Untacked - winter 2013

VOL.1, NO. 1 WINTER 2013

THOROUGHLY MODERN

Georgina THE FAITHFUL FAMILY PETERSENThink You Know Them? Think Again

On Motherhood, Marriage & Making Your Own Way

Holiday Gift GuideFor Him, Her & Horse

The ChroniCle of the horse

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CHRONOFHORSE .COM WINTER 2013 1

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OWN IT!

S T Y L E B Y

M A LV E R N S A D D L E R Y . C O M

4 WINTER 2013 UNTACKED

32 She’ll Do It Her Way

38 Faith And Family Bring The Petersens Full Circle

46 The Real Sport Of The Pampas

58 How Horsemen Do Their Holidays

66 A President With A Passion for Horses

76 The Build-A-Bridle Workshop

84 New England NicheON THE COVER: Georgina Bloomberg; photography by Elena Lusenti;

hair and make-up styled by Gina Simone; make-up by Armani

32


UntackedV O L . 1 , N O . 1 W I N T E R 2 0 13

66

Features

38

Contents

58

World-Class Accommodationsfor you and your horse

For over a century, the rolling terrain and meadows of the Middleburg area have provided an exquisite canvas for what is one of the most renowned equestrian regions in the world. Sheila C. Johnson has created the new luxurious salamander® resort & spa featuring one of the most complete equestrian facilities and programs in the country including 25 on-site acres dedicated to the equestrian program. Stunning, 14,000-square-foot stable featuring 22 stalls for overnight boarding and a classroom. Nine beautiful paddocks, ranging in size from 1 – 2.6 acres. A spectacular 28,800 square-foot riding arena with ThorTurf footing. Extensive scheduling of clinics, classes and schools. 540.687.3600 | salamanderresort.com

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8 Editor’s Letter

10 Contributors

14 Around The Arena

16 Editor’s Picks

18 Test Lab

20 The Clothes Horse

88 Book Review

92 Charity Spotlight

94 Best Of Web & Print

96 Parting Ways

16

Departments

92

20Conten

ts

H OL I D A Y G I F T G U I DE

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When the weather turns cold you need gear designed for real warmth. Engineered in Sweden, our Bianca Fleece and Stella Polaris Winter Boots are packed with intelligent technical features and impeccable style, all to keep you toasty so you can do more of what you love. www.MountainHorseUSA.com


EDITOR’S LETTER

Because It’s Not A Hobby, It’s A LifestyleWelcome to the premiere issue of The Chronicle of the Horse Untacked, the bigger, better, more beautiful lifestyle magazine that constitutes the newest member of the Chronicle publication family.

Chances are you’re holding this publication in your hands as you read this, which is an exciting and significant change from The Chronicle Connection, our digital lifestyle magazine that many of you came to know and love over the past three years. While we live in an ever-more-digitized world, and that trend isn’t go-ing to stop anytime soon, our faithful readers made their desires quite clear: You wanted the Connection in print, as well as online.

We heard you, and with Untacked we aim to exceed your expectations.

We know there are plenty of coffee-table equestrian publica-tions on the shelves and in your email inbox these days—many of which are gorgeous, glossy magazines in which horses appear as accessories to a glamorous, curated life. But we at the Chronicle have been devoted to horse sport for 76 years, and we know that being a true horseman (or woman) is so much more than just being a person who loves horses. It’s not just a hobby, it’s a lifestyle. It’s with this mantra as our guiding principle that we’ll be publishing Untacked.

To many people, the term “lifestyle publication” immediately conjures up an assumption of focus on luxury goods, affluent individuals and a general level of elitism that most in our coun-try and our sports simply can’t relate to. But this will not be our goal for Untacked. When we choose a famous, wealthy rider like Georgina Bloomberg for the subject of our cover story (see p. 32), we do so in order to peel back the layers of her public persona and get to the heart of what we all share with someone like her—a passion for a career, family and lifestyle based around the horse.

And we’ll just as often be bringing you the stories of “the everyman”—people like the Petersens (see p. 38), who came from obscurity and near-poverty to build the business and family they enjoy today. Plus, we’ll be featuring everything from product reviews to book and film critiques to travel, art, fashion, pho-

tography and more, rounding out every aspect of the horseman’s lifestyle when he’s out of the saddle.

Finally, we’re thrilled to announce, in conjunction with the launch of this issue, our new charity initiative: the Chronicle Sup-port Network. Not only will each volume of Untacked feature a charity spotlight (see p. 92), we’ll also begin dedicating at least one page in each issue of The Chronicle of the Horse to a pro-bono ad for a 501(c)(3) charity organization and featuring a philan-thropy spotlight on every page of our newly redesigned chronof-horse.com, set to debut in December. (Stay tuned for an upcoming announcement on how to apply!) And best of all, in the coming year we’ll be organizing a fund to assist worthy equine organiza-tions across the country with monetary donations, beginning with a $2,500 gift to this issue’s featured charity, Camp Casey.

As I sit down to write this letter, we’re just putting the final touches on this first issue of Untacked and already digging in for our Spring 2014 edition. We’re thrilled and honored to be in your homes, stables and stalls, and to share with you more than just a hobby, but an all-encom-passing passion that de-fines a lifestyle. Thank you for reading, and welcome to Untacked.

—Kat Netzler, Editor

CONTRIBUTORS

Melissa VolpiMelissa’s work as a writer and photojournalist takes her all over the world, but she’s happiest at home in the Scottish Highlands, where she is currently working on a series of feature articles on women in field sports and pur-suing the art of classical dres-sage with her horse Pasquale.

In This Issue

Josh FischelJosh, a sixth-grade teacher, lives with his wife and their dog outside Boston. His work has previously appeared in The Be-liever, The New York Times and Bean Soup.

Elena LusentiOriginally from Milan, Italy, Elena is a photographer of horses and riders around the world. She brings her insightful eye to an equestrian culture she knows well, having competed with great success in high amateur-owner show jumping. Her travels around the globe always bring her back to her equestrian roots in Wellington, Fla., where she currently resides.

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Emmanuel OrtizArgentine-born photojournal-ist Emmanuel Ortiz has been behind the lens for 30 years, spending most of his time in his home nation, Peru, Bolivia and Chile until 1989. He then moved to France to focus more on artistic movements, and later he served as a war photographer in Bosnia, Albania, Macedonia and Kosovo. Since 2005, Emmanuel has focused his work on the influence of the horse on human history. He lives in Normandy, France.

Coree Reuter-McNamaraA native of Washington State, Coree attended Centenary College (N.J.) and then moved to Virginia in 2009 to intern at The Chronicle of the Horse, where she later became a staff writer. She has since coached soccer professionally, summited Mt. Kilimanjaro and married her best friend, Steve, who under-stands he must share his wife with the other love of her life, a chestnut gelding named Liam. Coree is currently pursu-ing a master’s degree in athletic training from Shenandoah University (Va.).

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Volume 1 • Number 1 • Winter 2013

produced and published by The Chronicle of the Horse

publisher

KATHERINE BELLISSIMO

Editorialeditor

KAT NETZLER, [email protected]

editorial director BETH RASIN, [email protected]

managing editor

Sara Lieser, [email protected]

associate editor

MOLLY SORGE, [email protected]

editorial staff

MOLLIE BAILEY, [email protected] SLADE, [email protected]

LINDSAY BERRETH, [email protected] CALDER, [email protected]

TAYLOR JOYCE, [email protected] WALSH, [email protected]

editorial production manager

LAUREN MARUSKIN, [email protected]

Design & Productionart director

SYLVIA GASHI-SILVER, [email protected]

senior designer

SONYA MENDEKE, [email protected]

Advertisingadvertising director

DAWN KIRLIN, [email protected]

advertising account manager

NICK HOLMBERG, [email protected]

ad production manager

BETH HONCHARSKI, [email protected]

Customer Carecirculation director

KAREN FICKLIN, [email protected]

customer relations

LAURA HONOHAN, [email protected]

administrative assistant

KRISTIN SCRUGGS, [email protected]

Main Office108 The Plains Road, Middleburg, Virginia 20117

Telephone: 540.687.6341


Untacked

chronofhorse.com

follow us on:

BRED FOR EXCELLENCENewBoltonCenter.vet.upenn.edu | 610.444.5800

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Around the Arena

In early November, this 17-year-old from New York City became the 16th rider in 66 years to win both the USEF Medal and the ASPCA Maclay Finals in the same year. Herewith, a few of her favorite things.

t i d b i t s f r o m a c r o s s t h e i n d u s t r y

➜ Breeches: Hermès

➜ Footwear: Superga and Converse

➜ Comfort food: Anything chocolate

➜ Twitter personality: I don’t know!

➜ Movie: “Titanic”

➜ TV show: “NCIS”

➜ Magazine: The Chronicle!

➜ Book: All Creatures Great and Small, by James Herriot

➜ Vacation destination: I haven’t gone to many vacation destinations, but I once went to Africa, and it was beautiful.

➜ City: New York or Paris

➜ Place to ride: Any big grass field

➜ Place to shop: Olive and Bette’s [a Manhattan boutique chain]

➜ Type of restaurant: Italian

➜ Non-horsey hobby: Working with rescue animals

➜ Thing to do with your family: Family dinner

➜ Thing to do with friends: Go to a concert or the beach

➜ Memory in the saddle: Riding with my mom

➜ Part of a course to ride: Long-approach singles

➜ Type of horse: As long as he/she has four legs and loves to jump!

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My Faves: Lillie Keenan


Paula uFrom tack to fashion, gor-geous photography to DIY

ideas, Paula curates it all with a rare eye for beauty at Pinterest.com/gpms3.

On Deck!Mark your calendar with these upcoming important dates.u Dec. 7 Horse-lovers of the Mid-Atlantic region will be flocking to northern Virginia for Christmas In Middle-burg, the annual holiday celebra-tion in the Chronicle’s hometown. The Middleburg Hunt will follow its hounds down Main Street, the parade will feature animals of all kinds, including the adorable Corgi Corps, and there’ll be shopping and a wine crawl to put a smile on almost any Scrooge’s face. Visit ChristmasIn-Middleburg.org for more information.

u Dec. 31 - Jan. 4If you’re already in Florida for the winter, you won’t want to miss the eighth annual George H. Morris Horsemastership Training Ses-sion in Wellington. A dozen of the country’s most talented young riders will be learning under the legend at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center, and auditors are welcome to attend free of charge. Visit USEF.org for more details. Can’t make it to Florida? No prob-lem! We’ll have daily coverage of the clinic on chronofhorse.com.

u Feb. 12Attention all students: Don’t miss the deadline for the regional Intercol-legiate Equestrian Foundation Scholarships. The grants are avail-able to both Intercollegiate Horse Show Association members and non-members. Visit ihsainc.com/scholarship/ief-scholarship for more details and an application.

Are You Following?If you’re not already following us, now’s the time to visit Pinterest.com/chronofhorse. Looking for more equestrian tastemakers? Check out some of our staff favorites:

Velvet Rider uLooking for horsey-themed holiday

decorations? Planning an equestrian wedding? Need a practical how-to

for a riding exercise? The Velvet Rider has what you’re looking for at

Pinterest.com/thevelvetrider.

t Mandy CollinsAs a horse person, graphic designer and photographer, Mandy has an eye for equestri-an beauty. Her pins are classic, classy and not to be missed. Pinterest.com/mandycollins.

t Spruce Meadows Calgary, ABAs horse shows go, Spruce Meadows is leading the pack when it comes to engaging with its audience, not just with great competition shots, but also with boards devoted to lifestyle, fashion, pets and more. After one visit to Pinterest.com/sprucemeadows, you’ll be yearning to book a flight to Calgary next summer.


EDITOR’S PICKS

I’ve been told more than once that I’m a jack of all trades (the “and a master of none” was usu-ally implied), but if there’s one thing of which I really am a true connoisseur, it’s outerwear. My coat collection goes far beyond what even the winters of Chicago, where I live, require.

But I’ll be taking a big haul to the local Goodwill soon, because otherwise they’re probably going to go to waste this winter. The only thing I want to put on these days is my new puffer from Asmar.

The Down Coat is one of the crowning jewels of the brand’s newly released lifestyle line, a follow-up to its intelligently designed (and incredibly popular) All-Weather Rider jacket collec-tion. Judging the Down Coat against Asmar’s previ-ous jackets is a bit like comparing apples and oranges, since it’s not designed to be worn in the saddle, but, instead, for the barn and the street. And frankly, when I picked this coat, I was fairly sure they couldn’t pos-sibly improve on that already terrific design.

I was wrong. The Down Coat still has all the bells, whistles and tiny intuitive surprises you’ve come to expect from this brand. That means things like a remov-able hood with two different cleverly concealed elastic drawstrings (no more struggling to keep your too-big hood up while running out to the barn on a windy, sleety winter’s eve) and stretchy inner cuffs with thumb-holes to keep your hands warm and the elements (plus hay and horse hair) out.

Its oversized, delightfully puffy collar, which is lined with soft microfleece, reaches up to your ears when the coat is com-pletely zipped, rendering scarves totally superfluous. The zip-pered pockets are also fleece-lined, and there’s an inner zipped compartment with a headphone cord exit for your smartphone or iPod.

But beyond being highly functional, the coat is also fashion-forward.

“We wanted to marry the equestrian and fashion worlds, using design details like extreme high collars and unexpected textures with stitch and quilting lines, while still keeping the core function of the garment,” explained designer Mena Lucas.

That means this isn’t just any plain old black puffer coat. While a lesser designer working with this semi-sheen black fabric might have turned out a coat that more closely resembles a trashbag full of pillow stuffing, Asmar’s stitch pattern helps cre-ate a slimming, sleek, European-inspired outline. Its diamond quilting transitions from small squares across the shoulders and upper arms to larger ones the further

southward you go. Like many down puffers with water-

repellent shells, this one is unfortunately dry-clean only. And at $388, the Asmar Down

Coat isn’t cheap. But when compared to simi-larly designed brands like Moncler or Bogner, it’s a serious steal. It comes only in black, but if you’d like some more color in your life (say, a scarlet or cream) or just want a more afford-able layering option, Asmar’s matching Down

Vest may be just the ticket.Asmar’s Down Coat seems to run a bit larger than its

All-Weather Rider collection (I was concerned the medium might be a bit tight with my winter layers underneath, but it’s still quite roomy on my size-10 frame), so consider order-ing down if you’re on the fence between sizes. Check it out at AsmarEquestrian.com.

—Editor Kat Netzler

Asmar Down Coat

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TEST LAB

Sock It To Me!We tested out a slew of socks to find the best bet for every type of rider.By MOLLIE BAILEY

Hello, my name is Mollie, and I’m a sock addict.

My co-workers wait by the exit of trade shows with overflowing bags of blingy brow bands, shampoo samples and cool new full-seat breeches, while I’m still debating between the calf-high and knee-high style of my fourth pair. I have two dresser drawers filled with nothing but socks, and I scour the Internet regularly to find new styles.

Sure I’m picky (and obsessed), but there’s nothing worse than having uncom-fortable feet when you’re spending all day at the barn or having one come up holey after just a few weeks of wear.

So many socks look good when you pick them up in the store or see them on the screen, but few turn out to have the durability required by active horsemen. So I tested out a slew of selections and weeded out the flimsy, poorly fitting and lousy quality to find a few great choices for every equestrian.

>> Noble Equine XtremeSoft Boot Sock—Over The CalfThis well-made sock is slim where it needs to be and pad-ded where it should be. The foot bed of this sock is extra-cushioned, which makes for a little more comfort during a long day, and it adds durability to a slim-fitting sock. I made it home from a three-hour hunt trail ride in my snuggest tall boots with no rubs (no small feat for me).

There’s also stretch mesh on the front of this sock to give it a close fit and plenty of breathability to keep you cool several hours into a long day.

I’d recommend the black over the white color, as my white ones ended up black from half chaps at the end of one day (though they did wash out nicely). The sock also comes in a shorter crew height, if you’re not a knee-high sock kind of person. $11.99, nobleequine.com.

>> Tuff Cuff Paddock Boot SoxIf you’re a short-sock kind of rider, it’s hard to do better than these. The 4" padded cuff is just the right height for both my pairs of paddock boots, and they don’t slip at all. They wick away sweat in the summer and are excep-tionally durable and comfort-able.

Tuff Cuffs are good for your soul, too: They’re made in the United States and are eco-friendly, comprised of Coolmax EcoMade fiber made from recycled water bottles.

Best of all, there are 16 funky designs to meet your mood with contrasting foot and ankle patterns, and I found myself wearing them on non-barn days, as well (and earning a few compliments along the way).

Not looking for something quite so short? They have similar styles in 6" and knee-high lengths. $15, jojosox.com.

For Cool Comfort

For Paddock Boot Lovers


>> BambootzAre you one of those riders who sprays her legs with ShowSheen and recruits someone to hold her down while someone else hauls her super-snug tall boots off? Chances are, you’re sticking with nylons to try to get the closest possible fit.

These days, nylons are fun to wear, as you can get them in dozens of different designs, but they run pretty easily and just don’t give the same performance of an actual sock.

Enter Bambootz, knee-high slim socks made from organic, sustainable bamboo. They’re about as slender as nylons and feel silky soft, but they’re much more durable, with a reinforced toe and heel. They’re antibacterial and hypoallergenic, too, and, like JoJoSox’s other offerings, available in a variety of cute patterns. It’s no wonder JoJo-Sox have become a favorite of the likes of eventers Sinead Halpin, Hawley Bennett and Allison Springer (who has a color pattern named after her).

These socks cost a bit more than the nylons they’re replacing, but they will defi-nitely last a lot longer. $18, jojosox.com.

To be clear, these socks aren’t specifi-cally for riding. But Back On Track’s wraps and blankets are favorites of riders like Olympic gold medalist McLain Ward, so it stands to reason they could give aching human feet a boost, as well.

I pulled these socks on hoping they could help support the foot I broke six months ago, which still throbs from time to time, especially by that 10th trip out to the paddock on uneven ground. Sure, they’re made of special ceramic-infused material that reflects radiant heat to decrease swell-

ing and increase circulation, but they look and feel like normal, slim-fitting mid-calf black socks. Within half an hour, my toes were remarkably toasty, especially given how slim the socks are (I wore them easily with dress shoes as well as paddock boots). And when I took them off at the end of a day of barn work, I realized my foot didn’t ache at all.

I have lousy circulation and am perpetually shivering, but I was amazed that, in these, my feet actually sweat on warmer days, even when I’m not working too hard. They’re

probably too toasty for most people to wear in the summer (they’re recom-mended for people with diabetes or poor circulation), but for me, they’re a godsend. Back On Track also recommends you try wearing them at night, which may be a good solution for people who’d like the benefit of the ceramic fabric without the heat.

The special fabric does neces-sitate specific care: You can throw these in the wash on cool, but you have to let them air dry. $30, backontrackproducts.com.

>> Ariat Tall Boot SocksThese lightweight socks are a solid all-around choice. On a long day of barn work, they stay up well under my jeans and kept my feet sweat-free. They fit well under my super-snug half chaps and my taut tall boots. They seem durable, with reinforced toes and heels. They don’t quite stretch up to my knee, but I’m OK with that, as it avoids my least favorite fashion faux pas: socks sticking out the top of your tall boots.

They’re probably not the toastiest socks in your drawer, but they’re slim enough that toe warmers will fit in nicely right under the toe once the mercury starts dropping. They’re made in the USA from a nylon/CoolMax blend.

Ariat socks are available in men’s and women’s sizes. $10.95, ariat.com.

For The Nylon

Addicts

For Everyday Comfort

For The Injured Or The Chronically

Cold

>> Back On Track Socks


THE CLOTHES HORSE

Holiday Gifts For Him, Her And Horse

Need some inspiration when it comes to shopping for the equestrian (or the animal) in your life? We’ve got you covered.

By K AT NETZLER

<< FITS Allie Vest A sleeveless version of FITS’ equally beautiful Allie jacket, this vest is pure class. Princess seams (AKA curved seams that work with your body’s shape, not against it) and a natural waistline make it a flattering outer layer, and its longer peplum-style back vent means it’s functional in the saddle. It also boasts FITS’ three-layer Dintex fabric, which includes a smooth, stain-repellent outer layer, a water and windproof in-ner membrane, and a soft brushed fleece lining for warmth and comfort. Available in chocolate mini ombre plaid and black/grey plaid (shown). Sizes S-XL. $124. FITSriding.com.

>> Le Fash City Breech

CollectionIf you know someone who’s

already a fan of Le Fash’s comfy, adorably patterned show shirts (or

even if she isn’t), she’ll love their first foray into breech-making. The City Breech line was designed to take a girl “from the show ring to

Park Ave with the swap of a shoe.” They’ve got a detailed waistband

that functions as a built-in belt, op-tional gold pocket rivets to match

Le Fash’s signature shirts, and faux detail snaps over adjustable

Velcro ankle closures. And they’re designed to slim and elongate,

constructed with strong, smooth-ing Schoeller® Prestige fabric.

Available in Tribeca Teal (shown), Financial District Grey (shown), Soho in the City White, Upper East Side Beige and Gotham

City Black. Sizes 24R-34R and 24L-34L. $298.00 without pocket rivets; $308.00 with pocket rivets.

LeFashNY.com.

F OR T H E L A DI E S


>> Murrieta’s Well WinesEveryone needs to keep a few bottles

of wine on hand for hostess gifts during the holiday party season, and the two

award-winning flagship blends from Murrieta’s Well in California’s Livermore

Valley are sure to impress. Their white blend, The Whip ($22), has hints of

white peach, baked apple, honey and butterscotch, while red blend The Spur ($25) boasts notes of blackberry, blue-

berry, chocolate, anise, graham crackers and toasted oak. MurrietasWell.com.

>> Goode Rider Technical JacketThis brand-new design

from Goode Rider is the perfect answer to the

question of what to get for the practical, hard-working horsewoman in your life. Its waterproof polyester/span-

dex blend fabric will hold up through the toughest

winter chores, but its flatter-ing cut and unique details

make it more than just a barn coat. It’s also lined

with soft shearling fleece, has a removable hood

and a saddle-friendly back vent. Available in coffee or silver. Sizes XS-XL. $239.

GoodeRider.com.



THE CLOTHES HORSE

<< Ariat Wexford, Olympia & Volant

Ariat may be a company best known for its western wear,

but their latest line showcases plenty of European inspirations.

The beautiful and waterproof Wexford boot (available in black or coffee, sizes 5½-11, $169.95)

is sure to please any equestri-enne, as is the sleek new Olym-pia breech. Schoeller® Prestige

four-way stretch nylon and cotton twill fabric and Ariat’s patented V3® fit system and

Calf Fit system means they’ll fit like a glove, and with contrast trim, they’ll look great, to boot.

Available in coal (shown), gran-ite, espresso, dusk and black,

full seat or knee patch. Sizes 22-36, regular and long. $209.95-

$229.95. Looking for something a little cheaper? Pick up a pair of Ariat’s cheeky Volant socks, inspired by their futuristic boot

model. $9.95. Ariat.com.

Jeffries Travel Bar >>For the long-suffering non-horsey

husband: the perfect gift. He’s likely to be in much better spirits if he can sip on a few during your next cold and rainy equestrian outing. Con-tains three flasks and a hip carrier. Available in black or brown. $186.

Equiporium.co.uk.


F OR T H E G E N T L E M E N


Goode Rider Tech Shirt >>

Can a guy ever have too many comfortable, stretchy, mois-

ture-wicking undershirts? When they also come with a

convenient stock-tie loop and can double as show attire, the answer is a definite no. Available in indigo (shown)

and white. Sizes S-XL. $79. GoodeRider.com.

Dubarry Accessories >>We’ve all seen and drooled over

Dubarry’s ubiquitous Galway boots, but the brand also has a lot more to offer. You can get your guy a match-

ing wallet ($59) or flask ($69) in the brand’s iconic design, or spoil him with a new pair of sleek Gore-Tex-lined Kerry ankle boots, avail-able in black, chestnut, mahogany and walnut, European sizes 40-48

($399). Plus, you can stuff his stocking with a shoe- and boot-care

trial pack ($15). Dubarry.us.

F OR T H E G E N T L E M E N

THE CLOTHES HORSE

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<< Felt Corgi MobileForget sugarplum dreams—send your little tyke to bed with visions of corgi bums dancing in his head. Miranda Rommel of Etsy shop Fiber Friends

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THE CLOTHES HORSE

<< InkStables Equestri-an Couture Boot SocksSocks and underwear used to rank just one rung above switches and coal on the list of horrible holiday gifts, but InkStables keeps turning out so many adorable designs—everything from tie-dye to foxes to fiesta llamas—that stockings are becoming an addic-tion. Plus, you can place a custom design order for your barn or team. Visit WeAreInkStables.com for retailers and custom order info.

F OR T H E K I D S & B A B I E S


<< Equestrian Modern Nursery Art PrintsKnow a tiny tot in need of some equestrian imprinting? These charm-ing horse-themed prints from Etsy shop Two White Owls will help them learn some of the most important words in the English language from the get-go. $30 for set of three unframed 5” x 7” prints. Larger sizes and additional designs are available, as well as matching switch plate and outlet covers. Etsy.com/shop/TwoWhiteOwls.

<< Harry’s Crystal Stirrup Leathers It may not be your taste, but bling is the thing these days, and these crystal-encrusted stirrup leathers might be the perfect gift to light up the face of the young dressage rider in your life on Christmas morning. $60. Visit HarrysHorse.com for U.S. retailers or order online from PimpMyPony.com.au.

C4 Belts >> In 2013, these candy-colored plastic

belts became the hippest new thing in the eventing world—no pun intended. They have interchangeable buckles,

are fully customizable with more than 400 possible color combinations,

and the company donates at least 10 percent of the purchase price to one of four charities, which the customer

gets to choose. And you’d be smart to order two in your child’s cross-country colors, because as many professional

riders have recently found, they double perfectly as neck straps. Available in

classic width or skinny. $25. JAS StablesEventing.com/C4-Belts.html.


THE CLOTHES HORSE

<< Custom Cookie Cutter

Break out your favorite recipe and whip up your

pony (or your pooch) a batch of fresh treats

made in his likeness with these custom cutters

from Name That Cookie on Etsy. $22. Etsy.com/shop/NameThatCookie.

F OR YO U R S T E E D


<< Centaur Horse Blanket Drier

Every horse in your barn will thank you for this practical gift, which can completely dry a blanket in 3-4 hours.

And with two-, four- and six-rail models, it can also be the perfect purchase to split with your best friend at the barn. It’s easily transportable on

swiveling wheels, and it can mount to a wall or stand on its own, upright or horizon-

tally. Plus it comes with a 12’ cable, so there’s no need to use a risky extension cord. Visit horseblanketdriers.us/

for more information or a price quote.

Noble Equine 5 O’Clock Hoof Pick >>Everybody’s been guilty of buying a “here’s a present for you that’s really for me” gift at least once, but this clever little tool is at least mutually beneficial for both horse and

rider. Hoof care has never been so rewarding. $9.99. NobleEquine.com.



THE CLOTHES HORSE


Fairfax Performance Girth >>Remember Britain’s stunning medal haul in all three equestrian sports at the 2012 London Olympic Games? This girth may have been their secret weapon, and now it can be yours. Designed in secret dur-ing the lead-up to the Games and tested by Centaur Biomechanics with Pliance

pressure-mapping technology, the Fairfax curved model has been found to allow for up to 33 percent more freedom in horses’

front leg action. Available in long, short eventing, dressage, narrow dressage, long stud guard and short stud guard models.

$395-$450. Visit FairfaxSaddles.co.uk for more information on the girth’s revolutionary design, as well as a listing of U.S. retailers.


COVER STORY


S he’s young, she’s

glamorous, she’s

wealthy, and she’s

also a very talented and dedicated rider. As the

daughter of three-term outgoing New York City

Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Georgina Bloomberg

has lived her life in the limelight for as long as she

can remember, sometimes by choice and some-

times not. And when, at five months pregnant,

she placed third with Juvina in the $250,000 FTI

Consulting Grand Prix on Sept. 1 at the Hamp-

ton Classic (N.Y.), the spotlight was hotter and

harsher than ever.

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Grand prix show jumper and media darling

Georgina Bloomberg is gearing up for her biggest

adventure yet in the public eye: motherhood.

By MOLLY SORGE

SHE’LL DO IT

HER WAY

Even posing in high heels at nearly eight months pregnant, Georgina Bloomberg is calm, collected and com-mitted to her riding career.

At home, however, 30-year-old Georgina is much like any other expectant mother. She struggles with the tough questions of how to balance her riding with impending motherhood. She’s finding room for all the accessories in-volved with an infant. And she’s pondering names for the


baby boy who’s due around Christmas.But Georgina always says that she

“likes to be different,” and she lives that credo. Five rescue dogs scamper around her kitchen. With a pig. She volunteers her time and money generously. And she’s planning a non-traditional family with her boyfriend, fellow grand prix rider Ramiro Quintana.

Untacked caught up with Georgina in her final month of pregnancy to talk about parenting, pigs and other people’s expecta-tions.

So, was this pregnancy a surprise?

I’ve always wanted to be a mother. [Ramiro and I have] been together on and off for a while and good friends forever. [They met when she was 15.] This is

something we had both talked about and wanted. It wasn’t something we absolutely planned, but it is something we wanted and were prepared for.

Do you and Ramiro have plans to marry?

For some reason, it’s something that I’ve never wanted. I respect other peoples’ decision to marry; for some people it is the right decision. But I know it’s never been for me. It’s a little bit old-fashioned and traditional for me—I never dreamed of walking down the aisle in a white dress.

I’m not saying we never will get mar-ried, but it won’t be the traditional wed-ding and marriage. And it’s not something I feel the need to do right now. Down the road, if it is something that’s very important to Ramiro, I would consider it.

But it’s not something I need to feel our relationship is validated or strong enough.

Did you consider the impact of having a

child on your career?

With our sport being a year-round sport, taking the time is hard. I also understand that there are a lot of people who aren’t in my [financial] position, who have to make a living to keep going. They aren’t their own bosses and can’t take time off. They might lose a job if they’re not able to ride. I understand it’s different for everyone.

I’ve always said that I am very will-ing to make a lot of sacrifices for my sport and to give it my all, but having kids was always going to be a priority for me. For me, it’s 100 percent worth it. I’m excited to have a child to watch grow and teach S

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COVER STORY

“I know it was contro-versial, and I knew I’d get criticism for showing at the Hampton Classic,” said Georgina Bloomberg of competing in her second trimester of pregnancy. “But that wasn’t going to stop me from showing. I was going to listen to my body and be careful and smart about it and continue with as much as I felt com-fortable doing.”


things to. I have so much respect for some of the

great riders in this sport, but I never want-ed to be that rider who had the Olympic gold medal but doesn’t have a family. I was very lucky that the timing was good. I [missed] indoors, and that’s it. It’s not as if I’d made a team and was going to have to miss a major competition. But obviously at the same time, it’s a sacrifice taking time away from the sport. It’s very difficult to take time off in this sport and stay at a high level.

But as much as I’ve always wanted to be a mother, I have a lot of respect for women who make the decision to not have children. Not everybody wants the same things in life. Just because you’re a woman doesn’t necessarily mean you want to be a mother.

How did you decide when to stop riding?

During the first trimester I actually felt worse than I do now. It was harder, physi-cally, for me to show in May than it was to show at the Hamptons. I had always said, “If I find out I’m pregnant, I’m going to stop riding.” And then once it hap-pened, I was like, “You know what, I feel good, and I’d like to keep going.”

But obviously, it’s not just a matter of how I feel; it’s a matter of being smart. I tried to make good choices. I feel very safe on Juvina; she can jump anything. She’s not a horse that, say, doesn’t jump the water or has a bad spook. Obviously anything can happen, but I feel very safe on her. I just took it week by week.

I knew for sure that the Hampton Classic would be my last show, no mat-ter what. That’s a show that’s close to my heart, so I wanted to do it. I still felt fit and healthy enough to do it, but I knew there was no going past that.

Was it tough to commit to taking the

time off?

I had taken a year off to recover from back

surgery [in the summer of 2011]. In a way that made me not want to take the time off because I had just gotten back into it. It took me more than a year to get comfortable jumping the grand prix again and build up a string of horses. I have some nice young horses and two nice grand prix horses now, so in that way, it wasn’t great timing.

Before I took the time off for my surgery, I was scared to do it. I was terrified; we get so into showing every week that you forget that there’s a whole world out there. You think that if you stop, you can’t come back.

But for me, it actually ended up being a great thing. I enjoyed the time off and was able to do lots of other things. To be able to step back from the sport and have that break made me—mentally and physically—so much stronger. I really knew this is what I wanted to do, and I really wanted to come back.

Compared to taking the year off for my surgery, this is so much less terrifying. Now I know that I can take some time off, and I know how to come back from it. I’ve proven to myself that if I can recover from that, I can come back from this. It’s not going to be a big deal.

The mainstream media definitely focused

on your pregnancy this year, and you got

some criticism from the public. Did that

bother you?

I know it was controversial, and I knew I’d get criticism for showing at the Hampton Classic. At that horse show in particular, we get so much attention from spectators who don’t know our sport well, so I knew I’d get some comments.

But that wasn’t going to stop me from showing. I was going to listen to my body and be careful and smart about it and continue with as much as I felt comfort-able doing.

How do you handle the mainstream media

attention?

Most of it I try to avoid. Especially when my father was first running for office, I read everything. That was a huge mistake, and I had to learn to ignore articles that I knew would be negative. As much as you say to yourself, “Don’t let it bother you or get to you,” it does, if you read it.

So I tried to get away from it. You toughen up, and your skin gets thicker, and you remember that no matter who you are, there are going to be positive and negative things written about you. I do try to remind myself that I’m never going to please everyone. I have to make my own decisions and do what I think is right.

One thing I respect so much in my father is that he doesn’t let criticism get to him. He always does what he thinks is right and what he believes in. It doesn’t

“I tried to make good choices,” Georgina Bloomberg explained her third-placed finish in the $250,000 FTI Consulting

Grand Prix at the Hampton Clas-sic. “I feel very safe on Juvina.”


matter if someone says he can’t or he shouldn’t. That’s something I try to bring into my everyday life. There are always going to be people who don’t like you and say negative things about you. You have to just be yourself and move on.

How are you going to protect your son from

the media attention?

I don’t know yet. I know I’ll try to shield him as much as possible, but it will also be something I’m going to want him to learn to handle.

It’s going to be something he’s going to face, so I’d rather he learn to handle it from an early age. I was thrown into it as a teenager, and that was kind of a disadvan-tage. If you grow up with it, you can learn by watching your parents handle it, and you can go off their example.

You can learn that it doesn’t matter what people think—you can do your own thing and do what you think is right. I think in every aspect of life, not just being in the public eye, that’s important to teach your child.

Has becoming a mother shifted your

priorities?

I would say a little bit, and I’m sure it will be even more so after he’s born. I’ll be putting him first, when before the horses always came first.

I think now, like with making the decision to stop riding, it’s something you want to do for your child. I think for most people it’s kind of a hard decision to stop riding for anything else, but when you’re having a child, it’s easy. You want to make sure your child is as healthy as possible. It’s just what you do.

What are you most excited about in this

process?

At this point, most of the big stuff is orga-nized. We’ve done the birthing class thing; we have all the stuff we need. We’ve done

COVER STORY

How did you end up with a

pet pig?

He came from Bergen County Animal Care and Control (N.J.). I went with a friend to volunteer after Hurricane Sandy, and he was there. The woman at the shelter said she’d had some inquiries from animal sanctuaries, but she said, “I have a feeling about this pig, that he’s more of a pet. He’s very special.”

She was paying out of her own pocket to support him, so I decided to take him home. I never wanted a pig or thought of having a pig, but I wanted to try to give him a home. I figured if he wanted to be a farm animal he could live in the barn with the horses, and if he wanted to be a pet, he could live in the house with the dogs.

He’s definitely a pet—he

lives in the house, and he’s cleaner and better behaved than some of my dogs. He’s been a great part of the family.

What’s Wilbur’s life like?

He has a routine. He goes to the barn every morning and hangs out there all day, supervising. The horses are all used to him. He visits each paddock and says hello to them.

In the evening, he comes home and has dinner and goes to bed. He has a dog bed of his own and his pillow with his name on it and a blanket. They’re so smart and clean. He has such a personality. I’m so glad I gave him a chance.

I took him to the vet, and they couldn’t really answer any of my questions as far as how old he is or what

breed he is. I’ve just been figuring things out as I go; I had to Google “what pigs eat” and figure out where to get his food.

The experience has been kind of learning as I go. I feel like it’s probably another way to get me ready for the baby—there are cer-tain things you can prepare for, but there are a lot of things you’re just going to have to learn as you go!

Who are Wilbur’s friends?

I have five rescue dogs who range in age from 3 to 14. Two of them are from Danny and Ron’s Rescue, who I adopted in January 2012. The rest are rescues from other places.

I’ve just always loved being around animals. A pretty good rule for me is that if someone doesn’t like my dogs, I’m probably not getting along with them. When I started getting into rescuing, it was something I became passionate about and wanted to do more of.

I would love to adopt more, but this is really the amount that I can take care of the way I think they deserve to be cared for. For me, five is my max of what I can handle with my lifestyle right now.

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Tell Us About Wilbur!Georgina not only has five adopted rescue dogs as part of her family, but there’s also a pig lined up at the food bowls for dinner. Wilbur joined the family in November 2012 and shipped to Florida with the horses this year.

Wilbur, Georgina Bloomberg’s pet pig, was a Hurricane Sandy rescue, joining her “family” of five adopted dogs.


everything we need to do, so it’s just look-ing forward to it and getting excited. At this point, I’m just getting excited for the actual day and getting to meet him.

Are your parents excited? (Georgina’s par-

ents, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Susan

Brown, have been divorced for 20 years.)

They’re both very excited. It’s the first grandchild, and we’re not used to having a boy in the family [Georgina has a sister, Emma], so it will be all new for us.

Where are you planning to give birth?

Florida would probably be more conve-nient, but New York is where I was born and where I’ve always wanted to have my kids. When I say that I was born in New York, it’s something I’m very proud of, and I want my kids to have that, too. It’s important to me, as a New Yorker.

Have you gotten any special gifts for the

baby yet?

I’m trying to get people to not give us gifts; I’m asking them to donate to a couple of different charities instead [New-borns In Need, newbornsinneed.org; Reach Out And Read, reachoutandread.org; Baby Buggy, babybuggy.org].

Just going baby shopping, it’s amazing to me how expensive having a child is, and he’s not even here yet. I can only imagine how hard it is for someone in a different situation than me.

That’s why I’m choosing to not have a baby shower, and I’d really like to not get gifts. I’d really love to see people donate to a worthy cause instead.

So have you been shopping yourself?

Baby clothes are addictive! I was never a girly girl—I was always a tomboy as a kid—so I’m having a lot of fun buying little boy clothes. I see pink, frilly things for girls, and I’m so glad I’m having a boy because I would not know what to do with all that!

When do you plan to start riding again?

I’ll start back slowly, hopefully back in the gym by January, and my goal is to be back in the saddle by February. If everything goes as planned, that’s what I’m aiming for. That said, I’m very aware that that might change!

I understand that I need to give myself leeway. I’ve proven I can come back from taking time off, so if it takes me a little bit longer than I planned, I know it’s not the end of the world.

What’s the plan for your horses?

I have some nice young horses that have done a lot this year. I kind of showed as much as I could this summer just because I knew I’d be taking the time off. So they’re due a break anyway, so in that way it works very well.

Juvina is a new mare for me, and she did a lot with her previous [riders, David Will of Germany and Stefanie Bistan of Austria], and then she did a lot with me this summer going straight into the grand prix with her, so some time off will be good for her.

My other grand prix horse is Lilli. She’s stepped up into some smaller grand prix. She’s been really consistent at the

1.50-meter level, and I’ll think she’ll be super at 1.60 meters, but she just needed a year to develop. She’s only 9, so I didn’t want to push her too quick this year.

I have three 8-year-olds, Washington Square, River Dance Semilly and Roky Dorcel. My first homebred, South Street, is 7. She’s out of my gray mare Mila, who I used to show in the grand prix, and by Languster. That’s been really fun, bring-ing her along. She was 5-year-old circuit champion at WEF and then took a little bit of time off in her 6-year-old year for an injury, and she’s just back from that.

River Dance Semilly will continue showing with Paul O’Shea because he needs the experience, but everyone else will have time off. They’ll go for hacks around here in Old Salem and then when we go to Florida. In December, they’ll start back into work and jumping a little with other riders.

How will your show schedule be affected?

I don’t know yet. As a first-time mom, I’m going to have to see how everything goes and what’s best for my son.

Ramiro has to be showing and going to horse shows for his business, so to stay together as a family we’ll have to travel a good bit. It’s not as if he has an office job, and we can stay at home. I think we’ll feel it out and find a balance.

I definitely don’t want my kid growing up just at the horse shows, but at the same time, I do want to be a family together, so we’ll just have to figure that balance out.

Do you have a pony for your son yet?

I actually rescued a mini at the ASPCA Adoption Day at the Hampton Classic two years ago, and she ended up being pregnant, so we ended up getting two!

I’ve always said I want the younger one to be my child’s first pony, so we’re going to break him and find someone small to get on him.

“ I have so much respect for some of the great riders in this sport, but I never wanted to be that rider who had the Olympic gold medal

but doesn’t have a family.”


PROFILE

Faith And Family Bring The Petersens Full Circle


From Africa to Florida, from jump crew to

grand prix winners, they’ve relied on religion

to guide them.

By JENNIFER B. CALDER

“God is in the details.” It’s an adage that’s reminded generations of the honor inher-ent in working hard and embracing even

the smallest of tasks with purpose. But for the Petersen family of Archer, Fla., it’s more than just a banal metaphor—it’s the defining edict of their lifestyle.

Jared Petersen, 22, exploded onto the show jumping scene last winter at the HITS Ocala circuit in Florida, where he essentially made his debut at the grand prix level by winning three contests on three consecutive Sundays. He did so

For the Petersen family, (from left) Joel, Jared, Anita and Derek, with their stallion, Cisco, the business of breeding, training and competing sport horses is more than just a job—it’s a tie that binds the family together and an avenue for sharing their faith.

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Faith And Family Bring The Petersens Full Circle


on the back of his very first horse, Titus 2:11 (Coleman—Putina, Cascavelle), a mischievous 9-year-old Holsteiner geld-ing he came to own—depending on your beliefs—by either serendipity or divine intervention.

Jared is trained by his father, Derek, 47, an accomplished equestrian, success-ful breeder and (somewhat surprisingly)

tarpon fisherman, on the family’s Legacy Farm. His mother Anita, 48, juggles the economics and logistics of running the farm while his brother Joel, 20, (who doesn’t even ride) works every Sunday in the barn, cleaning stalls and feeding and caring for their 35 horses.

It’s a busy, busy life—but one rooted in hard work, humility, much laughter

and strong faith. Because beyond the four corporeal beings that comprise the Petersen family, there is a fifth presence in it: God. They are not your typical horse show family, but the religious references they weave into their conversations are neither sanctimonious nor boastful, face-tious nor forced.

It’s with the simple weight of fact that

Left: Derek Petersen is more than just your average horse show dad—he knows the commitment required to develop a horse from scratch to the grand prix level, having done so himself for the first time a decade ago. Now he’s watching his son Jared do the same. “It’s very cool to see your own son going out there and doing what you have a passion for, and he loves it,” he said.

Right: Jared Petersen and Titus 2:11, the first horse he’s ever called his own, were both grand prix rookies when they entered their first class in 2012. But less than a year later they were making huge waves at the HITS Ocala winter circuit, winning the grand prix there on three con-secutive Sundays.

“THEY THOUGHT THAT WAS PRETTY FUNNY, AS I DIDN’T OWN A HORSE, I DIDN’T OWN BOOTS, I DIDN’T OWN NOTHING. I TOLD THEM I WOULD BE

IN IT ONE DAY, AND I GOT TO DO IT.” —Derek Petersen

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PROFILE


Derek humbly declares they “live a blessed life.”

Apartheid To The American InvitationalThe Petersens’ involvement in the horses began a world away from Florida’s pris-tine showgrounds on the rugged plains of South Africa.

Derek’s mother grew up there, and although Derek was born in Arizona, they went to visit family in Africa when he was young “and ended up staying 14 years,” he says. He spent his formative years in a

tiny village called Hilton near the city of Pietermaritzburg, the provincial capital. There was a major racetrack nearby, so Thoroughbreds were in plentiful supply, but Derek had to learn the ropes on a decidedly less flashy mount.

When they first arrived in Africa and were looking for a place to stay, a friend volunteered an apartment on a 5-acre ranch where there was an ancient stallion.

“He was probably 25 years old, and my brother and I would ride him every day, taking turns,” Derek recalls. “Then about a year later, when we finally got a place, and my dad went in the woods and

cleared out about an acre of land and put a fence around it, he found a newspaper ad for a horse with a saddle and a bridle for $100.

“It was that same horse!” he continues, convulsing in laughter. “It was a different owner who had him by that time, but the same old horse.”

With no trailer, Derek and his brother would ride Misty (the stallion had come with the name Whiskey, but their conser-vative parents thought that name warranted a change), as well as the off-the-track horses who came after him, everywhere—to school, horse shows more than a day’s


ride away, it didn’t matter. With a trusty mount, adventure never ceased.

But South Africa was far from an idyl-lic place to live in the 1980s. Tensions over the apartheid were growing stronger every day, and all white males were required to join the army after completing school.

“We didn’t want to support [the apartheid], so we all came back,” Derek says. “They were trying to stop people leaving—there was a big exodus at that time—so the South African government imposed a financial tax on anyone trying to leave so that it was crippling. It was hard for us to get out because we were American citizens, and they weren’t going to just let you take your money out. So we started anew with essentially just the shirts on our backs.”

Derek was 19. His father had gone ahead of the family to Florida to find a

home and source of income, and in the process he’d marched into a horse show office in Tampa and said, “Hey, who’s in charge? My kids are coming from Africa, and they ride and are looking for work.”

“And the man said, ‘OK, just have them meet me in Palm Beach on this date.’ It was Gene Mische,” says Derek.

Mische not only gave Derek a job on his Stadium Jumping Inc. ring crew, but also opened his eyes to a level of competi-tion he never knew existed. On the big-gest TV he’d ever seen in his life, Mische played Derek tapes of the American Invitational.

“I worked the Invitational that year and told the other guys on the jump crew I was going to do it one day,” Derek says. “They thought that was pretty funny, as I didn’t own a horse, I didn’t own boots, I didn’t own nothing. I told them I would

be in it one day, and I got to do it.”

The Horse That Started It AllBut it would take Derek several more years of persistence. Next he got a 9-to-5 job in Pinellas Park, Fla., and hated every minute of it. Beyond the drudgery of punching a time clock, the adjust-ment to living in such a heavily populated area, smack-dab between Tampa and St. Petersburg, was a shock after the relative solitude of South Africa. So when he saw an ad for a working student position at Jean Brinkman’s Valhalla Farm in Well-born, Fla., he jumped at the chance.

“They had a big place, around 1,000 acres, and I started designing and build-ing cross-country courses and helping to run events,” he says.

“I REMEMBER SHOWING UP AT THE WEST PALM BEACH SHOW WITH THIS RATTY, RUSTY TRAILER, AND WE’D WIN. WE WERE NOBODIES.” —Anita Petersen

PROFILE


He would spend four years there and meet his future wife, Anita, the sister of a co-worker, in the process. Until she met Derek, she had no interest or background with horses.

“I’m very family-orientated, always have been, so I tracked down where my brother was working and went to see him and met my husband!” she says with a laugh. “So I’ve learned a lot. And now it’s just normal; it’s all I know.”

Following their wedding, the pair moved to South Florida and started a small lesson and training business. They lived day-to-day, sale-by-sale, by picking up Thoroughbreds off the track, retraining and selling them. They lived in a barn and slept on a mattress on the floor.

“We were so poor!” Anita recalls. “I re-member mice and everything and praying, ‘Oh God, do something for us, please.’ ”

That something showed up in 2000 in the form of a hulking 17.1-hand, 6-year-old Holsteiner with the grimace-worthy moniker of Lemon Tree. At first glance, nothing about the equitation prospect screamed “special,” but Derek sensed something. He’d always believed he had the ability to ride at the grand prix level one day—he just needed the right horse.

“I was reading Exodus, about how God had promised Moses he was going to take him to the promised land, and there was this new horse,” Derek recalls. “I was told, ‘This is going to be the one that’s go-ing to take you where you want to go.’ So I called him Promised Land, and it turns out he worked out pretty good.”

“I remember showing up at the West Palm Beach show with this ratty, rusty trailer, and we’d win,” Anita recalls with a laugh. “We were nobodies, but it feels good because we worked hard for what we have. We haven’t had it handed to us, that’s for sure.”

Derek made it to the grand prix level and then some; aboard the gelding he

What’s In A Name?Derek Petersen’s success with Promised Land in 2004 helped his Legacy Farm business snow-ball, but the gelding’s name was also the beginning of a new family tradition. The Petersens have since given countless horses—both sales prospects and products of their own breeding program—biblically inspired monikers.

“I’m a deacon at our local church, and it’s hard to be on the road a lot and missing church and missing Sundays,” Derek admits. “As a deacon, you’re supposed to be there, but we figure if we can’t be in church, at least we can take church with us. We try to create some conversation by naming the horses John 3:16, Heaven, Prom-ised Land, Leviticus, etc.”

The naming tradition was in full swing by the time Derek’s son Jared got his first horse, Titus 2:11. Like his father, Jared wanted “to spark conversation and get people think-ing a bit about God,” he says.

“I was reading Titus and thought that sounded like a cool name, and then I read verse 2:11, which says, ‘For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all people,’” Jared recites from memory. “It doesn’t get any truer than that.”

That said, the Petersens aren’t zealots, and they know how to have a little fun. Derek bursts out laugh-ing when asked about a horse listed on his website named Al Pacino.

“I bought that horse in Germany and sold it to one of my customers,” he says. “Can’t do ’em all. Wrong Bible!”

Derek Petersen would showcase his fun-loving, easygoing style by asking Promised Land, the horse who opened the biggest doors of his career in 2004, to buck on cue during their victory gallops.

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would go on to be named the Rookie of the Year by the American Grandprix As-sociation in 2004, racking up points—as well as $36,750, more prize money than any rookie in AGA history—at some of the most prestigious competitions on the East Coast, including the fateful Bud-weiser American Invitational in Tampa.

In hindsight, the whole experience seems uncannily prophetic. In his accep-tance speech at the AGA awards dinner that year, Derek noted, “Jared is winning on pony hunters right now, so one day, who knows? Maybe this dream can hap-pen again.”

Déjà Vu All Over AgainThat’s exactly what seems to be playing out, nine years later.

Just as Derek had trusted, Promised Land opened many doors for the Petersen family, not only with his performances, but also with the money from his sale later in 2004. Derek bought seven other horses and more land with that profit, and the business continued to build.

In 2009, after turning 18 and spend-ing his life catch-riding whatever horses

were available at the farm, Jared went on his first horse shopping trip to Germany. Derek was hunting for a new star for himself, ultimately deciding on a Dutch Warmblood by Numero Uno named Via Dolorosa (Latin for “the way of grief,” the path down which Jesus is said to have walked carrying his cross), along with a few sale horses for the farm, while his son was looking to select his very first horse.

Jared decided on a stallion by Con-tender, but it failed the vet check.

“I told him he’d just have to get one of the sale horses that I’d bought to sell, and that was disappointing to him,” Derek recalls. “Titus was the sales horse. He got off the truck eyes wide open, nostrils flar-ing, jumping all over everybody, and Jared was like, ‘Great, I got the idiot.’ ”

Derek, feeling bad, offered the next day to swap him Via Dolorosa for Titus, but Jared decided to embrace the un-known.

“I never even sat on Titus in Ger-many,” Jared says. “I was sick the day we went to that barn, so when he got over here it was literally the first time I ever sat on him. But I really liked the way he went. I liked his canter, and he was really

PROFILE

If you can’t find Derek Petersen at a horse show, in the breeding shed or at church, chances are you’d better check the river. Among his many talents, he’s also an avid fisher of tarpon, a species that can grow upward of 6 feet in length.

“That’s another passion,” he says with a laugh. “To keep me sane from the horses, I go and catch horses in the river. Those things can weigh between 150-200 pounds!”FUN FACT

adjustable, just very green. It just felt right, though. I couldn’t ask for a better partner to ride with—he’s been great to me.”

Derek has been on Titus only a hand-ful of times in the years since.

“Jared has developed that horse him-self,” he says. “They just get along really well. He was really green and spooky and jumping off the walls when he arrived, but he’s just got that feeling about him, and it’s worked out.”

Anita says the duo are almost more like playmates than horse and rider. Jared will go into the pasture, and Titus will grab his hat and run.

“It’s like a dog; I’m not kidding,” she says. “It’s the funniest thing I’ve ever seen. That horse really loves him.”

“He is a goofball and acts like a child all the time,” Jared admits. “He’s a lot of fun. He chases me around the field, and if I stop, he stops and jumps in the air. If you’re in the stall with him, he has to grab your shirt or the pitchfork out of your hand.”

A Family AffairAnd when Titus decides to grab the pitch-fork, it usually is out of his own rider’s hand—not a groom’s. Being a Petersen means hard work and self-sufficiency; the family has a full-time hired staff of exactly one.

“We try to teach good work ethics,” Anita says. “Not everything is going to be given to you, and you have to work hard to get where you want to go.”

Therefore, Legacy Farm is not the kind of place where you show up and hop on your waiting horse. As Derek says, “[Students] need to know how to tack up, what bit they need, and how to do the maintenance. This is a big part of learning to ride and connecting with your horse.”

“Derek is more into fostering a bond between the horse and rider and strength-ening that connection than [helping]


someone just sit up there looking pretty on a horse,” Anita explains.

And show days are no exception. Jared doesn’t have a groom at competitions—his daily routine is to wake up, feed all the horses, clean their stalls, tack up horses and then show.

“It can be pretty difficult to get in all the barn chores and be in the ring,” he admits. “Shows can be rough. Being at the farm then feels like a vacation!”

Jared’s brother, Joel, a full-time music major at Sante Fe Community College in Gainesville, Fla., is also expected to contrib-ute to the family business despite not sharing a passion for riding. When Jared isn’t on a horse he can be found playing in a church band with his brother; the ‘shows’ the family attends are equally likely to be of a musical nature as they are equine.

“Drums are Joel’s life, so we’ve got music in common and love playing together,” Jared says.

Both boys live on the farm, and this ar-rangement seems to suit all of them. “I enjoy everything I can with my kids, because you never know,” Anita says. “They’re really good kids, and I am so proud of them, where their lives are and the decisions they make.”

Jordan Coyne, an honorary family mem-ber and longtime girlfriend of Jared’s, as well as an accomplished rider in her own right, rounds out the Petersen clan. She began riding with Derek when she was 16. She and Jared struck up a friendship, later began dat-ing and now often compete against one other in the grand prix.

Although Derek trains both riders (Coyne campaigns the Belgian Warmblood gelding Lazaro [Numero Uno—Peliana,

Equator]), he jokes, “I hope Jared wins, be-cause it’s more money for me.”

This fairytale family rapport sounds almost too good to be true, and the Petersens are the first to admit that, despite all their best efforts and unwavering faith in God, sometimes it is. Problems still arise, and they don’t have all the answers.

“I’m not saying my kids are perfect,” Anita says. “They still screw up. We’re all human.”

And her husband and eldest son, she adds, are not immune from the problems that plague all familial training relationships. Sometimes they grow tired of one another; sometimes they argue. They are, in short, just like every other family.

“It’s kind of a love/hate thing,” Jared says. “We’re both very competitive, and sometimes we get really mad and frustrated, but in the end I know he has my best interests in mind, even though sometimes we’ll be fighting tooth and nail. Sometimes we just take out our frus-trations on each other, but I couldn’t ask for anything better than to have my dad training me and including me in the business.

“And it’s usually me—it’s normally not him—at the end of the day going, ‘Ohhhh, I’m an idiot,’ ” Jared adds. “I still have a lot to learn.”

But even in the toughest times, the Pe-tersens agree it’s a rare honor and a privilege to work with the ones you love the most.

“It’s very cool to see your own son going out there and doing what you have a passion for, and he loves it,” Derek says. “He’s better than I am, for sure, and going to go further than I ever went. To get to do what I loved as a kid for a living and to watch my son go and do that... I wouldn’t trade it for nothing.”

“HE GOT OFF THE TRUCK EYES WIDE OPEN, NOSTRILS FLARING, JUMPING ALL OVER EVERYBODY, AND JARED WAS LIKE, ‘GREAT, I GOT THE IDIOT.’ ” —Derek Petersen

Be Fruitful And MultiplyAlong with training services, the Petersens’ Legacy Farm is also a small breeding operation that stands the Holsteiner stallion Cisco (Concerto II—Harada, Corrado).

Their stud doesn’t have a biblical name, Derek points out with a chuckle, because “he’s an approved Holsteiner from Germany, and over there it’s all about breeding and pedigree and names, so we didn’t want to mess with it.

“I showed him in the grand prix,” Derek adds. “We breed him to several mares every year, and he just throws the same thing every time, you can count on it. It’s unbelievable. They all have the same brain, same eye and same look. You can breed it to 15 different mares, and he’ll throw the same, which is rare for a stallion.”

Last year, they had a crop of six babies, which they start themselves—a task Derek finds especially enjoyable, since, he brags, Cisco babies are “born broke.” Within a week, he teaches a 2-year-old to walk, trot, canter, swap leads and hop over tiny jumps.

“I always keep the 2-year-olds in the field next to the jump ring where we ride every day, and I swear, they just watch and learn,” he says. “You get on them, and they’re like, ‘Oh, OK, I know this stuff.’ ”

PHOTO FEATURE

FORGET POLO— PATO IS ARGENTINA’S NATIONAL SPORT.


THE REAL SPORT OF THE PAMPAS

THE REAL SPORT OF THE PAMPASBy MOLLIE BAILEY

Photos By EMMANUEL ORTIZ


Argentina may be known

worldwide for polo, but it’s the

sport of pato that’s woven

deep into the culture of the countryside.


PHOTO FEATURE

RGENTINEAN EQUESTRIANS have a reputation for trouncing the rest of the world on the polo field, but at many ranches across the South American countryside, a homegrown team sport is king.

The first written accounts of pato trace back to 1610, when riders from neighboring ranches would meet at the border between the farms. A rather unlucky duck (“pato” in Span-

ish) tucked into a basket would be dropped between the two groups of horsemen, who would fight to carry the duck back to their ranch. The game earned a reputation for being dangerous, with squabbles between players turning violent and others trampled underfoot.

A Above: The

“pato” that players

use now is similar to the

ball used in horseball.


PHOTO FEATURE

Players score goals for their team by tossing the pato into huge nets suspended about 8 feet off the ground.


Clockwise from top left: Ortiz had to match pace with the horses he photographed because the Rolleiflex shoots too slowly—1/500 second—to capture clear images from a standstill. Like in polo, pato players generally use several horses throughout one match. Unlike most sport horses, pato mounts often earn their keep as ranch horses. Riders use sheepskin-covered saddles with a

hook up front, which they grab with their left hand while dipping down to grab the pato.


PHOTO FEATURE


Both photos: Pato players and their families care

for their mounts themselves, often in very humble stables.


PHOTO FEATURE

The government outlawed pato at various points throughout the 19th century, and the church chimed in as well, excommunicating players. But the game gradually became more civilized and moved to a designated field, and by the late 1930s, pato rules were codified.

There are plenty of similarities between pato and polo, as both have teams of four face off to score goals against one another and several 8-min-ute periods in a game. But while polo players hit the ball with a mallet, pato players play with a “pato” (a soccer ball with leather handles) that they toss into goals resembling giant butterfly nets. The game has more similarities to horseball than polo, and in fact shares a national governing body with that sport.

These days, pato enthusiasts obsess over breed-ing fast, handy horses for the sport, largely crio-llos, Quarter Horses and Thoroughbreds, many of which also help with livestock on the farm as well. While polo has a reputation as an elite sport, pato is proud of its modest roots. Families tend to care for the horses themselves, rather than grooms, and players regularly pool money to pay for the required on-site ambulance.

Juan Perón declared pato the country’s national sport in 1953, much to the consternation of soccer fans, who introduced a bill into Congress in 2010 in an attempt to thwart that designation. While most Argentines know vaguely what pato entails, it remains a largely insulated, grassroots affair, despite a well-publicized annual championship in Decem-ber in Buenos Aires.

French-based photojournalist Emmanuel Or-tiz grew up riding horses in Argentina but largely stopped riding when he moved across the Atlantic

After the match riders con-gratulate one another on good sport.


Below: To capture this image of the pato player with a broken thumb performing a “levantado,” Ortiz was at full gallop. “I’m about three meters behind him, leaning off the same as him, about 50 centimeters from the ground,” he said.


PHOTO FEATURE

to Normandy. He became interested in pato as an adult and was surprised to see how few images of the game existed, so in 2005, at the invitation of the national fed-eration, he went back to start documenting. Though he hadn’t ridden seriously in a long time, he was thrilled to return to his rough and ready roots in the tack.

“In Argentina, we don’t say you learn to ride horses, we say you learn to fall off horses,” said Ortiz. “When I was 5 years old they put me on an old horse and gave it a slap and said, ‘You bring him back home!’ I ended up in the middle of a bunch of sheep, cooled down the horse and brought him back home. I was so proud!”

Ortiz captured many of these black and white ac-tion images of practice and an official match at Barran-cas del Salado on horseback, with his Rolleiflex camera tied to one hand. Following the example of pato players, who hook a foot around the pommel of the saddle and lean way over the side to pick up the pato, Ortiz found himself dipping daringly close to the ground to get the appropriate perspective.

Clockwise from top left: Two veterans of the

sport examine a horse. For many residents in rural Argentina, pato is as much a way of life as drinking mate tea, a

South American staple. In previous centuries

pato was known as an extremely violent game, but in the modern sport a full squad of referees,

some mounted and some on foot, watch carefully to be sure the rules are

followed. Pato match-es at official clubs

culminate in the national championship every year

in December.


FEATURE

How Horsemen Do Their

HolidaysBy COREE REUTER


Ahh, the holidays. For some equestrian professionals, they’re a rare excuse to book a flight, get as far away from horses as possible, and gain a fresh perspective on life. For others, ’tis the season to give the staff time off and take on the work themselves, or to decorate the barn and let the kids spoil the ponies. And for a handful, it’s simply business as usual, just like any other time of year. >> We caught up with some horsey families across the country to ask about their favorite memories, current traditions and future plans for the holiday season.

4Pan American Games dressage team gold and individual silver medalist Lauren Sammis and her partner, Melanie Summers, celebrate the holidays in a unique way with their 5-year-old twins, Aidan and Ryan.

“Melanie is Jewish, and I’m not, so we have all holidays in our house,” says Lauren. “We have the Christmas tree on one side and the menorah on the other side. The Hanukkah Moose comes with gifts. It’s all about being with family and being together.”

Lauren and her family stay in South Orange, N.J., for the holidays, as “you need a chimney for Santa to come,” but they don’t usually incorporate the horses into their holiday celebrations, since “we don’t know their religion. They haven’t told us!”

The family usually packs up and heads to Florida for the season right after Christmas, so Lauren says they get their Christmas tree immediately after Thanksgiving in order to enjoy it as much as possible.

She jokes that Melanie is usually more excited about getting a tree than she is, since she grew up celebrat-ing only the Jewish holidays.

“We’ve always had ornaments that have been passed down from our family,” says Lauren. “It’s fun to see [the twins] take out the ornaments and remember them from the year before. At this age, it’s far less about religion and far more about the vehicle to get presents! They’re 5, so it’s all about wrapping paper and ripping open boxes.”

Lauren says the family also observes a pajama rule—everyone gets to stay in their comfy bedclothes until after breakfast—and that her favorite part about the Jewish holidays is the food.

“I’ve never eaten so much food in my life than during the Jewish holidays,” she says with a laugh. “The whole thing about the Jewish grandmother tell-ing you to eat is so true! I’ve made myself sick over eating.” >>

Two Religions, Two Celebrations

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DIY All The Way“We’re a very horsey family,” admits Wendy Kingsley, a former upper-level eventer who’s now married to steeple-chase and flat race trainer Arch Kings-ley. They keep anywhere from 10 to 20 horses at any given time at their farm in Camden, S.C., and just as many at the nearby track, the Springdale Race Course, so their holidays incorporate their horses as much as possible.

“We try to give all the staff off on those days,” says Wendy. “Our daughter [Taylor, who’s 8] has never known anything different. Arch will usually get up early on Christmas and go to the track. Then we’ll get up, and I’ll let Taylor open something before we go to the farm. We’ll do

carrots for all the horses and then go to the track to help Arch. When we come back, it’s stockings and blueberry pancakes and presents, then we’ll start dinner before we head to feed in the evening.”

The Kingsleys have staff or family over for Christmas dinner if they’re around, but Arch’s family is from Virginia, and Wendy’s is in New England, so they don’t spend those holidays with extended family because of the horses. But the schedule suits them well.

“It’s fun for Taylor; she’s a real horse person,” Wendy says. “She doesn’t just ride, but she loves the horses. She loves the barn and the track and the hot walking. She loves to hold the horses. She wants to learn how to do every aspect of the horse industry, not just ride. She’s always excited to go to the barn.

“She loves making a big fuss over the horses at Christmas and being their Santa Claus,” she continues. “The horses are such a part of her life that it’s all engrained and all-encompass-ing in what she is and what she does. We try to show her as much of the equine industry as we can. That’s what’s so unique about our business.” >>

For show jumping trainers Katie and Henri Prudent, who split their time between Middleburg, Va., and Ros-iéres aux Salines, France, the holidays are a very special part of their lives.

“I always think it’s important for us to be together,” says Katie. “But since my husband is French, it’s be-come quite a project over the years.”

One of the projects Katie is most proud of, however, is introducing the tradition of Thanksgiving to their French family.

“We told them the whole his-tory of the pilgrims coming over and hunting the wild turkey and the feast to give thanks after the harvest,” says Katie. “The problem was they don’t have big turkeys in France. I took my grandmamma, and we went to Ma-dame Wolfe [the local poultry seller], and I asked her for the biggest tur-key she had. She took out this sickly

looking chicken. So what I realized is that I had to get a refrigerator bag and bring my own turkey to France every year! The French couldn’t believe a turkey could weigh 20 pounds. They couldn’t believe it!

“We come from a family of very good cooks,” continues Katie. “I’m sort of a meat-and-potatoes girl; my husband is way better than I am. So Thanksgiving is my meal! I could do the turkey and stuffing. That’s the one meal out of the year that I direct ev-erything. It’s so fun, and so American. They loved everything about it!”

The Prudents always take Thanks-giving and Christmas off from show-ing, regardless of where they happen to be spending the holidays.

“The indoor shows in Europe are Paris, Geneva and Olympia, and even when I was showing, I would never go to Olympia, and I don’t let my students go, because it’s so important to be with family,” Katie says. “We all love to cook and celebrate, so it’s so

important to be together.”

This year, Katie, Henri and their son, Adam, plan to spend Thanksgiv-ing and Christmas in France, since their grandmamma passed away.

“We do horses 24/7, so those two holidays are the two times a year I take a week off,” she says. “It’s really important for all of us to be together. Life is great, but family is greater. And family with horses? What could be better?” >>

Bringing America To France

After marrying Henri Prudent, Katie Prudent (second from left) was determined to share the tradition of Thanksgiving with her new French family, but finding what Americans consider a normal-sized turkey in France proved more troublesome that she expected. The first time she brought one herself across the Atlantic, the entire family gathered around to marvel at the bird and pose for a photo with it.

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“It’s fun for Taylor; she’s a real horse person,” says Wendy Kingsley of her 8-year-old daughter, pictured with dad Arch, getting to help with barn chores on Christmas morning, when the family always gives their staff the day off. “She loves making a big fuss over the horses at Christmas and being their Santa Claus.”


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A Holiday Wonderland In Texas >>

Tim and Colleen McQuay have more than 200 reining and hunter horses at their McQuay Stables in Tioga, Texas, so during the holidays, they don’t venture far from home.

“Our tradition is to be a gathering place for family and extended family and everyone that doesn’t have family or doesn’t go home for holidays,” says Colleen. “Often we have people from Europe living with us—they come to work and ride with us, full time, some as interns, some on student visas—so we try to mix in their holiday traditions, as well. One year, we had a Thanksgiv-ing holiday, and we said grace in five or six different languages.”

Colleen follows the example her mother set, cooking for everyone in the neighborhood, and now the McQuays do lots of meals, lots of baking, and a series of gift-opening sessions based on who is around.

“The girls in the office decorate the office and the barns, and our lead-ing horses get their special ribbons or holly,” Colleen says. “They’re definitely on the extra-treat calendar during that time.”

The McQuays’ farm also includes several homes for members of their staff, and the McQuays’ own grandchildren live there, as well, so it’s still all about the fantasy of Christmas.

“All the barns each have their own little themes. The staff really takes hold of the decorating,” says Colleen. “We come home from the reining futurities and go straight to the [U.S. Hunter Jumper Associa-tion] convention. By the time I get back, I’m very lucky because my house and farm are decorated. My staff and my friends get quite involved in it.

“We have trees everywhere, and holly and lights. Sometimes we even get a little bit of snow,” she con-tinued. “But coming from Minnesota and spending a lot of years in snow, I’m OK with not having a lot of it. It’s OK not having to shovel on Christmas!” >>

New Year’s And St. Pat’s, TooFor the members of the Palm Beach Hounds (Fla.), the holidays are all just an added impetus to celebrate even more than they do during the rest of the season.

“We always have a Boxing Day hunt, and in the tradition of hunting, we ‘box’ our thanks and gratitude for our hunts-man and present him with a gift after that morning’s hunt,” explains whipper-in Elizabeth Howard. “Our Opening Meet

is held around New Year’s, and our hunt always celebrates with a big bang! Our master, Robert Pelio, hosts a huge gala at his home after the meet, and all friends, guests and members of the hunt are invited to eat, drink and be merry.”

The hunt also hosts a St. Patrick’s Day ride, as their huntsman, Noel Ryan, is Irish.

“We celebrate in style with Guinness, corned beef and cabbage, cabbage rolls, and Irish stew, all served piping hot in the hunt field,” she says. >>

Winter weather may be rare at Tim and Colleen McQuay’s hunter and reining horse farm in Tioga, Texas, but they and their staff still get into the spirit every year, decorating each barn on the property with a different theme. 4

4“I had to get a refrigerator bag and bring

my own turkey to France every year! The French couldn’t believe a turkey could weigh

20 pounds.” —Katie Prudent


Adopting American TraditionsSince moving to the States in 2007, Australian Boyd Martin and wife Silva of Germany have jumped right into American holiday traditions. They celebrate Thanksgiving every year by heading out with Mr. Stewart’s Cheshire Foxhounds from Union-ville, Pa., followed by a marathon meal at the home of owners and friends Ron and Densey Juvonen.

“I think half of Philadelphia comes out to see us take off,” says Boyd of the hunt. “It’s very much an amazing atmosphere. It feels like a big competition. The riders are anxious, and the hounds know it’s a special day. The whole com-munity comes out, and the high-ranking members of the hunt put on top hat and tails. We usually have a huge band of followers.”

Silva borrows a hunt horse for the occasion, but Boyd usu-

ally tacks up a former eventing partner, like Remington XXV or Minotaure du Passoir.

“It’s a very surreal experience,” says Boyd. “You find yourself out in the hills of the hunt country, and before you know it you’re stand-ing next to people like Dr. Dean Richardson [the veterinarian who earned worldwide recognition for treating Barbaro at New Bolton Center] on one side and [steeple-chase greats] Michael Dickinson or Paddy Neilson on the other, along with many other upstanding members of the community.”

During Christmastime, the Martins usually alternate years be-tween Australia and Germany for catch-up time with their families.

“We’re both immigrants, so we have lots of friends in America, but not much family,” says Boyd. “Usually on those trips we end up looking at horses that we may want to bring over. We’re singing Christmas carols, drinking and checking out the stock!” >>

No More Bareback On Christmas“If there’s a horse show, we go to a horse show,” says Maggie Jayne, laughing, of the Jayne family’s holiday tradi-tions. “[But] we’ve gone on vacation for Thanksgiving the past couple of years, and it’s shocking because we all don’t ride for a week! It’s always a great time.”

Maggie, 28, and her siblings Char-lie, 27, and Haylie, 25, are sixth genera-tion horsemen, and together with their parents, Alex and Linda, they usually spend Christmastime in Florida, since there’s sure to be a show nearby.

“We always work in the barn on Christmas since we give all the staff the day off,” Maggie says. “So we end up doing all the feeding and turning the horses out, so it’s fun. We’ve had some of our guys for 10 years, so they’re like family to us. We have two barns, one in Elgin, Ill., and one in Florida. In Elgin, we always have a meal together every day, and we’ll celebrate birthdays and things—any time there’s an excuse to get cake or ice cream, we do it!”

The Jaynes always get a Christmas tree in Florida, and they have lots of handmade ornaments. They mostly try to relax during the holidays after show-ing all year long, though Maggie has had a string of holiday bad luck, includ-ing a broken femur on July 4 when she was 15.

“And one Christmas we were hand-walking the horses, and I thought I would ride bareback, so Charlie gave me a leg up and threw me all the way over, and I broke my ankle,” she says with a laugh. “I was already a professional—19! We no longer ride bareback on Christ-mas.” >>

Since moving to Amer-ica in 2007, Boyd and Silva Martin have started celebrating Thanksgiving mornings with Mr. Stewart’s Cheshire Foxhounds in Unionville, Pa. “I think half of Philadelphia comes out to see us take off,” said Boyd. And that even includes the occasional spectator in holiday garb.

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Tacos For ChristmasFor four-star eventer Colleen Rutledge and her husband, Brian, the holidays mean lots of food.

“On Thanksgiving, we split between my family and Colleen’s,” says Brian. “We actually eat two Thanksgiving dinners. It’s pretty bad! Col-leen doesn’t have any family in the area except for her parents and sister. So we go to my

family in the afternoon and then go to her parents’ in the evening.”

But in all fairness, Col-leen, her mother Sallie, and her 11-year-old daughter Cassie have usually worked up a serious appetite on their traditional Thanksgiving morning foxhunt with Howard County-Iron Bridge Hounds, which cast right next door to

their farm.“Christmas is a big family

event,” says Brian. “We get up, and the kids [in addition to Cassie, there’s Matt, 19, and Ciana, 6] open the presents. Colleen and I start a fire, and Colleen makes a big Christ-mas breakfast, and then we go to her parents’ house, and then we go to my family’s. Her family’s Christmas dinner tradi-

tion is tacos!”The Rutledges always

decorate their home and barn in Mt. Airy, Md., and they spoil their horses a little extra on Christmas day.

“There’s a big star up there on top of the barn,” says Brian. “I decorate our whole house. I about fall off the ladder every year trying to decorate.” >>

Holidays Of YoreGrowing up in Miami meant Margie Engle, who would go on to become an Olympic show jumper, never saw snow during the holidays—in fact, she says she never saw real snow until she was in her 20s. But the lack of winter weather never stopped anyone from celebrating.

“When we were kids, we used to decorate the horses’ stalls, like people do their houses,” she says. “[Now] the kids [at our barn] sometimes will decorate the stalls and things. A lot of the clients will bring spe-cial things out.

“For a long time, we would take the ponies out in the cart, and we would go caroling during Christmas-time,” Margie continues. “It was just so much fun. We had this big cart, and we’d all sit in the back and sing. The place I started with the horses, we’d have a big Thanksgiving lunch and dinner, and we used to eat out at the picnic tables. We’d make cakes for the horses, with apples and carrots and molasses. We put stock-ings up by the horses’ stalls and filled them with treats—carrots and apples and such. That was always a lot of fun.”

These days Margie and her husband, Steve, both celebrate Hanukkah with her family in Florida and Christmas with his in California.

“It’s more just trying to be around family this time of year,” says Margie. “My parents still live in the same house I grew up in as a kid. It’s always been about be-ing with family and friends.” >>

Skiing In Sun RiverFor Rich Fellers and his family (wife Shelley and their two teenagers, Chris and Savannah), the holidays are an all-too-rare escape from the barn. They head to their vacation home in Sun River, Ore.

“We’re out in the woods, in the wilderness,” says Rich. “Its always snowing—lots of snow—and it’s about 30 minutes from Mount Bachelor. We spend Christmas through New Year’s there every year.”

Rich’s horses stay in work during that time, but they do get Thanksgiving and Christmas day off.

Family has always been a guiding principle of Rich’s business, Whip N’ Spur Stables, in Wilsonville, Ore. He and Shelley left their thriving business in Southern California behind in the late 1980s, and Rich also turned down a once-in-a-lifetime offer to work for George Morris at his Hunterdon, choosing instead to prioritize raising their children—and devoting as much time to their activities as to their own riding careers—in Oregon.

That’s meant frequent camping, fishing and ski trips over the years, with nary a horse in sight. Family comes first.

“During Thanksgiving we always do some kind of family get together,” Rich says. “Some-times we head over to other family member’s homes, or they come here.” >>


4“We’re out in the woods, in the wilderness.” —Rich Fellers

Let Them See SnowJumper riders Jimmy and Danielle Torano don’t show during the month of December—they choose to spend time with family instead. This year, they plan on heading to New York City for the holidays.

“[Our kids] Natalia and Jimmy are 6 and 3, now,” says Jimmy. “We took Natalia to New York a few years ago to see the snow, but Jimmy hasn’t seen it yet. We just like to go and see the city and the lights, and we just think that time of year is so nice for them. We like that time of the year in the city.”

In their younger years, the Toranos, who are based in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. and Mohrsville, Pa., usually spent Thanksgiving competing. But in recent years, they’ve been happy to adapt their traditions.

“The horses are still in work, but we go so hard all year, so we really let everyone get some down time. This is what we do all the time—we show, we go all over the country,” says Jimmy.

“So as I get older, with my own kids and family, the holidays are important

for us for family time. I’m from Miami, so we go down there and spend it with my family.”

Homemade With LoveWhen California eventer Jen-nifer McFall isn’t out with the horses, she’s usually in the kitchen, and around the holidays she’s much more likely to be found in the latter.

“I’m a bit of a Suzy Home-maker in my free time,” she says, laughing. “I do a lot of canning and homemade goods that I give away at Christmas. I like to grow things myself and can them. One year I decided to grow loofahs and give those away. I always do my berry jams, and [my husband] Earl and [daughter] Taylor go out and harvest for me, and they always complain that I make them pick blackberries in 105 degrees!”

The McFalls normally spend Thanksgiving with Earl’s family in Florida, and they love their newfound tradition of hitting the beach in November. During Christmastime, however, they generally stay home at their Dragonfire Farm in Wilton, Ca-

lif., just outside of Sacramento.“We give our staff time off

and take care of the horses,” Jennifer says. “We like to do sewing projects with Earl’s mom during Christmas. We just stick to family stuff. We also bake for our horses.”

So, what’s Jennifer’s secret horse treat recipe?

“Basically equal parts grain, flour, oats and molasses with a mint on top,” she said. “Bake at 200 degrees for about an hour until they’re hard.”

Taylor, however, probably won’t be getting a pony for Christmas any time soon. The 10-year-old rider has developed quite a following on YouTube since she was just a wee little girl hopping over crossrails.

“If Taylor got a Christ-mas pony, I don’t know what we’d do,” Jennifer says with a laugh. “She already has about five! She has a pony she’s out-grown, a pony she rides now, and a pony we bred for her who’s 2.” >>

Just Another Day “We’re not really big holiday, tradition people,” says the queen of hunter derbies, Kelley Farmer. “It’s kind of just another day. We’re in Kentucky through November, and then we head to Florida by the time the holidays roll around.”

Kelley’s mother, Bibby Farmer Hill, lives in Florida, so Kelley and partner Larry Glefke prioritize spending time with her during the holidays.

“It just depends on what’s going on with our horses and where they’re going,” she says. “Sometimes we get lucky and get everyone together, but we’re horse show people, so we can’t usually figure that out. It’s horses; it never stops.” >>

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“He’d clean up [Mrs. Reagan’s horse], No Strings, and tack him up, then he’d groom his horse and tack it, then he’d ring a bell, and Mrs. Reagan would come up to ride,” recalled Secret Service agent Barbara Riggs.

PROFILE


A Secret Service agent recalls a meaningful part of President Ronald

Reagan’s life that most Americans rarely saw—Reagan the horseman.

By BETH RASIN

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forPassionHorses

A President


HEN PRESIDENT RONALD

REAGAN left his California ranch in 1981 to take up residence in the White House, he refused to leave behind one important thing—his love of horses. Instead, from the moment America’s 40th president arrived in the capital, he insisted on remaining connected with the animals he’d enjoyed his entire life.

“This was his time to unwind,” recalled Barbara Riggs, a Secret Service agent and lifelong horsewoman who was assigned to his riding detail as part of the Presidential Pro-tection Division. Three times per week for more than five years, Riggs was at Reagan’s side as he rode quietly out of the spotlight.

Before becoming president, Reagan had been a member of the West Hills Hunt (Calif.), and his resignation letter to the club now rests in the Museum of Hounds and Hunt-ing in Leesburg, Va. And despite his cinematic reputation in Westerns, Reagan always rode English, in breeches and boots. Riggs said she understood that he’d done all his own rid-ing scenes during his film career, and the president also bred horses on a ranch in Malibu, Calif.

After his move to Washington, the president carved out Wednesday mornings for his favorite hobby. Like clock-work, he would board a helicopter for a quick skip across the Potomac River to the Quantico Marine Corps Base southwest of the city to ride the horses there. And on weekends, Reagan often rode U.S. Park Police horses in the Catoctin Mountains at Camp David (Md.), northwest of the city. He even also oc- P

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PROFILE


casionally rode in Rock Creek Park, in the heart of the city. “He’d go out the back and escape the press and get on

a horse,” said Riggs, who lives in Middleburg, Va. “There would be people hiking or in the creek, and the reaction of people was always interesting when they realized the president was there.”

He similarly escaped at Camp David, riding out the back gate into the mountains of Catoctin State Park.

“No one ever knew he was there,” said Riggs.Whenever he returned to his Rancho Del Cielo, a

700-acre ranch on a ridge overlooking the Pacific Ocean and Santa Ynez Valley, north of Santa Barbara, Calif., President Reagan rode daily. He usually rode El Alamein, a gray Anglo-Arabian given to him by former President Jose Lopez Portillo of Mexico.

Riggs said that El Alamein, named after the decisive World

War II battle in North Africa, wasn’t the easiest or quietest ride. In fact, after Reagan’s cancer surgery, his wife Nancy (knowing he wouldn’t give up riding completely) insisted he ride another horse for a while—so Secret Service agents located a national pleasure champion from a nearby ranch, whose owners loaned President Reagan their valuable mount.

The Secret Service initially rented horses from a dude ranch near Rancho Del Cielo in order to accompany President Reagan on his rides. But once it became evident

that they’d be spending a lot of time in the saddle in the future, they bought their own horses and kept them at the Alamo Pintado Veterinary Clinic in the Santa Ynez Valley when Reagan wasn’t in California.

Dr. Doug Herthel and his wife, Sue, owners of the clinic, were also avid endurance riders, who fre-quently competed in the Tevis Cup.

Left: President Reagan treating his horse El Alamein, who was a gift from Mexican President Jose Lopez Portillo, to a carrot after a trail ride at his California ranch in 1987.

Right: When he was home in Califor-nia, President Reagan never missed his daily rides aboard El Alamein, accom-panied by Secret Service agent Barbara Riggs on Dunnie and his two dogs, Victory (front) and Freebo.

“In D.C. everything is so formal, but when you were riding with him, you were

right alongside him.” —Barbara Riggs


To return the horses to Reagan’s ranch when he arrived, they would run the horses up the mountain on foot as part of their training for the legendary 100-mile ride.

He’d Do It HimselfThe logistics of President Reagan’s rides and his security might have been pre-arranged, but he didn’t just show up at the barn expecting his horses to be ready for him—he enjoyed grooming and tacking his own horse and the first lady’s mount. Reagan’s penchant for storytelling often re-sulted in the grooming sessions lasting more than an hour.

“He’d clean up [Mrs. Reagan’s horse], No Strings, and tack him up, then he’d groom his horse and tack it, then he’d ring a bell, and Mrs. Reagan would come up to ride,” said Riggs.

He generally rode for 60 to 90 minutes around the fire trails on the ranch, requiring his Secret Service agents to develop a grid so that he could always be found in an emergency.

“We went in with a topographical mapping source and carved out a number in a rock at every [grid] intersection,”

said Riggs. “We built a map with a grid and named all the roads.”

The ride usually included the president, his wife and three Secret Service agents—one with the president, one with the first lady, and one to communicate their location on the ranch.

“He referred to the Secret Service as his cavalry,” said Riggs. “so he wore a baseball hat that said, ‘Rancho Del Cielo Cavalry Commander.’ ”

After his rides, President Reagan, who’d been a mem-ber of the actual U.S. Cavalry, first dismounted with an “Italian military dismount”—swinging his right leg over the front of the saddle and landing standing at atten-tion. He would then clean up his horses. “No one did any grooming for him,” said Riggs.

While their rides were strictly monitored by the Secret Service, Riggs recalled that they were also much more relaxed than any other interaction with the president.

“In D.C. everything is so formal, but when you were riding with him, you were right alongside him,” she said. “On a horse, the relationship was different. He treated you P

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Above left: While riding was usually a relaxing, private escape for President Reagan, he shared a passion for horses with many other heads of state, and his frequent equestrian outings with foreign dignitaries, such as this one with Queen Elizabeth at Windsor Castle in 1982, were always well publicized.

Above: President Reagan enjoyed telling stories and sharing his love of horses with fellow equestrians, such as Secret Service agent Barbara Riggs.

Above right: Geminisch was gift to President Reagan from Brazilian president João Baptista de Oliveira Figueiredo, and the classy Hanoverian became a favorite mount of the President Reagan during his time in office.


more as a companion rider and engaged in storytelling.”

International RidesPresident Reagan frequently intertwined his love of horses with his statesmanship. He rode with Queen Elizabeth at Windsor Castle and with President Figueiredo of Brazil, an accomplished equestrian.

While riding in Brazil in 1982, President Figueiredo took Reagan to a show jumping field, handily set out over the jumps, and then asked President Reagan if he wanted a turn.

“[Reagan] said it had been a long time since he’d jumped, and he was on a strange horse; he very gracefully got out of an awkward situation,” recalled Riggs.

The Brazilians donated the horse Reagan rode that day, a powerful Hanoverian named Geminisch, to the U.S. Park Police, and it became a great favorite of the president’s. “[Reagan] rode that horse

When Riggs had a riding accident while hunting

on one of her own horses, Reagan jokingly sent her a beginner’s book on the basic principles of riding.

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Above left: The president and first lady sharing a moment after a ride at Camp David in 1984.

PROFILE

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Above: First Lady Nancy Reagan, here aboard Win-kler, often accom-panied President Reagan on his rides around their Califor-nia ranch.

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until he developed a cyst in his shoulder and had to be retired,” Riggs said.

And equine gifts for the president were not as out of the ordinary as one might think. The Spanish Riding School also brought a horse to the south grounds of the White House, performed a presentation, then presented the horse to President Reagan.

In 1985, Riggs flew to Switzerland in advance of President Reagan on the eve of his first meeting with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in order to set up a riding opportunity for him. She asked the U.S. Mission

PROFILE


in Geneva to recommend a stable, and they referred her to a family of international show jumpers.

“They took us out for a beautiful ride cross-country, and the horses were wonderful,” said Riggs. “Unfortunately, the temperature dropped to subzero temperatures during the summit, and the president was never able to go ride.”

President Reagan often extended hospitalities to other heads of state, inviting them to ride his own horses when they visited the United States. King Hassan II of Morocco, along with Mexico’s president, Jose Lopez Portillo, rode with Reagan at Camp David. He also invited Queen Elizabeth to his ranch in California to ride.

President Reagan always rode with an ornate breastplate with a stylized “RR” monogram, given to him by King Hassan II. That breastplate is now on display, along with his saddle and boots, in the Ronald Reagan Presiden-tial Library in Simi Valley, Calif.

Down To EarthYears of riding together created a bond between President Reagan and the Secret Service agents who shared his pas-sion. Riggs recalled that once, while in Washington, Rea-gan’s secretary called her to see if she was on duty because the president wanted to talk to her.

“I thought, ‘No, the president doesn’t really want to see me,’ but half an hour later, the secretary called back and said again that he wanted to see me in the Oval Office,” said Riggs.

When she arrived in Reagan’s office, the president described a problem he’d had with his horse over the week-end, while Riggs was off duty. “His horse had been shak-ing his head badly, and we spent 45 minutes talking about working out that problem with his horse,” she recalled.

President Reagan also enjoyed joking with his fellow equestrians. When Riggs had a riding accident while hunt-ing on one of her own horses, which prevented her from

traveling with the detail on a trip to Japan and Korea, he jokingly sent her a beginner’s book on the basic principles of riding.

The press often praised President Reagan’s eternal opti-mism, and Riggs recalled one of his favorite stories on that topic: “It was about two boys, one an incurable pessimist and the other an equally incurable optimist, who are taken by their parents to a psychologist for treatment. The pes-simist is placed in a room full of shiny new toys, but when

he’s visited after an hour, he’s cry-ing, not playing with any of them out of fear that they may break. The optimistic boy is placed in a room full of horse manure, and when his parents come in he is cheerfully shoveling away, saying, ‘I know there has to be a pony in here somewhere.’ ”

Even after Riggs left the presidential detail in 1986, Presi-dent Reagan occasionally sent her

notes or photos of horses or asked her what she would do with certain horse-related challenges.

“It was a unique relationship, very special,” said Riggs. “In our business, everything is professional, but you develop special bonds with people who are special, and he was. He was as kind to a waiter as he was to a head of state. He was a people person.”

President Reagan’s boots rode through Washington on the riderless horse in the caisson at his funeral parade in 2004. At the time, Riggs recalled her 30 years of work with the Secret Service.

“I’ve been all over the world and witnessed a lot of events, but being on duty in Santa Barbara and that time with Reagan was the best, to be able to combine my work with riding. He was so unpretentious, so genuinely sincere and nice.

“He always talked horses, and he really enjoyed that other people enjoyed horses with him,” she added. “It was how he decompressed from the stress of the presidency. He was a horseman through and through.”

“He referred to the Secret Service as his cavalry, so

he wore a baseball hat that said, ‘Rancho Del Cielo Cavalry Commander.’ ”

—Barbara Riggs

FEATURE

Story and photos by MELISSA VOLPI


The Build-A-Bridle Workshop


“OK, first things first,” says Philip Howard

as he ushers me into a room with fluo-rescent strip lights and walls covered by handmade bridles and saddles in need of repair. “What’s your favorite chocolate?”

I laugh. “Strawberry dream!” I say as Philip pushes forward a large tin of Cadbury Roses that lives in the center of four workbenches.

Philip is a traditional-looking man with tousled white locks. In this workshop, he is known as “eye candy,” but I suspect that’s also due to his notion that if you’re going to teach a group of women to do something intricate in a short number of days, you might be well served to have candy on hand to lessen the stress.

Philip had been working as a saddler in Lon-don for some years before moving to Earlston, Scotland, in 1995 to live out his dream of becoming a saddler in the Scottish Borders. Two years later, he met Karen, his wife.

“Considering I was two hours late for her horse’s saddle-fitting appointment, it was her beautiful smile that first bowled me over,” he tells me while offering tea or coffee to everyone in the room. “Her horsey knowledge, and her obvious love and care for her horse came a close second.”

Philip and Karen married six years later. Both have passed the requisite exams to become members of the Society of Master Saddlers, and now Karen makes all the bridles, and Philip makes and repairs all the saddles. Together they run Saddlery Training Scotland at their Lee Val-

ley Saddlery, the only teaching facility of its kind in Scotland, which also offers five-day bridle-making courses at the basic, intermediate and advanced levels.

Karen joins us and shows me to my bench, which is laid out with the hundreds of dollars’ worth of tools that students use during the basic bridle-making workshops. I jump into the café-style high seat and launch immediately into a description of the bridle I’d like to make:

“I was thinking of a combination headcol-lar and bridle in heather-colored leather with gold buckles and green stitching,” I say excitedly. “Something that resembles the Scottish moors and that could be used for endurance riding.”

Karen nods and smiles. “I take it you’ve hand-stitched leather before,

then?” she asks.As a girl who hated home economics and

refused to learn to sew fabric because of her feminist principles, my answer is obviously going to be no.

“Don’t worry, Melissa,” she says reassuringly. “It normally takes students 10 days to make a basic snaffle bridle. As you are here for only a day, I thought we could aim for a pair of stirrup leathers instead.”

If At First You Don’t SucceedThe Howards are flexible and open-minded when it comes to teaching, and they want to accommodate students’ needs and abilities. This is why they have classes of no more than six stu-dents at a time, so they can give each one plenty of individual attention.

In the introductory bridle-making workshop,

In today’s bespoke and artisan craft-obsessed society, the time-honored skill of hand-stitching leather is more valuable than ever—and you can learn it for yourself

in a five-day course in Galashiels, Scotland.Amanda Anderson, a professional saddle fitter from Virginia who’s now learn-ing how to build and repair tack, works on some new billets at the Saddlery Training Scotland work-shop.


The author smiles proudly with the fruits of a day’s labor: a new set of stirrup leathers.

students start by making a rein stop and a needle pouch before progressing to a belt and a foal slip by the end of the five days. But before they leave on Friday afternoon, Karen asks them to make a second rein stop.

“It’s so the students can gauge their progression through the various stages of cutting, edging, staining, creasing and stitching,” she says while leading me toward the corner of the room where the hides are stored. “The first rein stop takes about four hours to make on the Monday. But on the Friday, they can make it in half an hour.”

Karen shows me the different col-

ored hides. There is black, dark Havana and Australian nut. Both Philip and Karen are traditionalists when it comes to leather and prefer that tack not detract from the brilliance of the horse and rider. She goes on to explain the different parts of the hide, which are stronger and which are weaker, and which side they work on when making bridles or straps.

She lets me feel the difference be-tween the spine edge and the belly edge. I run my fingers down from the spine to the belly and notice that the spine edge is harder, and the belly edge is much more flexible.

“We use the spine edge where

FEATURE


Left: A sampling of instructor Karen Howard’s handi-work, from simple hunt-ing pieces to beautifully stitched show-quality bridles.

Right: Karen (far left) and Philip Howard take only six students at a time in their monthly bridle-making work-shops to ensure that each participant gets plenty of hands-on instruction and help.


strength is required,” explains Karen. “And the belly edge for the backing leath-er. It’s also important to use the glossy, face side of the leather when working. The flesh side of the leather, which is duller in vibrancy and texture, is what touches the horse’s skin.”

Left, Right, Loop And PullKaren cuts a strip of dark Havana leather for me to practice on. I start by using the No. 1 edge tool to round and soften the edge of this leather but find it difficult to keep the tool straight and forward in one

continuous motion.“Working with leather is all about

feel,” Karen says warmly while directing me toward a vat of water-based brown dye for the next stage of my lesson.

Once the edges have been smoothed and sliced, a layer of raw leather, in its natural color and state, is exposed. Stain has to be applied to these raw edges to keep everything matching and polished.

I use a small woolly mammoth, as they call it here, to apply the stain. Then I rub a tea towel over it to help remove any excess and buff up the appearance.

FEATURE

Above: Making a piece of tack

by hand requires an extensive (and expensive) set of instruments. But don’t worry; the

tools of the trade are all provided at Saddlery Training

Scotland.


Left: When it comes to tack style, the Howards are traditional-ists—black and brown are their go-to stain colors.

Right: “There’s something spe-cial about seeing everything look so shiny and bright, isn’t there?” says bespoke bridle-maker Karen Howard. “What you have at the end really bears no resemblance to what you started with. It’s as if the hide comes alive again.”

Getting TherePhilip and Karen Howard’s monthly bridle-making workshops at Lee Valley Saddlery in Galashiels, Scotland, run £400 (about $640) for a five-day course at any level, plus the cost of materials. You can learn more about the program, contact the Howards with questions, or book a workshop on their website, SaddleryTrainingScotland.com.

Should you choose to stop off in London first, there are plenty of connecting flights up to Scot-land with British Airways, Virgin and Easy Jet. But United Airlines flies direct from New York (New-ark) to Edinburgh airport, and rental cars are an easy and convenient way to reach Galashiels. Bus services (about $20 round-trip) also run every half-hour from the Edinburgh bus station. You can get the X65 or X95, which will get you to Galashiels in 1½ hours.

I stayed at Morven Guest House during my vis-it. The rooms are clean, simple and warm, and this accommodation is within walking distance of the Saddlery Training Scotland premises. Prices start at $45 for a single room with breakfast. Check out their website, AccommodationInGalashiels.co.uk, for further details.

Taxis are also available and cost just under $8 for a one-way trip to the workshop. You can also liaise with Philip, who will collect you from your chosen B&B/Hotel in Galashiels for no extra cost.Interested in buying a bespoke, handmade bridle? Contact Karen at [email protected]. Basic custom bridles start at $270, plus international shipping.

To finish, I use a piece of real bone to seal the edges and add an even greater level of shine.

We walk back to my workbench so that Karen can show me how to crease the leather with a little tool that resembles a shovel. This creasing tool is set to a desirable width, and then we pull it down the leather strap from top to bottom to create a decorative crease along the edges.

Next we draw a line with the wing divider near the inner crease. Then a No. 12 stitch marker is hammered into this line to create 12 stitching marks. I repeat

“I take it you’ve hand-stitched leather before, then?” she asks. As a girl who hated home

economics and refused to learn to sew fabric because of her feminist principles, my answer

is obviously going to be no.


this process until I reach the end of my leather strip so that I have a large area on which to practice.

Sitting tall in my high seat, with a wooden brace between my legs, I watch Karen cut off a long piece of thread and run it over a block of beeswax.

“Now all you need to do,” she says, “is add a needle to each end of this piece of

thread and start stitching, Melissa.”Sounds easy. But after 10 minutes of

trying to thread one needle, I begin to feel frustrated and in need of assistance.

“Time for another chocolate or two?” says Philip while thrusting his tin of Cadbury Roses under my nose for the second time today.

“Oh, yes please!”I place my leather strip in the wooden

brace and start stitching toward myself. I use a stitching awl to punch a hole through the first stitching mark, then put the left needle through and stretch both hands into the air until I see that both needles are even.

Then I’m off. Left needle, right needle, loop and pull. And left needle, right needle….

It’s not until lunchtime that my strip of leather has been hand-stitched down one side. Karen praises me, but she sees my skeptical look, which says: “You’re

only saying that to be kind.” My leather strip is passed around the

room, and after careful, prolonged glanc-es from the other two students—Emma Hurst, who is making a headcollar, and Amanda Anderson, who is learning to repair billets—I get the thumbs up.

At lunch, I get a chance to chat more with Amanda, who’s a professional saddle

fitter from Sleipnir Saddlery in Virginia Beach, Va. She’s also a dressage rider and certified massage therapist for humans and equines, but now she’s working on putting an additional feather in her cap.

“I’ve always wanted to learn how to repair saddles and make one from scratch,” she tells me while tucking into her Caesar salad. “So I’ve combined this course with a trip around the U.K. I flew into London and worked my way up to Galashiels from there.”

It’s a convenient little getaway, and it’s perfect for the vacationer who craves a little more action than a generic week at the beach can provide.

After lunch concludes, I keep work-ing away on my stirrup leathers while Karen observes my handiwork and tells me a little bit about her bespoke, hand-made bridles.

“I made a measuring bridle a few years ago, which has really revolution-

ized my job. All the straps are adjustable and numbered. So I visit a client’s horse, attach that horse’s bit to this bridle, and then adjust the straps so that they sit evenly at eye level. You should be able to fit two fingers underneath the noseband and one finger all the way along the browband. Many horses are given a head-ache because their browband is too tight.”

Karen’s own boys, Connor and Toby, mean the world to her, but it’s easy to tell how much she loves horses of all stripes.

“I stopped riding years ago,” Philip pipes in. “If I rode one of Karen’s horses, and if either one came back with a hair out of place, she would kill me!”

We laugh, and I look down at my black-stained hands and nails, feeling proud of what I’ve achieved in only one day. It’s made me eager to learn more.

“When is your next intermediate bridle-making workshop?” I ask Karen as she hands me a buffing sponge for the finishing stage of my new stirrup leathers.

“January,” she says with a knowing smile. “Every one of our students asks that question on the Friday. There’s some-thing special about seeing everything look so shiny and bright, isn’t there? What you have at the end really bears no resemblance to what you started with. It’s as if the hide comes alive again.”

As I rub the buffing sponge up and down my leathers and see that glossy layer of shine develop, I daydream of working in front of an open fire, in a small studio that’s full of warm leather, making colorful endurance combination headcollar-bridles.

Surely I could fit this addictive craft in alongside my journalistic career?

FEATURE

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FEATURE

In the Northeast, the rare sport of ski joring provides a weird,

wild and wonderful escape from the winter doldrums.

By JOSH FISCHEL

Photos courtesy of THE NEW ENGLAND SKI JORING ASSOCIATION

TO tell the story of ski joring in the United States is to tell a tale of adaptation.

It is at once an inimitable sport and a flexible one. The Norwe-gians who invented it as a means of transport in the mid-19th-cen-tury—load up your horse or reindeer with cargo, slap on your skis, and get towed along behind—would hardly recognize the version common to a niche audience of American horse enthusiasts and the skiers who love them enough to want to slalom back and forth behind their mounts at speeds approaching 50 miles per hour.

Domestically, ski joring is a cowboy sport: an exhibition of

NewEngland

skill, speed and derring-do. Forget driving one nobly for-ward; instead, there are ramps, jumps, and detachable rings and gates to challenge any skier game enough to negotiate a course, all while dodging the ice chunks being thrown in one’s general direction by four galloping hooves.

Ski joring’s modern-day origins are western. Camp Hale in Leadville, Colo., was born out of necessity in 1941: for training the U.S. Army’s 10th Mountain Division of infan-trymen for winter survival and skiing before they headed off to the front lines in World War II.

In the years after the war’s end, many of the former-mil-


itary locals would start arguments with each other in the local bars, as in, “My horse is faster” or, “I’m a better skier.” Eventu-ally these braggarts stepped back from the bar and put their boasts to the test, leading to drag-race style competitions that added riders and the aforementioned challenging implements.

East Meets WestGeoff Smith and his wife, Brooke, the president and treasurer, respectively, of the North East Ski Joring Association, learned of the sport by surfing television stations.

“I happened to flick onto one of those recreation channels,”

says Geoff, who discovered coverage of a race taking place in Idaho and put down the remote.

The Smiths were immediately hooked. That spring, they flew to Jackson Hole, Wyo., to meet with board members of the North American Ski Joring Association to discuss how to bring the sport to the East.

NESJA, which hangs its signpost from the Smith residence in New London, N.H., has been in operation since 2005, when they held their first race in nearby Newport. They are trying to simultaneously grow at a deliberate pace and fan the flames of enthusiasm to burn ski joring into the winter sports scene.

New England’s version of ski joring doesn’t resemble the classic Norwegian form very closely. There are ramps, jumps, and de-tachable rings and gates to challenge any skier game enough to negoti-ate a course, all while dodging the ice chunks being thrown in one’s general direction by four galloping hooves.


FEATURE

Riders who participate in ski joring believe it provides excellent winter exercise for their horses, which typically compete in eventing, roping, games and modern shooting tournaments.

“I can’t believe more people don’t know about it,” Geoff says. “We’ve been on ‘New Hampshire Chronicle’ [a local magazine-format TV show broadcast five nights a week] twice, and they show one or both features every winter.”

The problem is that the ski joring community thinks their sport appeals to a wider array of athletes—equestrians and free-style skiers alike—when in reality these populations themselves are pretty small.


Yes, NESJA holds an annual clinic in Rochester, N.H. Yes, Geoff said he would love to see the sport return to the Olympic Games (it was a demonstration sport in 1928, on a frozen lake in St. Moritz, Switzerland, mostly due to International Olym-pic Committee founder Pierre de Coubertin’s superfandom). But between New England and Canada, there are only about six races each year on the East Coast, plus six scheduled in the Rockies for the coming season.

Due to the lack of snow and unseasonably warm winters the past two years, NESJA has been able to hold only one event since 2011. Geoff won that event, run at the Newport airport in February of this year, featuring a total of two skiers being towed behind three horses.

The winning rider at that race, Kate Widman, works in customer service at a travel agency. She often tows Geoff behind her, and sometimes she tows her father.

Widman took up ski joring most im-mediately from barrel racing, but she’s been riding since she was 5. Her father, who used to tune skis for the U.S. Olympic Ski Team, doesn’t ride, “but he’s an awesome skier.”

With ski joring, “We can combine two different things that we both really like,” Widman says.

For Daredevils OnlyFor a rider, the challenge of ski joring is making sure that one’s horse runs at a suit-able speed for the skier. Courses are packed down using payloaders, bulldozers, trucks and grooming equipment donated from local ski areas, all to make sure the horses have a track-like surface on which to run.

But let your horse run too fast, and you risk pulling your skier through the air over a jump and knocking him off balance upon landing. Go too slow, and you create slack in the tow rope and give your skier whiplash. In addition, “If the horses see something in the air behind them, they get ‘interested,’ ” says Widman. So it falls to the rider to keep the horse focused on moving forward.

While there’s no particular breed of horse known for its prowess at ski joring, Widman says participants typically prefer “muscular, stocky, big, beefy horses.” She’s seen smaller horses get toppled over by a skier cutting too hard.

During the winter, to be mindful of horses’ fatigue, snow-mobiles are substituted after a few runs. But riders who par-ticipate in ski joring believe it provides excellent winter exercise for their horses, which typically compete in eventing, roping, games and modern shooting tournaments. Since they get to tow skiers during the winter, the horses are generally considered stronger and better prepared for their various summer pursuits.

Skiers can train during the warmer months by doing any activity that strengthens their upper body, like waterskiing. And it’s even possible to simulate ski joring on dry land.

“We do practice sometimes with alpine skis on grass,” Geoff says. “I’ve done it on roller blades.”

The towed skier has a number of actions to execute at a high rate of speed: He (the skiers are typically male, the riders gener-ally female) must work from one side to another of a 40-foot-wide course, hitting at least 12 gates and launching himself off at least three jumps between 2 and 4 feet high. Most courses also have rings dan-gling from stands with which skiers joust and collect on an outstretched arm. Miss any one of these, and you are assessed a time penalty.

Meanwhile, skiers are holding onto a rope that’s threaded through D-rings and attached under the horse’s harness, pull-ing it in or letting it out depending on the obstacle ahead. And Widman considers the type of gloves used by skiers to be an underappreciated concern: “If they’re too

thin, the rope will burn right through them,” she says. “Rookie mistake.”

Races are held over two days, and the fastest overall team wins a pot of money—“between 75 bucks and a couple of hun-dred dollars”—which can be split up however they choose.

While sponsorship might lead to bigger pots—and races nearer to metropolitan areas might provide the exposure that could lead to more sponsors—several of the people involved in the sport said they just like the opportunity to do something dif-ferent, to escape the doldrums of winter, and to work with people who both share their own passion and who excel at skiing.

And if you get to catch some rings on your arm while you’re at it, who’s complaining?

Domestically, ski joring is a cowboy sport: an exhibition

of skill, speed and derring-do.


BOOK REVIEW

Dick Francis fans mourned the author’s passing in 2010, but devotees of his 39 mysteries can still read on under titles by his son, Felix Francis, who’s continuing the line of bestsellers set in the thick of British horse racing. If you enjoy the fast pace and suspense of a Francis novel, you won’t be disappointed in Felix’s eighth one, Refusal, released this fall.

It’s narrated by Sid Halley, who first appeared in 1965 in Odds Against, reap-

peared in Whip Hand (1979), then came back again in Come To Grief (1995) and Under Orders (2006). In Refusal, he’s older and wiser and retired from both racing and investigation.

But when circumstances thrust him back into detec-tive work against his will, he has more to lose this time: As one of the oldest main characters in a Francis book, Sid, whose hand is shattered in a racing accident in Odds Against, is married and now has a daughter. He has to get to the bottom of what appears to be a race-fixing scheme while protecting his family from the people

who’d prefer he not probe too closely. We caught up with Felix from his Oxfordshire home

to learn more about Refusal, the Francis family’s literary legacy, and what’s coming up next.

Your first book, Under Orders, appeared in 2006. How did you come to take over your father’s byline?It all happened by accident. My father’s agent said to me one day, “We have a problem: No one is reading the backlist of stories because we haven’t had a new book.” This was in 2005. He wanted permission to ask an estab-lished crime writer to write in [my father’s] name, and I said, “Before you ask anyone else, I’d like to have a go.”

My dad was not keen on resurrecting [the books]. He was 85. I said, “We’ll make it a Sid Halley book,” and I already had a title. He read it and approved. After five chapters, we sent it to the publishers and were excited.

Your father was a champion jockey. Are you a horse-man? I rode as child and had ponies, but I stopped riding when I was 14. I had hip trouble and spent 5½ months

lying in a hospital because my hip col-lapsed on me; a hormone problem meant my bones grew rapidly and didn’t harden properly. I have restricted movement in my left hip even now.

I’ve managed to make way through the mountains and jungles of Borneo and rain forests but am not able to ride. I still own a horse in a syndicate—something

Felix Francis Shows No Signs Of Reining InHis latest book, Refusal, delivers everything you expect from a Dick Francis mystery. By BETH RASIN

PH

OTO

S C

OU

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SY

FE

LIX

FR

AN

CIS“The character has to go on a journey, to be a

different person at the end than at the beginning. The characters are the sort of people readers

would like to be. ”


BOOK REVIEW

with four legs that eats money! I don’t really miss the rid-ing, to be honest. I was always of the belief that both ends were dangerous and the middle was uncomfortable.

What kind of book can be found on your bedside table?I’m not very good at reading mysteries by other writers. I don’t want to be even subconsciously stealing other people’s ideas. I mostly read biographies and histories and some fiction, and I enjoy sports books and autobiog-raphies.

Two of my all-time favorite books are The Junior Of-ficers’ Reading Club: Killing Time and Fighting Wars, by Patrick Hennessey and Vulcan 607: The Epic Story of the Most Remarkable British Air Attack Since WWII, about the airplane and its role in the Falklands War in the 1970s.

When did you first read one of your father’s books?I was about 13 when I read the newest one then, which was Odds Against, or might have been Flying Finish. I was so excited that I had all the others to go back to. Then, after I read them as they were being written, I would say, “Hurry up and get on with it. I want to know what happens!”

You took a very different route from your father in studying science. What brought you back to the fam-ily business of writing?I was a physics teacher for 17 years and would have gone on doing it, but my [parents] had moved to Florida, to get away from the cold and damp. My mother had polio when she was 26, and it left her with depleted chest muscles, so breathing was not easy for her.

left: Felix Francis considers leaving behind a nearly two-decade career in teaching physics to become his father’s business manager “the best decision” he ever made. He served in that role for 14 years before stepping up to as-sume the authorship of Dick Francis’ novels.

below left: After growing up riding and reading with his famous father Dick Francis, in 2006 Felix took over the writing of his dad’s legendary series of mystery novels set in Britain’s horse racing world.


Mother asked if I could help my father with paper-work and the U.S. tax system. I said, “I’ll give you a hand; it can’t be that hard.” Silly thing to say; it was very hard.

One day I said to him, in 1990, “They’re changing the education system in England from simple exams to lots of coursework assessments. I’m head of the science department and have to do all this; I can’t go on doing what I’m doing for you. You need a manager.” He asked if I’d work for him and offered to pay me twice what I was making.

It was the best decision I ever made. I was his manager for 14 years, for a long time before I wrote his books. It wasn’t that I suddenly gave up teaching and started writing—there were 14 years in between.

How much involvement did you have in his novels ear-lier in his career?I designed the bomb that blew up an airplane by remote control in [my father’s book] Rat Race in 1970, when I was 17 and a physics student. I wrote the computer pro-gram in Twice Shy, which was cutting edge at the time but now looks quite dated. I did a lot of the meteorology in Second Wind and did lot of the ending of Shattered.

One of my kids was reading one of these books and asked me, “Dad, what is a cassette tape?” I thought, “Oh my God, life has moved on.”

I did lot of research for [my father]; there even was a character that was a physics teacher in one of books, Twice Shy, which is the only book with two narrators. My brother is a racehorse transport man, and there was one of those in Driving Force. My uncle is a wine im-porter; his knowledge was delved into for Proof. A dear friend who was a photographer was very much used in Reflex. The whole family’s business acumen and knowl-edge has been used for all sorts of research. My mother used to call it a cottage industry without a cottage.

Does your family help with your novels?My two sons read them, and I’m glad they think they’re quite good. My wife, Debbie, reads it out loud to me so I can hear what it sounds like. I’m a great believer in rhythm of sentences. She’s the only person allowed to read my books before they’re submitted to my editor.

There are rumors that your mother, Mary, was heav-ily involved in the writing of your father’s books. How much truth is there to that? Ah, the best kept secret in publishing! My mother [who died in 2000] was a great believer in the rhythm of sentences. My father was the ideas man, and together they were responsible for the books. It was both of them, not Mary or Dick; they did them together. Dad always wanted her name on the cover too, and she never wanted it.

But my father was always referred to as Richard in our family. I used to think they were Mary and Richard separately, and together they were Dick Francis.

She taught me, as well. She’s a great believer that reading a book should be easy, a delight. Some say that if it’s easy reading, it can’t be literature, but I work very hard at making them easy reading.

I believe words should slide off the page like cream off a spoon, not get stuck in your throat like barbed wire. Good literature doesn’t have to be hard work. People feel you can’t be both popular and literary; the two are incompatible. I disagree.

Why did you want to continue your father’s brand? Do you have any different types of stories or novels you’d like to do someday?My father once said to his publisher, “If I wrote something that didn’t have horses in it, would you still publish it?” They said, “Of course we would, but

we’d rather you didn’t.” They’d love me to continue writing in the same vein and subject matter.

You don’t have to know one end of a horse from another to read one of these books, even though you might learn about [them] on the way, and you’ll still love the books. I’m not writing exclu-sively for horsey or racing people.

BOOK REVIEW

“People like to believe racing has a shady side, though it has less of a shady side than I tend to give

it. A lot of effort goes into keeping it clean.”


BOOK REVIEW

Other people have tried novels in a similar vein but not succeeded as wildly; what do you think is the Francis secret?The main characters are people that the readers like and care about. If you don’t care, you probably won’t finish the book. The reader gets inside the main character’s head because it’s written in first person.

The character has to go on a journey, to be a different person at the end than at the beginning. The characters are the sort of people readers would like to be: coura-geous, not always but overall, and my father always believed that loyalty was the greatest attribute a man could have, so my characters are loyal. They all have the attributes that readers would like to see in themselves. I’d like to think they’re like me but younger and fitter and that they do the things I’d love to do.

I had a friend who asked, “What happens to Geof-frey at the end of Silks?” I said, “That’s a difficult ques-tion because Geoffrey doesn’t exist. What would you like to happen?” He said, “No, what really happens?” It ends in a place where he could get into a lot of trouble.

I thought, “I really don’t want to tell him that the character is made up.” I said, “Well, he got off, and he wasn’t persecuted.” He said, “How did he manage that?”

People believe in who you write about, and that’s a wonderful thing.

How or when do you devise the plots? Quite a lot when I’m driving, I’m just thinking. Mostly I’m adapting real-life situations to things I can do in the book. I get an idea here, an idea there. It’s not always that easy.

People say, “What is more important, plot or charac-ter?” They’re both important. What is more important, the bride or groom? You need both for marriage.

The plots slowly develop. I expand the schemes and hope like hell things come to mind while writing. I don’t always know where it’s going when I start. I know roughly what happens but not exactly.

Why do you think the racing world is so ripe for ne-farious characters? Is it really seedy?Racing lends itself uniquely among sports. Certainly in this country it’s a sport for everyone. The most famous breeder is the Queen, then you have the Arab sheiks, the

landed gentry. And yet anyone goes in to gamble, across the whole spectrum of financial and social classes.

There’s lots of money involved, and anytime there’s a lot of money, people will always be trying to extract it by illegal means.

People like to believe racing has a shady side, though it has less of a shady side than I tend to give it. A lot of effort goes into keeping it clean, so much so that writing books about it has become almost impos-sible to think up something the authorities wouldn’t already be testing for.

What’s the hardest part of creating your novels? Making them exciting at the end. The last thing you want is people shutting book saying, “Oh, that was bit of a fix,” or, “You signal the villain early on, and it’s not a surprise.”

Any author who says he doesn’t look at reviews is telling you lies. And there’s nothing better than hearing that the ending is brilliant.

Why do these characters always have to take the law into their own hands? Do you have a jaded opinion of law enforcement?I generally write about characters who are not members of the establishment. Usually my characters are reluctant investigators. They don’t even know at the beginning what they’re investigating. They need to find out what they’re investigating in order to find out who did it, and I find that exciting.

I don’t have a really jaundiced look of law enforce-ment, do I?

You’ve got to have a story. Otherwise, you won’t have a book. I’m always on the lookout for stories.

Given the ending of Refusal, I’m guessing we see Sid return again. Are you already at work on the next book? I’m not writing about Sid at the moment, but a younger man who is with the British horse racing authority. [Sid] will be back again for a sixth outing, but not just yet.

I’m 12,000 words into book 9, which will be out this time next year. I have a contract after that and hope for more in due course. If I go on until I’m 80, that will be another 20 books. But I won’t get to 39; I didn’t start soon enough.


CHARITY SPOTLIGHT

Molly Reeser never intended to start a charity. As a cash-strapped college student at

Michigan State University, she just started mucking stalls at a local barn to earn a few extra dollars. But it was there that she met Casey, a little girl with cancer who would change the course of her life.

“Everyone was very serious—they had expensive horses, and they were com-petitive riders,” said Reeser. “Casey really broke the mold. She was really energetic and talked to everybody. She broke up the stuffy environment that the stables offered. Everybody knew who Casey was, and she was a real breath of fresh air.”

The two bonded over their shared love of animals, rescuing baby birds in the arena. But Casey’s bone cancer metasta-sized to her brain in 2003, and she passed away.

Everyone at the farm wanted to do something to honor her, but Reeser was uncomfortable with the idea of planting a tree or purchasing a park bench.

“For somebody like Casey, who was a really outgoing little girl, I thought she’d be very bored with the idea that we’d plant a tree in her honor,” said Reeser. “She’s not the kind of girl who wanted a tree to represent who she was. We could do better than that.”

So Reeser brainstormed and organized

“Camp Casey” at the barn. She got per-mission to use the school horses and in-vited other children with cancer and their families to come out for a day in 2004.

“I recruited my friends and other people at Michigan State who wanted to help,” she recalled. “I put $200 of pizza and arts and crafts supplies on the emer-gency credit card that my parents gave me. It was perfect. It was a gorgeous day. We had over 80 people come out.”

Reeser intended to run Camp Casey only once, but she received a letter a week later from a 5-year-old boy who’d at-tended. “Thank you for the best day of my life,” read the note.

She knew she couldn’t stop there.Throughout college, Reeser continued

to run Camp Casey during the summer, but after graduating, she’d intended to pursue a career in journalism. Yet when the time came to find a “real” job, she couldn’t quite give it up. So she decided to carry on with Camp Casey, even if it meant waitressing and doing odd jobs to make ends meet.

Over the years the program evolved. Horsey House Calls came about after one little girl developed a life-threatening nosebleed at one of their barn days.

“We sent her to the hospital,” said Reeser. “We felt terrible. Her whole fam-ily comes for the day on the farm to have a

>> WHAT IT IS: Camp Casey is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit horseback riding program in Michigan for children with can-cer. The program helps children and their families in three ways:

>> HORSEY HOUSE CALLS: Camp Casey will bring a horse to the home of a child with cancer. The two-hour visit includes riding, crafts and food.

>> COWBOY CAMP OUTS: Camp Casey will send a child who has cancer and his or her family on an all-expenses paid weekend getaway to a dude ranch resort.

>> OUTLAW OUTINGS: Families can participate in only one Horsey House Call or one Cowboy Camp Out, but Camp Casey often organizes one-day outings to state parks, profes-sional sporting events and other activities for alumni of the program.

A CLOSER LOOK AT: Camp CaseyWhat began as a tribute to one child with cancer has now touched the lives of thousands.By SARA LIESERPhotos courtesy of CAMP CASEY

“It’s the most emotionally fulfilling job you could pos-

sibly have,” said Camp Casey founder Molly Reeser. “We’re offering the kids the most fun time ever. We’re like the Pub-

lishers Clearing House for these children.”


good time, and once again cancer disrupts that for them.”

Since there were no more barn days planned for that year, Reeser decided to bring Camp Casey to that little girl instead, in October of 2006.

“I got five volunteers—one of my friends had a horse, one had a truck, and one had a trailer,” said Reeser. “It was a suburban area right outside of Detroit. We brought the horse right to her doorstep.”

The girl and her sister opened the door and started screaming with excitement when they saw the horse. “They met us out in the back by the swing set, and we took them on rides up and down the street,” said Reeser.

That Horsey House Call became the first of many, as it also sparked Camp Casey’s most generous donation to date. A man driving by stopped to ask what was going on, and when Reeser explained the situation, he told her he wanted to learn more. They met up for coffee but parted company without making firm plans.

She never heard from that man again, but one day she checked the Camp Casey P.O. Box to find an anonymous check for $50,000.

“When I saw the date of the check, I got really scared,” said Reeser. “It was Aug. 17, which would’ve been Casey’s 17th birthday. I was shaking. I was terri-fied that now we actually had to do it. It was such a dream for such a long time. I thought I’d bitten off more than I could chew. But when I saw the date of the check, it was Casey’s birthday. And that made me feel like this is meant to be.”

Camp Casey had about $300 in the bank before this donation.

“We were doing it with everything begged, borrowed or stolen,” joked Reeser. “We didn’t even have the right in-surance policy. We were doing everything backwards. We got very lucky.”

Today, Reeser is one of two full-time employees at Camp Casey. The 501(c)(3) reaches 250-285 children per year between Horsey House Calls and Cowboy Camp Outs, all-expenses paid weekend vacations to a dude ranch resort for families with children affected by cancer.

They have six horses in the “Hero Herd” and two more being considered for next year. An equine therapist certifies that a potential horse is suitable for Horsey House Calls, and then that horse may be leased for the day from his or her owner to make Camp Casey visits. By having a net-work of horses, the wear and tear on the horses is limited, and Camp Casey reduces its overhead by not owning any horses.

The horses make house calls during the summer, and Reeser, Ferndale, Mich., spends the rest of the year fundraising to come up with about $175,000 to support all the Camp Casey activities.

“Every fundraiser that goes well and every child who is served is so motivating,” said Reeser. “It’s the most emotionally ful-filling job you could possibly have. We’re offering the kids the most fun time ever. We’re like the Publishers Clearing House for these children. We’re not the heroes in the hospital who are coming with needles and chemo and bad news. We’re coming with a horse and making them the cool

>> LEARN MORE: Find Camp Casey online at camp-casey.org and facebook.com/CampCasey. >> GET IN TOUCH: Email executive director Molly Reeser at [email protected] or program director Danielle Martin at [email protected]. Call 877-388-8315.

>> GET INVOLVED: Volunteers must be 18 or older with a valid driver’s license, and they must attend a Horsey House Call volunteer train-ing session. Fill out an application at camp-casey.org/volunteer.

A Horsey House Call from a member of Camp Casey’s “Hero Herd” can be the thrill of a lifetime

for kids like Ashleigh Tranchemontagne, who

was diagnosed with a rare tumor in 2008 but is in full

remission today.

kid on the block.”Reeser loves all the house calls, but

her absolute favorite are in inner city Detroit.

“We accommodate any living situa-tion. We don’t care if you’re in the rough-est neighborhood,” she said. “Sometimes the kids and other people on the block have never seen a horse up close. It be-comes almost a block party. Everybody comes out. People slow down, and their phones come out to take pictures. It’s like we’re bringing a unicorn to their door.”


BEST OF WEB & PRINT

u What’s Not For SaleWhen they’re not hitting the road on assignment or in the trenches working on a big issue, Chronicle staff members fre-quently take time to reflect on their own experiences as horse people. And many of our readers were especially touched by Executive Editor Beth Rasin’s recent blog about the bond she shares with her horse of a lifetime—one that is both unique and yet familiar to riders everywhere—and the choice she made long ago to make him a permanent partner.

“When you’ve had a horse for well more than a decade, they’re like markers of your life: He’s seen me through several boyfriends, good and bad, kept silent on my choice of which to marry, been there when I’ve lost grandparents and dogs and when my baby was born. In every sense, he is a family mem-ber,” she writes.

“It’s hard to say why we ever prefer one horse to another. I don’t love this horse for the events that we won or the things I learned about riding from him. When he goes, which I realize can’t be in the too distant future, I will feel older myself, as if a

last connection to the fear-lessness and confidence of my past is gone.

“I’m not sure who I’ll be without him, the horse who was the reason I got out of bed for so many years. But one thing is sure: Money couldn’t have bought me anything else so meaning-ful.”

Read the full story at COTH.com/article/what-not-sale.

u How Much Do You Have To Pay To Play?In this exploration into the inter-national horse sales landscape, Associate Editor Molly Sorge delivers a candid analysis of a record-setting transaction: Janika Sprunger’s sale of her 10-year-old jumper gelding Pal-loubet d’Halong to Jan Tops for $15 million.

“It’s not just the daunting thought of purchasing one of those horses—the majority of U.S. show jumpers buy younger, more affordable horses that they hope will turn into one of those superstars,” she writes. “It’s the fact that if they buy a young prospect and develop it over years to become a clean-round-jumping machine, they’ll inevitably start getting offers they can’t refuse. And the sad reality of the horse world is that it very rarely makes sense to say no to selling a horse. So, young up-and-comers like Janika Sprunger wave goodbye to their championship medal hopes for the next few years as the horse van pulls out the driveway in a cloud of cash.”

Get the full story at COTH.com/how-much-do-you-have-pay-play.

What’s Hot On The WebHave you bookmarked COTH.com yet? Because you don’t want to miss our daily coverage of horse sport news, competition results and equestrian issues, plus phenomenal blogs, photo galleries, videos and more. Make sure you’re up to date with all the stories set-ting the industry abuzz:

u The Souls The Barn Builds“The barn teaches all the major lessons of life within its four walls and pasture fences,” writes amateur rider Kristin Carpenter in this poignant blog—a reflection on what she wishes she could share with the struggling urban youths she encounters in her full-time job near Washington, D.C. “It doesn’t take into account age, gender, race, education or family history. It teaches with the severity and grace of life itself.

“It’s easy to get wrapped up in the side of life fueled by possessions and titles and bank account balances. It’s easy to focus on what you don’t have and who you aren’t. But the barn will teach you better.

“The barn will build your soul, and it will give you all the gifts you need to be a good, gracious person. It is up to us to keep these things when we pass through the gate.”

Read more at COTH.com/article/souls-barn-builds.

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Don’t Miss In The MagazineThink you know The Chronicle of the Horse? If you’ve let your subscription lapse or skipped some of our recent issues, you’re missing more than you think. In addition to the news, analysis and results from all the top competitions that you’ve come to expect, we’re also jam-packed full of expert commentary on controversial issues, perceptive profiles, fun features and beautiful photography. Keep your finger on the pulse of the industry with stories like these:

u Sheppard On Love, Loss And WinningIn this installment of our ongoing Living Legends series—one of our most popular stories of 2013—Racing Hall of Fame member Jonathan Sheppard opens up about the personal tragedies and professional triumphs he’s faced along the way to greatness.

“This passion, obsession—whatever one chooses to call it—defines Sheppard’s life. It is his life, and yet, for all the success this multi-Eclipse Award winning, Hall of Fame trainer has known, he’s also experienced episodes of extraordinary heartbreak, rife with emotional hurdles much more challenging than those dotting the steeplechase track,” writes staffer Jennifer Calder in our July 29 Steeplechasing Issue.

Visit our archives to read more about the 73-year-old trainer’s remarkable resilience through the tragic deaths of siblings, children and spouses and his enduring devotion to the horse.

u Holding Box Procedure QuestionedAlongside our Nov. 4 coverage of the Dutta Corp. Fair Hill International, we published an exclusive investigation into the performance of multiple flexions by an FEI veterinarian in the holding box at the first horse inspection—a practice strictly forbidden by FEI rules because of its propensity to cause lameness—which resulted in two riders going home without an appeal.

Pick up a copy of the issue to read more about why these competitors lacked recourse, why veterinarians aren’t fined or punished for breaking FEI rules as riders would be, and why this veteri-narian says he’d do it all over again.

u Morning GloryAs she headed to the Dutta Corp. Fair Hill International showgrounds early on cross-country morn-ing, Oct. 19, this sun-rise scene beckoned eventing photogra-pher Amy Dragoo to pull over and docu-ment a morning workout at the Fair Hill Training Center near Elkton, Md.

In our regular feature In The Frame, we showcase stunning equine im-ages from around the world and let the beauty and magnificence of the horse speak for itself. You can find this image in our Nov. 4 issue.

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u Top Trainers Respond To Tough USEF PenaltiesIf you read through the most recent U.S. Equestrian Federation Hearing Committee rulings, a few familiar names may jump out at you. Some of the most suc-cessful trainers in the hunter/jumper industry, such as Andre Dignelli, Bibby Farmer Hill and Scott Stewart, made the list.

Find out who was fined $7,500 for improper pa-perwork, whose horse tested positive for the forbidden

substance GABA, and what they had to say in response to the committee’s rulings in staffer Mollie Bailey’s report in our Nov. 18 & 25 Foxhunting Issue.

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PARTING WAYS

Tuff BreakIn the fall of 1959, renowned equine photographer Marshall Hawkins captured this image of Mrs. C.F. Blair and Tuffy coming a cropper while following the Bath County Hounds in western Virginia.

Hawkins, of Warrenton, Va., shot foxhunting, flat racing, steeplechasing, polo, eventing and shows across the country for more than 50 years, capturing iconic images of Secretariat at the 1973 Preakness Stakes and First Lady Jacque-line Kennedy riding and hunting in northern Virginia in the mid-1960s.

Throughout his career, Hawkins’ work appeared in publications like Life mag-azine, The Saturday Evening Post, Spur and, of course, The Chronicle of the Horse.

A vast compilation of Hawkins’ work is included in the Archives and Manu-scripts Collection at the National Sporting Library in Middleburg, Va.

More Integrity. More Tradition. More Vision.Kathy Moore • 561-779-2387 • [email protected]

Delray • Gulfstream • Jupiter • Palm Beach • Stuart • Wellington

www.MooreBroker.com

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