Horse show sets the pace

Today, the St. Clement's Saratoga Horse Show draws more than 3,000 visitors to the spacious Yaddo Grounds across from Saratoga Race Course, and puts residents and out-of-towners in the mood for horsing around.

"It's a little rite of spring. We like to think of ourselves as the start of the Saratoga season," said Maureen LaBelle, Horse Show president and a teacher at St. Clement's School.

They're off

Other highlights of the Horse Show include the Sixth Annual St. Clement's All Breed Dog Show at the Yaddo Grounds and the Equestrian Festival at the Saratoga Equine Sports Center, both May 8 events.

The Horse Show, which draws some of the finest world-class and Olympic riders and horses from the East Coast, has a great deal of prestige among Saratoga Springs residents, Mrs. LaBelle said. It's also the first outdoor show on a circuit that includes such stops as Lake Placid and Syracuse.

In the stretch

Proceeds from the Horse Show, which is run by a committee of volunteers working year 'round, benefit St. Clement's Regional Catholic School. It's one of the oldest Horse Shows run by volunteers in the country, Mrs. LaBelle said.

In the early days of the Horse Show, the Lions' Club hosted the competition in a tiny ring at one of the barns at the Oklahoma Training Course, where many horses that run at Saratoga Race Course are stabled and train. The Horse Show then was moved to the infield of the Oklahoma track and even was held in Massachusetts for one year because sprinklers weren't available at the Oklahoma track. A move to the back of the Oklahoma track preceded the shift to its present site at the Yaddo Grounds.

Finish line

"I rode in it when the Lions' Club ran it. That was cool. I used to be a riding instructor, and I would take pupils there," she said.

The Horse Show has experienced some recent changes. Three competition rings will continue to be used, and new and improved footing that reduces the risk of injury when it rains will continue for the second year.

Horses aren't the only stars of the Horse Show. Dogs will take center stage May 8, when the All Breed Dog Show gives the pups a chance to compete in the Canine High Jump, Cutest Trick and Look-Alike Contest, to name a few.

(The St. Clement's Saratoga Horse Show is open to the public and begins at 8 a.m. daily, culminating with the $15,000 Saratoga Cup. Admission is $3 per person; children 12 and under are free. For more information, call 587-9977 or 587-2623.)

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