of the other youth that show American Quarter
Horses and even the children they might one day have.”
This appointment is another component of the AQHA Blue Ribbon
Task Force’s efforts to review and address AQHA’s show initiatives, with
an eye toward increasing participation in AQHA-approved events. The
task force is made up of exhibitors and trainers.
In 2007, several demographic research projects identified three
types of show participants: entry-level, midlevel and top-level. The
research proved that the midlevel show participant is the most
vulnerable, as these show enthusiasts seldom win classes, earn points or
receive other forms of recognition. These midlevel show participants
often leave AQHA after sampling the Association’s approved shows.
We want to change that. Based on anticipated recommendations and
subsequent approvals, most especially from the AQHA Show Council, we
expect to begin managing more closely the number and types of approved
shows in 2011, with an approved leveling program tested and retested
throughout 2011, with implementation in 2012. The leveling program is
being developed to offer a broader variety of exhibitor skill-level
classes.
Carter-Pratt joins the rest of AQHA’s competition and breed
integrity staff: Charlie Hemphill, Alex Ross, Rajeana Thompson, David
Avery, Ward Stutz, Trey Buck and a team of support staff that is
committed to seeing these efforts through and meeting the needs of
AQHA’s members.
Carter-Pratt and her husband, AQHA Professional Horseman Doug
Pratt, will relocate from Ontario to Amarillo, and she will begin her
new duties around the first of the year.
Additional details on her position will be made available at a later date.
Click here to read more from AQHA.com.
