That's not to say that all charity events are non-deductible. It's the prize aspect that makes this the equivalent of a nondeductible raffle. If you have a riding event with no prize, where are you are paying for a dinner, or the use of a particular facility, then the value of the deduction is your donation minus the value of any tangible benefit you received. For example, if you paid $50 for a charity dinner, and the fair market value of the dinner was $25, you could take a charitable deduction for the other $25. (If the dinner includes a raffle, or a Chinese auction, the additional money you spent for that would not be deductible because of the gambling aspect.)
