The Madison County Courier featured this great review of the Lorenzo Driving Competition held in Mid July at Lorenzo State Historic Site.

By Linda J. Haley

(Cazenovia, NY) I have family in Cazenovia providing me the opportunity to drive past Lorenzo during the annual Driving Competition. Yes it’s gorgeous and the horses and carriages are amazing, and no, that’s OK, I’ll pass.

I’ve never entertained the idea of attending. Why? Because everything about it reeked of exclusivity, privilege and wealth, obviously something I would hardly feel welcome at, let alone enjoy.

I WAS WRONG.

My friends in Fenner asked if I was attending. I gave them The Look telling them the above. They gave me The Look, insisting it wasn’t at all like that, and to get my butt down there to see for myself. They said it’s an excellent opportunity to learn about driving and competition, plus see different styles of carriages and horses. They also mentioned there would be food and vendors, food and mini-horses to pet… and food.

I am easily swayed by food, er, horses, so I went.

THEY WERE RIGHT.

I had a blast! I only planned on going for a few hours on Saturday and ended up staying later than planned and went all day Sunday too! Go figure! Now I feel the need to educate everyone out there like me to get their butts down there for the next year’s competition.

First, I have to say I am SO not competitive. Unless it’s for the last pair of shoes or bra available in my size, I could care less about competition or winning. That’s why I’ve never been a big fan of horse shows where people are brutal in the quest to win. I’ve not attended hundreds, but the few I have were enough for me to say it’s not my thing.

I appreciate the huge amount of work invested by people who show. The training, hauling, handling, massive time and financial investment they dedicate to their passion. I respect the devotion to their animals and sport, just not the “vibe” I feel among the competitors.

Brrrr!

So I wrongly assumed all competitions would feel like that. Lorenzo looks like it would be like that, but EVERYONE I came in contact with was friendly, helpful, down-to-earth and ridiculously happy to share their hints and secrets to competitive driving.

WOW.

 
 
Alaini Potrikus, the Madison County beat reporter for the Post Standard had a good news story today about $200,000 that could be coming to Cazenovia College to support Equine Alley today. 

Cazenovia, NY -- U.S. Senator Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., is following through with his promise to deliver federal money for a think tank at Cazenovia College to spur the growth of the state’s equine industry.

Schumer attended the debut of the New York State Center for Equine Business Development at the school’s 243-acre Equine Education Center last August.

On Wednesday, he announced that a $200,000 funding request for the project has been approved by a Senate subcommittee and is on its way to approval as part of a federal spending bill.

Supporters of the effort believe Cazenovia College is ideally located to house the center. The Route 20 corridor was termed “Equine Alley” in recent years by local enthusiasts looking to capitalize on the horse-raising culture from eastern Madison County to LaFayette in Onondaga County. The area includes hundreds of miles of riding trails, a proximity to big events such as racing at Vernon Downs and competitions at the New York State Fairgrounds, and the star power of Olympian Beezie Madden, who brought home gold medals in 2004 and 2008.

The area is also rich in educational opportunities, including Morrisville State College, where officials are raising money to build an Equine Rehabilitation and Physiology Center with a therapy pool and a hyperbaric chamber for the recovery of injured horses and the conditioning of healthy ones.

Schumer said the equine industry accounts for 35,200 jobs and $169 million in wages in New York, from training and lesson facilities to tack shops, feed stores, equipment dealers and veterinarians.

“We already have the basic economic infrastructure in place,” Schumer said in a news release. “Now, we just need to expand it.”
 
 
Cazenovia College President Mark J. Tierno announced last week the establishment of the New York State Center for Equine Business Development at Cazenovia College.  Joined by New York State Senator David J. Valesky (D-Oneida) and U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer at the College’s Equine Education Center, Tierno stressed that the birth of the New York State Center for Equine Business Development will be a catalyst for grant development and will create a clearinghouse for collaborative statewide programming with a variety of partners and beneficiaries.  
The new Center will be housed at Cazenovia College’s Equine Education Center, located near the geographic center of New York State, in the center of an area already known as Equine Alley. Tierno cited the College’s nationally respected Equine Business Management Program, its intercollegiate riding teams that have produced several national champions, the 243-acre horse farm and existing equine facility as factors in positioning Cazenovia College to be a vehicle for economic growth and sustainability for New York State’s equine industry.
“Cazenovia College is poised to do something big and be a leader in the equine industry – an industry that nationally is as big as Hollywood when you compare the value of investments in equine related assets and the economic activity they generate,” said Tierno.
The New York State Center for Equine Business Development will serve as a model, a resource that will strengthen and sustain this sector of the State’s economy by tapping the knowledge of Cazenovia College’s equine experts and a network of national and international advisors, including colleagues from our neighbors, Cornell University and Morrisville State College.  The Center will research and offer equine business-related solutions, explore state-of-the-art management methods, and foster job and entrepreneurial growth throughout New York State.  It will also seek to identify ways people can improve the functionality of their businesses while highlighting ways that State and local governments can improve the environment that promotes sustainable equine industry growth. 
New York State Senator David J. Valesky emphasized the bright future ahead for the equine industry. “Central New York has long been home to a vibrant equine industry, and that industry has an even brighter future thanks to our region’s affordable land, deep roots in agribusiness and strong equine educational programs.”  Sen. Valesky added, “The New York State Center for Equine Business Development at Cazenovia College will only enhance that future and serve as a major catalyst for growth in Central New York’s Equine Alley.  I am pleased to partner with U.S. Senator Charles Schumer and Cazenovia College to support this equine business center, helping to spur local job creation and economic development in our region.”
U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer also applauded the establishment of the Center, stressing its potential impact on jobs throughout New York State.  He vowed, to the more than 100 people in attendance, he would work towards securing federal funding for the Center.
Also present at Tuesday’s press announcement were Olympic champion Beezie Madden and her husband, John Madden, owner of John Madden Sales and founder of the hugely successful Syracuse Invitational Sporthorse Tournament.  Tierno shared that John Madden has already agreed to serve as a member of the Center’s Advisory Council.  “With the wealth of knowledge, experience and access to the industry that the Maddens possess, I couldn’t be happier that they have agreed to be involved,” stated Tierno.