An old-fashioned draft horse pull has been added to this year’s annual Draft, Gypsy and Haflinger Horse Show and Sheep Dog Trials at The Colorado Horse Park. The show will take place Aug. 17-19, with the draft horse test of strength scheduled for Aug. 18.
Draft horses are bred for strength and agility; they are capable of pulling heavy loads and these competition draft animals take great pride in the work they do. Their workout regimen is very similar to an NFL football player, and the horses daily exercise is targeted to keep muscles and tendons in heavy pulling condition.
Draft pull coordinator Joe Freund thinks the pull is going to be an excellent addition to the draft horse show and is looking forward to watching the audience members respond to the event.
“The draft horse pull competitions have a lot of the same appeal as the World Wrestling Foundation; it is exciting to watch because of the massive amount of weight these horses pull, and the apparent ease and willingness of the horse to do the work,” Freund says. “A large part of the appeal is that the winner is not a based on who’s the prettiest or who had the best outfit--the horse team pulling the heaviest weight wins.”
The draft horse pull offers two weight divisions: Light Weight (less than 3400 pounds) and Heavy Weight (more than 3400 pounds.) Each team will be given two attempts to pull their weighted “sled” 20 feet. Sled weights start at 3500 pounds and increases in increments of 2000 pounds, possibly reaching pulls close to 10,000 pounds.
Admission and parking are free for the horse show and the draft pull contest. For more information visit www.coloradohorsepark.org.