Sure, the 53rd annual Washington International Horse Show (October 23-28, 2011 at the Verizon Center in downtown Washington, D.C.) may have been home to such prestigious competitions as the $100,000 President’s Cup Grand Prix CSI3*-W, the WIHS Equitation Classic Finals and the $25,000 Puissance, but what folks really came out to see was the tough as nails riders who braved the fiercely competitive mutton-busting class. That’s right, Mutton Busting! Show us a rider who will don a full-face helmet, wind their fingers through the rough wool of a writhing sheep and hang on for dear life as said sheep runs for its own, and we’ll show you a true champion. Hats off to all the 2011 WIHS Mutton Busters, and especially to this year’s Mutton Busting Champion, 8-year-old Marissa Jones of River Chase Farm. Out of the gate they came, in a fast-moving blaze of thick wool and hooved fury. . . . . . Some riders kept their eyes bravely forward, determined to tame their mutton by ring’s end
Read more at the source: Fun Bustin’ Muttons at WIHS
Article excerpt posted on Sidelinesnews.com from What’s Happenin’.