Just wanted to let you know that the expo went well and we had a great
time. The expo itself was not as well attended as in years past, but
sometimes it's not quantity that counts, it's quality. I feel like
overall it was a great experience and I am glad that I/We made the
effort to be there. It is very apparent that consistently being at
events like this is an important part of promoting and sharing our breed
with people who are either new to it or who already have a paso and may
be looking for a way to connect with others who also have a paso. We
are getting to be known and recognized and they want us at their
events. We bring something extra to the event, something different,
noticeable and above all, FUN.
Our booth this year was simple (I will be sending you photos of the
booth and demo riders) but very welcoming and effective. And I decided
to haul in my big TV this time to experiment with. And I would have to
say it was a huge success. We had people stopping in the aisle and
watching because it was easy to see and it ended up drawing many in for
more information and to ask questions or sign our contact list. We
placed the tables and all at the back of the booth, with the front being
very open and inviting. We kept 1 or 2 people in the booth to talk to
interested people, but otherwise kept things cleared out so we didn't
fill up the booth and allowed people the opportunity to come in and
browse. It worked great!!! We handed out a lot of coloring books, in
fact I need a fresh supply of boxes of coloring books. I have 4 boxes
of farm directories left, but will need the coloring books by the time
we do the Horse Expo in April and my Open house the weekend after that.
We would also like to do some things with grade schools this year and
want to hand out the coloring books while we are there. I have an idea
for handing them out during parades too. One of the other neat things
about our booth decorations, was the number of high quality hand made
things that enhanced the presentation. Heidi Young had made a hand
quilted wall hanging of me on Mejor from the Horse Affair performance
last year that was centered among the other pictures from Jan. June
Johnson had given me a hand painted paso welcome sign that was out front
asking people to "Don't Paso us by. Please come in." And Sharon
Prindel's husband Jim, made an awesome Buckboard seat bench ( he takes
orders and they are really really nice) that gave people a place to sit
and watch the videos or chat or rest.
I had some wonderful helpers who really made all the difference in our
presentation to the curious. Andriette Goudreau was there every day all
day, helped me with set up, announced for the Saturday demo and rode my
gelding Roberto in our demos. Sharon Prindel had her bright & cheery
self there everyday and would have ridden in the demos if she hadn't
been dealing with bronchitis. It was VERY cold here this time around.
Heidi Young was there Sat evening, Leola Jones was there Sat during the
afternoon, June Johnson was there on Sunday all day and took pictures.
Lance Christiansen rode Ramone in the Sunday demo and helped with tear
down. His daughter Arianna rode Fiesta in the Sunday demo. My daughter
rode Justino in the Sunday demo. I rode my stallion El Mejor DLM in all
the demos, announced, was in the booth, went out and promoted and talked
to other vendors and organizations and so on.
The Demos were short and sweet this time around. We had 15 minutes each
day to show off our pasos to crowds that I would estimate to be around
40-50 people each day. We didn't use my sound board this time because
it takes too long to set up and take down, but we invited people outside
after the demos to listen to us on the pavement and many people took us
up on the offer. If it had been warmer, I'll bet there would have been
more. On Sunday we were able to have 5 horses in the ring working at the
same time. El Mejor, Justino, Roberto, Fiesta & Ramone. Everyone of
them worked great and really did a nice job representing our breed. And
even though we all did well, I was particularly proud of Arianna on
Fiesta. I am sitting here smiling to myself as I write this and
remember her ride. This little tiny, smiling, bright, confident,
beautiful little girl on an wonderful old shaggy fino mare who took
great care of her and helped her have a great first experience out in
front of a crowd for the first time (well second time, they were in a
parade before). They even demonstrated the fino for everyone.
Britt Christiansen and several other people who I know who have
Peruvians or pasos were in the crowd of onlookers, and they were able to
hear the comments that people were making that were sitting around
them. It is very interesting to hear that commentary and it is very
useful information to have as you plan your demos and the information
that you relay to people. It will allow us to better address what the
people need to know about the breed in the future. It makes me think
that there is some value to "stacking the deck" so to speak, by being
sure that there are people in the crowds of onlookers to hear what they
are saying so we get that feedback or to be able to answer their
questions, as well as to ask some questions to get more information out
to everyone. Something to think about.
Also want you all to know that the Peruvian Paso people around here are
very happy to have us doing so much in the way of promoting and
educating, and clinics and other activities. There is no one doing
anything for that breed and they are just happy to have things going on
that they can participate in. Happy Trails, Sandy Young