COLUMBUS, OH, January 16, 2025 – The excitement is building for Equine Affaire in Ohio! Beloved by generations of horse lovers, North America’s premier equine exposition and equestrian gathering will return April 10-13, 2025, to the Ohio Expo Center in Columbus, OH. Whether you’ve attended every event since 1994 or you’re scheming to enjoy your very first Equine Affaire this year, a weekend full of exciting opportunities awaits you. Tickets for Equine Affaire and Fantasia are on sale now at equineaffaire.com. Start making your plans today to join us for four days of nonstop education, discovery, entertainment, shopping, competitions, and celebrations, all centered around three guests of honor: you, the horse… and the donkey!
Wait a minute – donkeys? That’s right! It is an Equine Affaire, after all! In addition to welcoming hundreds of horses to the Ohio Expo Center as part of our event, Equine Affaire is proud to present the first-ever Donkey Extravaganza, held in partnership with Peaceful Valley Donkey Rescue. A 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, Peaceful Valley Donkey Rescue is the world’s leading donkey rescue organization and seeks to improve the plight of the American Donkey through its nationwide network of ranch facilities and satellite adoption centers. The Donkey Extravaganza will offer attendees a plethora of unique opportunities to learn, meet, and celebrate these adorable long-eared equines during all four days of the expo. Whether you already own and love donkeys or you’ve always wanted to learn more about them, you’ve got to attend the Donkey Extravaganza! (Want to learn more about Peaceful Valley Donkey Rescue? Check out donkeyrescue.org!)
Of course, it simply wouldn’t be Equine Affaire without a prodigious educational program for equestrians of all disciplines and breeds. In addition to the Donkey Education Station and demos, we’ve pulled out all the stops and invited a topflight class of industry professionals to teach, inform, demonstrate, and coach our attendees about all aspects of the horse. Hundreds of clinics, seminars, and demonstrations will take place in multiple arenas throughout the four-day event. That includes Cowtown in Cooper on Friday, April 11 and Saturday, April 12! Sponsored by Western Life Today, Cowtown in Cooper will be a two-day intensive tour of cow-oriented Western events, featuring educational opportunities for cowboys and cowgirls interested in learning more about ranch riding, roping, cow work, and much more. Just like last year, live cattle will be on site! Wear your cowboy hats and boots for an authentic Western experience.
Whatever your discipline of choice, come prepared to fill your brains and your notebooks with knowledge from our general horsemanship clinicians Ryan Rose, Julie Goodnight, Tik Maynard, Cole Cameron, and Luke Reinbold! Looking for guidance and information on specific disciplines? You’ll want to check out presentations by Luke Gingerich (liberty and bridleless horsemanship), Marcie Quist (driving), Sandi Simons (general training and cowgirl dressage), Jennifer Truett (dressage), Traci Brooks (hunter/jumper), Barbra Schulte (cutting and sports psychology), Connie Combs (barrel racing), Ty Evans (mules), Wendy Murdoch (biomechanics and the Murdoch Method), Kellie & Sam Rettinger (draft driving), Ifa Simmonds (equestrian fitness), Ivy Starnes (easy gaited horses), Mary Miller-Jordan (mustangs), the Canadian Cowgirls (drill teams), and many more.
Want to take an active role in learning at Equine Affaire by riding in one or more of the clinics? Applications for the Ride with a Pro clinic program are available online at equineaffaire.com! All application materials will be due by February 14, 2025. For more information, visit our website: https://equineaffaire.com/events/ohio/ohio-participate/ohio-ride-in-clinics/ohio-ride-with-a-pro-2/
You can spend all day at Equine Affaire – for that matter, you can spend all four days! — and still not take everything in, but that’s part of the magic! While you’re planning your trip, make sure to block off enough time to browse the largest horse-related trade show in North America. With exhibitors from all over the country offering an incredible array of horse-related products, services, and more, you’re guaranteed to find everything you could ever want or need! The trade show will be spread out across multiple buildings and encompass outdoor exhibit spaces. As part of the trade show, we’ll also be hosting the Marketplace Consignment Shop in the Voinovich. If you want to consign your gently-used outgrown or unwanted equestrian goods, learn more by visiting our website: https://equineaffaire.com/events/ohio/ohio-participate/ohio-sell/ohio-the-marketplace-consignment/!
Love competitions? We’re excited to bring back the Versatile Horse and Rider Competition on Friday, April 11; the Great Equestrian Fitness Challenge on Saturday, April 12; and to introduce the brand-new Breed Bonanza, sponsored by Sentinel by Kent and Blue Seal, on Sunday, April 13! If you and your horse enjoy the adrenaline rush of speed events, the satisfaction of tackling a complicated obstacle course, and the euphoria of competing in front of a crowd, then this is your sign to apply to ride in the Versatile Horse & Rider Competition. Applications are open now and due on February 14. Wanna flex your barn rat muscles and show off in front of all your friends? Sign up at the event to compete in the Great Equestrian Fitness Challenge – no horses needed! Curious about the Breed Bonanza? This exciting new event features a unique under-saddle rail class. Competitors will be evaluated on quality of gaits, horsemanship, and turnout. Youth and adult riders are welcome to apply! Applications will be due on February 14. Visit our website for more details on all three of these competitions!
Of course, no visit to Equine Affaire is complete without a night at Fantasia! Tickets for Equine Affaire’s magical, musical celebration of the horse are on sale now at equineaffaire.com. Fantasia will take place for just three performances on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights in the coliseum. If you’ve never been to Fantasia, this special event features a medley of theatrical performances by some of the nation’s most exciting equestrian entertainers. If you enjoy watching gorgeously appareled horses and riders engage in liberty performances, precision drill team patterns, breathtaking trick riding routines, graceful dances, high-speed chariot and wagon racing, and more, then Fantasia is the show for you! Tickets are going fast at equineaffaire.com – so secure your seat at the show of the season today!
If you want to stay up to date on all things Equine Affaire, we recommend downloading the Western Edge mobile app. Western Edge, a premier mobile app platform, offers Equine Affaire fans an easy new way to purchase tickets though its user-friendly electronic ticketing system. Whether you purchase your tickets online or through the app, you’ll receive them in your email – but make sure you keep the app on your phone! Through Western Edge, you’ll have all the event details available at your fingertips, including a venue map, the event schedule, exhibitor listings, and much more. Stay up to date on all things Equine Affaire with Western Edge and enjoy some exciting surprises along the way!
General admission tickets to Equine Affaire are $18/day for adults or $55 for a four-day pass; children’s tickets are available for $10/day for children ages 7-10; and children six and under are admitted for free. Enjoy unbridled access to the largest horse-related trade show in North America, multiple themed pavilions, the Versatile Horse and Rider Competition, the Great Equestrian Fitness Challenge, the brand-new Breed Bonanza and Donkey Extravaganza, and all clinics, seminars, and demonstrations, as well as a variety of immersive activities! Separate tickets are required for Fantasia.
Equine Affaire acknowledges the generous support of its sponsors, including Rod’s, US Equestrian, Pro Earth Animal Health, Sentinel by Kent and Blue Seal, Western Life Today, and others. To learn more about Equine Affaire and stay up to date on everything related to Equine Affaire in Ohio, visit www.equineaffaire.com or follow us on Facebook and Instagram @equineaffaire. We’ll see you at Equine Affaire!
Media Contact:
Allison Rehnborg, Marketing Coordinator
Equine Affaire, Inc.
Phone: (740) 845-0085 ext. 103
arehnborg@equineaffaire.com
www.equineaffaire.com
*Pictures Available Upon Request