Another show season is upon us. The excitement created when a new crop of horses challenge last year’s winners, is a rush progressive breed enthusiasts look forward to. This year is special.

The Belgian Championship V, London, Ontario, will attract entries from across North America, as will the World Percheron Congress, Brandon, Manitoba. Valued publicity will surround the champion stallions, mares and geldings honored at each show. The spectacle created by the leading Belgian and Percheron Hitches will highlight the performance classes. The atmosphere will be explosive.

Once again the World Six-Horse Hitch Championship will be held at the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede. Several of the continent’s best Belgian, Clydesdale, Percheron and Shire Hitches will wheel to the music of Calgary’s Philharmonic Orchestra and share $120,000 in prize money. Whatever breed you champion, the National Belgian, Clydesdale, Percheron and Shire Shows will be exciting and educational. Attend one or more of these signal events if you can.

Public auctions across the United States reflect the economics of our industry. Prices have never been better. Once again it was the Mid-America Draft Horse Sale, Gifford, Illinois, that sparked the continental trade. The average on 392 head of Belgian and Percheron horses sold was an impressive $4,646. Six head sold for $30,000 or more, nine head sold from $20,000 to $29,999, while thirty head sold from $10,000 to $19,999. The high price paid at this year’s Mid-America Draft Horse Sale was $37,000; a breed record won by the five-year-old Belgian mare, Pine Grove Matilda, the Paradise Conquistador daughter bred by Wilbur Helmuth of Albany, Wisconsin. The record crowd, which included Americans from most states, plus a number of Canadians from eight provinces, packed the facility. The enthusiasm ringside was infectious.

These are intoxicating times for the draft horse breeder. At least this is how I see it.