Quarter Horse Congress to Include Color Breeds in 2015 Futurities
The Super Bowl and groundhog weren’t the only big news on Monday. The Ohio Quarter Horse Association announced that the All American Quarter Horse Congress Futurities will open to color breeds in 2015, in addition to changes to the Masters events.
The western pleasure and hunter under saddle futurities and stakes classes will be open to the following registries: AQHA, APHA, ApHC, ABRA, IBHA, PHBA, and Jockey Club.
Additional changes to the 2015 show include changing the Masters Western Pleasure from a slot class to a futurity class with no limits on the number of entries, and the same changes go for the Masters Hunter Under Saddle.
Entries for the futurity classes are due April 1st, and while the entry deadline for the stakes classes are August 25th.
For more information on these changes, visit the official website of the Quarter Horse Congress.
Tell us: What do you think about OQHA’s decision to make these changes? Do you think it will be a positive or negative move for the future of the show?
Im not thrilled with these changes. After all, it is the All American QUARTER HORSE Congress. Longeliners have really no AQHA / NSBA large venue besides this one. ..and why have ANOTHER futurity?? ( in regards to the Masters ) As if there are not enough for the two yr olds. But I do have some questions: Is the “new” Masters, still only for Maidens? Is it the only class that particular horse can enter? Does the payout remain the same? Also, we should not still be required to pay for tickets. Just some random thoughts from a long time Ohio QH girl.
I am not thrilled with these changes either. it IS the A A Quarter Horse congress. let the color breeds have their own big show. in fact, they could do just that, for paints, pintos, apps, etc. one big, color breed show. leave the Quarter Horse Congress to the actual Quarter Horses.
I am not thrilled either. As a life OQHA member, I think tradition would matter. The A.A.Q.H.C. brought in roughly the same amount of money as in the past in 2014. However, the total entries were down, and I understand that the OQHA and the AAQHA congress committee maybe worried about the decline in entries. One way to increase entries is do what stallion owners have done over the past few years by a recession concession on stallion fees. I would think that the OQHA and AAQHC would look at fees/stalls prices and keep the tradition of AAQHA as the largest quarter horse breed show.