April 2021 Issue

Page 26 April 2021 EAST COAST EQUESTRIAN Multi-Million Dollar Farm Show Upgrade for, respond to, and recover from biological threats, and biohazard situations. “Biosecurity has always been a top consideration in planning for animal events at the Farm Show Complex and Expo Center,” she said. “We take extensive precautions to prevent the spread of animal disease and these precautions are heightened when there are known instances of zoonotic disease in the region and that may be brought into the region by visitors.“ With the initial uncertainty about how long the pandemic would last, the Pennsylvania National Horse Show was forced to scramble and find a new host site within months of the Octo- ber event, landing at the Tryon International Equestrian Center in North Carolina. Organizers though, learned quickly that hav- ing a roof is important no matter the season. “The day of the Medal finals it poured all day,” said Webb. “The schooling ring was out- side and everyone was back and forth all day in the pouring rain. We never thought we’d say we missed the Farm Show.” The Pennsylvania National Horse Show, is moving forward with plans to return this October and celebrate its 75th anniversary, originally scheduled in 2020. Webb said they plan to add the newer Equine Arena as a sec- ond competition ring so the venti- lation improvement is “huge.” Denise Parsons, president of Equestrian Promotions which operates the Horse World Expo, said she welcomes the improve- ments. The Expo, which draws 350 vendors and tens of thousands of visitors over four days every March, was one of the last events held at the Farm Show before the nationwide COVID shutdown in 2020. “The ventilation would help with stuffiness,” she said. “Better temperature regulation would help keep temperatures from fluctuating.” Parsons said the portable stalls were “getting pretty tired” and were prone to breaking and needing repairs during the event. She said new lighting will be a “big positive” for vendors and a new sound system would mean the Expo would no longer have the costly expense of bringing in its own sound for Theatre Equus performances. Meanwhile, organizers are expecting horse events to return this fall and plans are already underway for Horse World Expo 2022. “We still don’t know what will happen in fall, but it’s full steam ahead,” Webb said. For her part, Parsons said she has the Horse World Expo dates reserved for 2022: “We hope we’re back to normal.” (Continued from page 1)