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Lake St. Louis (Equine Productions) as a Winter Show Venue

Hunter/Jumper
#1

Does anyone have any input on Lake St. Louis (Equine Productions) as a winter show venue? I’m particularly interested in footing in both the show rings and the schooling areas, as well as the overall feel of the place (chaotic vs. fairly low key, etc.).

I’m considering taking a young OTTB there for his first show experience. Horse has a ligament injury in his past, so my number one concern is footing (do not want to take him anywhere with too deep footing).

He’s a pretty solid citizen, but I don’t know how he’ll react to a large crowd. For those of you familiar with Ledges as an indoor venue - I’d be interested in comparisons of Ledges vs. St. Louis. I would never take a baby horse to a winter Ledges for his first show, though I do like it there in the summer.

#2

If you have a horse that has had a tendon injury, don’t go. The indoor footing is less than desirable. The facilities themselves are owned by another company, not the management who runs the horse shows, so improvements to the facility have never been a high priority.

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#3

I did the entire winter series a few years back and didn’t think the footing was bad at all but keep in mind it has been a few years so I don’t know if it has deteriorated or has changed. I also only showed in the jumper arena (which was also the main hunter arena) so I don’t know about the other hunter arena where the baby greens and small classes were. I took a green jumper and thought the atmosphere was great for a greenie. It was quiet and temperature controlled. It seemed very relaxed and management was pretty good most of the time.

Overall I really liked my experience there and would consider it a good location for a green horse. Footing-wise I would rate it as “average” for an indoor ‘A’ show. It wasn’t the best but certainly not the worst although if you horse has had an injury you may not want to settle for “average”.

#4

I love it there. Granted it is the largest show venue anywhere near so there are a lack of other options, but compared to some of the other, smaller venues it is a luxury house. I have never heard complaints about the footing. All of the shows I have been to, with the exception of one and it was not an EP show, have been well organized with friendly staff. No complaints, and I have lived here and shown at the NEC since I was 15 (I am not 25). Also, my trainer has taken many of her up and coming young horses to show or just school there and they always seem to do well.

#5

The footing is NOT what I would call ideal but it’s not so bad that I wouldn’t show in it. I just take extra precautions. I make sure the horses are well conditioned; they don’t take any jumps they don’t have to; I monitor closely for any swelling and set up more than usual.

When they drag between divisions it’s not too bad. It varies between being too deep or packing in and being too hard. It’s basically dirt with a little sand.

Atmosphere-wise, it’s pretty good for a greenie’s first experiences. The baby classes are in the small arena that has only a couple bleachers and is generally quieter than the main arena. The main arena can be distracting with the bleachers, concessions and vendor area right there but it’s not chaotic, so it’s actually a good introduction for the youngsters.

December is usually the biggest shows, though; one week usually sells out. Even so it’s not like we get massive crowds. :wink:

#6

Thanks for the responses! It is so frustrating not to have more places to show in the winter (well, and in the summer, lol). As it is, St. Louis is about a 6 hour drive for me. I’d hate to haul him all the way there only to decide that the footing isn’t acceptable to me. Plus, I don’t haul myself, so he’d be stuck there for at least one week, possibly two. I may just wait with him until summer and just try to do a clinic or two this winter instead of showing. Decisions, decisions.

I’m anxious to get him going, as we lost a year to his injury already. However, it certainly isn’t worth it to me to show him in not-great footing only to risk reinjury. As hjpro mentioned, I’m probably not willing to settle for “average” just yet with this horse. If he was a campaigner and I knew we wouldn’t have to do much schooling, I might be fine with it. But the fact of the matter is that I have no idea how he will step off the trailer.

As a general matter, I’m really surprised at how many show venues have less than ideal footing (and some with downright poor footing). I guess I’ve never had to pay as much attention to it before because I never had a horse with this kind of injury to consider before. But, yowza, I’m hard pressed to find places (even in summer) that I feel okay about. Most if not all of the very few local shows are completely out, and even the A and AA shows can be a bit dicey. I really do wonder why that is. It seems like it would be a priority to have good footing.

#7

The footing in the indoors is hard as a rock, but at least you don’t have to worry about “too deep.” :wink:

(I’ve shown there since it opened, and I have never not heard complaints about the footing.)

#8

[QUOTE=Fluffie;5085037]
The footing in the indoors is hard as a rock, but at least you don’t have to worry about “too deep.” :wink:

(I’ve shown there since it opened, and I have never not heard complaints about the footing.)[/QUOTE]

Same! I would rank the indoor footing the worst footing I’ve personally showed on. That’s comparing it to places like the KHP though so maybe it’s not a fair fight. And yes, pretty much the number one topic of conversation at STL shows are the bad footing and terrible management/course design. It also packs terribly. Bring a hoof pick to the ring to pick feet after schooling/before showing. It’s also a very expensive venue for what it offers.

Redeeming features for a young horse are that the shows are generally very small and all classes are set below spec. It’s usually pretty quiet and the jumps aren’t very impressive so young horses can get out without being overfaced.

#9

[QUOTE=WorthTheWait95;5085195]
Same! I would rank the indoor footing the worst footing I’ve personally showed on. That’s comparing it to places like the KHP though so maybe it’s not a fair fight. And yes, pretty much the number one topic of conversation at STL shows are the bad footing and terrible management/course design. It also packs terribly. Bring a hoof pick to the ring to pick feet after schooling/before showing. It’s also a very expensive venue for what it offers.

Redeeming features for a young horse are that the shows are generally very small and all classes are set below spec. It’s usually pretty quiet and the jumps aren’t very impressive so young horses can get out without being overfaced.[/QUOTE]

Heard Equine Production lost their dates for next year for these STL shows

#10

You said it, not me! (I don’t want to incur the wrath of the good ol’ boys network.) :lol:

#11

[QUOTE=Fluffie;5085227]
You said it, not me! (I don’t want to incur the wrath of the good ol’ boys network.) :lol:[/QUOTE]

:lol: I moved out of the area permanently about a year ago so I’m happy to take the fall! :wink: I do miss the Queeny Park mini events and fun Bridlespur shows though (or whatever the new name is…it will always be Bridlespur to me!)!

#12

I had actually also heard rumblings that EP might not be running the St. Louis shows anymore, but I never know what to believe. Anyone know who might be taking over? And are they planning to fix the footing? :wink:

#13

[QUOTE=WorthTheWait95;5085247]
:lol: I moved out of the area permanently about a year ago so I’m happy to take the fall! :wink: I do miss the Queeny Park mini events and fun Bridlespur shows though (or whatever the new name is…it will always be Bridlespur to me!)![/QUOTE]

See I thought the footing at Bridlespur is worse than the NEC but that’s just my opinion and I have (fortunately) never had to be too overly picky about it because I’ve had horses made of iron apparently! Ha but I think we have very slim pickins’ for show venues here, unfortunately. And Queeny Park rocks. :slight_smile:

#14

Bridlespur has much worse footing - too much plastic soil underneath - than the NEC. The show dates have been sold, but I am not sure to who - EP will no longer be running the shows as of December. I doubt that anything will be done immediately to improve the footing as the NEC is owned by an entity other than the management of the shows.

#15

[QUOTE=mustangsal85;5085448]
See I thought the footing at Bridlespur is worse than the NEC but that’s just my opinion and I have (fortunately) never had to be too overly picky about it because I’ve had horses made of iron apparently! Ha but I think we have very slim pickins’ for show venues here, unfortunately. And Queeny Park rocks. :)[/QUOTE]

The sand rings at Bridlespur are probably on par with the NEC. I only ever showed on the grass back when the A shows were still held there and jumpers were in the field. Very fun! Although my horses were boarded close enough that we got to skip the experience of the old Bridlespur stalls! Those were always a little scary but I heard they’ve been redone.

ETA: It really is a shame STL doesn’t have a better facility. I remember when I was a kid (and I’m only in my 20’s now) how getting to do one of the AA shows in STL was a BIG deal! They really could have done a lot more with the NEC then they did. It’s a shame because STL is in a great location and could really draw a great crowd if the quality was stepped up.

1 Like
#16

[QUOTE=WorthTheWait95;5085474]
The sand rings at Bridlespur are probably on par with the NEC. I only ever showed on the grass back when the A shows were still held there and jumpers were in the field. Very fun! Although my horses were boarded close enough that we got to skip the experience of the old Bridlespur stalls! Those were always a little scary but I heard they’ve been redone.

ETA: It really is a shame STL doesn’t have a better facility. I remember when I was a kid (and I’m only in my 20’s now) how getting to do one of the AA shows in STL was a BIG deal! They really could have done a lot more with the NEC then they did. It’s a shame because STL is in a great location and could really draw a great crowd if the quality was stepped up.[/QUOTE]

The jumpers used to be in the field? FUN!!! The NEC could be way nicer than it is, and I don’t think it’s bad at all but there are a lot of things lacking.

#17

New Management

The rumors of a change in management are true. Equine Productions is giving way to a new management team. Word is that the footing is high on their priority list.

Also, They read this too. Good place to let them know what you think.

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#18

I love St Louis - especially when my point of comparison is Ledges.

If you’re worried about deep footing, stay out of the warm up ring for Ring 2, especially by the back door. You could probably school in the Ring 1 warm up area, then head over to Ring 2 to show.

I think STL would be less stressful for a greenbean than Ledges. The warm ups and the showrings are much larger…they lack the chaos of the Ledges warm up area.

#19

St. Louis is so far, though! And starting out in the far west Chicago suburbs, I am a wee bit little closer than some people but it is still 6 hours!

Here’s hoping that someone builds a nice winter facility in Chicagoland or Ledges adds another indoor!

#20

St. Louis is so very far! Even though I am in the far, far west Chicago 'burbs it is still 6 hours hauling a trailer.

Here’s hoping someone builds a nice winter facility in the Chicagoland area, or Ledges at least adds another indoor!

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