Barns back open at Churchill Downs months after tornado ripped through

Barns at Churchill Downs that were damaged by a tornado earlier this year have been repaired.
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Snowbound

Snowbound was a mediocre, unsound racehorse, kicking around Northern California in the early 1960s who went on to make history by carrying Bill Steinkraus to the first individual Olympic Gold Medal ever won by a U.S. rider, capturing Mexico City's show jumping Gold in 1968. Discovered by John (later Sir John) Galvin as a green hunter being shown by Show Jumping Hall of Famer Barbara Worth Oakford, who had bought him off the racetrack, Snowbound…
A brown gelding just over 16 hands in height and foaled in 1958, Snowbound was by Hail Victory out of Gay Alvena and had jumping blood on both sides of his pedigree.
He was precocious from the start and equally at home indoors and out, though he was never much at home in heavy footing. In 1965, he jumped double clears to clinch the Nations' Cups of London and Dublin, won the Grand Prix of New York, and capped the year by helping the U.S. win two more Nations' Cups.
The following year, he won the Grand Prix at Harrisburg and the Democrat Trophy in New York, and he contributed to another Nations' Cup victory.
This was Snowbound's pattern: try to jump double clear rounds in Nations' Cups--over one stretch he jumped 15 Nations' Cup clear rounds in 16 attempts--and try to win Grand Prix. Always threatened by recurrence of the tendon trouble that had driven him from the track, Snowbound was too valuable to the Team to risk in ordinary classes and was shown lightly.
In 1968, he jumped double clears in all of the European Nations' Cups in which he competed. He also won London's coveted Daily Mail Cup prior to the Olympic Games. At the Olympics, he jumped one of only two clear rounds in the first round of the individual competition, and though he finished on three legs, incurred only a single fault over the huge fences of the second round to win the Gold.
In 1970, Snowbound won four individual competitions in Europe--two in Lucerne and two in Aachen--but ended up sidelined again for most of 1971. The following year, his preparations to defend his Olympic title went well, but though he scored several victories in minor international competitions, he failed to qualify for the second round in the individual competition at the Olympics, and Steinkraus was obliged to ride Main Spring, a 2003 Show Jumping Hall of Fame inductee, on the Silver Medal-winning U.S. team.
After the Munich Olympics, Snowbound was retired to the Galvins’ farm outside Dublin. He and Steinkraus had shared a remarkable career and had become one of the best-known horse-and-rider combinations ever to represent the United States. Though Snowbound set no endurance records, he combined remarkable gymnastic ability with a stubborn determination not to hit fences. He was a truly extraordinary water jumper and will always be remembered for his consistent brilliance when the chips were down.

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Touch of Class

Touch of class was a famed member of USET's 1984 Olympic "Dream Team." After posting the first double clear rounds in Olympic history and clearing 90 out of 91 jumps, Touch of Class took home two Gold Medals and the admiration of the world. Her tremendous performance also helped her become the first non-human to win the USOC Female Equestrian Athlete of the Year Award.Even before the Olympics, Touch of Class was a winner. The 16-hand, bay Thoroughbred, foaled in 1973, quickly transitioned to the jumper ranks after a brief racing career. She won the intermediate championship at the Washington International Horse Show with Debi Connor before Joe Fargis took over her reins. In her first year at the grand prix level (1981), Touch of Class won classes at Harrisburg, Washington, and New York.
Touch of Class and Fargis proceeded to make the USET's World Championship team at Dublin in 1982, but a leg injury caused Fargis to turn her over to Conrad Homfeld for the remainder of the season. With Homfeld in the irons, she was victorious in the Grand Prix of Southampton and qualified for the World Cup final in Vienna the following spring, where the pair finished 4th.
In 1983, Fagis guided Touch of Class on victorious Nation's Cup teams in Rome and Calgary. Before her career was finished, she was also on winning Nation's Cup teams at Aachen, Washington, and New York. In 1984, she won the Grand Prix of Tampa, and turned in several consistent Olympic Trial performances before being named to the USET Olympic Show Jumping team.
Following the Olympics, Touch of Class continued to compete successfully throughout the 80's. In 1984 and 1985, she carried Fargis to first place in the World Cup U.S. East Coast League standings. She also embarked upon a successful breeding career. Touch of Class lived a happy retirement at River Circle Farm in Franklin, Tennessee where she passed away on July 1, 2001.
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Gem Twist

Gem Twist, owned by Michael Golden, was bred and trained by Show Jumping Hall of Famer Frank Chapot and ridden by Greg Best, Leslie Howard and Laura Chapot. Formally retired at the National Horse Show at Madison Square Garden on November 1, 1997, Gem has an incredible list of victories as long as that of any horse. He is the only horse to win three American Grandprix Association Horse of the Year titles. In addition…

Gem Twist won the American Grandprix Association's championship with three different riders: Best in 1987, Howard in 1993, and Chapot in 1995.

One of the early milestones that showed Gem Twist's unbelievable talent was his win in the 1985 USET Talent Derby in Hamilton, MA, at the age of six. This first prestigious victory, with Greg Best in the saddle, set the stage for future stardom. In 1987, Gem carried Best to wins in his first two Grand Prix events - the Grand Prix of Tampa and the Grand Prix of Florida. That year, Gem captured AGA Horse of the Year honors and Best won Rookie of the Year. That year also included a team Silver Medal at the Pan American Games.

The highpoint in the partnership between Best and Gem Twist came when the pair represented the United States at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, Korea, where they came away with team and individual Silver Medals.

Due to Best's shoulder injury in 1992, Leslie Burr Howard became Gem's rider. Howard continued as Gem's rider for two more years winning many prestigious competitions including Gem's second AGA Championship and third AGA Horse of the Year award.

Laura Chapot took over the reins in 1995. That year Laura and Gem won the World Cup class at the $100,000 Autumn Classic, helping to propel the young rider to Budweiser Rookie of the Year honors. Laura also rode Gem to his third win in the Budweiser American Grandprix Association Championships.

In the 1995-1996 season, Gem and Chapot won three World Cup qualifying classes and placed well at several other competitions. Their win in the final World Cup class at Tampa was over the largest starting field ever with 80 horses. This clinched Laura the World Cup USA East League Championship and was a fitting win at the close of Gem's career at the site of his first Grand Prix win with Best nine years earlier.
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How To Pick The Right Cutting Horse Saddles

Cutting horse saddles are an important part of the sport of cutting. Choosing the wrong saddle or the right one can mean the difference between winning first place, or going home in defeat. Cutting is the fastest growing horse sport in the world today, enjoying popularity from the United States to Australia. In 2006 athletes who competed in the United States NCHA Futurity did so for combined purses of 3.7 million. Today that number has risen to nearly four million dollars in prizes and money, and this does not factor in the purses that can now be earned at Australian, European or Canadian cutting events.
From cavalry saddles to English saddles, racing and cutting horse saddles, the past two thousand years have seen many changes in how we equip our horses. The first known saddles were little more than pads of cloth held on with a surcingle dating back to 800 BC. By 200 BC carven saddle trees were being used, and five hundred years later, in 302 AD, the first stirrups were introduced. The early saddle was an important sign of the rider's status, heavily decorated and embellished. As our understanding of the horse and what he could do evolved, the saddle became less about beauty, and more about usefulness.
In the sport of cutting, good cutting horse saddles are a vital necessity. The cutting horse will be working low to the ground as it moves to separate one cow from the herd, and move quickly with many sharp turns and stops as it works to keep the cow from rejoining the others. The cutting saddle must not only help keep the rider on the back of his horse, it must keep him perfectly balanced without interfering with his horse.
Cutting horse saddles have evolved from the familiar western saddle, also known as the cowboy saddle or the stock saddle. This vital piece of equipment was developed for the comfort of the rider and horse - who spent long hours together in a variety of weather and conditions - as well as their safety. While there are obvious similarities in shape and design, cutting saddles have a deeper, wider seat with wider swells that help the rider keep his balance during the sharp turns and stops of the cow horse.
The horns on western saddles are not merely decorations, but on cutting horse saddles - unlike western saddles - they are primarily used as a handle. Taller and more slender than the horns on the typical western saddle they are there to help brace the rider against the unexpected shifting of his horse. The stirrups are more narrow than on a western saddle and are positioned more towards the heel of the boot rather than the toe as, in the sport of cutting, leg contact is not the primary form of communication.
When buying cutting horse saddles, make certain it was built specifically for cutting, not reining or trail riding. People who make saddles are craftsmen who are skilled in the art of making saddles rather than riding them, and very few have ever competed in cutting events. If you don't know your exact seat dimensions or how long your stirrup leathers ought to be, ask your trainer to help you choose the right one. Using cutting saddles that suit neither you nor your horse is only asking for trouble.
Nicole Roberts
WranglerSaddles.com offers horse owners first-rate saddles and horse tack made from the highest quality materials to ensure the comfort of your horse. Our headquarters is located in Temple, Texas but you can get our Western Ranch Saddles, Cutting Horse Saddles [http://www.wranglersaddles.com], Barrel Racing Saddles, Trail Saddles, and other horse tack anywhere in the USA as we ship all orders.
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How to Fit a Horse Saddle

Fitting a horse saddle is very important for the health and well being of your horse. The horse will silently endure a tremendous amount of pain and discomfort without the owners knowledge. Saddle fitting can be a mystery to many horse owners.
Here are a couple of tips for helping you fit the saddle to your horse.
1. First of all, take a tracing of your horses withers. This is accomplished by using a flexible ruler, and placing it over the withers of your horse. Do not use a coat hanger, it is not flexible enough, and it could hurt you or your horse if there is some type of commotion.
Very carefully lay the flexible curve down on a heavy piece of paper and trace the inside edge. Then set your saddle pommel down on this shape. You should not be able to see the whole shape on the inside part of the saddle. Make sure there is a three to four finger clearance at the top of the shape between the outline of the withers and the inside of the pommel.
2. Make sure the tree of the saddle is straight and symmetrical. Your horses back may not be symmetrical, but you want to start out with a straight saddle, then have your English saddle panels flocked or shims made for your western saddle to get a custom fit.
3. If step one and two are completed, then try the saddle and make sure it fits you and is comfortable, and then take it home to try on your horse.
There is no sense in even taking a saddle home to try if the saddle is not straight or symmetrical, and does not line up with the tracing you took of your horse.
Important!
To save your horse's back, get a free illustrated report at Introduction To Saddle Fitting or go to http://www.western.saddlefittingguide.com
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Information on Western Horse Saddles

There are many different types of saddles that are widely used around the world, but one of the most popular types of Rigs used by a lot of horse enthusiasts are western style horse Rigs. Western horse Rigs are the type of saddle that is most widely seen in the movies, especially western movies, as well as at rodeos. Dude ranches and places that offer horse rides on trials also equip their horses with western Rigs because they are built to keep riders comfortable for long periods of time. The western horse Rigs has truly become a landmark in the equestrian industry and is widely used by enthusiasts everywhere.
The western Rigs, as mentioned above is meant to help keep riders comfortable for long periods of time. Western Rigs are widely used on cattle farms where ranchers may have to stay on their horses for long periods at a time, which would normally be hectic with any other saddle, but with the western saddle, the rider should still retain a level of comfort. The western saddle is also used for endurance riding and at rodeos because of their comfort and security which is essential in that style of riding. A lot of beginners start their horse riding experience on a western style of horse saddle because of the security if offers.
Like pretty much all saddles, the western saddle uses a saddle tree that acts as a foundation for the rest of the saddle to be built off of. Since these saddles are meant to be more secure and comfortable, they usually have added foam added in before the leather is put on the saddle. The foam is to act basically as a shock absorber and provide a soft place for the rider to sit. The rest of the saddle is basically set up the same as any other riding saddle, with a pommel, cantle, D-rings, stirrups, cinch strap and so on and so forth.
If you feel as though you want to purchase a western horse saddle for whatever reason then the same rules apply as if you were buying any other rig. You want to make sure that the saddle is going to fit snuggle and comfortable on the horses back, but at the same time you want to to be comfortable for you to sit on. For more information please visit - Horse saddles or The Saddle Zone