The 2009 Vermont Summer Festival in East Dorset, VT, is gearing up for another exciting summer of equestrian competition. The six-week circuit will run from July 1-August 9 at Harold Beebe Farm, and in addition to great hunter and jumper competition, the Manchester and the Mountains area will play host to all of the exhibitors and their families.

The Vermont Summer Festival offers six consecutive weeks of competition, which makes it the longest horse show circuit offered in the Northeast. Many exhibitors bring their entire families to the Manchester area to experience not only a great horse show, but also a wonderful family friendly environment.

Joan Jacobs of Deeridge Farm in East Aurora, NY, has been a competitor and "horse show mom" at the Vermont Summer Festival for the past two years. The extended Jacobs family includes 11 members that meet in Vermont each summer to spend time together, both at the horse show as well as enjoying the local amenities. “We love the size of the horse show,” Jacobs noted. “It’s like an old-fashioned show and isn’t too big.”

Jacobs takes advantage of the stunning scenery in the area to go cycling, and noted that swimming at the local quarry is a big hit with the kids. “Our son doesn’t ride in the horse show, but he loves coming up to Vermont, too,” she explained. “He has fallen in love with fly fishing, and nearby Battenkill is a perfect place for that.”

The Manchester area offers a wide variety of activities for families to enjoy, including biking, golfing, fishing, swimming, and hiking. In addition to outdoor activities, Manchester offers some of the best shopping in the Northeast with the Manchester Designer Outlets featuring stores such as Polo/Ralph Lauren, Giorgio Armani, Tumi, Lilly Pulitzer and Coach. A wide range of activities available at the Equinox Resort and Spa are another great way to enjoy days off from the horse show.

“What really makes our time in Vermont fun is the town,” Jacobs said. “There is so much to do. There are great restaurants, and I feel safe about dropping the kids off in town to go shopping.”

The six-week circuit gives riders and their families a chance to settle into the area and enjoy their time in the picturesque Green Mountains. The Jacobs family rents a house during the Vermont Summer Festival.

“For us, we move in and settle in,” Jacobs remarked. “It’s a rental house, but it feels like home for a little while.”

Each week during the Vermont Summer Festival, competition organizers John and Dotty Ammerman treat everyone to fun exhibitor parties at various locations, including Riley Rink where horse show participants don skates and hit the ice and Bromley Mountain Ski Resort where the mountain-side slides are as much fun for the adults as they are for the kids.

Thanks to the addition of a fourth hunter ring at the Harold Beebe Farm show facility this year, days at the horse show will run smoothly and quickly, giving exhibitors more time for leisure activities away from the horse show. The Vermont Summer Festival organizers believe in investing in the show and its facilities in order to make everyone’s experience more positive and enjoyable.

New England’s largest “AA” rated hunter/jumper horse show, the Vermont Summer Festival offers over $750,000 in prize money, making it the richest sporting event in the state of Vermont. For more information on this year’s Vermont Summer Festival and a list of lodging choices and spectator information, please visit www.vt-summerfestival.com.