During the Maryland 5-star three-day event last month, word circulated that Lee Carter, the executive director of Equestrian Events Inc., had been named executive director of the Kentucky Horse Park. A TV station had covered the Kentucky Horse Park Commission’s vote on who should fill the post, which has been vacant for more than a year. When the public session ended with Carter winning the tally, the station aired the results. And then, silence.
During yesterday’s meeting of the commission, its chairman, Alston Kerr, said the panel was unable to come to terms with Lee, leaving the position vacant as it has been for more than a year. So the commission will issue another Request for Proposal to find candidates.
Equestrian Events Inc. Executive Director Lee Carter with Land Rover Kentucky winner Oliver Townend. (Photo © by Nancy Jaffer)
“Here we go again,” said Alston. “Let’s see if we can’t get this thing done.
The commission’s next meeting is Jan. 20, and Alston said she has been advised not to discuss details of the matter until the RFP is issued.
Meanwhile, Lee is still in his office at EEI, which presents the park’s biggest attraction, April’s Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event, always a selection trial for major championships.
The park not only is home to many other competitions, including the National Horse Show, but it also hosts everything from Equitana to Breyerfest and wide range of equestrian organizations’ headquarters, with the U.S. Equestrian Federation’s among them.
Doug Payne, who wound up as the highest-placed U.S. eventer at last summer’s Tokyo Olympics, was among a group of riders competing for a team spot at the Land Rover Kentucky Three-Day Event in April. (Photo © 2021 by Nancy Jaffer)
Lee said he will continue to pursue the horse park job, “depending on what that looks like. It’s really in their court as to how they move forward.”
For now, he’s focused on the Land Rover event.
“Ticket sales are already ahead of where we expected them to be, which is great. If nothing ever works out for the horse park and me, we’re going to continue to make the three-day event as great as can be.
“I love EEI, I love the event, I love what we’re able to accomplish and we really do try to lift up the sport where we can.”
He went on to explain, “My interest in the horse park is that I see the same opportunities there as I saw with EEI when I stepped into that role. It’s got different challenges, being a state agency, but our inability to agree wasn’t any major differences betwixt me and them. I think it was just there were a couple of things that didn’t line up. I’m born in Kentucky and raised in Kentucky and I want to see good things for Kentucky, and that includes the horse park. We’ll see what their next process looks like and we then go from there.”
The Land Rover event had the distinction of being the country’s only 5-star until Maryland debuted this fall, and the eventing calendar continues to grow.
“I think the state is beginning to realize, `Hey, you’ve got a lot of competition out there now that didn’t exist when the 2010 WEG (World Equestrian Games) was here.’ I think they have a desire to maybe start looking at things differently. We’ll see where the park goes next,” he commented.
Meanwhile, Lee added, “I’m committed to EEI and excited about what we’ve got coming forward. If it makes sense for me to pursue the park again, then we will and if not, maybe I’m just destined to be where I’m at, and that’s not a bad place to be.”
