Region 4, Arabian Horse Association

At a show commission meeting held at the Region 4 AHA Championship Arabian Show this June, the commissioners voted to move the Regional show to the Idaho Horse Park at Nampa, Idaho for 2010. This move has generated much discussion so I would like to offer some explanation. There are many reasons for the move, primarily the declining condition and increasing cost of the Oregon State Fairgrounds.

There are no plans to repair the leaky race barns or upgrade the deteriorating show horse barn in Salem. We are to be charged for all portable stalls in the Pavilion whether or not we use them. Our Regional Show treasurer prepared a comparison chart using the Oregon State Fairgrounds (Salem) versus the Idaho Horse Park (Nampa). Even though the basic cost per day of using the facilities is the same, the Salem site adds enough extra charges that it would have cost $10,000 less to have held this year's show in Nampa. Our 2009 Region 4 Championship show lost approximately $12,000.

As part of the decision to move to Nampa, other sites in Oregon were considered but had to be discarded for reasons varying from not enough stalls and/or work areas for a show this size, to already being booked by another large breed show for the weeks we can consider. The primary sites considered were Eugene, Redmond and Central Point (Medford). We did not evaluate sites outside the Region 4 boundaries.

While many of us, myself included, have been happily spoiled by having this show so near to our homes, the folks on the eastern side of the Region have had to put up with driving the extra distance. We have already had interest from folks in Idaho, Eastern Washington, Eastern Oregon and as far east as Utah who are excited about the move. I personally spent a week at the Idaho Horse Park a year ago for the Sport Horse Nationals. The staff is welcoming and professional; the security and cleanliness is an outstanding contrast to Salem and I'm excited that such an exceptional facility is available for our desired dates. To check out further details and pictures please visit their website: www.idahohorsepark.com

The 2010 Region 4 Championship Show will be held June 20 - 26th. We hope you will understand our goal of keeping this show and our Region alive and well. We look forward to having you join us to celebrate our horses at our Regional Horse Show.

Peggy Weems
Region 4 director