Mission 007 Brings Focus to Yearling Mustangs

March 15th, 2008 • Related • Filed Under
Additional $20,000 to be awarded during September Extreme Mustang Makeover

Bertram, Texas, March 14, 2008 - The Mustang Heritage Foundation (MHF) has a new mission: to place for adoption more than 200 yearling Mustangs while at the same time providing educational funding to youth, as well as cash prizes to adults in the program.Mission 007, aptly named for the foaling year of the Mustangs, is the yearling edition of the phenomenonally successful Extreme Mustang Makeover first held in September 2007. The 2008 competition, to be held September 18-20 in Fort Worth, Texas, will feature 200 of America’s iconic Mustangs and their trainers competing for a purse of $50,000, with an additional $20,000 made available for the yearling edition. There will also be a yearling division held in conjunction with the Western States Wild Horse and Burro expo in Reno, Nev., August 15-17, with a purse of $5,000.

“Our standing room only crowds in 2007 included hundreds of young people who were totally in awe of what these trainers were doing with these Mustangs,” said MHF Executive Director Patti Colbert. “With this new program, youth will be able to receive a yearling Mustang that they will gentle to a halter. During the Extreme Mustang Makeover, they will compete for an educational funding purse of $10,000. We’ll also have a $5,000 amateur handler division and a $5,000 professional handler division.”

 

 

Mustangs will be available for release from Reno, Nev., May 16 and 17, Elgin, Texas, May 23-24. Handlers will have until August 15 to gentle their Mustangs for the Reno competition and September 18 for the Fort Worth competition. Applications and complete competition rules are available at www.mustangheritagefoundation.org or by calling 512-355-3225. The deadline for applications is April 30.

During competition, handlers receive scoring based on the body condition of their American Mustangs, as well as their ability to handle the horse “in hand” through a series of maneuvers which include picking up the horse’s feet, maneuvering it through obstacles and loading it into a trailer. Three skilled horsemen will judge the competition.

Handlers will also receive $500 in reimbursements as well as 20 percent of any adoption fee over $125. Yearling Mustangs will be available for adoption to the public following each competition.

The Mustang Heritage Foundation (MHF), in partnership with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM), created the Mustang Challenge event to highlight the recognized value of mustangs through a national training competition. The purpose of the Mustang competition series is to showcase the beauty, versatility, and trainability of these rugged horses that roam freely on public lands throughout the West, where they are protected by the BLM under Federal law. One hundred percent of the horses placed for adoption at the 2007 Extreme Mustang Makeover were adopted.

About the Mustang Heritage Foundation
The mission of the Mustang Heritage Foundation and the goal of the Extreme Mustang Makeover is to increase the adoption of mustangs across the country. The Mustang Heritage Foundation created the Extreme Mustang Makeover event to showcase the recognized value of mustangs through a national training competition.

About the Texas Classic
The Classic, which is held at the prestigious Will Rogers Memorial Center in Fort Worth, is the largest AQHA approved show in the State of Texas and ranks as one of the top show destinations in the nation. This ten-day event features NCHA/AQHA cutting, NRCHA/AQHA Cow Horse, NRHA/AQHA Reining and a full slate of AQHA & NSBA classes. Drawing in top competitors from across the US, the show encompassed almost 11,000 entries in 2007. Professional staff, fun activities and philanthropic goals will take the 2008 Classic to a greater level of exposure & quality than it has ever experienced before.

About the Bureau of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is responsible for managing 258 million acres of public lands, located mostly in the West. Wild horses and burros roaming public rangelands are managed in a manner consistent with BLM’s overall multiple-use mission, as set forth in the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976. Since 1973, the BLM has placed more than 218,000 horses and burros into private care through adoption. For more information, visit www.wildhorseandburro.blm.gov or call 866-4MUSTANGS.

 

Post a Response