News Release

For Release:  April 2, 2008       
Contact:   Jeff Fontana (530) 252-5332
CA-N-08-39

Carson City Horse Trainer Working with Wild Horse for Mustang Challenge Competition

Mary Jessberger, a horse trainer from Carson City, recently received a northwest Nevada bay mare mustang from the Bureau of Land Management as the first step in the Western States Mustang Challenge. 

Jessberger is among more than 30 specially selected Challenge horse trainers from California, Oregon, Washington, Nevada and Arizona who have 90 days to gentle and train their assigned mustangs in the competition.  She will compete for a part of the $7,500 purse at the Mustang Challenge, which is part of the 10th Annual Western States Horse Expo being held at Cal Expo in Sacramento on June 6-8.

Judges will evaluate each horse and trainer on the animal’s conditioning, groundwork and how the horse maneuvers through an obstacle “horse course,” which simulates trail and recreational riding situations. The public is invited to participate in adopting one of the Mustang Challenge competition animals June 8.

The Western States Mustang Challenge is a spin-off of the highly successful Extreme Mustang Makeover held last year in Fort Worth, Texas.  The Mustang Heritage Foundation in partnership with BLM created the events to highlight the value of American mustangs and showcase the beauty, versatility, and trainability of these living symbols of the historic and pioneer spirit of the American West.

Wild horses and burros are managed in accordance with the Wild Free Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971. This act gave the Bureau of Land Management the responsibility to protect wild horses and burros while ensuring their populations are managed to maintain or restore a thriving ecological balance.

For more information, visit http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/prog/wild_horse_and_burro.html  or call 866-4MUSTANGS.

-BLM-