Highlights Archives
Villa Louis Carriage Classic September 6 & 7
One of the most elegant equine festivals and carriage driving competitions in the nation is set to unfold on the beautiful grounds of the historic Villa Louis country estate in Prairie du Chien when the annual Villa Louis Carriage Classic returns on Saturday and Sunday, September 6-7. Spectators will be treated to an eye-popping spectacle as nattily attired drivers perched atop beautifully appointed carriages traverse the spacious riverside grounds behind immaculately groomed horses in a display reminiscent of stylish 19th-century equine competitions. The event also recalls a brief period in the Villa Louis' own history, when in the 1880s the estate served as a breeding farm for Standardbred trotting horses used in harness racing.
More than 100 turnouts — the term includes the driver, carriage, animals and their manner of presentation — will take part in a variety of classes of sport driving competition that include obstacle courses, cross-country rides and arena shows. Several specialty classes add to the variety, including Carriage Dog, the chic Concourse d'Elegance in which the overall elegance of the turnout is judged, and the ever-popular picnic class in which entries are judged on performance and quality of turnout, dress of passengers and presentation of the picnic itself.
In the competitive classes, which include Cones, Reinsmanship, Cross Country, Gambler's Choice, and Working Pleasure, drivers, or whips, go head to head in a series of divisions that take into account such distinguishing characteristics as single-horse versus multiple-horse hitches, juniors, novice drivers, and large and small horses and ponies. Judges rank competitors based on such factors as elapsed times, difficulty of obstacles, reinsmanship skill of the driver, and the performance and manner of the horses.
If you make the excursion to Prairie du Chein for the Villa Louis Carriage Classic, you'll want to include time for a tour of the restored rooms of the Villa Louis mansion and the Dousman office building. Mansion tours are included in the cost of admission, so treat yourself to a peek inside one of the most authentically furnished Victorian country houses in all of America.
For complete details on admission, hours, a map, distances from various cities, and other information, see Villa Louis' visitor information pages. For a complete rundown of competitors, competition classes, divisions, registration details and other information, visit the home page of Villa Louis Carriage Classic, Inc., which sponsors the annual event.
:: Posted September 2, 2008
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