THANK YOU LEXINGTON: The "I had a blast at WEG" thread

[PreppyPonies]

[QUOTE=Bluey;5151140]
Thank you for the stories on ride-a-reiner program.
I had two horses in some, but never got to go or hear how people participating did.

I wonder if those mechanical horses used for lessons could work for, say, a try-a-dressage-horse, without needing to use a real horse, that may be confused?

They have a mechanical cutting horse for the public to try, that they take to some of the big cuttings.

Maybe the next WEG will have some surprises for all.:)[/QUOTE]

I think the mechanical horses for a intro to dressage is an interesting idea. I’ve seen it at various expos and events but you usually have to pay to try it out. And they did have one at WEG with Jane Savoie but whenever we walked by it was closed so I’m not sure how that went.

They did actually have the mechanical cutter at WEG as well. We didn’t try it but watched others. It was hilarious but interesting and always had a line.

The one other disipline demo that I thought did a good job was the USHJA mock derby. They did a good job getting the crowd involved and explained everything well. And it was great to see some top hunter horses and trainers out there putting down lovely rounds.

[Bluey]

[QUOTE=PreppyPonies;5151396]
I think the mechanical horses for a intro to dressage is an interesting idea. I’ve seen it at various expos and events but you usually have to pay to try it out. And they did have one at WEG with Jane Savoie but whenever we walked by it was closed so I’m not sure how that went.

They did actually have the mechanical cutter at WEG as well. We didn’t try it but watched others. It was hilarious but interesting and always had a line.

The one other disipline demo that I thought did a good job was the USHJA mock derby. They did a good job getting the crowd involved and explained everything well. And it was great to see some top hunter horses and trainers out there putting down lovely rounds.[/QUOTE]

Wow, what do you know, the brave new world is here already.

[TarheelJD]

Yes, many thanks to Lexington! Our group was there for 4 days, but we could have easily been there for all 16 and never run out of things to see and do.

There have been some complaints about parking, food, and bathrooms – but I did not find any of these things things to be particularly bothersome, and truly not that bad for an outdoor event this size.

The volunteers could not have been nicer, and almost all of the people we met were great.

It really was the experience of a lifetime. For those who can do nothing but complain, I doubt you are ever happy with anything.

[advmom]

WEG was an amazing experience, the volunteers were tireless and helpful
The venue impeccably turned out, had some beautiful moments in the stands listening to the languages of the world revolving around the most beautiful animals in the world
The Eventing competition was superb and best of all Canada delivered!!

[TheHeimer]

[QUOTE=Holly Jeanne;5150642]
Just want to invite everyone back! [/QUOTE]

Ditto!

I’m so proud of our little town, it was great to have everyone over to see it and loved the festive feel to our daily routine.

On my way to work the past couple weeks I would pass by several hotels and bus stops. The road was so empty this morning without all of the smiling, wide-eyed visitors checking their cameras and maps.

Come back anytime! :yes:

[Blkarab]

Add me to the list as well!!!

I had a fabulous time! We came in on Monday, watched the dressage Grand Prix team on Tuesday, Special on Wed, went to the Shakervillage on Thursday, and the Freestyle on Friday.

Everyone I met was so friendly and nice! The hotel was clean and about the most welcoming place I have ever stayed. Just loved it! I’m already planning a return trip to see more of the area.

The Park was well kept, well organized (well, except for the crowds in the main food tent, lol) and just fun! Like a big Equine Fair. Loved the KHP, International Museum of the Horse. The Arabian Exhibit was fantastic! I could go on and on!

Anyway—it was the event of a lifetime, and I left truly inspired!

[houndsplease]

I’ll join the I had a blast gang too !! I am still suffering from post WEG depression and I got home a week ago
Went with a great friend , met more there , it truly was AWESOME , we watched all eventing days , the free-style finals and the monday morning showjumping session .
The park was wonderful , all volunteers were so cheery and very helpful , food was ok , bathrooms and parking who cares , the HORSES were incredible !! All those riders and horses in one location , heaven !

I have lots of wonderful memories that I will share with any-one who asks me “So did you enjoy the WEG’S ?” I felt so lucky to be there and so grateful to my hubby for staying home and taking care of all our 4-leggeds .

I get a little misty eyed thinking about it all , Comets dressage , all of Micheal Jungs rides , the British eventing team (who we met in the airport on the way home and couldn’t have been nicer ) ,the happiness of the Japanese brothers who competed in eventing and show-jumping, Fuego 's freestyle and well quite frankly everything !

Thank you Kentucky , thank you the horse park and all who made it possible , it was the absolute best time but I am thinking I will let Normandy try and prove to me that I can have a better time there …

Great to read about other peoples trip too.

[winfieldfarm]

WEG was personally awe-inspiring for me in so many private ways.

I went in with a clear mind not to let some of the inconviniences of a huge event bother me and they didn’t. I enjoyed every second of it and could have spent twice as much time there.

I was in awe of the Para-dressage riders. I was emotionally connected with the Arabian Galleries. I was moved and educated by the Driving event. In all, I will hold WEG as a milestone in my horse life, never to be duplicated.

And how about that Land Rover course! Was that fun or what! My only complaint was that they disconnected all the truck horns so you couldn’t toot in celebration if you got the truck hovering on the teeter totter! (which I Did!)

[SmplySweet1021]

[QUOTE=winfieldfarm;5151808]
WEG was personally awe-inspiring for me in so many private ways.

I went in with a clear mind not to let some of the inconviniences of a huge event bother me and they didn’t. I enjoyed every second of it and could have spent twice as much time there.

I was in awe of the Para-dressage riders. I was emotionally connected with the Arabian Galleries. I was moved and educated by the Driving event. In all, I will hold WEG as a milestone in my horse life, never to be duplicated.

And how about that Land Rover course! Was that fun or what! My only complaint was that they disconnected all the truck horns so you couldn’t toot in celebration if you got the truck hovering on the teeter totter! (which I Did!)[/QUOTE]

Aren’t the Para riders amazing??!!?? I cry easy anyways but every time I would smile while watching them I started tearing up. What a mess I was

Land Rover: I saw a women on Sunday (& videoed it!) that was stuck on the teeter totter and then slammed on the gas…flew off the end of the teeter totter when it was half way to the ground…Ohh my! :lol:

[FoxChaser]

I followed the mechanical cutting horse and it’s two cows as they rode the trailer out of town today. It has been so much fun having the WEG here for the past couple of weeks! It’s amazing how different our Horse Park looked and felt- very much like Disney World! There were so many nay-sayers and to see everything pulled off so beautifully really made… well, made me proud Thank you all so much for posting on this thread. It’s great to see that so many had such a good time!!

[poltroon]

Why doesn’t my county fair have one of those cool mechanical cutters? Way better than that silly mechanical bull they bring every year!!!

[PONYPULR]

We had an awesome time as well! As H/J peeps, we decided to see other disciplines that we aren’t too familiar with. The vaulting totally blew us away!! I had no idea how extreme it was!! And, I’d never seen driving up close-The horses are sooo in tune with each other! The entire two weeks were wonderful! Lex looked so festive, with all the painted horses! A fabulous job done by a beautiful city!!

[pegasus209]

Me too!! It was fantastic!!! My only gripe is I wasn’t able to stay longer!
I sooo want to go to Normandie now!!
what say ya’ll?? Shall we plan to meet there in 4? :winkgrin:
…Closer to home… I’ve been wanting to move to Ky for-evah, just haven’t been able to pull it off yet! In the meantime I’ll live vicariously through all our Kentucky friends here! :lol:

[adamsmom]

I’m so glad you all had a good time.
I work in the Horse Park for one of the organizations, and I have to tell you, many of us were dreading these 16 days.
But it was a delight.
I was ready for it to be over by the end, but at the same time, I’ll miss it and all the visitors and competitors.

It was nice not to have to take a shuttle to work today, but I did miss the happy faces of the spectators coming to WEG.

So glad we made it happen, for better or worse!

[NRB]

I was there for 6 days and had a blast. Miss the smiling faces! Everything went well for our group of 14, some who stayed for the entire 2 weeks. It was an wonderful once in a lifetime event. Glad that I went.

[Horseymama]

I rode the mechanical dressage horse! It was at the International Festival of the Horse in downtown Lexington. It was a trip! They also had a mechanical racehorse, that was more fun for me to try, because I have never been in a race saddle or tried riding in a racing position, and holy crap it’s hard! It’s like doing a wall-sit, it’s a total quad workout. Those guys are seriously tough!

I was pleasantly surprised by Lexington, it was really beautiful and friendly. I don’t know what I expected, but I just thought, you know, “The South, grits,” whatever, but I don’t think I saw a “grit” the entire time I was there! And there were plenty of good restaurants, nice areas, people were great, and of course the added bonus of the KHP and the WEG and all the lovely horse farms everywhere was wonderful. We went to a really cute little town called Midway one night and had one of the best meals I’ve had anywhere!

Good job Lexington!

[katarine]

Girl, if you haven’t eaten some good, stone ground, low country, shrimp and grits, you missed out. You’ll just have to come on back sometime

[Peggy]

I had grits for breakfast one morning at the hotel breakfast, pretty much by accident. I assumed that all the little packages with the instant oatmeal were instant oatmeal. Wrong. Didn’t want to waste it so I nuked it up and ate it. Tasted just fine.

[system]

I Loved the WEG too and have video to prove it!

Here’s my thank you vid for the WEG:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llYhNHJ1EM4&feature=player_embedded

You might like the rest of my blog too www.wegwag.com

[MelantheLLC]

Thank YOU, Marti! Gettin’ little tears in my eyes. That’s why I started this thread, because that’s the way I felt about it all too, like a dream come true!

I know such a large event will have issues; it would be impossible not to, but overall it was really special to me.

On Edit: now that I found out Toto has been sold, that makes it all the more special and bittersweet.