AQHA ANNOUNCES 2007 PROFESSIONAL HORSEMEN AWARDS

America’s Horse, March 3, 2008 – During the March 1 awards banquet at the American Quarter Horse Association 2008 annual convention in San Francisco, the Association announced the 2007 professional horsemen award winners. Cathy Hanson won the Most Valuable Professional award, and AQHA named Gretchen Mathes and Dale Livingston the Professional Horsewoman and Horseman of the Year, respectively.

This is the second year AQHA has presented the Most Valuable Professional award sponsored by Professional’s Choice. The surprise award is based on nominations from all AQHA affiliates, and winners receive a specially designed Montana Silversmiths belt buckle. The 2007 winner, Cathy Hanson of San Juan Capistrano, California, has been a professional in the American Quarter Horse industry for 30 years and is a past president of the Pacific Coast Quarter Horse Association. She is currently the chair of the PCQHA Youth Committee and also acts as the youth adviser. Along with running a successful training barn in southern California, Hanson has organized fund-raising efforts for youth programs and has coordinated youth activities at the Youth World Show.

The Professional Horsewoman and Horseman of the Year awards also are sponsored by Professional’s Choice. These surprise presentations are for American Quarter Horse professionals who have worked toward the future of the industry and are selected by members of the Professional Horsemen’s Committee to receive specially created gold and diamond rings.

Gretchen Mathes, the 2007 Horsewoman of the year, has been breeding American Quarter Horses for 20 years, has coached multiple Congress and World Show champions and holds judges cards with AQHA, the National Reining Horse Association and the National Snaffle Bit Association. Mathes is currently the vice president as well as chair of the fund-raising committee for the Connecticut Quarter Horse Association and is a member of AQHA’s Stud Book and Registration committee. She currently lives in Harwinton, Connecticut.

The 2007 Horseman of the Year, Dale Livingston of San Antonio, Texas, is both an AQHA and NSBA judge and is an accomplished AQHA World Championship Show exhibitor. He has been training all levels of riders in English and western rail classes, reining, horsemanship and other events for more than 30 years. Livingston helped develop the most recent educational video and judges’ test for the new western pleasure standards and has made great efforts to promote programs to help benefit the pros and give credit to his fellow professional horsemen.

One of the programs that Dale, along with many other professional horsemen, worked to initiate was the selection of Lifetime Achievement award winners, which AQHA named for the first time at the awards banquet in San Francisco. Becoming the first to earn this title and joining the other recognized professionals were Lester Howard of Laurinburg, North Carolina; Walter Hughes of Damascus, Maryland; and Jerry Wells of Purcell, Oklahoma. All of these horsemen were recognized for their life work that has significantly impacted the American Quarter Horse Association.

AQHA news and information is a service of AQHA publications. For more information on The American Quarter Horse Journal, The American Quarter Horse Racing Journal or America’s Horse, visit www.aqha.com/magazines.