Appalachian Spring

I spent last weekend in Appalachia. Appalachia is beautiful all year round, but in the spring, there is nothing to compare to it. I found out that this time of year is called Service (pronouced Sarviss) Winter, which is when the Redbud trees burst into splashes of bright pink among the grey-brown forests in the mountains. Next will be Dogwood Winter (you can guess what is happening then in the forests), and the Blackberry Winter.

If you ride horses, Appalachia is a goldmine in our backyard. It has inspired poets and musicians, theologians and philosophers.

Ironically, when I returned home the Sunday Lexington Herald-Leader had a review of the Lexington Philharmonic's performance of Copland's "Appalachian Spring". The reviewer was saying the pictures of horses grazing in pasture should have been of horses frolicking in pastures. And I am thinking, "Those pictures were probably horses in the BLUEGRASS, not in APPALACHIA." Ah, how we in the Bluegrass seem to think we are the center of the world....

As we rode in SE Kentucky, my new horse struggled up the steep hillsides, and I was sure to give her lots of resting time between climbs. But when we got to the top, the scenery was spectacular, viewing mountain top after mountaintop, most of which have a name known only to the locals.

Coal mining was a source of long discussions. The challenge of coal as a single source of industry. The necessity of strip mining. The coal property owners who live in other states and make decisions about Kentucky's Appalachian hills while flying 30,000 feet over the area in a plane. The viability of alternative energy sources. The future of the region if coal jobs went away.

(Well, OK, and then there was the UK Final Four Game wedged in there between the discussions... OMG, a nail biter!!)

But back to the SE KY economy. Here is where trail riding comes in. It can be the basis for a healthy adventure tourism economy for Appalachia in Kentucky. There are many counties working on new trails right now... not just in Appalachia but across the state. Horsemen are coming together to do the work necessary to get this effort going. We plan to make "Horse Capital of the World" mean something beyond the Bluegrass. Man, it is so rewarding to see this happen! Racing may be struggling but trail people keep on going... and keep working despite the economics of 2011. It will happen.

We Are Fam-i-ly...

Sister Sledge. Anyone out there remember them? (If you are under 50, you probably have no clue...) It was the anthem of the 70's (well, plus Y-M-C-A..)

We are family...
I got all my sisters with me...

I have three sisters and two brothers. Six of us in total plus Mom and Dad. Which I thought was a large family until I moved to Kentucky and kept meeting people with 10 and 11 siblings. Lordy, poor Mom!

I don't get along with all of my sisters and brothers all of the time. One or two I could meet at a bar after work and talk with into the wee hours. Some of the others I can't comprehend, wouldn't live their lives they way they do. Some are very religious (part of the family up-bringing, trust me! Church three times a week without fail) and some not so. Some spend money over their heads, others are frugal. Some love to venture to places unknown, others don't like any food other than plain meat and potatoes.

But we are family. We see each other at Christmas, exchange stories, admire each others' kids, and sit at the table together. Underlying all of the differences, we have the same basic values. And we want each other to do well in life and be happy and healthy.

I think that deep down, horse people are the same way. We don't like each other all the time. We think our way of owning or riding or keeping horses is the right way, and can't comprehend another's choices about their horses.

Some ride, some just own and watch. Some like high stepping, some like low down and quiet. Some strive for the perfect tempo and gait in a riding ring, others go straight down the path on a trail. Others drive like hell in a carriage across a field, through water obstacles. And then there are those crazy few who careen around a course of 5 foot jumps at breakneck speed. (Oops, did I say crazy?)

There are other ways we often don't agree. Our politics. Our stories to legislators that focus on our issue to the detriment of others who own horses. Our ideas that if my breed "wins", yours has to "lose". Our idea about funding the horse business which means funding MY part of the horse business, but not yours. Our arrogance that what our association does is more informed, more sophisticated, more valuable than what your association does.

But we are all part of the family. And like me and my siblings, we can put aside our differences and focus on our similar goals. Making Kentucky "horse-friendly" for all - business and pleasure - regardless of economy, politics and personalities.

GET THE HECK OUT OF DODGE

OK, first of all, a confession. This is going to sound like a sermon. Don't want to do that routinely in a blog, right? I mean, if you need a sermon, you go to church.

And furthermore, I am not the priestess of wisdom. (Ah, wouldn't I like to be.. wouldn't we all like to be?)

I just report what I see and think. Take it or leave it.... so yes, here is a sermon. And a sense of frustration being expressed. It's directed at those who live in Lexington.. my neighbors... some of my colleagues....and at myself as well.

Get the heck out of Dodge.

Like, LEAVE LEXINGTON for a change.
Like, see the rest of the state.
Like, drive a little bit further to talk to other horsemen, ride on a trail ride, participate in a show.

This year the KHC president is from Northern Kentucky. YAHOO! She knows what it is to constantly drive south. Other board members are from Louisville and Shelbyville and Bowling Green and know what it is to constantly drive east. Go to Lexington, the "MECCA" of the horse world. Hmmm...

This needs to be changed.

Yes, Lexington was the site of the World Equestrian Games.
Yes, the Kentucky Horse Park is the best in the country.
Yes, there are a lot of beautiful Thoroughbred farms in Lexington (declining in number now, but still there are a lot in Lexington and surrounding counties)

But really -- where do Kentucky's horsemen live?

The answer: All over the state. Everyone knows that. We know about the concentration of Saddlebreds in Shelby County. The cluster of Eventing and Dressage in Oldham County. The collection of Quarter Horses in western KY counties and Bowling Green area. And trail riders in every nook and cranny of every county.

Being a horsemen is about owning your own horse, caring for it every day (or paying someone to care for it, if you are so lucky to be able to afford that)...riding despite the weather, riding sometimes because of the weather, living through Kentucky winter/spring mud. Fixing your trailer, buying a new bit, scheduling the farrier.

It's also about the horse business. Training horses, instructing riders, breeding horses... and trying to make enough to survive. Watching the feed and bedding bills to figure out the most affordable but healthy choices. Being tied to your cell phone when you leave the barn. Getting calls night and day with concerns or questions, or God forbid, emergencies. Trying to keep up with the latest news in vaccinations, deworming, diseases. Trying to keep connected with your breed organization, your local 4-H horse club, your community.

People all over this Commonwealth are horsemen and horse professionals. Muhlenberg County, Lewis County, Harlan County, Marion County, Campbell County, Boyd County, Warren County...

Get the heck out of Dodge.

It's time to drive west, east, north and south AWAY from Mecca. It's time to meet up with the rest of the world of Kentucky's horses.

New Horse in the Household

I just bought a new horse.
How easily that slips off the tongue.
But my question to you is: Does everyone go through the same gut-wrenching experience that I do when I commit to a new horse?

The search for the horse first takes over my life. Hours on the internet. watching videos on YouTube, first of the horse you were looking at and then of the other interesting videos that pop up right after that video finishes.
Doing searches with all combinations and permutations of the right words.
Running across interesting horse books on the way, or a trailer for sale that looks like a possibility -- only to remind myself that I'm not buying books or trailers.

Then there's the visits. Setting up the time and day. Watching the weather. Finding the place. Trying not to be affected by how the barn looks, but focusing on how the horse looks. Trying to judge if the owners are telling the truth. Looking into the horse's eye to see into it's real character. Looking at its legs. Picking up its feet. Trying to spook it to see its reaction. Stepping back 20 feet to look at topline, overall conformation. Watching its reaction to being led and saddled.

Then there's the ride. Is there a place to really test the horse's capabilities? Is going around the barn aisle going to tell you anything? Or circling around a small roundpen (NO.) Does the fact that he goes slow away from the barn and fast coming back mean he's going to be barn sour or just acting like every other horse trying to get back to his buddies. Does he feel rough or is that just the saddle you are using?

And if everything is right... There's that final decision, should I make an offer? Do I like the horse enough to live with it for the next few years, or maybe a lifetime? Will she become my best friend or "the mistake I made"? Will he turn out to be Mr. Manners on the trail or "Hell Bent for Leather"? (Where DID that saying come from?)

Finally, if I can answer Yes, this one is a keeper, there's the offer and the negotiation. I hate that part. Wish I were rich and could just say "Yeah, asking price is good, load 'er up." But the asking price is never good. Always too high and everybody knows it.

And finally the getting home. Is her one foot a little clubby, didn't notice that before. Gosh she makes a mess of her stall. But, oh, she's as sweet as she was before I bought her, her coat is just as shiny...

Gut wrenching, that's what it is for me. Exciting but nerve wracking. Do all horse owners feel this way?

Paradise is Not Found.

Paradise is not found. It is created.

I am constantly searching for Paradise. The perfect trail. The perfect horse. The perfect (yes, even this..) committee member.

I'd better stop searching and start doing. How to create paradise? It's in our own hands. Where do we start?

We all know about the perfect horse. He is not born. He is created when someone takes time, attention and lots of patience to constantly and consistently ride and teach him what they want and how to respond to aids, and listen to the rider's body language, weight shifts, verbal commands...

And that is why I have not found the perfect horse. The perfect horse is in me. (struggling to get out). Nothing for me to do but invest the time. Stop searching. Start working. (Gosh, that's a hard thing to admit.)

Maybe that's also the reason horses are becoming less attractive to Americans as a hobby. They are not "fast". We want fast food (waiting more than 2 minutes in a McDonald's line??? Oh, pul-ease, you call this fast food?..!), we want ready made meals (pop in the microwave and in 5 minutes..), we want clothes to fit off the rack (small, medium, large, (XL and XXL and XXXL), petite, long, short, wide calf, wide foot...)... We want to order off the internet and have it appear at our doorstep in three days (or preferably less). We don't want to go to the bank for paper money, we want to use a code anywhere we go that represents money.

We don't have time to create our paradise. We want paradise delivered on a platter, cellophane wrapped, available at CVS and Walmart 24/7. MBA degrees in 8 weeks.

Horses haven't figured out this demographic yet. They are stuck in pre-history... "Teach me - over and over - and I will learn. I'd rather run free, but if you feed me repeatedly, I'll come back. I'd rather go left when you want to go right, but if that bit pulls on my mouth enough times (or weight shifts right, so I feel so unbalanced)..I'll go right. Well, OK--- I got the point!"

And voila! After enough of this repetitive human behavior, we have the perfect horse.

AH HA! So there's the real problem. Horses don't understand the new way of human life.

Perhaps we need a new class for them. "Marketing to the New Demographic".If horses want their version of paradise to stick around, they need to change their marketing techniques.

They need to be on Aisle 6 at Walmart. They need to have auto saddlers built in, activated by an electronic code. They need radio frequency GPS-based steering systems (with that nice Mr. Ed voice telling the rider where he's going). They need to plug in at night to recharge (enough of this hay and grain mess). They need a built-in flat screen with USB ports. Their neighs need to be downloadable in forty different choices of sound.

Nah. Forget the class. That wouldn't be any fun at all. I say we stick with pre-history, our one escape from the fast life.

Green Makes Me Scream

OK, I admit it.
If I hear one more activity, product, service, company, hobby or process say it is "green", I am going to SCREAM.

Love green. Love things that care for the environment. Love the creation of products and services that save the earth from further destruction.

BUT being green has become a "ME TOO" concept. Somehow the thought is if you say your idea/product/service is "green" -- You have risen above the crowd and joined the angels.

How does this relate to horses?
Horses have ALWAYS been green to some extent. Manure composts into soil. When they eat hay and grass, it is converting energy into energy with no chemicals added. They don't need air conditioning and heating in their barns and sheds. They transport US without putting carbon in the air.

We still have a problem - when we transport THEM. To take our horses to shows, trails, races and auctions, we need these great big carbon spewing trucks, which quite frankly don't make the grade in gas mileage and DO put carbon into the air.

I'm waiting for the "green" truck. Electric? (experts say no, can't get enough power out of electric). But technology charges ahead and I still hope that someday, our trucks and trailers can be "green".

UGH, there is that word again.