This year’s New Albany Classic Grand Prix and Family Day is going to be even more horse-filled than usual.
The event, an annual fundraiser for the Center for Family Safety and Healing, consists of a large family festival and an internationally attended show jumping competition. About 30 riders and their horses compete in the event Sept. 21.
But this year there will be an additional 10 horses on the grounds of the Wexner residence at One Whitebarn Lane. Ten solid wood carousel horses made by Mansfield-based Carousel Works will greet patrons as they enter the Classic and at other locations around the event.
The carousel horses are on display in honor of the Year of the Horse, part of the Chinese zodiac. People born in the Year of the Horse are supposed to be loyal, patient, tirelessly active and easy-going, and the Year of the Horse is reputedly an impulsive year, a good time for new projects and decisions. In addition, the Chinese zodiac includes five elements – earth, water, fire, wood and metal – that are said to interact with the animals.
The addition of the elements makes 2014 the year of the wooden horse, making the carousel animals especially appropriate.
“The Year of the Horse only happens every 12 years, so of course we wanted to celebrate it this year,” says Stephanie Lorenz, event director for the Classic.
Open since 1986, Carousel Works is the largest manufacturer of wooden carousels in the world and uses traditional techniques, which were last widely used in the 1930s. The company is comprised of about 25 to 30 artisans with varying skill sets, ranging from carpenters to painters. Some of them have been with the company for years, says Carousel Works Marketing Director Kate Blakley.
Carousels were very popular in the beginning of the 20th century, but the industry slowed during the 1940s. They experienced a resurgenc
e in popularity in the 1980s and remain much-loved traditional rides. Though there are companies that restore old wooden carousels, very few make new carousels. Carousel Works does both. You may have seen the company’s handiwork on the Columbus Commons carousel and the restoration of the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium carousel.
The company’s traditional techniques result in distinct details and handcrafted quality. One horse is comprised of 40 to 80 blocks of wood, usually bass wood, a member of the hardwood family that is very strong and durable. Once the horse is designed, it is hand-carved, sanded and painted by the artists in the company. The entire process can take almost two months for just one horse, Blakley says.
The horses on display at the Classic will be fully finished horses – painted, jeweled and on poles. They are eventually intended for a carousel in Stamford, Conn. that will include 33 animal figures. Carousel Works’ involvement in the Classic was suggested by Classic Founder Abigail Wexner, who had been part of the company’s project creating the large wooden animals on display at Nationwide Children’s Hospital.
“We did the large animal friends in the hospital. (Abigail) had been up to our shop, and with it being the Year of the Horse, we came up with the idea of bringing some of the horses down for the Classic. It’s a great event,” Blakley says.
The antique horses will bring a slice of the past to the fundraiser.
“It was kismet that they had some horses available that we could borrow to celebrate and honor the horse,” Lorenz says. “It all came together and will be a nice new addition for our guest to enjoy. The carousel horses will be a prominent focal point as families arrive at the Classic.”
Taylor Woodhouse is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at gbishop@cityscenemediagroup.com.
The Classic
The New Albany Classic Invitational Grand Prix and Family Day has flourished in the 17 years since its inception. This year’s events are expected to be attended by more than 15,000 people.
It takes more than 300 people around 2,000 hours every year to pull off the event, which combines a invitational show jumping competition with a fair-style atmosphere for families.
The Grand Prix is a show jumping invitational that draws competitors from all over the world. The competition is tough; the roster is full of Olympians and world-ranked equestrians and their mounts. There is $125,000 worth of prize money to be won, and the leading rider receives a two-year lease on a 2015 Mercedes Benz. It’s no surprise that for the second year in a row the New Albany Grand Prix has been named the Best Specialty Equestrian Event in the country by the North American Riders Group.
The equestrian portion is the centerpiece to the all-day festivities of Family Day. Activities and attractions include a petting zoo, rides, a zip line, classic cars and a synthetic ice rink. New this year Columbus Children’s Theatre cast members will be performing around the festival. Food is available at numerous food trucks as well as at the New Albany Country Club Food Court.
This year’s Tween Brands Concert features girl-power group Fifth Harmony, which debuted on season two of The X Factor. The group’s biggest album, Better Together, features its hit “Miss Movin’ On,” and it recently released a single, “BO$$,” in anticipation of its album planned for release this fall.
Tickets are $23 for ages 11 and over, $7.50 for children ages 4 to 10 and free for children ages 3 and younger. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.thenewalbanyclassic.com.
The New Albany Classic Schedule: Sept. 21
10 a.m.-5 p.m.: Family Day Activities
11 a.m.: Tween Brands Concert at The Classic presented by Justice & Brothers 2 p.m.: 17th Annual New Albany Classic Invitational
The Cause
Beyond the show jumping and the family fun, the New Albany Classic Invitational Grand Prix and Family Day is a major fundraiser for the Center for Family Safety and Healing.
Since 1998, he Classic has raised more than $20 million for the center, formerly known as the Columbus Coalition Against Family Violence. It comes out to about $1.5 million a year. All of these funds go directly to the center.
The center is a nonprofit organization committed to the prevention of abuse and domestic violence and to the support and treatment of victims. It works to break the cycle of family violence through an array of private and public resources, including counseling, prenatal and early intervention services, medical services, and community training programs.
Family violence and child abuse are issues that are very important to Abigail Wexner, founder of both the Classic and the coalition. Introduced to the issues by a friend, Wexner looked for a way to raise money to break of the cycle of abuse. The Classic was her solution. After the success of the first Classic in 1998 and the feedback from the community, it became an annual event.
