Cleveland Grand Prix and Show Honored in National Museum

In case you missed the news of this major honor:

Kentucky’s Wheeler Museum Adds Ohio’s Chagrin Valley PHA Horse Show to Iconic Horse Shows Exhibit

April 23, 2015—Lexington, KY—Today, the United States Hunter Jumper Association added the Chagrin Valley PHA Horse Show, which hosted the first show jumping grand prix held on American soil in 1965, to its current exhibit, A Sporting Tradition: Iconic Horse Shows Across the United States.

“This horse show brought us the first show jumping grand prix in the United States,” said Wheeler Museum Committee Co-Chair Bill Rube. “We are pleased to include this historic competition among the many iconic horse shows featured in our current exhibit, which allows horse enthusiasts to come learn about the tradition and history of our great sport.”

The Chagrin Valley PHA Show, which began in the early 1960’s, evolved from a yearly fundraising all-breed horse show that the Chagrin Valley Trails and Riding Club held at the Cleveland Metroparks Polo Field starting the 1940s. Now organized by the Chagrin Valley PHA Horse Shows, Inc., the Cleveland Grand Prix is the highlight of the horse show now known as the Chagrin Valley Hunter Jumper Classic.

Located at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington, KY, the Wheeler Museum exhibit features photographs, video, artifacts and other memorabilia to showcase 20 of the most historically significant and storied competitions across the United States that featured hunter and jumper classes. In addition to their longevity and long-standing traditions, the horse shows featured share similar traits: competition, community and charity.

For those unable to visit the museum in person, the Wheeler Museum offers a video tour of the exhibit. The Chagrin Valley PHA Show will be added to video tour soon, as well.

“We couldn’t be more proud of this wonderful honor,” said Karen Schneider, Chairman of the Chagrin Valley PHA Horse Show which will run July 2-12 at the Cleveland Metroparks Polo Field. “We have worked very hard to archive this historic horse show and preserve photos and records so the addition of a Museum display came at the perfect time as we prepare to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Cleveland Grand Prix.” Details on the horse show can be found on www.clevelandhorseshow.com . The history of the first grand prix in North America was chronicled in the book, The Cleveland Grand Prix: An American Show Jumping First, by Betty Weibel, a former co-chairman of the Chagrin Valley PHA Horse Show.

For more information, visit www.ushja.org/wheelermuseum.