~Some Back Ground and History about this overwhelmingly successful Traverse City annual event.
The Horse Shows by the Bay began in 2004 and is also referred to by some as Horse Shows by the Bay Equestrian Festival. This is a most prestigious annual event that spans several weeks during the summer in beautiful Traverse City in Williamsburg. The horse show events takes place at the Flintfields Horse Park. Horse Shows by the Bay attracts thousands of the nation's best horses and riders who compete within International Olympic disciplines of show jumping including dressage. There are even ranked events for show hunter and equitation rider! Interestingly, Horse Shows by the Bay is produced by Traverse City residents Dean and Alexandrea Rheinmeimer. They have over 20 years experience producing and managing equestrian events nationwide.
Horses and riders at the Horse Shows by the Bay are of the utmost best in the nations. The event carries the highest ratings possible governed by the United States Equestrian Federation. The event is also acknowledged by the World Championship Hunter Rider Awards Program, the International High Performance Hunter Derby Program, the United States Hunter - Jumper Association, the United States Dressage Federation and the Young Jumper Championship Program. The Horse Shows by the Bay hosts whopping 1,400 horses! Their owners and riders compete to win points towards national titles and year end awards. A staggering $385,000 dollars in prize money is awarded during the festival and at the last tally has brought more that $30 million dollars in tourism revenue to the Traverse City area.
More on where it all takes place: Flintfield Horse Park. Flintfield Horse Park is made up of 80 acres and is a complete horse show complex. It's located just off Bates Road about a half mile North of M-72 East in Acme Township. Flintfield is most impressive. Built specially to house the horse show, it was designed to accommodate more that 1,000 stalls, has 5 show rings, warm up rings, a wonderful spectator pavilion, offices, a lane for vendors and a very nice campground.
When and What: The shows start on Wednesdays and finish on a Sunday. There are featured events on the weekends which include: Grand Prix & Exhibitions, family day activities and charity fundraisers.
If you have never been...you really should consider spending the better half of a day browsing the Flintfield Horse Park during the Horse Shows by the Bay. Even if you have really never thought too much about horses, I bet you find yourself amazed with the magnitude of this event. It's really something else...
If you are looking for lodging while either participating or attending the Horse Shows, we have accommodated several attending guests. Northern Shores Vacation Rentals, LLC. is located in downtown Traverse City and offers exclusively Peninsula Bay Resort Condominiums on East Grand Traverse Bay, only minutes from both the Cherry Capital airport and Flintfield Horse Park. Visit our website here: http://www.visitnorthernshores.com/ for more information.
