BARREL OF FUN: Equestrian event returns to Fairgrounds after 20-year hiatus

An N Bar H Riding Club member makes a turn during a barrel race (N Bar H Riding Club photo)

ROCHESTER - For the first time in more than 20 years a Gymkhana competition is coming back to the Rochester Fairgrounds as part of the Granite State Fair.
Gymkhana is an equestrian event featuring a variety of different horseback riding games that are all speed related and timed to determine who wins.
One of the most popular events is the barrel racing, where a horse and rider race around three barrels in a cloverleaf pattern in the fastest time possible, with the clock starting and stopping as they pass through a timed gate, said Stephanie Houston of Kingston, a board member of the N Bar H Riding Club of Barrington, which organized the competition.
Another event featured on Saturday will be pole bending, where a horse and rider weave through six poles set in a line, then turn around, and weave through them again in the opposite direction before galloping to the finish line.
The objective is to complete the pattern in the fastest time, with penalties added for knocking over any of the six poles, which are typically 6 feet high and spaced 21 feet apart.
Houston said there are several age categories that will be vying for top honors and the event will likely take a few hours to compete.

"It's very exciting and a lot of fun to watch," she said
The Gymkhana begins at 11 a.m.
Other major events on Saturday include the Racing Pigs, Circus Hollywood and the famed School Bus Derby in the grandstand at 7 p.m.