Assembly Resolution No. 629
BY: M. of A. Stec
COMMEMORATING the 50th Anniversary of the Lake
Placid Horse Shows on June 30, 2019
WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to honor and pay
tribute to those establishments whose commitment and creative talents
contribute to recreational American tradition and the entertainment of
their community and the entire State of New York; and
WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with its
long-standing traditions, this Legislative Body is justly proud to
commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the Lake Placid Horse Shows to be
celebrated at its Grand Prix of Lake Placid on Sunday, June 30, 2019;
and
WHEREAS, The Lake Placid Horse Shows, two of the nation's premier
Hunter and Show Jumping competitions, feature ten days of world-class
competition around the Fourth of July holiday; and
WHEREAS, For the past 50 years, the Lake Placid Horse Shows have
brought the nation's top show jumping horses and riders to the beautiful
Adirondacks and historic Olympic town of Lake Placid, New York; and
WHEREAS, After fabulous growth in the late 1970s, the shows overcame
much adversity in the mid-1980s, and today, Lake Placid is recognized as
one of the premier stops on the nation's hunter-jumper horse show
circuit; and
WHEREAS, Lake Placid's start as a horse show host came in the early
1930s, when the Lake Placid Riding Club sponsored gymkhanas, races and
summer meets; these early shows were elegant, highly competitive and the
social event of the celebrity calendar; and
WHEREAS, Lake Placid stopped hosting horse shows during World War
II, and did not host a horse show again until the summer of 1970, when
the first of the current version of the Lake Placid Horse Shows was
held; and
WHEREAS, This initial Token Horse Show was held as a preliminary
step towards accreditation with the American Horse Shows Association
(AHSA), and was hosted by the East Kiln Pony Club of Ausable Forks at
Ruth Newberry's farm; and
WHEREAS, The following year, with the help of her daughter, Jessica,
a three time Olympic dressage rider, Ruth Newberry approached the United
States Equestrian Team's top riders and asked them to come to Lake
Placid; and
WHEREAS, Personally telephoning Olympians Frank and Mary Chapot,
George Morris and Bill Steinkraus, Ruth Newberry convinced them, and
other noted riders, to bring what amounted to 145 of the best horses in
the country to the first official Lake Placid Horse Show; and
WHEREAS, Today, the Lake Placid Horse Shows boast a world-class
venue with state-of-the-art footing set in an unrivaled vacation-like
setting, making it a favorite stop for competitors and families alike;
top barns regularly include the Lake Placid Horse Shows as a featured
stop on their competition calendar; and
WHEREAS, Furthermore, the Lake Placid Horse Shows have been
recognized by the National Show Hunter Hall of Fame as one of the
country's Top Ten Horse Shows; this year, the US Equestrian Federation
has designated the Lake Placid Horse Shows as an elite "USEF Heritage
Competition"; and
WHEREAS, The Lake Placid Horse Shows has created a show jumping
tradition which has attracted the attention and admiration of virtually
everyone in the show jumping world; it has truly earned its moniker of
"the best two weeks of a horseman's summer"; and
WHEREAS, It is the custom of this Legislative Body that when
establishments of such noble aims and accomplishments are brought to our
attention, they should be celebrated and recognized by all the citizens
of this great Empire State; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the Lake Placid Horse Shows on June
30, 2019; and be it further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be
transmitted to the Lake Placid Horse Shows.
