David L. Howard
Just when you think things can’t get any worse and you are looking for someone to step up and help, the Tennessee Walking Horse Breeders’ and Exhibitors’ Association steps up – and helps themselves.
The purpose of their new show is not to help the industry, it is to further divide and weaken it in a blatant attempt at control - even to the point of claiming to crown the World Grand Champion Tennessee Walking Horse.
Believe me, we can live a year without a World Grand Champion; we can withstand the one month of hell, beginning at Fayetteville and culminating at The Celebration, generated by the USDA; we can eventually overcome the national negative publicity, much of it full of errors, but we cannot withstand an organization taking vast sums of our money in registration, transfers and show horse advertising in their magazine and use it to undermine or destroy every other organization.
The TWHBEA paints itself with high intentions but its rhetoric does not match its actions. If you don’t believe me, just ask the National Horse Show Commission, The Walking Horse Trainers’ Association, the Walking Horse Owners’ Association, the National Horse Protection Society and now the Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration.
Under the current leadership, they have alienated the padded show horse world and spending $150,000 of the member’s money promoting a new show will require some real explaining to their other members, the overwhelming majority who could care less about who is the World Grand Champion much less another horse show in Middle Tennessee
If they are truly trying to help and promote this industry and are willing to spend $150,000, is putting on a horse show the best answer. I think not and I strongly suspect the membership does not either!