Horse Sports by the Bay, Inc., is pleased to announce that the Gochman Family, of New York, NY, will be the new hosts of Horse Shows by the Bay Equestrian Festival's $15,000 Chronicle of the Horse/United States Hunter Jumper Association (USHJA) International Hunter Derby, presented by Dietrich Insurance. Held each summer at Flintfields Horse Park in beautiful Traverse City, MI, the month-long equestrian competition will be featuring some of the country's best horses and riders competing in the hunter, jumper, equitation and dressage disciplines. The multi-discipline festival will run July 8-August 1, 2010.

The International Hunter Derby class has become very popular in the hunters and many think that it has brought the discipline back to life as part of the exciting equestrian sport. The classes are held throughout the country in unique venues that are made to resemble the hunt fields of days past with many natural obstacles.

Horse Sports by the Bay will host their hunter derby on Friday, July 16, 2010, as part of the Series I hunter/jumper schedule. The class will be held in Flintfields Horse Park's spacious Grand Prix Ring overlooking the scenic Traverse City countryside with beautiful grass hillsides for spectators to view from. After competing at Horse Shows by the Bay for the last three years, Becky Gochman and her family look forward to another wonderful year in Traverse City, and consider hosting the hunter derby as a way to support a special class that brings great attendance to the horse show.

Gochman trains with renowned Texas-based hunter rider Peter Pletcher, who has been an enthusiastic supporter of the Horse Shows by the Bay Equestrian Festival for many years. She will return to the show for her fourth year of competition and plans to compete with five horses this year. Her two children, five and seven years old, will also return to compete in the pony divisions with their three ponies.

"I think that Horse Shows by the Bay is a terrific family show that offers great classes," Gochman stated. "There are a lot of fun things to do outside the show grounds and I love that it has an old-fashioned, country horse show feel but with very updated footing. It is a really relaxing, beautiful horse show."

"I think that this hunter derby is one of the prettiest events all year, and I love the beautiful hillside," she noted. "People come from all over the town to watch the class, and it is just a very well-run event. They always design an interesting course and they use really unique jumps. It is fun to see everyone enjoying the class and it makes me feel like the hunters have a supreme showcase because it is so well attended."

Gochman plans to ride in the derby class with her horse Arabella this year, and looks forward to the opportunity do something fun and different with the mare. She also looks forward to the chance to have fun with her family and spend time enjoying Traverse City. "I really love that horse show, and it is such a nice family vacation for us," she smiled. "Horses are a big part of our lives, so it is a great place to combine our summer vacation with the horse shows. They have great classes for our kids too, so the whole family really enjoys it."

The Horse Shows by the Bay Series will feature the country's best horses and riders competing for a chance to accumulate year-end points and grab a share of the nearly $400,000 in total prize money in the hunters, jumpers, and equitation. Highlights include the $15,000 Chronicle of the Horse/USHJA International Hunter Derby, World Champion Hunter Rider sanctioning, $5,000 Hunter and Jumper Classics and the weekly $30,000 Show Jumping Grand Prix.

Other special events scheduled are the weekly $10,000 Open Jumper Welcome Prix and $10,000 Show Jumping Hall of Fame (SJHOF) Junior/Amateur-Owner Prix, plus the production of the Hunter-Jumper Association of Michigan Equitation Medal Finals. Children's and Adult Jumpers will jump for big money, too, with more than $30,000 in classic money being earmarked for distribution, which is a considerable upgrade from previous years.

To date, the Horse Shows by the Bay Equestrian Festival has brought more than $40 million in tourism revenue to the immediate Traverse City area. Bringing an exceptional horse show to a popular vacation destination in Northern Michigan allows competitors to enjoy top equestrian competition while also experiencing the many special qualities of this unique town.

More announcements and news will follow in the months leading up to this exciting, vacation destination-oriented equestrian festival. For more information, please visit www.horseshowsbythebay.com or call (561) 723-6287.