With October turning on the calendar page that time of year has rolled around once again for the All-American Quarter Horse Congress in Columbus, Ohio to begin. Spanning from Oct. 2-26, the largest single breed horse show in the country brings a host of obstacles for exhibitors from large crowds and long lines to all-night riding schedules and unpredictable weather. Therefore, it is absolutely crucial to be well-prepared in order to ensure a positive, healthy experience for both you and your horse. Seasoned pro and non-pro Congress exhibitors share advice on how they best survive the Congress and provide additional insight on how to get ready for certain events.

Donnie Recchiuti and Liz Flohr

First Stay Healthy & Live Right….

Long-time Ohio trainers, Liz Flohr and Donnie Recchiuti of Recchiuti Show Horses take a bunch of horses and clients to the Quarter Horse Congress each year. Flohr advises eating healthy and getting as much quality sleep as possible.

“Surviving the Congress is a hard task for sure,” she says. “Bottom line is stay tough and remember you can do anything for two weeks. We recommend one way to stay healthy is do not sleep in the barns. Sleep is a treasured thing there at the Congress. Sleep where it’s quiet and the air quality is good.”

One tradition that Recchiuti Show Horses has is to convert part of their stall area into an actual kitchen.

“We don’t eat ANY meals on food row during the Congress. I go and buy a large variety of breakfast and lunch food to have at the stalls,” she says. “We then, prior to the Congress, start organizing the dinners menu. We have a cooked group dinner at our stalls every single night. Everybody picks nights to provide the whole group something yummy for dinner. This gives us variety and keeps us from eating the unhealthy fair food and nothing is better when you’re tired than a home cooked meal.”

In addition, dinner is left available from around six to eight every night so that everyone in the group gets a chance to eat.

“We work together as a team and take advantage of naps when possible,” she says. “We divide the nighttime riding and longing up into designated shifts so in the perfect scenario nobody has to pull the dreaded all-nighters. We tell ourselves every morning ‘keep smiling,’ it’s only for two weeks.”

Bailey Anderson

Get School Assignments Early….

Bailey Anderson of Fort Worth, Texas, now a Freshman at the University of Georgia normally misses at least a week of school to attend the Congress. She strongly advises getting assignments from teachers weeks in advance.

“In fact, I just talked to all my teachers last week about me missing school for the Congress and some have already been able to give me some assignments that I will be missing so it gives me time to get it all done before I get there,” she explains. “It makes for a lot less stressful return back to school because you’re caught up.”

Anderson also tries to get to the show a few days before she is scheduled to show in her first class in order to get organized and fully prepared. Her mom also usually books a hotel with a kitchen so they can cook some of their own meals like eggs for breakfast and soups, fish or pasta for dinner.

“I’ve been one of the few lucky ones that has never left the Congress with the ‘Congress Crud’,” she says. “However, I’m a person that is big on getting enough sleep so the best advice I can give is to get your schoolwork done before you come. That way when you do have one those rare moments where you have a break, you can nap instead of having to do homework.”

Ali Grusha

Put Work on the Back Burner…

Amateur all-around competitor Ali Grusha of Hamburg, Pennsylvania balances her two careers of photography and being a hospice care consultant. To best juggle her work schedule while showing at Congress, she suggests trying not over think work. She is lucky to have four weeks of vacation which really helps with her horse showing and uses her vacation days for Congress.

“I can’t turn my brain off from work,” she says. “Whether it is my photography career or my full-time hospice career, I’m always thinking about work. I do try to leave my work cell phone in the trailer and only check it once a day. I will, however, do a few photo shoots at the Congress.”

Grusha stresses the importance of sleep while at Congress and believes it is an absolutely crucial element in Congress survival.

“My first few times at the Congress I never slept!” she says. “I was so excited to be there and put a lot of pressure on myself to perform and in turn forgot to rest. I’ve now learned its best to step away from the excitement and take a break.”

The hardest part of having a job and trying to show at Congress for Grusha is explaining to her work the whole idea of “horse showing.”

“Everyone always says,’ Oh, you’re going to be off for a week. That’s great!’ When I follow up by saying, ‘Well, I’ll actually be in Columbus, Ohio and not sleeping or eating for days…'” she jokes. “That always get a funny look!”

Get a Babysitter With Kids…

Non-Pro showman, Tonya Carmean, wife of longtime Pennsylvania trainer, Ray Carmean, has been juggling showing and having a toddler along since their son, Colt was born four years ago. Fortunately, her two older sons are able to stay at home with their dad and continue their studies at school.

“We have been taking Colt with us since he was born,” she says. “Our friends and customers have helped out a lot with him and I rely on them a lot when I am trying to ride. Also, having a golf cart helps a lot. I would ride him around on it when he was an infant. It was the only way to get him to sleep.”

Carmean admits however that she is a mother first and there have been times that she has had to put his needs over her showing. She encourages other mothers to remember that the show is hard on the kids too with the change of their routine. She advises trying to eat well, getting as much as sleep as possible and just trying to take good overall care of yourself.

“Since we are taking nine horses this year, I do have a babysitter lined up at designated times with him,” she says. “I think it gets easier as they get older but then comes school.”

Whitney Legace

Be Prepared in Advance for Trail Warm-ups….

AQHA Professional Horsewoman and World Champion Trail exhibitor, Whitney Legace of Whitney Ridge, Higganum, Connecticut, suggests getting to the Trail warm-up pen early.

“You get assigned set times for exhibitors to go over the practice course the day before the show and if available you can buy extra 10 minute slots after that,” she says. “I try and get to the Trail warm-up as soon as they set it up and show up with the clipboard so I can sign my people up for what extra time I think they will need and move them around if needed. The Trail team at the Congress is great to work with so I try to show up with treats and coffee and anything else the team may mention that they would like.”

Because the time frame for Trail warm-up is so strict, Legace also makes sure her horses have been ridden for at least 15 minutes prior to the allowed slot so that her clients get started on time and that they know their entire pattern before they show up to practice.

“There are a couple of my respected peers that set up some stuff in the corners of the fairgrounds and I try and hunt them down to get some time over their poles,” she says. “We bring some poles and risers with us and many other Trail exhibitors do the same so we have a little something in the exercise pens.”

Practice Patterns Early….

Shannon Vroegh of Granger, Iowa always has a host of clients for pattern events at the Congress. In order to keep track of all her horse and rider teams and their specific patterns per event, she recommends taking advantage of printing pattern books off early. This also enables her clients to work on specific maneuvers that may be difficult long in advance.

“We love getting the patterns ahead of time,” she says. “We can practice them at home so that when we get to the horse show it’s just touch up things and we don’t have to spend as much time on them.”

Since the practice pens are often so over-crowded during the day, Vroegh would rather have her clients practice during off hours when there is a little more room to set patterns up.

“Taking care of my clients is just as important,” she says. “They have to get sleep as well. We keep chairs and blankets at the stalls to stretch out on between practice times. We rented a camper so there is somewhere for everyone to go get some sleep and out of the cold if they have that chance.”

Vroegh recommends taking time to just take care of yourself so you are in good condition to perform at your best no matter the event.

“I take vitamins year round but it’s really important while you are there,” she says. “I always have my hat and gloves too. We keep lots of snack food around the stalls and a microwave to heat soup and things up because it’s easy there to get your hours messed up and not eat right.”

Ron Stratton

Bring A Pony Horse….

Multiple World Champion Halter trainer, Ron Stratton of Blountville, Tennessee always brings a large group of horses for Halter classes. With showing in back to back to back classes on Halter days, he admits having all the horses ready can be challenging. He believes having a pony horse along to work his horses off of is a key component to getting all his horses ready in time.

“We usually go out to the barn around four in the morning and get started ponying our horses either in the Coliseum or Cooper arena, whatever is available,” he says. “We then clean them up and feed them breakfast and then go back and get cleaned up ourselves to get ready for the day. It sure makes for a long day.”

Stratton also stresses the importance of having good help along who can help get the horses ready in the back while he is showing. In Ron’s case, Roy Houser is always making sure the horses are ready to go. In some cases stalling with friends can help too and Stratton advises “buddying up” with friends or fellow trainers on heavy show days so that everything runs smoothly. He also makes sure to pin numbers for the day on the cleanup bag so that horses and numbers are clear.

“Also, for our horses 30 days before the show we make sure they have all had their current vaccines to help reduce the likelihood of them getting sick and we try to keep them on as close to the same routine as possible,” he says. “I try to take extra B12 and get my flu shot before the show. You have to try to eat as good as you can and stay healthy. I think good preparation is the biggest key.”

Karen Hornick

Know Your Young Horse…

Multiple World Champion Western Pleasure trainer, Karen Hornick of Jamestown, Ohio is a Congress veteran who often brings several young horses for futurity classes. With the horses being green and unseasoned in such a hectic atmosphere and with many of the classes having different go-rounds, Hornick emphasizes the importance of really knowing your horse before the show.

“It helps to really know your 2-year-old before you get there,” she says. “I believe in lots of walking. Then try to pick a less busy time to ride and ride short distances and let the traffic go around you.”

She also suggests short work sessions to condition a young horse both physically and mentally at an event like the Congress.

“Hopefully you have less crowded arenas at night,” she says. “I always prep for the first go as if its the only go. Ride it like you own it. If however it doesn’t work out at least you put forth your best effort.”

In addition, Hornick stresses the importance of being ready to show and totally organized when you get there.

“Try to have supplies, like halters, sheets, leg wraps, longe lines, whips, meds, hoof black and rain coats stocked before you get there” she says. “Organize, organize, organize before arrival.”

And Keep Your Cool…

Whitney Legace who often brings many youths and amateurs to the Congress advises them to just keep their cool.

“Don’t go to the Congress already frazzled,” she says. “Do your homework before you get there but keep in mind it is just another horse show. When people go there already overwhelmed it is very hard to get back to your focused mindset which you need to have a successful show.”

She also feels having good communication between trainers and clients is key to surviving the Congress.

“Keep good, positive communication with your trainer so you are all on the same page during the show,” she says. “We trainers have to be mindful of many things to be able to get every horse and person prepared. If there’s something we are not noticing that a client needs it should be brought to our attention, with coffee in hand. As for trainers, we need to have a plan for each horse and rider team and remember to communicate with them.”

She also says eating healthy and taking time to sleep, even if it’s just naps, is crucial as well as just getting some alone time.

“One more thing to keep in mind, make sure you get some alone time,” she says. “The Congress can be a whirlwind and its very exciting to see everyone and you don’t want to miss anything but finding a way to take a little time for yourself and by yourself will keep your head clear which will make you perform better.”

Lacey Austin , Courtney Borton Ament and Tyson Howdyshell also contributed to this report.