Local Folks Enjoy Paducah Show
Monday, August 18, 2003
by Karen W. Coup
PADUCAH, Ky. - Southern small town congeniality characterized the 63rd
presentation of the Paducah Charity Horse Show, held August 1-2 at shady Carson Park in this Ohio River town. Raymond Shively of Evansville, Ind., judged all Saddle Horse
and equitation classes. The show benefited the Four Rivers Center for the Performing Arts, and show secretary Amy Hanson related big plans for the show's future, "We are hoping to be able to change the dates and rebuild the show to the way it was years ago. We want to build it back to that again."
Donated items were raffled and the Exhibitors Party after the Saturday night
performance featured a deluxe buffet in a small Carson Park building full of historic horse photos and trophies from earlier show years. Judge Shively enjoyed reminiscing with exhibitors and telling stories of the photographs. Above the fireplace hangs a large photograph of Luther Carson, a horse-lover who in 1939 donated the 35 acres of the park to the city of Paducah, with the stipulation that they the land was to be used only for a fairgrounds and equine-related activities.
The all-breed show is a great place for beginners to debut and seasoned riders to assess their midseason progress. Several area stables brought both beginners and seasoned riders. The Academy classes, as usual in the Midwest this year, were the largest of the show.
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