APHA Regional Championship Program
The APHA Regional Championship program is a series of classes held in conjunction with select APHA-approved shows or predetermined set of APHA-approved shows, referred to as a “circuit”. The program was designed to increase amateur and youth participation and provide national recognition to exhibitors who primarily show regionally.
Who is Eligible to Participate in the Regional Championship Program
- The exhibitor must meet the eligibility criteria set forth to be eligible to compete in the APHA Regional Championship classes.
- Amateur and Youth exhibitors must be enrolled in the APHA Amateur or AjPHA Youth Program and meet the ownership/lease requirements asper Rule AM-020 and YP-015 respectively
- Both the exhibitor and the horse owner/lessee must be current APHA members to be eligible to compete
- Both exhibitor and horse owner/lessee must be residents of the Zone in which the show or circuit is held
- Horses much be registered with the APHA and shown in their respective APHA Regional Championship breed registry class – Regular Registry or Solid Paint-Bred
- Exhibitors are not required to compete in APHA classes held by the hosting APHA approved show to be eligible for the championship classes.
- Exhibitor must reside in the Zone in which the show or circuit is held per APHA records and be a current member of APHA
- Exception: For zone’s 1 & 10, if an exhibitor is declared for a zone, they can only participate in the Regional Championship taking place in the zone in which they are declared for
- Halter classes: An exhibitor who has placed in the Top 5 in a halter class at an APHA Amateur or AjPHA Youth World Championship Show WITHIN THE LASTFIVE (5) YEARS is NOT eligible to compete in that APHA Regional Championship halter class. In addition, an exhibitor who has won a Regional Champion halter class the previous year is ineligible to compete in that class for one year, but may compete in any others.
- Example: Susie placed 5th at the 2017 AjPHA Youth World Championship Show in Youth Geldings. Susie is NOT eligible to compete in that APHA Regional Championship program Amateur or Youth halter classes.
- Performance classes: An exhibitor who has placed in the Top 5 in a performance class at an APHA Amateur or AjPHA Youth World Championship Show WITHINTHE LAST FIVE (5) YEARS is NOT eligible to compete in that APHA Regional Championship performance class. In addition, an exhibitor who has won a Regional Champion performance class the previous year is ineligible to compete in that class for one year, but may compete in any others.
- Example: John was the Reserve World Champion at the 2019 APHA World Championship Show in Amateur Horsemanship. John is NOT eligible to compete in an Amateur Horsemanship Regional Champion performance class.
- EXCEPTIONS:
- Amateur/Youth Walk-Trot, Novice Amateur/Novice Youth and Intermediate Exhibitor World Show placings and placings in non-pointed World Show classes such as Sweepstakes, Challenge and Futurities DO NOT impact eligibility in regular Amateur or Youth APHA Regional Championship classes.
- Amateur/Youth Walk-Trot World Show placings DO count towards exhibitor eligibility criteria in Amateur/Youth Walk-Trot Regional Champion classes
- Novice Amateur/Novice Youth World Show placings DO count towards exhibitor eligibility criteria in Novice Amateur/Novice Youth Regional Champion classes
How to host Regional Championship Program Classes
Show/Circuit Eligibility
- Each Zone will be given the opportunity to offer one APHA Regional Championship program annually
- Each Zone Coordinating Committee will be responsible for selecting the APHA- approved show or circuit within their Zone in which to offer the APHA Regional Championship program.
- Each Zone Coordinating Committee shall accept bids annually from interested APHA Regional Club sponsored one-, two-, three- or four-judge shows or circuits within their Zone that wish to hold the APHA Regional Championship program and be responsible for selecting the show or circuit to recommend to the APHA. Final approval by APHA Performance Department required.
- The APHA Regional Championship program shall not be held in conjunction with an APHA Zone Show. Exception: Zone 10, 11 or 12.
Show Management Guidelines
- Approval
- The show that was chosen to host the Regional Championship Program must submit the online Regional Championship Program Application. Applications need to be submitted and approved 8-10 weeks prior to the start date of the show to ensure that the buckles can be delivered on time.
- To receive approval, the submitted showbill must show the Regional Championship classes as they will be held during the show and the host show must be approved. Applications submitted late or by host shows that have not received their approval may not guarantee that the buckles will deliver on time.
- Once the Regional Championship is approved, their buckles will be ordered, the show will be sent their Regional Championship logo for promotion, and they will be added to the Regional Championship Schedule below.
- Classes
- It is up to show management’s discretion to determine the specific Amateur and Youth classes to offer with approval by APHA
- If the Regional Championship Program is to be held at a circuit, the circuit sponsors are in charge of tabulating the Regional Champion to beawarded
- Scheduling
- Classes may be run concurrently with other APHA-approved classes. Awards presentations must be held in the arena at the completion of the class or the class of the last show in the circuit
- APHA Regional Championship classes may not be held back-to-back with corresponding APHA class
- Judges
- Classes may be judged by one, two, three or four judges
- Program Fees
- It is up to show management to determine the entry fee to help offset costs; however, the class entry fee must not be more than$20/class.
- A $2 Awards Fee is due to the APHA per entry per class. If the program is held in a circuit, exhibitors will be charged the $2 fee once during the circuit. This fee should be included with the rest of your show results processing fees. When results are submitted to the Program Coordinator it should be specified that fees were included with the show results processing fees. If it is not included with the show results processing fees, a balance due will have to be created and sent to the appropriate party for payment via the Credit Card Payment Form.
- Results
- Results of the Regional Championship classes must be submitted to the Program Coordinator in a timely manor so that champions can be recognized throughout the year. Champions will be posted in the results section below. Results must be submitted according to the template provided.
Awards
APHA will sponsor awards for up to 10 classes per Regional Championship Program in a zone annually. This will consist of a championship buckle for each class. If a show or circuit wants to offer additional classes, the show or circuit can purchase the additional awards for these classes.
ONLINE APHA Regional Championship Application
2021 APHA Regional Championship Program Criteria PDF
APHA Regional Championship Program Results Submission Template
For more information about the Regional Championship Program, please view this webinar presented by the Director of Performance Development Elizabeth Lawhorn
English
简体中文
Français
Deutsch
Italiano
Português
Español
Svenska