| Amateur and open trail, amateur and open ranch riding and amateur cutting were held on the first day of the Fort Dodge Versatility World. By the end of the day, Mike Major and Smart Whiskey Doc of Fowler, Colorado, held the lead in the open competition, with Kris Wilson and Chic Packin of Lubbock, Texas, a close second. Lia Savas and Hygrolena of Huntingdon, New York, and Robert Valdez and Sixsation of La Junta, Colorado, were tied for the amateur lead. Check the current standings on the results page. Exhibitors had a break in the afternoon before heading to a welcoming reception in the Centennial Room in Expo Hall. The Journal is in Denver providing online coverage of the competition. Send your comments or suggestions to Christine Hamilton, Journal editor.  |  | Betty Lou Valdez of LaJunta, Colorado, drops Sixsation's bridle in the open ranch trail. Her husband, Robert, is showing the mare in the amateur. | Students from Laramie County Community College, Cheyenne, Wyoming help out with the show. |  |  | | Mike Major and Smart Whiskey Doc picked up second-place finishes in open ranch riding and ranch trail. | Lia Savas and Hygrolena of Huntington, New York, won fifth in amateur ranch trail and seconds in both amateur ranch cutting and ranch riding. |  |  | James Wilson and Chester Glass of Plymouth, Iowa, finish their pattern in amateur ranch riding. | Karen Arlin and De Luxe Comet of Escalon, California, trot the logs in open ranch trail. |  |  | | Bryan Lee and Ladys Croton Lobo of North Platte, Nebraska, finished third in the amateur ranch cutting. | Adam Bradley and his 2002 gelding SSR Hickorys Shadow hauled down from Emery, Utah, to compete in the amateur. |  |  | | AQHA Corporate Partner Fort Dodge Animal Health representatives Emilee Hoffner and Tom Lenz, D.V.M., are on hand to represent the show's title sponsor. | Exhibitors and spectators visit at the welcoming reception after the January 14 competition; left to right: Jean and Jerry Armstrong and Kris and Cara Wilson. |  |  | | AQHA Executive Vice President Bill Brewer welcomed exhibitors and thanked sponsors and volunteers. Brewer will retire in March 2009. | AQHA Judge Jim Heird presented former AQHA Executive Director of Publications Jim Jennings with a commemorative plaque from the National Western Livestock Show - Jennings retired in December 2008. |
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