The Horse Shows by the Bay Reining Series, scheduled for August 2-4 at Flintfields Horse Park in Traverse City, MI, received cancellation confirmation from the National Reining Horse Association today.

“We have been absolutely delighted with Horse Shows by the Bay so far,” said show owner and manager Alex Rheinheimer. “We have enjoyed fabulous weather, world-class competition, and significant growth in both national and international exhibitor attendance as well as local spectator participation.”

This season has been Horse Shows by the Bay’s largest and most successful, and with one more week remaining in the four-week Hunter/Jumper series, Rheinheimer expects record numbers overall. She was hoping for the same response as she prepared for the second annual Reining Series to follow.

“In contrast, registration for the Reining Series was not as vigorous as anticipated,” she said. “The local reiners are not accustomed to pre-registering, so as of early this week, since we had very few confirmed entries, we decided that the massive effort required on our part to produce a quality event at this caliber of facility wasn’t warranted, hence the cancellation.

“Reiners are very particular about competing outdoors, unlike the hunters and jumpers that compete rain or shine and have been beating down the door to get to Traverse City since last summer,” she continued. “We hope in time that other disciplines will recognize how wonderful the Grand Traverse area is and will put aside their affinity for an indoor venue.”

For more information about Horse Shows by the Bay, please visit www.horseshowsbythebay.com.