It’s two big weekends for Maryland horses with the Fair Hill International running October 13-16 and the the 30th running of the Jim McKay Maryland Million on Saturday, October 22. The Fair Hill International brings three days of horse trials to the 6,000-acre Fair Hill Natural Resources Management Area for this one-of-a-kind event. The Fair Hill International combines dressage, cross country jumping and stadium jumping in what amounts to the Olympic games for horses. The Jim McKay Maryland Million, part of the 11-race Maryland Million Day at Laurel Park, was founded in 1986 to feature top Maryland horses, and all horses running in the stakes must be sired by a stallion standing in the state. Last year’s race brought nearly 20,000 fans to Laurel who placed almost $4.5 million in wagers on the race.

The horse industry is an important, living part of Maryland’s history and an economic driver for the state. The total annual economic impact of the horse industry on the state is approximately $1.6 billion with a direct impact of $1 billion generating $72 million in annual taxes.

Pictured: 2015 Fair Hill International event winner Tamra Smith on Mai Baum. Credit: Shannon Brinkman.

In a ceremony befitting the hard-working Ellicott City community, Main Street re-opened for business after more than two months of hard restoration work. Ellicott City was ravaged by a deadly flood on July 30 that left the community heartbroken and many homes and businesses devastated. In the months since, the residents of Ellicott City banded together and, with help from volunteers and supporters from across Maryland, set about cleaning and rebuilding their town. “Since that terrible night, we have made tremendous strides in rebuilding Ellicott City,” said Howard County Executive Allan Kittleman, and on Thursday, Oct 6, that paid off when Main Street was re-opened to vehicle traffic and pedestrians. “It’s remarkable how resilient this community has been over these past 10 weeks as it has come together to clean up and rebuild,” Kittleman said. To find out how to get involved or to donate, visit ecpartnership.org.

Maryland Traditions, the folklife program of the Maryland State Arts Council, honors the state’s outstanding stewards of traditional arts at the 2016 Maryland Traditions Heritage Awards Ceremony and Concert, hosted Friday, Nov. 11, at 7:30 p.m. at the Montgomery College Cultural Arts Center in Silver Spring. On hand to receive awards and share their art will be: Cambodian master traditional musician Chum Ngek of Montgomery County; members of the Trimper family, owners of Ocean City’s Trimper’s Rides and Amusements, the nation’s oldest family-owned amusement park; and members of the Steyer and Shinholt families of Western Maryland, whose maple syrup making practices are generational traditions in Garrett and Allegany counties.

Also featured will be a conversation with maritime culture advocate Mike Vlahovich of St. Michaels and Tacoma, Washington; and a concert by Baltimore’s master of the Irish button accordion, Billy McComiskey. Mike and Billy are 2016 recipients of NEA National Heritage Fellowships, the nation’s highest honor in the folk and traditional arts. A reception, which will feature traditional Irish music, will follow the awards ceremony and concert.

Free tickets may be reserved at http://mcblogs.montgomerycollege.edu/cac/maryland-traditions/. For more information, contact Maryland Traditions Co-Director Chad Buterbaugh at 410-767-6450 or chad.buterbaugh@maryland.gov.

Pictured: Trimper's Carousel, Ocean City. Photo by Rachel Smith Photography.

Rich Gilbert, Travel Trade Sales Manager, led 16 Maryland partners on the Maryland on the Road Enterprise (MORE) Sales Blitz. The sales blitz, in Northeast Ohio, conducted individual sales appointments with 24 representatives from 12 tour operations.

MORE is a cooperative marketing partnership for Maryland’s tour and travel suppliers, where sales partners travel aboard an executive motorcoach, conducting pre-scheduled sales appointments with motorcoach operators, tour operators and travel planners.

The group called on key clients in four cities: Cleveland, Canton, Akron and Lorain. They discussed their operations, marketing approaches, planning needs, future trends, and assessed the current use of the Maryland tour product. Each was provided a bag and notebook containing information from all of the participating marketing partners. This is very much a "soft-sell" sales approach, but in the past has proven to be very effective.

Partners included: Rosie Trout, Baltimore Water Taxi; Michelle Jones, Colony South Hotel & Conference Center; Jen Durben, Deep Creek Lake/Garrett County Chamber; Debbie Morroni, Entertainment Cruises; Jamie Spicer, Hard Rock Café-Baltimore; Ruth Waters, Harrison Group Resort Hotels; Scott Barr, National Aquarium; Norma Dobrowolski, Ocean City Tourism/CVB; Irene Rosen, Phillips Seafood Restaurants; Trent Caruso, Sheraton Hotel-College Park; Steve Jones, Six Flags America; Cheryl Clemens-Everidge, Toby’s Dinner Theatre; Eric Masterton, Visit Baltimore; Becky Bickerton, Visit Frederick; Audrey Vargason, Visit Hagerstown; and Cynthia Younes, Visit Montgomery County.

This three-day event runs November 2-4 at Baltimore Marriot Inner Harbor at Camden Yards. The event, which attracts 250-300 tourism and hospitality industry leaders from across Maryland, is a unique educational and networking opportunity highlighting the latest trends in marketing, sales, public relations, social media, and grassroots advocacy. This year’s event also offers a star-studded list of industry speakers including Kevin Atticks, founder, Grow & Fortify; Bill Geist, president, DMOproz; Tom Geddes, chief executive officer, Plank Industries; Adam Sacks, founder and president, Tourism Economics; Anirban Basu, chief economist and chairman/CEO, Sage Policy Group; and Liz Fitzsimmons, managing director, Division of Tourism, Film & the Arts.

The Maryland Tourism & Travel Summit is the year’s best opportunity to meet and to share with industry peers during the general sessions, award luncheons, networking breaks, receptions, mobile workshops and MTC’s annual awards gala celebrating the achievements of our tourism professionals. Guests of the Summit have the opportunity to be recognized in front of their peers and win professional and marketing awards for their organizations’ successes or their personal achievements. The Summit also has wonderful raffle prize opportunities for Summit participants to win once-in-a-lifetime experiences, VIP tickets, posh getaways, great golf outings, and feasts for foodies. For more information and to register, visit mdtourism.org.

Think you know what's cool about Maryland? Show us in a 30-second commercial and you can win $500. The Maryland Office of Tourism's "Maryland My Way" contest gives professional filmmakers and amateur auteurs a chance to win big by showing us what you love about Maryland. For contest rules, go to visitmaryland.org, and show us your Maryland!

Each week, the Maryland Minute provides highlights and showcases events around the state. Maryland Minute is featured on CBS radio stations in Baltimore and Washington, D.C. and on Baltimore’s WBAL-AM 1090.