July 13, 2004 – Palgrave, Ontario – The $50,000 Equestrian Festival Grand Prix, Presented by Alliance Homes, to be held on Sunday, August 1, is fast approaching as part of the Equestrian Festival running July 28-August 1 at the Caledon Equestrian Park in Palgrave, ON.

Yann Candele of France will be back to defend his title in the $50,000 Equestrian Festival Grand Prix, won last year riding Mill Creek Marco Taere. He will face stiff competition from local favourite, Chris Pratt of Terra Cotta, ON, who accomplished the incredible feat of winning back-to-back Grand Prix events at the Caledon Equestrian Park in May, claiming the $40,000 Classic at Palgrave Grand Prix and, one week later, the $40,000 Caledon National Grand Prix.

Other notable names such as Canadian Olympian Beth Underhill of Schomberg, ON, 2004 Olympic reserve Jill Henselwood of Oxford Mills, ON, and 21-year-old Keean White of Cambridge, ON, will also be looking for their share of the prize money.

Other feature events at the Equestrian Festival include Friday’s $10,000 Cameron Brewing Open Welcome, Saturday’s $10,000 Williams Shavings Modified Grand Prix, and the Gary Cooper Chev Olds Rising Star competition to be held on Sunday before the Grand Prix gets underway at 2 p.m. Course designer David Ballard of Hornby, ON, will have the distinction of setting the tests in the grand prix ring throughout the Equestrian Festival.

In an exciting project development, the Equestrian Festival will be used to launch a new real estate development, ‘Estates at Caledon Park. Presented by EMG Properties Inc. in partnership with Alliance Homes of Concorde, ON, the project will see 32 magnificent estate residences built on lots varying from two to seven acres overlooking the Caledon Equestrian Park. Alliance Homes will debut a visual presentation and also give the horse community a ‘sneak peak’ of the property through guided tours conducted throughout the Equestrian Festival.

The Equestrian Festival will also hold its traditional Gala Luncheon on Sunday, August 1, with all proceeds going to Jump Canada. Tickets are already sold out, but there will be many opportunities for show jumping fans to be a part of Jump Canada fundraising efforts throughout the week including the annual modified Nations’ Cup competition that matches top show jumping competitors with amateur riders. Jump Canada will also have a booth on site with its new line of clothing available for purchase.

Produced by the Equestrian Management Group (EMG), the Equestrian Festival will be immediately followed by the Summer Festival held August 4-8 and featuring the $10,000 Coca Cola Modified Grand Prix on Saturday, August 7, and the $40,000 Summer Festival Grand Prix on Sunday, August 8.

Also of special note is the addition of the ‘Gaits at Caledon National Horse Show’ to the EMG calendar. Held August 20-22, this innovative multi-breed competition will offer more than $25,000 in prize money for classes in Arab/Half-Arabian, Carriage Driving, Hackney, Morgan, Road Horses, Saddlebred and Welsh divisions.

For more information on the Equestrian Management Group including full competition schedules and prize lists, please visit www.equiman.com.

EMG Calendar of Events 2004

• Classic at Palgrave Phase One, May 12-16, 2004
• Caledon National Horse Show, May 19-23, 2004
• Audley Road Trillium Show, May 28-30, 2004
• Dressage at Palgrave, June 4-6, 2004
• Classic at Palgrave Phase 2, June 9-13, 2004
• Caledon Summer Classic, June 16-20, 2004
• Quarter Horse Summeramma, July 1-4, 2004
• Ontario Morgan Horse Classic, June 16-20, 2004
• Equestrian Festival, July 28-August 1, 2004
• Summer Festival, August 4-8, 2004
• Quarter Horse Summer Circuit, August 13-15, 2004
• Gaits at Caledon Multi Breed Show, August 20-22, 2004
• Trillium Show, August 27-29, 2004
• Autumn Classic, September 8-12, 2004
• Trillium Championships, September 16-19, 2004
• Tournament of Champions, September 23-26, 2004