World-famous Budweiser Clydesdales staying at LVMS;

Legendary ¿hitch¿ here until Saturday, public invited

The world-famous Budweiser Clydesdales are in town and are guests of Las Vegas Motor Speedway until Saturday.  The popular draft horse ¿hitch¿ will leave this weekend for an engagement in California but will return to participate in the Bud Shootout festivities which are an added attraction of the annual NHRA ACDelco Las Vegas Nationals at The Strip at LVMS, Oct. 28-31.

The public is invited to visit the world¿s most famous draft horses.  The Clydesdales, an Anheuser-Busch mainstay since 1933, are housed in a special hospitality tent at the drag strip.

THE CLYDESDALE BREED

Farmers living in the 19th century along the banks of the River Clyde in Lanarkshire, Scotland, bred the Great Flemish Horse, the forerunner of the Clydesdale. These first draft horses pulled loads of more than one ton at a walking speed of five miles per hour. Soon their reputation spread beyond the Scottish border.

In the mid-1800¿s, Canadians of Scottish descent brought the first Clydesdales to the United States, where the draft horses resumed their existence on farms. Today, the Clydesdales are used primarily for breeding and show.

THE BUDWEISER CLYDESDALES

The world-famous Budweiser Clydesdales were formally introduced to August A. Busch Sr. and Anheuser-Busch on April 7, 1933, to celebrate the repeal of Prohibition. August A. Busch, Jr. wanted to commemorate the special day. To his father¿s delight, the hitch thundered down Pestalozzi Street carrying the first case of Prohibition beer from the St. Louis Brewery.

To qualify for one of the five hitches, a Budweiser Clydesdale must be a gelding at least three years of age, approximately 72 inches or 6 feet at the shoulder when fully mature, weigh an average of 2000 pounds, bay in color, have four white stocking feet, a blaze of white on the face, and a black mane and tail.

FEED

Each hitch horse will consume as much as 20-25 quarts of feed, 40-50 pounds of hay and 30 gallons of water per day.

HITCH LOCATIONS

Five traveling Budweiser Clydesdale hitches are based in St. Louis, MO, Menifee, CA, San Diego, CA, San Antonio, TX and Merrimack, NH. The Budweiser Clydesdales can be viewed at the Anheuser-Busch breweries in St. Louis, MO, Merrimack, NH and Fort Collins, CO.

The Budweiser Clydesdales also can be viewed at Grant¿s Farm, the 281 acre ancestral home of the Busch family in St. Louis, and at the following Anheuser-Busch theme parks: Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, VA and Tampa, FL; and at the SeaWorld theme parks in Orlando, FL, San Diego, CA, and San Antonio, TX.

CLYDESDALE OPERATIONS

Based in St. Louis, MO, Clydesdale Operations is responsible for maintaining and scheduling the five traveling hitches. They receive thousands of requests for the "gentle giants" every year. Each request is evaluated on the type of event, dates, history of appearance in that particular area, and other input from Anheuser-Busch management representatives.

STABLES

The official home of the Budweiser Clydesdales is an ornate brick and stained-glass stable built in 1885 on the historic 100 acre Anheuser-Busch brewery complex in St. Louis. The building is one of the three located on the brewery grounds that are registered historic landmarks by the federal government.

HANDLERS

Expert grooms travel on the road with the hitch. They are on the road 10 months every year. When necessary, one handler has night duty to provide round-the-clock care for the horses, ensuring their safety and comfort.

TRANSPORT

Ten horses, the famous brass trimmed, red beer wagon and other essential equipment are transported in three 70 foot tractor trailers, which weigh 24 tons when fully loaded. Cameras in the trailers (with monitors in the cabs) enable the drivers to keep a watchful eye on their precious cargo during transport. The team stops each night at the local stables so the "gentle giants" can rest. Air-cushion suspension and thick rubber flooring in the trailers ease the rigors of traveling.

DRIVERS

Driving the 12 tons of wagon and horses requires considerable strength and skill. The 40 pounds of reins the driver holds, plus the tension of the reins, equals 75 pounds. All hitch drivers are put through a rigorous training period before they are given the lines.

HARNESS

Each harness and collar weighs 130 pounds, and the entire set of eight is valued at more than $80,000. The harness is hand-crafted from brass and leather. Pure linen thread is used for the stitching. The harness is made to fit any horse, but the collars come in different sizes and must be individually fitted like a suit of clothes.

NAMES

Duke, Captain, Mark and Bud are just a few of the names given to the Budweiser Clydesdales. Names are kept short to make it easier for the driver to give commands to the horses during a performance.

HORSESHOES

Clydesdale horseshoes measure more than 20 inches from end to end and weigh about five pounds - - more than twice as long and five times as heavy as the shoe worn by a riding horse. A horse¿s hoof is made of a nerveless, hornlike substance similar to that of the human fingernails. So being fitted for shoes affects the animal no more than a manicure affects people.

WAGON

Turn-of-the-century beer wagons have been meticulously restored and are kept in excellent repair. The wagons are equipped with two braking systems: a hydraulic pedal device that slows the vehicle for turns and descents down hills, and a block brake that locks the rear wheels when the wagon is at a halt.

DALMATIANS

Dalmatians have traveled with the hitch since the 1950¿s. In the early days of brewing, Dalmatians were bred and trained to protect the horses and guard the wagon when the driver went inside to make deliveries. The black and white spotted dogs were swift enough to keep up with the wagons, and their light-colored bodies and markings made them easier to see during the twilight hours. Today, the Dalmatians are perched atop the wagon, seated next to the driver.