Eleven maiden Western Pleasure contenders are expected to vie for a total purse of $33,810 today in the Virginia Maiden 3-Year-Old and Over Western Pleasure Class being presented by the Virginia Quarter Horse Association during the VQHA Spring Breakout AQHA show circuit this weekend in Lexington, Virginia.

Formerly known as the Hylton Maiden Western Pleasure Class, the event was sponsored for many years by Cecilia Hylton, owner of Hylton Quarter Horses in Gainesville, Virginia. Hylton introduced the class at the Reichert Celebration to encourage trainers to refrain from pushing young show prospects. The class was moved to Hylton’s home state in 2011. It has been the highest paying Western Pleasure futurity class in the nation for the past several years. When Hylton decided to discontinue sponsorship of the class after last year’s event, VQHA stepped in to keep it alive.

Cameron Van Sickle, was appointed class manager and he said everyone thought it was important for the “show to go on.”

“I did not want to see the class die,” he said. “It is too important to the pleasure guys on the east coast, and from across the country.

The class is run like a slot class, with a $700 pre-entry fee due Feb. 15. After that, the entry fee increased to $1,000.

“We had six entries pre-enter and are expecting a total of 11 to show,” Van Sickle said. “In the future, we hope to grow the purse, get back to over $50,000 and find a new title sponsor.”

The class is open to horses over 3-years of age that have not yet been shown. As in past years the class will be officiated over by three carded judges, plus one surprise judge. The lowest judge’s card placings will be dropped to determine the winner. The class is approved by the National Snaffle Bit Association (NSBA) and is expected to start at 3 p.m., today.

“The purse is estimated at $25,000 additional money, based on entries,” Van Sickle said. “This year’s money came from class sponsors. Additional bonus money will be presented to the highest placing Limited and Intermediate Riders, thanks to donations by Harris Leather & Silverworks, Show N Tell Show Pads, Sandy Forks Custom Creations and Kendall’s Hats.”

The following are entered. Scratches are pending.

• Tennessi Whiskey, sired by Zippos Mr Good Bar and out of Buddys Buffalo Gal, owned by Rusty & Katie Green and to be shown by Dawn Baker

• No Douby Ima Goodone, sired by No Doubt Im Lazy and out of Good Vanity, owned by Lorrie Partiridge and to be shown by Brian Rastall

• Only Na Lexus, sired by One N Only and out of Deans New Lexus, owned by William Dean Oliver and to be shown by Jay Starnes

• Jesica Rabbit, sired by VS Code Red and out of Ima Pretty Version, owned by Alexandra Chavez and shown by Andrew Sharp

• Moonlite Imagination, sired by Only In The Moonlite and out of Ima Potential, owned by Dawn Baker and to be shown by Brian Baker

• PSU Certain Hope, sired by PSU Dynamic Krymsun and out of Festive For Certain, owned by Penny Osburn and to be shown by Christina Brantner

• Extra Dirty Martini, sired by The Best Martini and out of Certain Museketeer, owned by Jennifer Moreau and to be shown by Randy Wilson

• ShesaEzRockinGoodbar, sired by The Rock and out of ShezaEzZippinGoodbar, owned by Mac McGinnis and to be shown by Dustin Milsap

• Drunk On Your Love, sired by The Best Martini and out of Shot By Cupid, owned by Stephanie Windecker and to be shown by Jessi Irion

• Shez Slippin Around, sired by RL Best Of Sudden and out of Im Only Zippin, owned by William Hodges and to be shown by Bret Parrish

• Invitation Bronzed, sired by Only Intuition and out of BMQ Pit Of Honey, owned by Nicole Stickney and to be shown by Jeff Long

The Virginia Maiden is the featured event at the VQHA’s Spring Breakout Show. Numbers are up this year and stall rentals are double last year’s figures, according to show management.

“We are striving to be very exhibitor friendly,” said show manager Suzanne Gonzales. “New this year are the Versatility Ranch classes, Walk-Trot jackpot class, and we have $2,500 added to Trail, thanks to the support of Perfect Products. ProElite Feed sponsored the Green Western Pleasure class on Sunday and AQHA stallion One N Only, owned by Curiale Quarter Horses in Swedesboro, New Jersey, is sponsoring the $350 added Green Hunter Under Saddle.”

Austin Ralls, 19, of Catlett, Virginia, has been attending the Spring Breakout for 14 years now. He is competing in Youth Horsemanship, Western Pleasure and Trail, under the guidance of Connie Christopher.

“I like the location,” he said. “And It’s great to get out for the first time this season and see friends.”