Horses In The City

While driving through downtown Syracuse it’s tough to miss the four-legged animals strolling across the crosswalks. That’s because horses have taken over the Oncenter and the War Memorial for the week.

Nearly 400 horses arrived to compete in the 7^th Annual Syracuse Invitational Sporthorse Tournament this week. That is where the logistics get interesting. Where can you keep 400 horses in downtown Syracuse?

Well, organizers start by housing a majority of the horses not competing at the fair grounds. Horses then take turns cycling into the make-shift stable that was created in the parking garage across from the Oncenter. Storing horses on the streets is something riders and horses do not see in many other competitions.

“It’s really different for the horses to be in this environment, walking on the street to the show ring and everything,” competitor Navajo Gallegos said.

However it presents a different atmosphere that has created an interesting challenge for competitors.

“I think it was a really great vision that John Madden had when he said let’s hold a horseshow in the middle of the city of Syracuse,” Horseshow Management Team member Heather Kallas said. People said how are you going to do that? And we’ve been doing it now for seven years and successfully, so it worked out.”

Despite all the craziness of moving horses through the streets of Downtown Syracuse, with the help of volunteers and police, traffic continues to move relatively smoothly throughout the city.

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