Deep Run Horse Show underway in Goochland County through Sunday
Deep Run’s 90th horse show brought more than 200 hunter and equitation classes to Goochland County. The five-day meet runs through Sunday at Deep Run Hunt Club.
More than 200 hunter and equitation classes turned Deep Run Hunt Club into one of Goochland County’s busiest summer destinations as the Deep Run Horse Show got underway and runs through Sunday at 1540 Manakin Road in Manakin-Sabot. The five-day meet brings professional and amateur riders to the county’s long-running equestrian centerpiece, drawing horse people, families and support crews into a venue that helps define Goochland’s identity far beyond the show ring. This year’s event also marks Deep Run’s 90th year.
The 2026 show is a USEF National-rated and World Championship Hunter Rider event, and it bills itself as an all-Hunter horse show with Hunter performance divisions and Equitation classes for riders of all ages and abilities. Judges for the week are Keith Hastings of Clemmons, North Carolina, Scott Hofstetter of Ocala, Florida, and Dale Crittenberger of Aldie, Virginia. Sarah Mullins of Reno, Nevada, served as course designer, and Roy Coyle of Versailles, Kentucky, is the show manager.
For spectators, the schedule reached beyond the marquee divisions. The Deep Run Jr/AM Derby was set for the Grandstand Ring with 2'6" and 2'9" fence heights, while the Bryan Trophy Horsemanship Class returned for its 63rd running with 3'3" and 3'6" sections. The show also included a High Point Professional Rider award, Grand Groom Awards sponsored by MJR Horse Transportation, and a Lead Line class for young children, giving non-insiders a clear look at the range of riders and horses that make up the Deep Run week.
Deep Run’s history stretches back to the founding of the Deep Run Hunt Club in 1887. The horse show became a recognized American Horse Show Association member in 1937, and the grounds were established in 1947 when the hunt club moved to its permanent home in Goochland County. In 1962, enthusiasts built the covered three-tiered grandstand that still overlooks the competition area, and the inaugural Bryan Horsemanship Test drew a capacity crowd cheering Rodney Jenkins.
Since 1970, the all-volunteer Deep Run Horse Show Association has managed the 30-acre facility and its calendar. The club says the site still hosts mock hunts, pony club activities, rallies, exhibitions and other horse shows throughout the year, keeping a working equestrian campus active long after the June feature class ends.
The show’s local reach has been evident before: a Goochland County listing for the 2024 event said Deep Run drew more than 300 horses from across the East Coast and ran daily from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Deep Run has also carried the county’s USEF Heritage Event designation, reinforcing its place as one of Virginia’s most durable horse sports traditions.
This article was produced by Prism’s automated news system from verified source data, official records, and press releases, then run through automated quality and moderation checks before publishing. The system is built and supervised by the people who set the standards it runs under. Read our full AI policy.
Did this article answer your question?
