I am very proud that both my girls are related to Ben Brush, the first horse to win the Kentucky Derby at its current length of 1 1/4 miles. He won the 22nd Run for the Roses and was the first to wear a blanket of white and pink roses for his efforts. Though he was small, short-legged, and long-bodied (just like my beautiful Hailee), he was very famous for his precociousness, speed, and durability, and he was a popular and successful stud. He closed his career with a record of 40: 25, 5, 5. He was inducted into the National Museum and Racing Hall of Fame in 1955. He has been so influential to modern thoroughbreds that 48 of the last 50 Derby winners trace to him, and every Derby winner since 1972 has a little Brush in their background!
Check this out! Turns out that I came by my love of horses through a genetic heritage of crazy Spaniards. Since the 16th century, Galicia has been holding a festival called "Rapa Das Bestas," which means Shearing of the Beasts! Throughout the summer, 100s of wild horses are rounded up in Galicia and over a period of 3 days in the first weekend in July, they are trimmed and groomed in different villages in my own home of Galiza! I can hardly believe it! In these photos, you see the roundups in Sabucedo, which is only 40 km from Santiago de Compostela, and in Mougas!
Today is the second anniversary of Hurricane Katrina striking at the Gulf Coast and damaging my dear New Orleans. And so here are some photos taken by 7 of the dearest wildest girls on earth -- the wildcat sweetie pies -- who travelled down to New Orleans in May after having conducted a "Bringing Katrina into the Curriculum" workshop and who worked for Habitat for Humanity. 
Here's a photo of my sexy beautiful happy girl, standing in her little moment in history! She is living the life she never could have dreamed was possible! She is a broodmare in Paris, Kentucky -- the most lovely place on earth to be a horse. You can tell by her shiny coat, sweet pointed ears, and intelligent expression that she knows, she senses that she is Just that Special!!!
In 1970, writer Hunter S. Thompson and artist Ralph Steadman were thrown together to prepare a story about the Kentucky Derby. The story, published in Scanlon Monthly, is the first instance of the renowned style known as "Gonzo Journalism!" He writes about the Derby saying, "Total chaos, no way to see the race, not even the track...nobody cares." He writes of a drunken, wild, hilarious weekend, spent struggling with Southern genteel culture! That is the Derby that Dust Commander won, who my girls are related to through Nasrullah, Discovery and Blenheim!.JPG)
Here are some photos Barbie took of my girl in mid-July! Okay, so I know it's too early to "see" her foal, but come on, look at that girl. Does she have a pot or what!?! I just can't believe how gorgeaus she looks. She looks like a champion Paris, Kentucky broodmare! A descendant of Man o' War, Pocahontas, Plucky Liege, and Myrtle Dee!!!.JPG)
I write this entry on July 30th, Sunday evening, of what has been a lovely week. I canned both weekends, and put up corn relish, dilled green tomatoes, dilly beans, peach chutney, 3-bean salad, cherries, and pickled okra. And I've been dehydrating tomatoes, peaches, and cherries, and preparing other foods for freezing. And my garden is doing well, tomatoes coming in strong. My compost bin arrived and I tackled putting it together and beginning the hot composting.
Here is a photo of Violet's great-grandpa, Blushing Groom. He is an amazing horse who raced in England and France before settling into a stud career from 1978-1992 in the U.S. at Gainesway Farms. When he was 2, he won 4 Grade 1 races, and then by the time he was 3, he had won 7 races, including the one that you can watch at the link below, the Grade 1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains! His final record was 10: 7-1-2, and because of his talents, he was voted the Champion 2- and 3-year-old racer in France, and the Champion Miler in Europe. In 1985, he was 3rd on the French sire list, 4th on the British sire list, and 5th in the U.S. He was on the world-leading sires list! He died in 1992, put to sleep after a 4-year battle with cancer. He sired 13 foal crops, 512 foals total, 411 starters, 294 winners, and 92 stakes winners, a very high percentage!!!! His kids have earned $30,874,725!!
Here is a lovely Barbara Livingston photo of Afleet Alex and his teacher/trainer, Tim Ritchey. You can see the love they have for each other -- they are a real team.
On Monday, I reported that Violet's grandpa, Runaway Groom, had passed on June 8th, 2007. I thought you might like to see the video of his amazing win at the Travers Stakes in 1982, and the way he beat three U.S. classics winners in one fell swoop, including a horse who was about to become Horse of the Year. It was the first and only time in American Racing History that a horse beat the Kentucky Derby winner, Gato del Sol, the Preakness Stakes winner, Aloma's Ruler, and the Belmont Stakes winner and Horse of Year, Conquistador Cielo, all in one single race!!! What a macho boy, Violet's grandpa was! And all in the year that yours truly was graduating from high school! Check out the video!!
Here's another painting offering a rendition of Alexander taming his beloved Bucephalus. In real life, Bucephalus died after the Battle of Hydaspes in 326 BC, so was buried in Jalalpur Sharif outside of what is now modern Jhelum, Pakistan. He was an important war steed in history!
Violet's grandpa on her sire's side is Runaway Groom, a 1979 stallion born in Ontario, Canada who had an illustrious career. He was euthanized at his home at Dr. Tom Simon's Vinery near Lexington on June 8, 2007. He lived at The Vinery, working as the king of stallions since 1991. His racing career was 18:6-5-1, and among his achievements, he won the Travers Stakes, and 2/3rds of the Canadian Triple Crown, including the Prince of Wales and Breeders Stakes. He was the 1982 Champion 3-year-old male in Canada and was elected to the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame in 2001. He sired 123 stakes horses, 72 stakes winners, and 31 graded stakes winners, including millionaires Wekiva Springs, Down the Aisle, and Najran who currently holds the American record for a mile (1:32 1/5). Runaway Groom sired not only Violet's Groomstick, but the fabulous Cherokee Run.
Susan's Girl (1969-1988) is an amazing mare. She was voted #51 of the Top 100 racehorses of the 20th century. She raced and raced and raced for a career record of 63: 29-14-11. Before they had the grading system, she won 9 stakes in 1972 and earned Champion 3 year-old-filly. Then in the first year of the official grading system, 1973, she won 6 graded races, 4 at the very best level, Grade 1! By then she was close to being the first distaffer at $1 million, so her dad, Fred Hooper, wanted her to win it all. But she chipped a bone in her leg and needed surgery. She was sent to Hooper's Farm near Ocala, Florida, and after the surgical removal of the 3 chips, she spent 2 months being vanned to Lake Weir for a daily swim. So...after her surgery and recovery, she came back kicking it into gear!
Today is Thursday, July 26th, as I write this entry, toward the end of our second summer together! Violet and I have been taking lessons 3 times a week and have been having lots of fun. We are becoming a team. She is a hard-working girl and she's beginning to put it all together. She's sweet and agreeable. And I am trying to put it all together too! What's fun is that she really seems to like Whinny Widgets. I will put out the dressage markers and the ground poles and as I'm setting up, I'll let her stroll the ring. She likes to check out the markers, mouth and move around the poles. She seems happy. And she's so smart about lunging. She does voice command and really pays attention. We are enjoying our time together! She is really a good girl about trying to hit her mark!!!
Here are two interesting photos. One is of Native Dancer, a two-time Horse of the Year. The other is the cover of the 1954 Turf and Digest with a photo of Violet's relative, Dark Star, after he defeated The Grey Ghost in the Derby! Get this: Native Dancer 22 races, 21 wins. The only horse to ever beat him was Violet's Dark Star who beat him to win the Kentucky Derby!!! That's some chops! Dark Star was a 25-1 longshot! And Native Dancer won the Saratoga Special, Preakness, Wood Memorial, Belmont, Arlington Classic, Gotham, Withers, Travers, and Metropolitan, among a few. And so, yes, Violet's Dark Star denied that super champion a chance of being a Triple Crown winner! Native Dancer won two jewels in theTriple Crown, but came in second for the first and most important jewel! Dark Star is a great-great grandparent of Violet's, appearing on the sire side of her mom, Wining Effort. The video link shows this truly amazing race between these two champions!
http://youtube.com/watch?v=rBBvKILL1IM
Here's a photo of the lovely Rags to Riches! Okay, just kidding! It's my sweet girl, Violet. But I want to direct your attention to the video link below. Someone went to a great deal of trouble to pull together some family video of Rags. They set the video to Alanis Morissette's song, "I'm a Bitch, I'm a Lover." It's just a beautiful little thing. And I am just blown away because Rags and Violet could be twins. They both are sexy, sweet American girls!
Through March 29, 2008, several paintings by Sir Alfred J. Munnings (1878-1959) will be at the National Sporting Library in Middleburg, Virginia. The paintings are on loan from the Yale Center for British Art. Munnings was a famous painter of race horses and other sporting horses, and once was the president of the Royal Academy of Art! Something racey about this gentleman is that he was heard by millions on the radio, drunkenly saying that he would like to gang up with Winston Churchill to beat up Picasso, Cezanne, and Matisse -- go figure! You can read more about this pugnacious, earthy artist at the following links:.JPG)
So, I am getting ready to go to Kentucky for a few days! I haven't been there since last October, long before Hailee was bred! So, I am excited to see my friends and see my girl!
Here's a photo of my sweet girl, trotting neatly across her pasture, and a photo of her relative, Count Fleet!
He was born on March 24, 1940, at Stoner Creek Stud Farm in Paris, Kentucky and his owner and breeder was Mrs. Fannie Hertz, the wife of John D. Hertz of Hertz rental car. He lived until he was 33, passing away on December 3, 1973. He lived long enough to see Secretariat join his Triple Crown Club, after a 25 year lapse! Count Fleet's jockey, Johnny Longden, is the only person to train and ride Kentucky Derby winners, Count Fleet (1943) and Majestic Prince (1969). Like The Fleet, Mr. Longden was long-lived; he passed away at 96!
Ta Wee was born in 1966 and became the Champion Sprinter of 1969 and 1970! Like Violet, she was born in Florida. And her sweet name, Ta Wee means "Beautiful Girl" in Sioux.
This past week, the week of July 16th, as I write the blog, has been lovely. I finished listening to Barbara Kingsolver's book, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, and it got me thinking about Grandma Williams and her garden and canning. So, this week, I had a 18'x20' garden rototilled in my yard, went to TSC and bought green rabbit fence and put it in, went to Bostdorf's and bought cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, brussel sprouts, green and yellow peppers, onions and basil and planted them, after hauling and putting in 600 pounds of cow manure. We had the most gentle, night-long rain the day I planted my garden in the blazing sun. Then on Friday, I took a cold-brewed ice coffee to the stable and Violet and I hung out in the outdoor riding paddock for awhile, cruising the fence line, checking out her boyfriend over at the next stable, chatting about our week, and bonding. Then today, I got up early, went to Farmers Market, went to the stable and groomed Violet at leisure, chatted with the stable group of pals, had a farrier visit, and then spent the afternoon canning corn relish, cherries, and dilly beans, dehydrating cherries, and freezing blueberries and zucchini. The weather today was sunny and cool and timelessly perfect. It's a wonderful summer when you can combine a morning cup of coffee with a trip to Farmers Market and then a cool morning with your favorite, gorgeaus red thoroughbred girl! I consider the hour Violet and I spent chatting about in the paddock as a "bonding" lesson. Natural horsemanship -- we were playing the friendly, porcupine, and sideways games. After all, "horses don't care how much you know until they know how much you care!".jpg)
So, on the 4th of July, I had a great riding lesson on my gorgeaus red thoroughbred! I was all relaxed and happy and pleased with my beautiful Violet and I went home to get ready to visit my nieces. I checked my email, and Barbie had sent me this just lovely photo of Hailee having a great holiday celebration. Just look how mature and happy she seems! She has had an enormous gift in her life as a regular old pampered herd horse. I can't imagine what she must think of it all!
Namaste!
On June 23rd this year, a very happy event occurred at Seabiscuit's family home at Ridgewood Ranch. A statue was unveiled and dedicated to him. Former Vice President Walter Mondale and his wife were at the dedication, along with benefactors, many of the Howard family, and descendants of Seabiscuit's trainer and jockeys. It was a small private ceremony to celebrate this great horse. Mrs. Mondale is an official for the National Trust for Historical Preservation, and among the kind things for this famous American and his family, she said, "They were an amazing team, this horse and these three men. They worked miracles and in the depths of the Depression that seemed to go on and on, they gave people something to feel good about." Chris and Anita Lowe, benefactors of this event, think he's amazing, and Chris said, "There have been countless famous racehorses throughout the ages from all over the world. But few if any have captured the imagination and inspired an entire nation as Seabiscuit." Ridgewood Ranch is an endangered national treasure, so it was an important, special movement this summer to get his statue unveiled and recognized!
Well, right now, there is a gelding who is trying to run down Cigar and Citation's 16 straight races records. Got Country Grip was born in 2003 and lives in Oklahoma where he just won his 14th race in a row. In 2005, he won the Speedhorse Sprint Futurity, and he is just explosive at 350 to 400 yards! He is owned by Linda Fox! His relatives include Dash for Cash, Bold Ruler, Sky Jet, Go Man Go, and his dad and mom are Country Quick Dash and Got a Grip! I just love those names! He and Hailee share Moon Deck and Top Deck. His owner got him for a trade, and when he first saddled him, Got Country Grip jumped clear out of a 7' round pen, he's just that macho. Anyway, I am sort of bummed because he's as cute as a button, as well as the speediest and best paint racer ever. I think he and Hailee could have made the most wonderful children! You can read, hear, and see more about him at the following links!
At the first day of fair, we saw this young girl washing her show cow. She and her baby cow, her calf, were having a bit of a squabble about where he should stand. She kept hauling him around and being bossy. And he would just swing his soon-to-be big ol' rear end around and get in her way. But they managed to get him cleaned up and ready for the ring!
On Thursday, at the fair, we got a bucket of french fries and a mountain of curly fries, and some lemonade, and sat in the grandstands to watch the trotter racing. The horses were beautiful and they had a nice winners circle. Local businesses financed the races and also the blankets for the winning horses. We joked about how we liked the blankets with the phone numbers for the businesses.
We have had 11 Triple Crown winners in our American history:
