AMHA Youth of the Year Contest - American Morgan Horse ...

AmericanMorganHorseAssociation

The American Morgan Horse Association Youth (AMHAY) is aninternational organization of young people who have a commoninterest in the Morgan horse, America’s oldest breed. With youthmembers in the United States, Canada, and all over the world, AMHAYoffers a variety of programs thatchallenge members to becomeinvolved, to learn, and to developcompetence in all areas of thehorse industry.As they work with the Morganhorse, members develop a sense ofsportsmanship and fair play, learncitizenship skills, master leadershipskills, and develop discipline and asense of responsibility for themselves,their horses, and their clubs.The Morgan youth program isdesigned to bring out the best inits members no matter what their skills or interests. Owning a Morganhorse is not a requirement for membership. Membershipin AMHAY is open to all young people who have notreached their 22nd birthday as of December 1 ofthe previous year. All young people interested inimproving their horsemastership skills and managementskills are invited to become AMHAY members.AMHA Medal ClassesExcellence in equitation is recognized throughthe AMHA Medal Classes held at local andregional Morgan shows. Juniorriders in all parts of the countrycompete to win AMHA SilverMedals in each of the six equitationseats: Saddle Seat, Western Seat,Hunter Seat on the Flat, HunterSeat over Fences, Dressage, andReining Seat. Riders qualify to ridein the Gold Medal Finals at theGrand National & WorldChampionship Morgan Horse Showby placing first or second in anAMHA Silver Medal class. A GoldMedal, the highest AMHA equitationhonor, is presented to the winner in eachof the six seats.Photo © Debbie Uecker-Keough

AMHA Youth of the Year ContestThe title of AMHAY Youth of the Year is one of the highest honors presentedto a Morgan youth. The contest for the covetedaward is composed of four divisions: horsemastership,judging, an oral presentation, and a written test.The winners of preliminary Youth of the Yearcontests, held at many local and regional shows,qualify to compete in the Youth Finals at theGrand National & World Championship MorganHorse Show in October.The award for winning the AMHA Youth of theYear Contest is a month-long trip to a countryof the winner’s choice, as an ambassador forAMHAY, promoting the Morgan horse andsharing the horsemastership skills learnedin the Morgan youth program. The reserveaward is a week-long trip to a trainer orbreeder of his or her choice.AMHAYHorse BowlHorse Bowl is a fast recall game inwhich teams compete to see whoknows the most about horses. Fourplayers on each team square off tobe first to correctly answer questionsabout genetics, nutrition, showing, anatomy,etc. Local competitions are held by AMHAclubs and the national competition is heldeach year at the Grand National.Photo © Debbie Uecker-Keough

AMHAY Horsemastership ProgramThe horsemastership program offers AMHAY members an opportunityto develop the skills and knowledge to become competent and independenthorse persons. Its five achievement levels (Bulrush, Woodbury,Sherman, Black Hawk, and Justin Morgan) teach members to ride,drive, judge, train and properly care for their horses.They learn about nutrition, conditioning, health care, breeding, conformationand other important equine information. AMHAY awardsbadges, prizes and certificates of achievement to members whocomplete the first four levels of the program, a savings bond to thefourth and fifth level, and a jacket to those who achieve the prestigiousfifth level of horsemastership.AMHAY Horse Judging ProgramThe AMHAY Horse Judging Program teaches members how toevaluate horses in a logical, step-by-step method in both in-hand andperformance classes. Competing in local, regional, and nationalcompetitions, members learn the vocabulary to explain the reasons whyone horse should be selected over another.Photo © S. deVoght

Structure of AMHAYAMHAY officers are the leaders of the Morgan Youth program. Theyplay an active role in determining the direction and policies of theAMHAY program. AMHAY officers are between 14-21 years of age.They have a genuine interest in the Morgan youth program and providesupport and assistance to youth club members and leaders. Thenational officers of president, secretary, and reporter are elected by theAMHAY members. Vice presidents are elected by members of each ofthe ten AMHAY regions. Elections are held each summer and the resultsare announced at the Grand National & World Championship MorganHorse Show.Together with the Youth Steering Committee, the AMHAY officers makeup the AMHAY Board. The Board meets annually at the AMHAConvention to plan AMHAY activities for the coming year. The board isan important link between the AMHAY office and the local clubs.AMHAY vice presidents and steering committee coordinate youthactivities in their regions.The Grand National &World Championship ShowThe conclusion of the Morgan show season is the exciting GrandNational & World Championship Morgan Horse Show held inOklahoma City each October. Young people from throughout the UnitedStates and Canada compete for top honors at this prestigious show.The Youth of the Year Finals, Horse Bowl, JudgingContest, Medal Class Finals, as well as JuniorExhibitor and Equitation World Championships,offer exciting and challenging competitionfor AMHAY members.

Membership BenefitsAMHA invites you to join our association. As a memberof AMHA, you will receive the following:1. AMHA membership card.2. Access the AMHA Members Only Web Site.3. The Network newsletter.4. Reduced rates on Morgan horse registry transactions.5. Discounts on Morgan retail products.6. Horsemastership requirement booklet.You will also have the opportunity to:1. Pass the AMHAY Horsemastership Achievement Levels.2. Receive information about local youth clubs and compete foroutstanding club awards.3. Enter AMHA Youth of the Year Contest.4. Participate in the AMHA Open Competition Programs.5. Participate in the AMHA Photo Contest, Literary Contest, andArt Contest6. Participate in the Pathways Pleasure Ride/Drive Program.7. Apply for several scholarships, including those offered by theAmerican Morgan Horse Institute.Photo © Hoof Pix

www.morganhorse.comPhoto © Ed LawrenceAmericanMorganHorseAssociationP.O. Box 960 F Shelburne, Vermont 05482-0960Phone: (802) 985-4944 F Fax: (802) 985-8897E-mail: info@morganhorse.comWeb-Site: www.morganhorse.comRevised 4/2004