Costumed horses will soon take over the Clark County Event Center at the fairgrounds for a spooky weekend of equestrian fun.
The Halloween Horse Show, hosted by the BlackPearl Friesian Dance Troupe, will be held at the Clark County Fairgrounds, located at 17402 NE Delfel Road, Ridgefield. The event runs from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 12, and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 13.
Meg Brinton, president of the BlackPearl Friesian Dance Troupe, is eager to make the 50th anniversary of this Clark County tradition a memorable one. The nonprofit troupe, known for providing horse shows to benefit local charities, has run the event for the last five years.
One of the main attractions will be the costume horse show, where both riders and their horses will showcase their creativity. Last year’s winner wowed the crowd by dressing herself and her horse as “Beauty and the Beast.” The rider donned a yellow ball gown, while her horse embodied the Beast, complete with dress pants.
This year’s costume contest will take place at 5 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 12. Participants will dress up alongside their horses in themed costumes, and judges will evaluate the presentations across three age groups: 13 and under, 14 to 18, and 19 and older. The top two entries from each group will then compete for the grand champion title.
“I love seeing the creativity of the people that work so hard on their costumes,” Brinton said. “I just love seeing that.”
Another spooky highlight is the trail course, which opens on Saturday afternoon. The course will feature Halloween-themed obstacles that challenge the horses as they walk through the arena. The obstacles are designed to be eerie and unsettling for the horses, with features like popping mailboxes and faux water hazards. Horses will be led through the course rather than ridden.
“Most people lead their horses through it. They don’t ride through it because it’s got obstacles that are kind of scary to horses, things like mailboxes with something popping out of it or through something that looks like water … things that can be scary to horses,” Brinton explained.
Saturday will kick off with a series of regular horse shows, featuring halter, dressage and English disciplines. The spooky trail will follow in the afternoon, leading up to the much-anticipated costume contest at 5 p.m. Sunday’s events will include Western and showmanship horse shows.
Spectators can attend the event for free. Those interested in competing can register online at blackpearlfriesian.org/events.
