The 2009 Creative Contest theme is 'Arabian - A Different Kind of Animal.' Think: Arabians disguised as lions, tigers and leopards, or Arabians traveling through the jungle with monkeys and wildlife all around. Enter unlimited categories for just $10. Compete in Creative Writing, Art, Photography, Computer-Generated, and Audio-Visual. Entries are due by June 1. Download a form and read all about the Creative Contest rules on ArabianHorses.org/youth. It is never too soon to get started on all of those awesome projects we receive each year.

Do you have an outstanding Arabian or Half-Arabian horse that you feel deserves extra special recognition? If so, enter him or her in the AHA "Horse of the Month" Contest. Just email or mail us at least one great photo and one to two paragraphs telling us why your favorite four-legged friend deserves to be the AHYA Horse of the Month.

If you are interested in running for AHYA office, please submit your AHYA officer candidate application today. Technically, candidate applications aren't due until June 15, but submit your application and begin your campaigning today! For election procedures and more information on AHYA, refer to the AHYA Constitution, Chapter 25 of your AHA Handbook, before submitting your application.

AHYA Convention is just around the corner. Are you interested in being a voting delegate for your Region? Delegates represent their Region and help with making the decisions for AHYA. As a delegate, you get to vote for the next AHYA President, Vice President, Treasurer and Secretary. Contact your AHYA Youth Regional Director for more information on how to become a delegate for your Region by clicking here.

We want YOU to cover Youth Nationals Activities! Enter the 2008 Youth Journalism Contest by submitting a writing sample (details below). If you win, you will be one of several kids to become journalists for Youth Nationals. Your work will be featured in official Youth Nationals coverage and on the AHA website. Wow!

Winning youth journalists will work with an AHA staff member to write accounts of activities, get interviews, and take fun photos. If you are interested, make sure you will be in Albuquerque, New Mexico for at least a few days during the upcoming Youth Nationals. Winners must be able to write their own stories and attend activities. Check Out the youth website for more details.

June 1: AHYA Creative Contest entries are due.
June 1: AHYA Convention delegates eligibility deadline.
June 15: AHYA Officer Candidate applications due to AHA.
June 16: Youth Nationals entries are due.
June 25: AHYA Convention delegates forms due to AHA.

We are bringing back the Flying Pig Fundraiser, Ice Cream Social, Guitar Hero Tournament and more for the 2009 Youth National Arabian and Half-Arabian Championship Horse Show. Your AHYA Board is looking for activity and t-shirt sponsors. Think it would be cool to have your barn listed on all of those qualifier t-shirts? Or maybe your family would like to sponsor the Ice Cream Social? Download a Youth Activity Sponsorship form today from the AHYA website by clicking here.

AHYA is really enjoying all the stories about your involvement in 4-H with your Arabian horses. We are even posting these stories and photos in Modern Arabian Horse magazine! The AHYA would love to hear how you and your Arabian, Half -Arabian or Anglo-Arabian are making waves in your local 4-H program. Are you a member of AHA and also competing successfully in 4-H horse projects like Hippology, Horse Bowl, or on a Judging Team? Do you volunteer your horses for 4-H judging contests? We want to know about Arabians in 4-H. Send your stories and photos to youth@arabianhorses.org.

Are you a member of Girl Scouts of the USA or Boy Scouts of America? AHYA would like to hear about how your involvement with horses has played a roll in being a scout. Do you attend scout camps in the summer? We want to hear all about it! Send your stories and photos to youth@arabianhorses.org.

Each year, May marks the most exciting five weeks in horse racing. It is the race for the Triple Crown starting with the Kentucky Derby followed by the Preakness and ending with the Belmont Stakes. This year has brought an exciting twist for race fans, thanks to a filly named Rachel Alexandra.

On Derby Weekend, Racheal Alexandra won the Kentucky Oaks race. The Kentucky Oaks is a Grade I Stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred fillies staged annually in Louisville, Kentucky and held the Friday before the Kentucky Derby race. Rachel Alexandra won the Kentucky Oaks race by over 20 lengths while showing she belongs on a bigger stage against the boys! The Kentucky Oaks victory was the largest winning margin since 1910.

Entered in the Preakness two weeks later, Rachel Alexandra was the lone filly in the field. She faced off against the Kentucky Derby winner, Mine That Bird, who also had an impressive go in Kentucky the same weekend. Interestingly enough, the jockey who won the Oaks on Rachel Alexandra, Calvin Borel, also was the jockey on Mine That Bird the very next day. Talk about a great weekend!

Calvin Borel had to make the decision to either ride the Derby winner, Mine That Bird, in the Preakness or go with Rachel Alexandra, the favorite to win the race. He chose to stick with the filly. No jockey has ever been taken off a Derby winner to ride a different horse against the Derby winner in the preakness.

Rachel Alexandra was a history-making winner of the 2009 Preakness at Pimlico. Before a crowd that cheered her on both before and after the race, Rachel Alexandra became the first filly to win the Preakness since 1924. To do it, she had to outrun 12 males, including the Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird, who closed furiously from last place to finish second, beaten by one length.

Calvin Borel became the first jockey to win the first two legs of the Triple Crown on different horses while Rachel Alexandra became the eleventh filly to win a Triple Crown race. Moreover, she became the first horse to win both the Kentucky Oaks and then the Preakness.

Mine That Bird's loss means that the elusive Triple Crown will go unclaimed yet again. Affirmed, in 1978, was the last horse to win the Derby, Preakness, and Belmont Stakes. The 31-year drought is the longest ever, since Sir Barton won the first Triple Crown in 1919.

Don't forget to tune into the Belmont Stakes on June 6 to watch the "Run for the Carnations." Will Rachel Alexandra do it again?

Are there certain things about horses that you wish you knew more about? Learn more about first aid, training techniques and equine behavior. Get Smart about horses! Tell us what you wish you knew more about at youth@arabianhorses.org