Contestants from Texas, Kansas, Florida, Ohio, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Georgia and other states gather at the Mississippi Horse Arena to win $22,000 in prize money for the Eastern Barrel Futurity Association barrel races.
The races are divided into three classes. One class is for young horses, 5 years or younger. The youth class is for riders 18 and under. The third class is open to the general public.
“People are still entering the competition, but we are expecting around 900 entries,” coordinator Karen Schoenmeyer said.
Barrel racing is an event in which a rider and horse run a barrel pattern without knocking any of the three barrels over.
“The top riders in the world will be here this weekend,” Bricklee Miller of the Horse Park said. “We are really excited about the event because so many of these people have never been here and it will be great exposure for our facility, and it looks like the first show since the building opened in 1999 that every stall will be filled with horses.”
The competition begins Friday at 9 a.m. and will also take place Saturday at 9 a.m. as well. Admission is free to the public. For directions to the horse arena or more information, go to the MSU Horse Arena Web site at http://msucares.com/centers/agricenter/index.html.