The American Farriers Team held its first round of trials from May 6-7, 2022, at the Minco, Okla.,-based Five Star Horseshoeing School. Thirteen farriers competed, with Chris Madrid of Stanley, N.M., winning both the Best Shod Foot distinction and gathering the most points for the team trials, earning 37 out of 40. Second place went to Tom Petersen of Bureman, Mont., with 33 points, and third place went to Sawyer Spradling of Campbell, Texas and Daniel Jones of Fairhope, Ala., with 29 points, the American Farriers Team announced on Facebook.

This was the first of three competitions to earn points for the American Farriers Team that will be named at the 2022 American Farrier’s Association (AFA) Annual Convention in Little Rock, Ark. The second competition will take place Sept. 2-3 and the third will take place during the National Forging & Horseshoeing Competition at the annual convention, Nov. 7-11. There is a limit of 30 registered participants. 

Team points are awarded in four classes on a scale of 1-10. The judging for these competitions is based on photos and drawings of specimen shoes presented by the AFT Committee prior to the start of the first class. Judges follow rules set forth by the Rules Committee and used at the AFA National Forging and Horseshoeing Competition. The 2022 judges are Mark Milster, CJF, and Craig Trnka, CJF. 

The trial consists of four shoeing classes over 2 days. Each day, a competitor will have two classes of shoeing a foot with a specified shoe and turning in a specimen shoe. In each class, the competitor may have a striker/ fireman. Competitors will draw for their stations before each class. 

For a full list of classes, allowed shoe types and information on the judges and competitions, visit the AFA website’s event page. For more photos and videos from the first round of the competition, visit the American Farriers Team’s Facebook page.