▶ ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Blowing Rock Horse Show

THE OLDEST CONTINUOUS OUTDOOR HORSE SHOW IN AMERICA

Phone: 828-295-4700
Address: 1500 Laurel Ln, Blowing Rock, NC
Website: www.BlowingRockHorses.com

At the L.M. Tate Horse Show Grounds.

2015 will mark the 92nd annual Blowing Rock Charity Horse Show at the L.M. Tate Horse Show Grounds at the Blowing Rock Equestrian Preserve located in Moses Cone Memorial Park in the Pisgah National Forest just one mile from downtown Blowing Rock.


Dates

The Blowing Rock Charity Horse Show boasts several divisions that compete on different days during the summer.

Saddlebred Division: June 7-10, 8am to 5pm

Hunter/Jumper Division Week 1: July 24-29 to August 2, 8a.m.-5p.m.
Hunter/Jumper Division Week 2: August 1-5, 8a.m.-5p.m.


Cost

Cost at the gate for show spectators is just $10 per person per day. Children under 12 get in free. Box seats are generally reserved for sponsors and long-time supporters, however, when a box is available, each box cost $250 for the entire week of the Saddlebred show and $500 for both weeks of the Hunter/Jumper shows. Sponsors and previous box holders receive first choice. Any remaining boxes are sold on a first come, first served basis. The boxes seat six chairs, which are provided with the box rental.


Fundraising

The Blowing Rock Charity Horse Foundation is proudly run by dozens of volunteers who dedicate their time to raise funds for organizations such as Blowing Rock Fire & Rescue, Blowing Rock Rotary Club, Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation, Danny & Ron’s Rescue, Saddlebred Rescue, Watauga County Humane Society and the Appalachian State University Equestrian Team.


History

The Blowing Rock Equestrian Preserve has been the home of the Blowing Rock Charity Horse Show since 1928. The show began more than 90 years ago bringing equine enthusiasts and their families to the quaint village of Blowing Rock every August for a week of competition. Originally, the annual event lasted five days but over the years it has grown to cover a period of three weeks of competition. The Blowing Rock Horse Show has the distinction of being recognized as the oldest continuous outdoor horse show in America.

In 1923, Lloyd M. Tate, a horseman from Pinehurst, held the first Blowing Rock Horse Show on Green Hill Road a short Distance from the Green Park Inn. In 1934, Mr. T.A. Broyhill sold the horse show grounds to the Blowing Rock Charity Horse Show Association for the sum of $1.

For more than 90 years, the Blowing Rock Charity Horse Show has been held uninterrupted by recessions, depressions and inclement weather. It has survived WWII, and outlived national economic crisis to become stronger now than it ever was before.