On Friday, October 8, my wife, Kim, and I took the afternoon to enjoy the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games in Lexington, Kentucky.  Throughout the course of the week, the games had been drawing increasingly large crowds as equestrians from dozens of countries around the world joined fans from those countries and America at the Kentucky Horse Park for the two and half week event.  We rode over in the elaborate shuttle system from downtown Lexington that carried thousands of fans over the course of the event to the front door of the huge complex.

We arrived in time to stroll through the trade show and Kentucky Experience pavilion for an hour or so before heading over to the Driving Stadium to catch the finals of the dressage event for driving.  This sport involves carriages and wagons pulled by four horses who are driven by world-class horsemen and women.  We watched as six finalists took their teams through a series of maneuvers before a full stadium of fans and five judging stands.  A team from Australia was clearly the best to even us--novices in every sense.  When they finished the stadium erupted in applause.

After the event, we headed back to the Kentucky pavilion to enjoy the beer tasting station offered by Alltech's Kentucky Ale brands and listened to two musicians with guitar and dulcimer.  We found some Christmas ornaments and one full-blown gift for a friend's three-year old son--a pair of Justin boots that he'll probably be able to wear for all of two or three months before he outgrows them.

I told several friends that this event, when coupled with the Ryder Cup just two years earlier in Louisville, has stamped Kentucky as a major destination for thousands of new fans and friends across the world.

The Makers Mark Visitor Center was a popular stop

Equestrian toys and models were on display in the event trade show

A huge mural adorned the event's primary stadium

A team performed in the finals of the Driving Dressage competition

Many visitors took the opportunity for a bourbon or beer tasting in the Kentucky Experience pavilion

Pink and orange streaks of a beautiful sunset provided a perfect backdrop as Wynona Judd sang a stirring rendition of “My Old Kentucky Home,” backed by the University of Kentucky Symphony Orchestra, to kick off the Opening Ceremonies of the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games Saturday Sept. 25 at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, Ky.

As I sat in the stands watching the elaborate gala ceremonies, I reflected on the first day of the 16-day event, which will decide the world champions in eight equestrian disciplines. After a week of record-setting 90-degree days, a cold front moved in Friday night and Saturday was a beautiful, sunny, fall-like day with temperatures in the 70s. That set the stage for what turned out to be a great day for all involved.

After watching from the side as family, friends and acquaintances poured a huge amount of hard work and energy for months and years into preparing for the games — the first ever held outside of Europe — and then waited with anxious anticipation for the opening day — someone likened it to the anxiety of waiting for a newborn — it was very gratifying to see the nearly universal acclaim from the more than 23,000 people who flocked to the park on Saturday.

More than 800 top equestrian athletes from 58 countries are participating in the games, and there was a mini-World’s Fair atmosphere Saturday as people from around the country and several foreign nations mingled and took advantage of the many things to see and do at the games in addition to the competition.

Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves, and the thousands of volunteers helping with the games were, to a person, open, friendly and helpful. There were even volunteers that opened the trash receptacles and wished you a good day.

I spent most of my time at the Kentucky Experience, a three-prong venue created by Kentucky’s Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet. The Exhibit Pavilion is a minitour of the Bluegrass State, with each of the state’s tourism regions represented by large panel displays with photographs of major scenic, historic and cultural attractions; large-screen televisions with videos about the regions; and items from several museums around the state.

There is Gen. George Patton’s sweater from the 1912 Olympics; an outfit worn by George Clooney in his latest film, “The American” and a dress worn by his aunt, Rosemary Clooney, in “White Christmas”; white fence from historic Calumet Farm; Shaker furniture from Shaker Village at Pleasant Hill; a red Corvette you can sit in courtesy of the Corvette Museum in Bowling Green; and on and on.

The Entertainment Pavilion features a stage with live entertainment throughout the day by Kentucky musicians. I relaxed listening to the Ritch Collins Three-O from Ashland and the bluegrass band Rick Oldfield and Company from Mount Sterling.

The Product Pavilion is loaded with quality Kentucky-made items, from funky folk art to exquisite jewelry and pottery selected for the show by the Kentucky Artisan Center in Berea. One side of the tent is a long bar where you can purchase samples of Kentucky wines, Kentucky bourbons and Kentucky Ale beer. I watched as Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear dipped a bottle of Maker’s Mark bourbon into a pail of hot red wax.

I took a quick tour through the large pavilion of Alltech, the Nicholasville, Ky.-based animal feed and supplement company that is the sponsor of the games. Several different areas explain the many fields Alltech is involved with around the world. I will have to save a more in-depth exploration for another visit, along with the Equine Village with its demonstrations of many horse breeds, and the expansive tradeshow.

The games run through Oct. 10.

Sampling Kentucky-made Rebecca Ruth bourbon balls at the Kentucky Experience.



An imaginatively decorated horse at the Alltech Pavilion is part of Lexington's Horse Mania.



A brilliant sunset over the outdoor stadium lent a perfect backdrop to the WEG opening ceremonies.

Sit in a Corvette at the Kentucky Experience.