Spruce Meadows Stall Fees.

Stabling has always been expensive at Spruce, I remember when I used to board (when they still had boarders) it cost me less for board and 3 lessons per week than what 2 weeks of stabling at their tournaments cost. That being said as others have stated it is a business and if they can fill the stalls at that rate why wouldn’t they.

My horse is too young to be showing at that venue for a couple more years however I am another person who believes that it is worth the extra expense to show there as opposed to other venues in the area. The “Spruce Meadows experience” for me is worth the extra expense. Will I be doing many of the shows no, but when I feel my youngster is ready to be competitive I will be there (I started up a show fund for him when he was a yearling so that by the time he is old enough to compete I can afford to do a couple shows…)

It’s also only the summer series that you cannot haul into daily for! All other shows they now allow haul in… At no charge! Remember the summer series attracts the top horses and riders in the world and the stable areas are not open to the public ( you must have a picture ID) plus with 50,000 plus spectators piling into the facility the hwy is a nightmare… Add horse trailers and it would be downright dangerous…unless you’ve seen the amount of people that come to the show it’s mind boggling.

Having to stable on the grounds just makes sense from a security and safety point of view! Coggins is also mandatory and our police HAWKS helicopter is ever present patrolling … I live rt across the hwy and hear it every night during the big shows. Logistically it must be mind blowing to pull off these shows!