There will be two tour options offered during the 2023 ESS Symposium.
Tour Option 1
Depart the conference hotel around noon with a box lunch provided on the bus. Stop one is High Point Performance Horses. High Point Performance Horses stand 31 American Quarter Horse stallions that shine in a variety of disciplines including reining, jumping, trail and barrel racing. High Point Performance Horses is also home to a slew of exotics including Gerald the giraffe and Rosie the camel.
Stop two is Tom McCutcheon Reining Horses. Tom McCutcheon has earned over $2 million in National Reining Horse Association lifetime earnings. His record includes two individual and team gold medals at the World Equestrian Games, National Reining Breeder Classic Open Derby Champion, multiple major event futurity and derby championships, and was named U.S. Equestrian Team Equestrian of the Year. His ranch includes an extensive rehabilitation facility with an aqua treadmill, cold water spa, and Theraplate, and offers magna wave, Equissage, and laser treatments.
The third and final stop is Billy Bob's at the Forth Worth Stockyards where participants will have dinner, be treated to a live band, have a line dancing lesson, and the opportunity to ride a mechanical bull. The box lunch, dinner, live band, and line dancing lesson are included in the tour price. The opportunity to ride the mechanical bull has replaced the ESS Fun Run. Attendees who want to ride the mechanical bull must purchase a mechanical bull riding t-shirt ($15) when registering for the Symposium and activities.
Tour Option 2
Depart the conference hotel around noon and enjoy lunch from one of the many delicious restaurants at the Forth Worth Stockyards. Lunch is on your own and not included in the tour price. Participants will be treated to an exclusive VIP Herd Experience which includes a behind-the-scenes look at the horses and longhorns of the famous Fort Worth herd. Attendees can then choose to watch the cattle drive through the Stockyards.
Additional activities to consider while at the Stockyards include the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame ($6), Livestock Exchange Building and Forth Worth Historical Society Museum, guided walking tours ($5 to $15), John Wayne Exhibit ($22), Stockyards Museum ($2), Cowboy Channel Studios, and Texas Trail of Fame.
Tour 2 attendees will then join tour 1 attendees at Billy Bob's (located at the Forth Worth Stockyards) where everyone will have dinner, be treated to a live band, have a line dancing lesson, and the opportunity to ride a mechanical bull. The dinner, live band, and line dancing lesson are included in the tour price. The opportunity to ride the mechanical bull has replaced the ESS Fun Run. Attendees who want to ride the mechanical bull must purchase a mechanical bull riding t-shirt ($15) when registering for the Symposium and activities.