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Equestrian races are a popular sport for centuries. In many fairs that are held around the country horse racing is a vital part of it and its main attraction. In every region, there are fairs with a long history and are famous for horse racing. The Humboldt County Fair is the one that holds those features in California.

The 127th edition of the fair has started and the horse racing event shall start on Sunday. This year the horse racing event at the fair shall be graced by the presence of a famed equestrian trainer who after a long pending request has finally arrived at the fair.

Equestrian trainer’s first visit at Humboldt County Fair

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Bill Hof is a known name in the equestrian industry in the Nort West region. In his 52 years of training career, the trainer had trained many prominent thoroughbreds and quarter horses, that have marked their names in the racing history of Oregon and Washington. The Times-Standard said the famed trainer will celebrate his 80th birthday on Sunday at the racing track of the fair on his maiden trip. Speaking on his first visit to Humbolt County Fair Hof said, “Everyone has been after me for the longest time to come to Ferndale and run horses, Well, I finally gave in and so far I’m thrilled to be here“.

Worth $879,889 trainer who has 2661 starts in his career to date will make his birthday a memorable one by doing what he loves the most saddling and horse running. He will send his 5-year-old gelding Like’s Place in the third race for a $7,500 purse and another 5-year-old horse Low Dose in the sixth race for a $10,000 Jeff O’Donnell purse. Both the horses shall be ridden by Taylor Smith. In addition to it, he will participate in the seventh race with Great Curves ridden by Vladimir Jensen for a $9,000 purse.

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In his long career, Bill Hof had many distinctive horses like Skeesix, Black Canyon Bart, and many others. Reflecting on his equestrian journey Hof said, “I’ve been fortunate to do what I love, training horses, I just like horses and love to watch them run“.  Bill Hof since his visit to Ferndale has enjoyed people being friendly and that gives him a memorable experience at Humbolt County Fair.

Humbolt County Fair equestrian race

Humbolt county fair has been held at Ferndale, California since 1896. Horse racing has been a part of it since then and was a permanent feature after its legalization in the year 1935. The oval shape of half a mile track is a challenging one that requires skills from horse and rider to win. The Victorian structure and antique shop give the vibes of past years. The fair association bought the 32-acre fairgrounds on which the fair is held now from the ranching family in 1937. The theme of this year’s fair is  “Ribbons, Rides & Racing”.

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The fair will be held for six exciting days and will contain entertainment, carnival rides, fair food, handicrafts, art, livestock contests, horse racing on the weekends, and much more. The presence of Bill Hof at the Humbolt County Fair will be a memorable one for both the trainer and the fair horse racing event with Bill already enjoying the event after finding out the friendly nature of people at the fair.

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