american farriers team™
In 1979, the Irish Horse Board sent an invitation to the AFA, a relatively new and small organization, inviting us to send a farrier team to participate in their competition at the Royal Dublin Horse Show. In response to this invitation, the North American Horseshoeing Team (NAHT) was formed.
Bob Marshall of Mission, British Columbia, was the impetus behind the NAHT until 1982. Bob, a top competitor in England before immigrating to Canada in the 1970’s, was familiar with the style of shoeing and the types of shoes made in British and Irish competitions. At that time, these shoes were not common in North America, so Bob’s instructions and insights were especially valuable to NAHT members.
For the past fifteen years, the “team,” now known as the American Farriers’ Team or AFT, has been chosen by point standings in the North American Forging and Horseshoeing Competition held each year at the AFA Convention. Team standings are announced at the Annual Awards Banquet at the close of the Convention.
Four AFT members, along with alternates, leave Convention as international representatives of the American Farrier’s Association. While traveling to competitions, AFT members serve as informal ambassadors of the AFA and the horseshoeing profession in the US and North America. Conscious of the support of the AFA and the entire farrier industry, AFT members make a concerted effort to share what they have learned in international competition with the AFA community.