Heard there were some serious horse events going on near us, and went looking.

Check out the front gate for some serious property in horse country:

We discovered one of the biggest horse events in the country is happening right here right now! HITS Ocala is a two-month series of hunter-jumper events that draws over 2,000 horses and their riders to compete for many, many thousands of dollars in prize money!

Oh, today was their day off, because Sunday is always the biggest day. Show horses inside, under cover. No photos.

Did a little research….oh brother, we’re gonna have to stay here for another month!

Did you know the most recent Triple Crown winner, Affirmed, was bred and raised in Marion County where Ocala is located?

You must have been aware that Ocala is well known as the horse capital of the world.

Other surprises: Wiki makes the claim “unofficially, Ocala is known to have more cloud-to-ground lightning per square mile than any other city in the world.” And nearby are the headwaters of the Silver River, the largest artesian spring formation in the world.

Wow, what a place! We have a lot of ground to cover in just a few weeks….