Wellington, FL (March 24, 2016) — Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) attendees were treated to an educational Lunch and Learn session sponsored by leading industry innovators of riding arena surfaces, Premier Equestrian and OTTO Sport International, at The Wellington Club at the Winter Equestrian Festival show grounds this month. Featured speakers were Heidi Zorn, President and co-founder of Premier Equestrian, and Markus Fleischmann, sales manager at OTTO Sport International. The room was filled with riders, trainers, and horse owners who were excited to learn from Zorn’s and Fleischmann’s expertise. Attendees were provided the opportunity to learn from these global footing experts about the significance of choosing the correct riding surface, and about the potential effects that this choice may have in regards to the biomechanics of the horse’s movement.
The topic of arena surfaces’ effects on the biomechanics of the horse is a principle subject for Premier Equestrian, a company that continually strives to provide ideal arena conditions that ensure the health and functionality of equine athletes. Premier’s wealth of knowledge is built on over a decade of research in all aspects of arena surfaces. Equestrians, farriers, and veterinarians have all contributed their experiences and expertise to make Premier’s footing ideal. Zorn stated, “Our goal at Premier Equestrian is to share important information on how arena surfaces affect the biomechanics of our horses with fellow horsemen. This will help all equestrians make educated buying decisions, and more importantly, will help horses everywhere.”
Premier Equestrian recently created an educational and easy-to-understand video demonstrating how a variety of surface characteristics – including firmness, cushioning, cupping, rebound, and grip – work together to minimize concussion, absorb shock, provide support, and return energy back to the horse. The video, which was displayed at the recent Lunch and Learn session, is available for all to view at https://premierequestrian.com/horse-arena-footing/.
Premier Equestrian has also teamed up with OTTO Sport International as the exclusive North American distributor of the OTTO Sport-und Reiplatz GmbH mat system. The high-tech arena systems from OTTO Sport have been widely successful in arenas of top equestrians around the world such as Klaus Balkenhol and Steffen Peters.
Lunch and Learn attendees were exposed to the elite OTTO Sport Perforated Mat arena system and its importance with biomechanics and longevity of the arena. “OTTO Sport offers an arena system with superior drainage, concussion absorption, biomechanics enhancement, and longevity,” said Zorn. “The OTTO Sport system is a proven product that has been around for over thirty years. Many arenas are still standing and performing as well as they did the first day the system was installed thirty years ago.” The Otto Sport arena system will also be used this year in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The recent Lunch and Learn session is just one of the many mediums that Premier Equestrian utilizes in its journey to improve the industry’s general knowledge on footing and providing safe surfaces for all horses. To view the complete Premier Equestrian and OTTO Sport Lunch and Learn session, visit https://youtu.be/TXfiv9TiGMI. To learn more about Premier Equestrian’s extensive line of footing products and arena equipment, and how to outfit arenas with the OTTO Sport system, visit www.PremierEquestrian.com or call (800) 611-6109.
