Schedule

2026 Bluebonnet Horse Expo & Training Challenge Schedule

These times are approximate, and we’ll be sharing a full, detailed schedule in September—stay tuned!

Main Arena 1

8:45am – Opening Ceremonies
9:00am to 1:30pm – Training Challenge and Clinicians TBD
1:30pm – Live auction
3:00pm to 6:00pm – Training Challenge and Clinicians TBD

Main Arena 2 – Obstacle Course

Training Challenge All Day

Warm-Up Arena

9:00am to 6:00pm – Training Challenge and Clinicians TBD

Presentation Room

9:30am to 5:00pm – Clinicians In TBD

Don’t Miss:

Silent Auction – 9:00am to 4:00pm

Location

Tickets

Tickets are available at the door and are $10 each with children 12 years of age or under getting in free. Parking is free, and you are welcome to come in, leave, and return as long as you keep your ticket bracelet on.

Clinicians

Because the Bluebonnet Horse Expo is a fundraiser for the horses of Bluebonnet Equine Humane Society, all clinicians and presenters donate their time and travel expenses to help make the Expo the best possible event it can be. In exchange, we provide clinicians with space in the vendor hall, advertising in the Expo program, and posts on our social media pages.

If you are interested in applying to become an Expo clinician, please email us at expoclinics@bluebonnetequine.org.

2026 Bluebonnet Horse Expo Clinicians and presenters will be added to this page as they’re booked for the event.

Shop at the Expo

You’ll get several opportunities to shop at the Expo:  a live auction with saddles, artwork, and other items, a silent auction with horse items, jewelry, art, and more, a tack sale, and a vendor area.

Learn more

Sell at the Expo

Be a vendor. We’re looking for people who sell horse-related products and services as well as crafts and home. If you sell a horse-related product or service, join our vendor area.  You’ll reach new customers throughout Texas (and beyond) while at the same time helping horses. Vendor spots are $75/each and the vendor hall is climate controlled.

Learn more

Meet the Expo Vendors

Lauren Kay Sutton Memorial Stick Horse Show

Hosted by KnP Training and Friends
Thank you to Barbara Dietzel, the great-grandmother of Lauren Kay Sutton, for supporting the Annual Lauren Kay Sutton Memorial Stick Horse Show.

Grab your boots, rope, and trusty stick horse steed and join us for all around romping stomping good time. The Annual Lauren Kay Sutton Memorial Stick Horse Show starts at 11:30am.

High Point, Reserve High Point, and Roping Trophy Buckles and other awesome prizes 1st-6th are up for grabs this year.

$5 per class or $25 all day (all classes) donation per child. A limited number of stick horses will be available to borrow.

Classes:

  • Horsemanship (a simple pattern)
  • Show Jumping (most clean jumps jumped in a set time period)
  • Clover Leaf Barrels (fastest clean time)
  • Pole Bending (fastest clean time)
  • Straight Barrels (fastest clean time)
  • Egg and Spoon (ride and don’t drop your wooden egg).
  • Rope Off (bring your rope or borrow ours, be the last one through the rounds to rope the dummy and win the 2025 buckle and bragging rights until next year).

Training Challenge

Applications for the Bluebonnet Rescue Horse Training Challenge close at 10pm on June 1st. We will not accept late submissions/applications this year.

The Challenge is a competition and adoption event for the horses of Bluebonnet Equine Humane Society. Competitors work with a Bluebonnet horse for four months (June-October) and then compete over an obstacle course, in a freestyle where they can show off the horse’s skills, and show off the horse’s basic skills (such as trailer loading, standing tied, picking up feet). We award up to $13,000 in prize money divided between four divisions: Professional Under Saddle (starting or restarting a horse under saddle), Non-Pro/Foster home under saddle (working with horses who have already been started under saddle), In-Hand (for pros and non-pros 13 years of age and older), and Non-Pro in Hand (for kids 12 years of age and younger). The competition takes place on October 5th during the Bluebonnet Horse Expo at the Williamson Co Expo Center in Taylor, Texas. All Training Challenge horses are offered for adoption at the event.

There is a $20 registration fee for all trainers to help with some of the administrative expenses associated with the event.

Apply to compete here.

The Bluebonnet Rescue Horse Training Challenge is a competition in which volunteer foster homes and professional trainers work with a Bluebonnet Equine Humane Society foster horse for four months and compete in the Challenge.

The goals of the Challenge are to:

  • Introduce the public to talented rescue horses
  • Showcase the training abilities of participants
  • Produce horses who are ready to go to work for their adopters

The competition is open to any BEHS member who applies and is approved, as well as professional trainers. If you are not currently a BEHS member, join the rescue to begin the process. Those competing in the professional category do not have to join the rescue. All competitors will need to fill out a Training Challenge application.

The contest will be judged by a panel of three equine professionals. Each horse and trainer or foster home combination’s total score will be based on:

  • Difficulty level of horse
  • Condition of horse
  • Freestyle Class
  • Trail Class
  • Ability to perform basic skills such as tying, picking up feet, etc.

Follow along on our Facebook page here.

Feel free to join our public Facebook group here.

Training Challenge Rules

We have overhauled the rule book for 2026 to add a detailed list of deadlines for participants, information on how each individual event will be scored, and more. Click here to open the Rule Book.

Please email us with any questions.

Training Challenge Prizes

2026 Cash Award Distribution

Elite Professional Division

There must be at least six entries in order for the full prize money to be awarded:

  • 1st: $6,000
  • 2nd: $4,000
  • 3rd: $2,000

Professional Division:

There must be at least nine entries in order for the full prize money to be awarded:

  • 1st: $4,650
  • 2nd: $2,500
  • 3rd: $1,300
  • 4th: $800
  • 5th: $500

Non-Pro Under Saddle

There must be at least nine entries in order for the full prize money to be awarded:

  • 1st: $800
  • 2nd: $600
  • 3rd: $300
  • 4th: $150
  • 5th: $100

Non-Pro In-Hand Division

There must be at least five entries in order for the full prize money to be awarded:

  • 1st: $300
  • 2nd: $200
  • 3rd: $150

Non-Pro In-Hand Division – 12 and under

There must be at least five entries in order for the full prize money to be awarded:

  • 1st: $300
  • 2nd: $200
  • 3rd: $150

Added prizes will also be awarded in each division!

Training Challenge Teams

Click here to see the list of this year’s challenge teams.

Previous Challenge Winners

Click here to see the list of previous challenge winners.

Youth Scholarship Program

We’ve created two youth scholarships – one for the in hand competitor who scores the most points and one for the Non Pro Under Saddle competitor who scores the most points.

In order to win, the competitor must:

  • Complete a scholarship application by July 24th, 2026
  • Be a Junior or Senior in high school during the 2026-2027 school year
  • Plan on attending a college or trade school or is participating in an approved apprenticeship program (While we appreciate students working towards equine-related degrees or trades, that is not a requirement for this scholarship)
  • Post on their Training Challenge horse’s official Facebook page in accordance with Facebook post guidelines in the rulebook a minimum of three times per month.
  • They must bring the horse to the competition, compete, and take the horse back home after the competition if he/she is not adopted (in line with the Challenge rules).
  • Follow all Training Challenge rules and deadlines.
  • Score the most points of any other Junior or Senior who is competing in their division. They do not have to win their division or place high (although those two things would increase their scores).
  • Must Volunteer at least 2 hours at the Expo in October, or a friend/family member can volunteer and donate on your behalf.

Our goal is to attract more youth competitors and also support youth competitors as they prepare for their careers.

This year’s scholarship project is a pilot program – and if it works well, we’ll look at expanding the scholarship program in the future.

If you have questions or would like to apply for the Training Challenge and scholarship program, please email stacy@bluebonnetequine.org

Join the Bluebonnet Community

A Community of Rescue & Support for Horse and Human

Our community uniquely provides a vital network of empathy, understanding, and encouragement fundamental to preventing burnout and fostering a sustainable and joyful relationship with equine care.

Our community is not merely a network of enthusiasts, urgent rescue units, or reactive horse owners; but a sanctuary of compassion, a center of knowledge, and a beacon of holistic support for both horses and their caretakers.

Contact.
Bluebonnet Equine
PO Box 632
College Station,
TX 77841-0632
info@bluebonnetequine.org
(888) 542-5163

A Community of Rescue & Support for Horse and Human

Our community uniquely provides a vital network of empathy, understanding, and encouragement fundamental to preventing burnout and fostering a sustainable and joyful relationship with equine care.

Our community is not merely a network of enthusiasts, urgent rescue units, or reactive horse owners; but a sanctuary of compassion, a center of knowledge, and a beacon of holistic support for both horses and their caretakers.

Contact.
Bluebonnet Equine
PO Box 632
College Station,
TX 77841-0632
info@bluebonnetequine.org
(888) 542-5163

© 2007-Present, Bluebonnet Equine Humane Society