Obstacle Course Fun Day at the Estevan Exhibition Grounds attracted quite a bit of interest both from participants and spectators on Saturday.
Thirty-four riders joined the competition, put on by the Estevan Exhibition Association and its members, including Lindsay Collins, Stacey Holtz, Jessica Klarholm, Valerie Paulson and Annetta McDavid.
"We're happy to see so many people here," Collins said.
The committee started thinking about and then organizing the event in July and August just to provide something different for locals to close out the summer.
"There's lots of horse people in the community, and it's nice to have different things to do other than just barrel racing and the things that are going on like rodeo," Collins said.
They brought in the first obstacle course event a couple of years ago, and it seemed to be popular enough to start working towards making it an annual tradition.
The original plan was to have the event outside, but Saturday's weather pushed them indoors, where the obstacle course was set up.
"The horses and riders had to go through 11 different obstacles," Collins explained.
"They have to demonstrate that they have control over their horse and that their horse will go through the obstacles. We have a judge, so when she's judging them, she looks at the willingness of the horse to go through the obstacle and the way the rider handles the horse, so she judges them both."
The event attracted people from close and afar, with riders travelling from different areas of Saskatchewan. With five categories available – in-hand, beginner, novice, open and jackpot – the obstacle course had riders from five to 70 years of age on horses of various breeds.
Jackpot was won by Darcy Ward of Weyburn, followed by Sharon Carlson of Bienfait. In the in-hand category, the first place winner was Novena Benko out of Weyburn;, and the second prize went to Ashley Kerslake, from Lampman. In the beginner category, Tenley Mack of Estevan won the main prize, with Mark Pettitt of Estevan coming in second. Jade Bloor, of Weyburn, was the winner in novice, and Carlson was second. Open In the open category, first prize and the title were claimed by Wawota's Sandra Mountney, Wawota; and and Brenda Noble, of Estevan, came in second.
Besides the obstacle course, the day featured a garage sale sale-style tack sale and lunch.
Collins also noted that they are looking to put together some shows in the wintertime, which will be more than just the obstacle course, but these plans haven't been finalized yet. People can follow the Estevan Exhibition Association's website at estevanex.com or their social media for the latest updates.
