The Event showcases top equestrians

The arrival of “Air Horse One” — a charter flight carrying 19 horses and 13 riders — on Tuesday kicked off a very busy week in the equestrian world as The Event gets under way at Rebecca Farm near Kalispell.

Hailed as the largest equestrian triathlon in the U.S. and a selection trial for the 2012 London Olympics, The Event has become a showcase for some of the world’s best horses and riders, as well as promising young competitors.

A record 503 competitors are registered for the 10th anniversary event, with close to 20,000 spectators expected over the four-day competition.

Among the athletes arriving via charter flight is Olympian Karen O’Connor, who won the World Cup competition held here last year. She lauded the Broussard family for their contributions to eventing.

“I have been competing internationally for two decades across 27 countries and I’ve seen it all,” O’Connor said in a prepared statement. “This venue that the Broussard family brought to fruition from crop fields 10 years ago is the best venue I have ever been to in the world.”

The Event began a decade ago under the vision and guidance of Rebecca Broussard, who died at Christmas last year after battling cancer. Her passing will leave a tangible void at this year’s competition, but Broussard’s daughter and Event organizer, Sarah Broussard Kelly, said her mother’s spirit lives on at Rebecca Farm.

“The Event was my mother’s passion and dream,” Broussard Kelly said. “She believed in helping riders at all levels, but especially wanted to see the U.S. at the top of international eventing competitions.

“My parents developed The Event to be a platform for riders to move onward to international competition. What we see today was my mother’s vision from the start and represents the ongoing legacy of that giving spirit.”

The trip via airplane by top riders from the East Coast is another legacy of Rebecca’s memory. The charter flight here last summer was the first time since Pebble Beach in 1962 that a group of competitors from the East Coast had traveled to a competition in the West.

“It’s not just western Canada and the western U.S. — it’s all of North America that is coming to Rebecca Farm now,” said Roger Haller, president of National Grand Jury. “We’re hitting the cream of the crop for North American riders.”

Competitors will vie for more than $60,000 in prize money and more than $30,000 in trophies and tack awards while they compete in dressage, cross-country and show jumping.

Admission for spectators is free.

Guests may walk the cross-country course or view it from a hillside with a great vantage point of the complex. Six different arenas offer close-up views of dressage and show-jumping. In addition to the competition, a trade fair is offered, with a wide range of food and beverage concessions, as well as a new kid’s zone with face painting and pony rides.

Eventing tests a horse and rider over a series of challenges, disciplines and courses that showcase the attributes of a well-rounded team. The three phases of eventing test every facet of horsemanship. With historic military ties meant to replicate what a horse and rider would go through in the cavalry, their cumulative performance in the triathlon determines their final standing.

Dressage is designed to test obedience and the harmony between horse and rider.

Cross-country is designed to test endurance with horses running long distances at high speeds. It also tests courage, boldness, confidence and stamina of both horse and rider.

Show jumping examines precision, agility and technique while jumping over high obstacles. It is also a test of condition and focus after completing the dressage and cross-country phases.

Course builder Bert Wood has been at the helm of a team that has designed iconic jumps to look like massive trout, a moose, rattle snakes, a beaver, a water dragon, an old steam train — and even prehistoric creatures in the zone called “Jurassic Park” and the “Key Hole.” For the 10th anniversary, Wood has added a special twist by constructing an old Western town that looks like a movie set, complete with a sheriff’s office, a school and a church. The final jump will send riders over the front door of an old-fashioned saloon.

To help celebrate the 10th anniversary, the Broussard family commissioned Whitefish artist Pete Thomas to design an iconic Rebecca Farm poster and limited edition serigraph print. The print and poster are available for sale in the Rebecca Farm boutique, with proceeds of the limited-edition print being donated to the grant fund.

To access Rebecca Farm from the junction of U.S. 93 and U.S. 2, travel 2 miles north on U.S. 93 to West Reserve Drive and go west 2 miles to Springcreek Road, then south on Springcreek. The entrance is 3/4 mile on the right.

Today, prior to The Event, the USEA Young and Future Event Horse Series will be featured. The Future Event Horse series judges the potential that yearlings, 2- and 3-year-olds have to become successful event horses. The Young Event Horse series gives owners and breeders the opportunity to showcase the potential of their 4- and 5-year-old horses.