Ken Krome got his start designing grand prix courses at the Vermont Summer Festival. Photo by David Mullinix
Ireland's Alan Wade has become a huge fan of the Vermont Summer Festival during his four-year tenure. Photo by David Mullinix

May 13, 2014 – East Dorset, VT – The world's best course designers will return to Harold Beebe Farm in East Dorset, VT, this summer for the Vermont Summer Festival. The six-week show circuit prides itself on the high caliber of designers, with six top names on the schedule for 2014. Alan Wade (IRE), Chris Brandt (CAN), Ken Krome (USA), Peter Holmes (CAN), Michel Vaillancourt (CAN), and Eric Hasbrouck (USA), will each set the track for one week of the Vermont Summer Festival.

Ken Krome of Westminster, MD, has built courses at the Vermont Summer Festival for much of his nearly 20-year career as a course designer. In fact, he got his start in the grand prix ring at the Vermont Summer Festival, thanks to show manager John Ammerman.

"When I first got licensed as an "R" course designer, which is the top ranking, John Ammerman was one of the first people to give me a ring with a grand prix, which is hard to come by when you're a rookie," Krome explained. "I'll always be grateful to John for giving me that opportunity to cut my teeth in the grand prix and get some valuable mileage. I always enjoy coming back to Vermont."

Irish course designer Alan Wade also enjoys his trips to Vermont, where he has spent the last four summers setting the tracks for the Vermont Summer Festival. In four short years, Wade has become quite fond of the show.

"Vermont Summer Festival is a very well-run horse show with good arenas, good fence material, and an excellent team of people which makes life easy for a course designer in a very scenic location," Wade said.

Krome echoed Wade's sentiments, citing the management team as one of the reasons that keeps him returning year after year. He agreed that the show is extremely well-run, yet also manages to preserve a laid-back, relaxed atmosphere.

"It's nice because you can really personalize the courses and get them exactly like you want for each rider," Krome said. "You get the nicest, most effective classes that you can. The jump crew is the cream of the crop, and the jumps are top notch."

The surrounding town of Manchester is an added bonus when designing courses at the Vermont Summer Festival. Krome admitted he often runs out of time to take advantage of all that East Dorset and the Manchester areas have to offer.

"There's so much to do in addition to the horse show. The horse shows are top notch, very well run, very exhibitor friendly, and then at the end of the day there's a lot of fun stuff to do around East Dorset. It always seems like there's not enough days to do all the things you want to!" Krome concluded.

The Vermont Summer Festival is New England's largest hunter/jumper competition and offers more than $750,000 in prize money, making it the richest sporting event based on purse in the state of Vermont. For over 20 years, the Vermont Summer Festival has attracted exhibitors and their families to the Manchester region in southern Vermont for great competition in an ideal summer setting.

The Vermont Summer Festival is a proud member event of the Show Jumping Hall of Fame, the Marshall & Sterling League, and the North American League (NAL). Please e-mail us or visit our website for more information about the Vermont Summer Festival.