Exhibitors at this year’s Spring Show and Three Year Old Futurity should be aware of a new arena policy.  “The Board has noticed that all arena lights are often left on all night.  There has been a discussion for a number of years of putting a formal policy in place,” shared Dr. Joyce Graening, MFTHBA president.

The new policy is an effort to help control some of the electrical expenses incurred at the shows.  “Our older lighting systems are not very efficient.  While we work on a plan to update the systems with more energy efficient lighting, we want to be as consciousness as possible to control our electrical expenses,” added Graening.

The new policy states:

Lights at the Dale Esther, DQP and Warm-Up arenas may not be used prior to June 6.  On June 6-7, ALL lights will be turned off at 2 a.m.  During the show (June 8-10), lights in the DQP and Warm-Up arenas will be turned off at 2 a.m. or 2 hours following the completion of the evening session, whichever is later.  Lights in the Dale Esther Arena will be reduced to three light towers at 2 a.m.  The Board requests the last rider turn off the remaining lights upon leaving the arena.  On Saturday June 11, lights will be turned off following the completion of the evening session.

The lights in the Versatility Arena will not be available for use during the Spring Show and Three Year Old Futurity.

Each evening a MFTHBA Board member will be assigned to turn off the lights in the four arenas on the showgrounds.  “Our first priority is our exhibitors.  We know that the weather, length of the show and other factors impact how late people ride,” shared Graening.  Because of the variables, the assigned board members will have the flexibility to leave the lights on past the designated times to accommodate exhibitors.

“The Board does not wish to hamper anyone’s preparations for the show; however, we do ask that they understand that it isn’t financially smart to have lights running in four arenas all night,” added Graening.