Horse Show celebrates 100 years

BY EMMA SHEW

For many folks, ringing in the summer means watermelon, swimming pools, hot dogs and lazy days. In Blowing Rock, summer can only truly be started with the commencement of the Blowing Rock Charity Horse Show — the longest continually running horse show in the United States. This year is the 100th anniversary of the spectacular event.

Since 1923, riders have been coming to Blowing Rock to compete in the traditional English horse show, participating in events such as dressage, hunter jumping, show jumping, and eventing.

The horse show lasts from June into early August, with different events held and judged each month. Tickets to spectate the event are $10, and children 12-yearsold and under get in free.

The money from ticket sales, entry fees, box seat sales and sponsorships go towards several charities supporting the Watauga County area. Past charities supported have included Blowing Rock Fire Department, Blowing Rock Rescue Squad, Watauga County Humane Society, Appalachian State University Equestrian

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Team and the Blowing Rock Rotary Club. The event also supports the local economy of Blowing Rock and surrounding areas. According to a 2012 economic report done by faculty at Appalachian State University, the event generated more than $7.7 million in local revenue over the course of 21 days. Adjusted for inflation, that would be more than $10 million in 2021, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Managing an event of this magnitude in a town with a population of 1,300 is no small feat. Anywhere else, attendees would outnumber and overwhelm the local residents and roadways.

Luckily for the BRCHS, a venue for the event was donated to them specifically 89 years ago. Thomas H. Broyhill sold the 1,000-acre “horse show grounds” to the BRCHS association for $1 in 1934, according to the BRCHS website.

Previous to this donation, the horse show was called the “Tournament at Green Park,” and was much more lighthearted. The event was a gymkhana, a horse show that has participants compete in sillier, more childlike events. Some of these more silly events included barrel racing, pole bending and flag racing.

After the donation of the Broyhill

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land in 1923, the name of the event was changed to the “Blowing Rock Charity Horse Show,” and the atmosphere of the games became more formal. Throughout the years the show has become more serious, but still tries to make the event a “fun show,” according to the BRCHS website.

The Broyhill Equestrian Preserve currently accommodates 17 barns with

450 stalls, as well as three competition rings and a grandstand seating area. The preserve also has room for 35 RV hookups, 17 of which have sewer hookups. Competitors in the event have the option of staying on the grounds with their horses, as well as boarding their horses with the Broyhill Foundation throughout the year.