Pine Spur Hunt Club hosting 71st Annual Horse Show on July 13

By Debbie Adams

The Pine Spur Hunt Club will be hosting its 71st Annual Horse Show this weekend on Saturday,
July 13, beginning at 5 p.m. This is an all-breed horse show which attracts exhibitors from this
area, surrounding states, and, in 2024, as far away as Tennessee and Myrtle Beach.

The club is a non-profit group made up of horse owners/appreciators and friends with the
purpose of offering “fellowship, recreation, social activities, and an opportunity to enjoy and
share the privileges and beauty of the great outdoors and to promote good sportsmanship.”

The 2024 Pine Spur Horse Show on July 13 is open to the public. Admission is $5; children
under 12 are admitted free with a paying adult. Concessions will be available.

According to the club history written in 2003, “The Pine Spur Hunt Club had a very humble
beginning in 1953 when a few horse-loving families met in a small building owned by the
Beagle Club in Bedford County.” There were some 14 charter members: Clarence and Nadine
Abbott, Thurman and Hazel Crowder, Fred and Nellie Gross, Keister and Dorothy Gross, Annie
Laurie Lee, Emmett Waldron, Ernest and Elsie Waldron, his daughter Yhome Waldron Murphy,
and granddaughter Dita.”

The men in the club did the riding; the women were content to lend their support by serving
refreshments, helping organize the rides, and recording the minutes of meetings. There was one
exception—Ernest Waldron’s 6-year-old granddaughter, Dita, who road with her “Pa” at every
opportunity despite the embarrassment of being roped to his saddlehorn.

Ernest Waldron served as the club’s first president. Mickey Wentzel is the current president. The
Pine Spur Hunt Club is a family tradition for Wentzel. His wife Amy’s grandfather was a
member, as are Amy and their daughter, Hayley Ronk, who was a ribbon girl in the shows as a
child, and now helps organize club events.

Wentzel says there are quite a few second, third, and even fourth generation members of Pine
Spur. Several prominent Vintonites were also members, including Wallace Cundiff.

“Through the enthusiasm of this group, other ‘would-be cowboys and cowgirls’ quickly began to
buy horses so they could join the club. In the early years, you had to own a horse to join the club,
but more recently you must just ‘have an interest’ in horses,” according to Wentzel.

Meetings were held in first one home and then another with the host family serving refreshments.
They always adjourned in time to “catch the Western show ‘Gunsmoke’ on television.”

At first, interest was confined to one-day trail rides which then expanded into two-day weekend
rides. Eventually the idea of holding a horse show was conceived. Since the Gross brothers (Fred
and Keister) jointly owned their family farm on what is now Mountain View Road, they offered
the only spot large enough to accommodate a horse show ring.

The first horse show, held in 1954, required a tremendous amount of work and donations from
members. It was actually the first horse show in the area (and is now known as one of the
longest-running sporting events in the valley); the show was well-attended with little room to
park and limited seating with folding chairs.

The next several shows were co-sponsored by the Vinton Chamber of Commerce. Eight shows in
all were held at the Gross Farm.

The club incorporated in August 1961 and that same month purchased land from James and
Margaret Baker on Falling Creek, the present location of the Pine Spur Hunt Club. The property
was graded; a ring was built, along with a club house and the first horse show was held at that
location in May 1962. In July 1965, six more acres of land were purchased, and a barn and stalls
were built. When the original barn burned down, 11 members contributed funds to rebuild.

Trail rides were not the only events of interest at Pine Spur. Some members also enjoyed “riding
to the hounds.” Square dances were held in the club house during the colder months from
October to May, until 2015.

Approximately 125 horses are expected to compete in this year’s horse show. There will be
racking, pleasure, Tennessee walking horses, and others in exhibition in about 52 different
classes, including everyone’s favorite– the Stick Horse competition. Riders will range in age
from 2 to senior adults.

Wentzel says that dozens of sponsors make the annual horse show possible with their financial
contributions. The continuing success of the show is also due to members and volunteers who
“put the show together,” in addition to maintaining the buildings and grounds year-round.

The club usually hosts three horse shows each year– in April, July, and August.

Pine Spur Hunt Club is located off Route 24 and Jeters Chapel Road in Vinton. If you are driving
from Roanoke, take Route 24 to Jeters Chapel Road, turn left at Mineral Springs Baptist Church.
Continue a short distance to Pine Spur Hunt Club Road on the left. You will see the horse show
ring at the bottom of the hill and the barn and stalls at the top. There are bleachers but you might
want to bring your own seating.

For more information visit the Facebook page at
https://www.facebook.com/groups/107221369318412/ or the website at
https://www.pinespurhuntclub.com/.