A group of local equestrians will answer questions during an “Ask the Trainers” panel that will take place during the World Equestrian Games’ World Equine Expo on Sunday at Tryon International Equestrian Center.

The panel will take place at 2 p.m. at the Coca-Cola Stage.

People attending can ask the panelists questions about anything to do with horses or being a professional in the horse business. They will also take questions from fans on social media.

Area panelists include: Jodi Jones Lees, United States Equestrian Federation “S” dressage judge; Paddy Downing-Nyegard, “R” USEF hunter/jumper/equitation; Barbro Ask-Upmark, education manager and TIEC trainer; and Randi Thompson, who will moderate the discussion.

Also on Sunday, Thompson will present “Risk Management: Protecting Your Horse Business” at 11 a.m. in the Equus Theatre. In the interactive discussion, Thompson will share examples that will make a difference in how people do business in the horse world; attendees are asked to bring their notebook.

“Those of us who are professionals in the horse world are so lucky to be living our dreams,” Thompson said about the talk. “However, we also need to remember that there are basics that we need to cover, both legally and for business.

“For example, there are professionals in the horse world think that the Equine Liability Statutes protect them from any legal situation simply by putting up the ‘required’ signage and getting a release form signed. What they do not know is that there are exceptions to the statutes that they need to know about.“

Access to the World Equine Expo and all programming is included with any WEG competition ticket. Grounds passes, which offer access to the general public facility grounds, can be purchased individually as well.

– Submitted by Randi Thompson