Editor’s note: Stable Management’s parent company Active Interest Media has long been a sponsor of Time to Ride and the effort to grow our industry! Introducing newcomers to horses is something every equine business can do. With the Time to Ride Challenge, you can get rewarded for growing your own business while receiving marketing tools and tips you can continue to use! Check out the new rules that help more equine businesses like yours become winners!
Time to Ride invites stables, clubs and all horse businesses nationwide to register now for the 2017 Time to Ride Challenge, a grassroots competition offering $100,000 in cash and prizes!
In its fourth year of competition, the Challenge is the only industry-wide effort specifically designed to encourage entry-level participation in riding and other horse activities. Participating horse professionals will work to create engaging outreach events in Phase I, May 1 through August 31, that connect with the general public and introduce families to the joy of horses. Then in Phase II, which occurs simultaneously and continues through September 30, they will help these new horse enthusiasts get involved regularly through riding lessons or other ongoing horse experiences. The stables, clubs and businesses which introduce and convert the greatest number of newcomers will win their share of $100,000 cash and prizes across size-based divisions.
Past participants report enthusiastically about their experiences in the Challenge, including Susan Dudasik, owner of Misfit Farm in Salmon, Idaho: “Once you get the hang of it, it’s really fun and you come up with all kinds of new ideas. We had 55 [newcomers] last year [2015] and over 200 this year [2016] and really surprised ourselves!! Never thought we’d get that many. This is such a neat program and we’re already looking forward to next year!”
Tina Renison-Ambrose, owner and instructor at Cross Roads Stable in Elverta, California shared, “The Challenge helped me market my business, and I have picked up 30 more clients from all our events! Not too bad for sharing the love and passion we have for horses with new people every day!” Cross Roads Stable won $1,000 as fourth-place winners in the medium division.
Competing in the Challenge is free, and the contest takes place May 1 through September 30. Time to Ride invites stables, clubs, businesses, instructors, veterinarians, and all other horse professionals to sign up now! For more information, please visit https://www.timetoride.com/time-to-ride-challenge/ or contact info@timetoride.com.
The American Horse Council’s Marketing Alliance
Time to Ride is an initiative of the American Horse Council’s Marketing Alliance, formed to connect people with horses. It is designed to encourage horse-interested consumers to enjoy the benefits of horse activities. Since 2014, Time to Ride programs have introduced nearly 100,000 newcomers to horses and helped grow 78% of the participating horse businesses. The AHC Marketing Alliance is made up of the following organizations: the American Association of Equine Practitioners, Active Interest Media, the American Quarter Horse Association, Farnam, Merck, Merial, Morris Media Network Equine Group, Purina Animal Nutrition LLC, Platinum Performance, United States Equestrian Federation, The Right Horse Initiative, and Zoetis. Program Partners are Absorbine, the American Paint Horse Association, ASPCA, Equibrand, the National Reining Horse Association, Lumina Media, Pyranha Inc., the America’s Mustang Campaign, and Colorado State University Equine Sciences Program.
About the American Horse Council
The American Horse Council is a non-profit organization that includes all segments of the horse industry. While its primary mission is to represent the industry before Congress and the federal regulatory agencies in Washington, DC, it also undertakes national initiatives for the horse industry. Time to Ride, the AHC’s marketing alliance to connect horses and people, is such an effort. The American Horse Council hopes that Time to Ride will encourage people and businesses to participate in the industry, enjoy our horses, and support our equine activities and events. The AHC believes a healthy horse industry contributes to the health of Americans and America in many ways.
