Glenwood Park in Middleburg, VA, will be the site of the 17th edition of the Middleburg Horse Trials to be held September 27 & 28, 2008. This year's Horse Trials are dedicated to the memory of our Middleburg Orange County Pony Club founder Eve Prime Fout and to the spirit she instilled in everyone she met for the horse sports she fostered and the countryside she loved.

Some 250 horses are entered at the Intermediate, Preliminary, and Novice levels. Former and present Olympians and winners of the Rolex Kentucky, Badminton and Burghley Horse Trials in England will bring their horses to show at the various levels. Hotly contested as well will be the novice levels for local children and their ponies.

The dressage and show jumping phases will be run on Saturday, September 27, starting at 7:40 AM, and ending at 5:30 PM. The cross-country phase will follow on Sunday with the Preliminary divisions at 8:30 AM, the Intermediate divisions at 10:00 AM, and the Novice divisions from 1:15 PM until 5:30 PM. Additionally on Sunday at noon, novice level horses will be jumping in their stadium phase.

The public is invited to come watch all the phases and to enjoy a day in the country at one of the nation's most historic and picturesque equestrian facilities, Glenwood Park, home to three steeplechase meets as well. Admission is free.

Horse Trials are the equine triathlon. Saturday's dressage combines obedience, gaits and figures, in a 33 foot by 66 foot arena, into fluid invisible communication between horse and rider. Show jumping requires accurate, careful jumping over large obstacles that can fall down if struck by a hoof. Sunday's cross-country courses pit horse and rider against imposing solid jumps over a two-mile long galloping course. It is always a thrilling sight. So pack a picnic, bring a blanket, and come watch equine and human perform as one! Viewing from the age-old stone grandstands across the course is breathtaking.