Registration is now open for an event that gives Kansas kids a chance to showcase their skills and knowledge about horses.
The 2022 Kansas 4-H Horse Panorama will be held Jan. 28 to 30 at the Rock Springs Ranch, located about five miles south of Junction City.
“This is an event for Kansas 4-H members who are enrolled in the horse project to test their knowledge, showcase their public speaking skills and network with other youth who share a common interest,” said Kelsey Nordyke, a 4-H youth development specialist at the Southeast Kansas Research and Extension Center.
Youth do not have to actually own a horse to be involved, Nordyke said. More than 50 Kansas 4-H members participated in the 2021 event.
Nordyke said the event includes a horse quiz bowl, hippology, public speaking, demonstration and illustrated talks, model horse expo, logo contest and photography.
Hippology, which is the study of horses, is a unique event similar to a skillathon “where kids identify parts of the horse, feed items, minerals and feed ingredients, colors and genetics of the horse, parts of equipment we use to care for horses,” and other topics, Nordyke said.
The quiz bowl and hippology contests include both team and individual awards. Youth can compete by age group in senior or intermediate divisions. Nordyke said in the senior division, the top teams in quiz bowl and hippology, as well as the top individuals the public speaking and demonstration contests are eligible to represent Kansas at the National Western Stock Show in Denver in early January.
More information and registration for this year’s Kansas 4-H Horse Panorama is available online at www.kansas4-h.org/events-activities/conferences-events/horse/horse-panorama.html. Interested individuals can also contact their local extension office.
