Kentucky 2007: Blenheim's Grave

Here's is Blenheim's gravestone. He is among the many important stallions who lived at Claiborne Farms. He was purchased by the Aga Khan even though he only topped out at 15.3 and was straight in his front pasterns! As a 2 year-old for the Aga Khan, he raced 7: 4-3-0. And then ended his race career with a 10: 5-3-0 record.

As a sire, he was fabulous. He produced Mumtaz Begum the dam of Nasrullah. In 1936, the Aga Khan sold him for $250,000 to the American syndicate headed by A.B. Hancock, Sr. of the wonderful institution, Claiborne Farms. Among his greats, Blenheim sired Whirlaway (1941 Triple Crown Winner), and Jet Pilot (1947 Kentucky Derby winner). In the United States, Blenheim lives through his Nasrullah and Mahmoud lines. And in Europe, he lives through Crepello and Alycidon!

Kentucky 2007: Gallant Fox's Grave

Here is the gravestone of Gallant Fox, the second Triple Crown winner in history. He is the son of Sir Gallahad and Marguerite by Celt. His record was 17: 11-3-2 and $328,165. Among his amazing achievements, he is the only Triple Crown winner to sire another Triple Crown winner -- Omaha (1935).

He is buried at his Claiborne home, along with his mom and dad.

You can see Youtube videos about his Triple Crown win, and his kid's win at the following links:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=BvXXNoyIYRQ
and
http://youtube.com/watch?v=SinMwpXmpjQ

Breaking News! Jockey Club Releases 2006 Breeding Stats

On September 13, 2007, The Jockey Club released information about the 2006 breeding season. The Jockey Club was formed in 1894 to monitor the registry of thoroughbreds like Violet They report that about 90% of the foal report is complete and that over the next few weeks, the remaining foals will be listed within the year deadline of registry. 3,881 stallions covered 63,629 mares in North America, and 36,317 live foals were reported as of September 6th! Kentucky leads the list with 33.7% of mares bred in 2006 and 40.8% in 2007.

Of the 21,455 mares bred to 372 Kentucky stallions in 2006, 14,801 live foals were reported. The fourteen states and provinces which lead the list are
1) Kentucky
2) Florida
3) California
4) Louisiana +12.9%
5) New York
6) Texas
7) New Mexico +17.3%
8) Maryland
9) Ontario
10) Oklahoma
11) Pennsylvania
12) West Virginia
13) Washington
14) Illinois

Notice that Louisiana increased their reported foals by 12.9% over the past year which makes me very happy -- seems like some recovery after Katrina. And I am happy to see an increase in reported foals from New Mexico because that's where Violet's daddy was shipped in 2004 and I would like to believe that he is contributing to that increase!

Now the top stallions of 2007 by live foals are all in Kentucky and here they are:

1) Giant's Causeway, 168
2) Roman Ruler, 155
3) El Corredor, 153
4) Eurosilver, 147
5) Johannesburg, 144
6) Maria's Mon, 142
7) Stormy Atlantic, 141
8) Songandaprayer, 139
9) Afleet Alex, 138
10) Grand Reward, 135

Giant's Causeway is shown in this photo and he is standing at Ashford Stud!
http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/stallion-directory/stallion.aspx?stallion_no=4297000
or
http://www.reines-de-course.com/giant's_causeway.htm

Kentucky 2007: Swale and Round Table's graves

The Claiborne Family Cemetary is truly amazing and a wonderful place to visit. Here are two graves right across from Secretariat's in which Swale and Round Table rest. Round Table was born on April 6, 1954, the exact same day as Bold Ruler. Both horses were truly amazing, both on the track and then in the shed -- so it is truly a miraculous event that they were born on the same farm on the same day!

Anyway, Round Table's record was 66: 43-8-5 and $1,749,869. He earned Horse of the Year, a Handicap Champion award, was grass champion for 3 consecutive years, and an all-time leading money winner when he retired. He was consistent, sound, game, travelled a lot, and very productive for his family. When he was a colt, the Hancock's sold a majority interest in him and managed to save their farm after the death of A.B. Hancock, Sr. What a good boy Round Table was! Anyway, he sired 401 foals and had a 21% stakes winner percentage, just shy of Bold Ruler's 23% rating! He was so famous and so loved that even 5 years after being pensioned from breeding, at a ripe old age, the Queen of England changed her travel plans in 1984 in order to visit him. She wanted to see her relative, since her father had sold Knight's Daughter who was Round Table's dam! He passed away in 1987 at the very nicely old age of 33!

Now, Swale is a sad story. He is Seattle Slew's son and in his short life from 1981-1984, he earned the Champion 3 year-old award, and won both the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes, among others. His final abbreviated record was 14: 9-2-2. He won the Belmont on June 9th, 1984 and passed away of a heart attack on June 17th, 1984 while having a bath! He rests with the greatest!

Kentucky 2007: Secretariat's Grave

Here is Big Red's grave. Such a handsome, powerful, important fella. I was so proud that day to be an American and so glad to be able to say a few words at his grave. The tour guide said that people often leave flowers and gifts for him and that when he passed, so many people left flowers and gifts that they had to ask Penny Chenery, his mom, what to do with them all. That makes me glad.




http://www.tbheritage.com/TurfHallmarks/Graves/cem/GraveMattersClaiborne.html

Secretariat's Sister!

Here she is, Velvet Tenderness, a direct descendant of the amazing Claiborne Farms. She would make her Big Red cousin proud. Barbie took this photo in mid-September, 2007. Violet put on a thoroughbred show of power for us, tooling around her pasture and demonstrating that she is "all that, and a bag of chips!" I know some pretty amazing ladies, both human and equine!

Kentucky 2007: Secretariat's Stall and Pasture!

When I was a child, I always wanted to visit Secretariat. I imagined it as sort of like a pilgrimage to meet that handsome red man. And then when I was in graduate school, I thought I should go. But he passed away in 1989, being euthanised after foundering. So, I felt that visiting his home was bittersweet. I am glad that I went and glad that I met a woman who said that she did see Secretariat when she was a young girl, and that he was proud, snorting, and territorial! Which is not the way I imagined him at all, but it is still awfully nice!

Anyway, here is his stall which he now bequeathed to Eddington. And here is his pasture which he now bequeathed to Pulpit. You can see that several handsome important fellows besides Secretariat lived in that stall!

Kentucky 2007: Claiborne's Seeking the Gold!

Here are some photos of Seeking the Gold, the grand old stallion of Claiborne Farms. His 2007 stud fee was $125,000! He earned $2,307,000 on the track and in 15 starts had 8 wins and 6 places! His dad and mom were Mr. Prospector and Con Game by Buckpasser. One of his children is Jazil whose mom is Better than Honour, the same mom as Rags to Riches who also won the Belmont!

Anyway, Seeking the Gold has had 17 foal crops and 899 foals. Fifteen of his crops are of racing age, and 839 of his children are of racing age. He currently has 63 2 year-olds, 49 yearlings, and 11 weanlings. His yearlings and weanlings sell in the hundreds of thousands of dollars! The tour guide told us a story that because Seeking the Gold has been around the block, he tends to take a long time in the breeding shed. He will often take up to 45 minutes to get "in the mood" as compared to a few fierce seconds. He can cause quite a little traffic jam of mares waiting to be bred. When Barbie and I went home, Tom verified this story, telling about how he had to wait one day outside in the cold with a mare while Seeking the Gold took his sweet old time! Hey, you can't rush making priceless gems!! You take your time, stud!

My girls are related to him in numerous ways, including Case Ace, Nasrullah, Count Fleet, War Admiral, Traffic Court, Sir Gallahad, Blue Larkspur, and Teddy. You can read more about this beautiful elder statesman at the following links, including seeing footage of him in some of his races!
http://www.claibornefarm.com/stallions/seeking-the-gold.shtml
or
http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/stallion-directory/stallion.aspx?stallion_no=1043178
or
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seeking_The_Gold
or
http://www.equineline.com/extendedcontent/tt_content.cfm?StallionRef=1043178&rtype=stats
or
http://youtube.com/watch?v=4RSGq-JfMgc
or
http://youtube.com/watch?v=BlGlhukSBTk
or
http://youtube.com/watch?v=wj47oeisobQ
or
http://youtube.com/watch?v=35pA7AI2Rhk
or
http://youtube.com/watch?v=e8Ki-sx3kTo

Kentucky 2007: Monarchos, Montgomery and Me!

Here is a photo of me and Montgomery, getting a photo with Monarchos and petting this wonderful Kentucky Derby winner! A thrill of a lifetime for this old girl! It was amazing to be at Secretariat's home, standing on ground where he was shown off and preened, and walking the walkway he often took down to the Breeding Shed to work in the same place where he was conceived.

And it was wonderful to be there petting this grand young man!! And, of course, it was the best to share it with Montgomery who like her mother is a great photographer!!

Kentucky 2007: Claiborne's Monarchos

Here is Monarchos standing outside his stallion barn at Claiborne Farm. He was beautiful and sweet -- he preened like a stallion, but also was gentle. The stallion manager let us pet him. And so he is officially the first Kentucky Derby winner I ever petted! I was thrilled.

He was born in 1998 and his record is 10: 4-1-3 and $1,720,830. He won both the Florida Derby and Kentucky Derby, placed in the Wood Memorial, and showed in the Belmont Stakes. His time in the Kentucky Derby was the second fastest in history, behind Secretariat's. He was in 10th place in a pack of 17, but managed to pick off each horse and finally put Congaree behind him at a searing pace! Of his preparatory win in the Florida Derby before the run for the roses, his jockey, Jorge Chavez said, "When I asked him, he just exploded. That was a great feeling, like I was the king."


So far, he has had 5 crops and 261 foals. Three of his crops are of racing age, with 192 foals of racing age.

His mom, Regal Band, died this year at the age of 20 at Rood and Riddle Hospital on April 9. She was suffering from a liver disorder. She was carrying an Empire Maker foal. My girls are related to his family in many ways, including Nearctic, Bimelech, Eight Thirty, War Admiral, Busanda, Bull Dog, Menow, Blue Larkspur, Turn-To, Nasrullah, Gainsborough, Case Ace, Bull Lea, Sir Gallahad, Case Ace, and Discovery.

You can read more about this sexy sweet kind stallion at the following links:
http://www.claibornefarm.com/stallions/monarchos.shtml
or
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarchos
or
http://www.kentuckyderby.com/2005/derby_history/derby_charts/years/2001.html
or
http://www.bloodhorse.com/stallionregister/sr_sire_page.asprefno=4475639&origin=BHonline or
http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/horseracing/preakness/bal-sp.derby06may06,1,3965877.story?coll=bal-sports-preakness&ctrack=1&cset=true
or
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/other_sports/1315147.stm
or
http://www.thoroughbredtimes.com/breeding-news/2007/April/09/Dam-ofMonarchos-dies-at-age-20.aspx
or
http://horseracing.about.com/library/weekly/aa050501a.htm

Kentucky 2007: Claiborne's Pulpit!

Here is a photo of Pulpit, a 1994 stallion standing at stud at Claiborne Farms and right in this photo showing off in Secretariat's old pasture!! Can you believe it? He was so fun to watch. He was standing way far up on a hill under a tree, but when we ladies stepped out of the stallion barn, he cantered playfully down to his water trough and splashed around like the stallion he is! He walked along the fence line to greet us. What was funny is that he seemed so friendly, but when a lady in our group was charmed by him and stepped forward to pet him, he stepped forward so aggressively that everyone could just *tell* that he was waiting to get his licks in! Such a stud! Such a nasty old sexy stud!!!

Anyway, to look at this pot-bellied sex kitten, you would never know that he is truly a living tapestry of good breeding. His relatives are truly the stars in the firmament of the equine world. Here are some of his A-List relatives: his own dad, A.P. Indy by Seattle Slew. He also has Secretariat, Blenheim, Buckpasser, Hail to Reason, Mr. Prospector, Honest Pleasure, Nijinsky, Knight's Daughter (bred by His Royal Majesty and the mom of Round Table, yet another horse in Pulpit's background). And he even has a dash of Busher, lucky ole sexy bastard! So, of course, my own girls are related to this specially bred Claiborne Farms fella. Some of their shared relatives include Princequillo, Count Fleet, Nasrullah, War Admiral, Baby League, Equipoise, Blue Larkspur, and Discovery. His total record was 6: 4-1-0 and $712,200. But his career ended early.

Breaking News! Rags to Riches Injured

This past Saturday, September 15th, Rags to Riches lugged a bit in the homestretch as she placed by half a length behind Lear's Princess in the Gazelle Stakes. She cooled out fine, but the next morning was lame. She was x-rayed and they discovered sadly that she has a hairline fracture in her right front pastern. So, at 10:45am Monday, Rags left her trainer, Tom Pletcher's Belmont Park barn to travel to her dad's, John Magnier's Kentucky farm, the Ashford Stud near Versailles.

She will undergo 6 weeks stall rest and then on November 1st be re-Xrayed to see if she can go into training again and race as a 4 year-old. Some feel that she received this injury in the Belmont when she stumbled out of the gate, but then went on to become the first filly to win in 102 years. Pletcher describes her as a competitive, macho, rambunctious young race horse, and he feels that she will race again. Though he admits that if she were a colt, she would retire now.

When asked when he suspected the injury was evident he replied, "How can you ever know? Sometimes you have horses that have some sort of injury and it never manifests or surfaces until they get into a race situation. No matter what you do training or how much galloping or breezing they do, there's a difference between running as fast as you can and not. But anytime you have a horse take a step like she did out of the gate in the Belmont, you always worry that somewhere down the road it can catch up with you."

Despite this injury and her inability to race in the Breeder's Cup in October, she is a virtual lock for Champion 3 year-old filly of the year. I think she should be the Eclipse Horse of the Year.

But whenever she received the injury, she's been sort of out of commission since the Belmont. She had two fevers, and her exercise rider, Lauren, pulled her up after a brief run recently because she felt "off." She was sent to the Bolton Center, but they could find absolutely nothing wrong with her, so she was put in the Gazelle Stakes.

I certainly hope this wonderful filly recovers well and doesn't drive herself too stir crazy while she's on stall rest! The following links post news about this Ashford Stud, the Kentucky division of Coolmore. Some of the movie Dreamer was filmed at this beautiful facility!
http://www.coolmore.com/stallions/america/
or
http://www.horse-races.net/library/farms06-ashford.htm
or
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashford_Stud
or
http://www.tbheritage.com/TurfHallmarks/Graves/cem/GraveMattersAshford.html
or
http://www.coolmore.com/

Kentucky 2007: Claiborne's During!

Here is a photo of During, standing at stud at Claiborne Farms. He is very closely related to Violet. His dad is Cherokee Run who stands at stud at the Darley Stud. Cherokee Run is the 3/4ths brother of Violet's dad, Groomstick. They share the same dad, Runaway Groom, and then the same granddam on their mom's side -- Dame Francesca. During's dam is Blazing Saddle by Blade. Blade is a stud who is a Bold Ruler -- Nasrullah kid and who also has what Violet has -- the Nasrullah/Princequillo sires of sire/dam crosses that lots of horses related to Secretariat luckily have!
In these photos, you can see that During is all lazy on a cool Kentucky morning and he has to suffer the indignity of showing his racing tattoo on his upper lip! What a cutie pie!

His career record is 22: 6-3-4. He is the #2 Top Earner for his dad, right behind the filly Chilluki and right before Zanjero. At 3, he won the Swaps Stakes, Jerome Handicap, and Discovery Handicap, and took second in the Sir Barton Stakes. At 4, he won the San Fernando Breeders Stakes. So, he knows what it is to stand in the winners circles with his jockey, trainer and loving family. What a good boy. You can read about his sister, Chilukki, at the following link:
http://members.tripod.com/zetties/horseracing.html

Kentucky 2007: Claiborne's Eddington!

So, on the morning Barbie, Gummy and I visited Claiborne, we were in a group of nice ladies -- one lady who married into a Paris, Kentucky family and who had seen Secretariat at Claiborne Farms as a child and who was now bringing a friend for the tour, and two other ladies from Great Britain. We delighted in the lady's story about how territorial and powerful Secretariat was and we enjoyed the Breeding Shed.

Then our tour guide brought us to the Stallion Barn and showed us such important stalls! Bold Ruler and Round Table were born the same day and then as they stood at stud, they shared the same barn. We saw Secretariat's stall which Eddington now calls home. And then our tour guide brought out Eddington himself!! He strolled out all sweet and kind and beautiful and then when he was stood outside, it was like he had hit his mark on a stage. He got all puffy and posey and macho and sexy. He just preened like a peacock, looking all alert and powerful and vigilant. He was Stud Macho!!! You can see it in these photos! No wonder his 2007 breeding fee was $20,000! He is on his dad's Top 10 Runners by Lifetime earnings list in 9th place right behind Grindstone and Unbridled's Song.

So, Eddington was born on March 25, 2001 and his career record is 17: 6-3-6. He earned $1,216,760 on the track, and in 2004 took first in the Calder Derby, 2nd in the Pegasus Handicap, and 3rd in the Wood Memorial, Travers Stakes, Preakness Stakes, and Gotham Stakes. In 2005, he earned 1st in the Pimlico Special and Gulfstream Handicap, and 3rd in the Donn Handicap and Oaklawn Handicap. He was retired on 6/29/05 to stud duty at Claiborne after a soft tissue injury.

He has a dubious achievement as well -- his jockey, Jerry Bailey, is under a cloud. He rode Eddington at a furious pace in the Belmont Stakes and it is unclear whether he was purposefully trying to "use up" Eddington in order to rattle Smarty Jones and spoil his chance for the Triple Crown. We'll never know, but certainly Smarty Jones just blazed in that race, trying to beat the early speed of Eddington and Rock Hard Ten.

And talk about small world among thoroughbreds!! When he ran in the Belmont Stakes, he was beaten by Birdstone who won and whose grandpa is Unbridled!

Anyway, Eddington's dad is Unbridled and so he is related to Mr. Prospector, Buckpasser, and Dr. Fager. Through his mom, Fashion Star, he is related to Danzig and Secretariat. He even has, get this, a Blue Nola filly in his family tree! And, yes, of course, he is related to my girls, through many connections, but here are a few: Wild Risk, Wild Violet, Wood Violet, Count Fleet, Better Self, Bimelech, Princequillo, Nasrullah, Case Ace and Turn-To.

He is a beautiful stallion. I feel blessed to have seen him stand with pride and power.

Kentucky 2007: The Claiborne Breeding Shed!

Okay, so here it is! The Breeding Shed at Claiborne Farms -- our piece of American equine history! The motto of the good people who manage this place is "take care of the horses." And they care about being "practical and solid rather than fancy and showy." A.B. Hancock was from a pillar of equine society in Virginia, but he married into the Kentucky Clay family and began Claiborne Farms, the 2,764 acre facility that shapes our thoroughbred industry.

I will never be able to tell you how important this little black box of a place is! But here's some small statistics to give you an idea. Six of our 11 Triple Crown winners were conceived in this shed! Secretariat was a twinkle in his dad's eye in this shed. The following stallions served in this shed: Nasrullah, Princequillo, Abiorix, Double Jay, Round Table, Bold Ruler, Buckpasser, Forli, Herbager, Hoist the Flag, Secretariat, Nijinsky II, Danzig, and Mr. Prospector! I can't believe that I was standing in the room where Secretariat was made and where he later made Lady's Secret!

What confused me about the facility when we first arrived is that it was just so plain. I kept waiting for the tour guide to say, this is just the holding area, now we'll show you the deluxe shed we have. And the reason I felt that way was because Tom had taken us to a breeding at Hill 'n Dale farm and that place was just swank. The breeding shed was gorgeaus and they had this huge elegant viewing room above the breeding shed. Plus they had this really large area for the veterinarian and other staff and a large room for the washing of the mares and stallion. But Claiborne just has this shed and they use simple paper buckets to wash the horses.

And that's because of their generations of tradition. The shed is a private activity where superstars are conceived. I can hardly believe the great outcomes from such humble beginnings!

Kentucky 2007: Paris and Louie's!

Here are photos taken from my August trip to Paris. In the photo are Tom, Barbie, Montgomery, and Karrington. After our drive past Stoner Creek Stud Farm and Claiborne Farms, we stopped at Louie's restaurant for a great Southern-style lunch. It was fantastic. There are photos of famous horses, trainers, and jockeys hanging everywhere, and since the restaurant is just a stone's throw from Claiborne Farms, Secretariat is featured heavily. This is a local place where the hard-working horsey people come. In the morning, they can come for the Sire's Breakfast Special and you'll see the place filled with grooms, handlers, etc. This place is so famous that around Kentucky Derby time it becomes packed with famous people, including Keanue Reeves who stopped by. You can read more about my favorite Parisian restaurant at the following links:
http://www.louiesrestaurant.net/
or
http://www.courier-journal.com/html/derby2005/derbymag/louies_place.htm
or
http://www.parisky.com/restaurants.html
or
http://www.roadfood.com/Reviews/Overview.aspx?RefID=307

Kentucky 2007: Count Fleet's Stoner Creek Stud Farm!

When I visited Kentucky this past August, Tom took us for a drive through the Paris countryside to see different horse farms, and pastures filled with mares and foals, and fields filled with big beautiful yellowing tobacco leaves. As part of this beautiful afternoon drive, we passed Stoner Creek Stud Farm where Count Fleet lived and is now buried. This fabulous farm was once owned by John D. Hertz and his wife Fannie, but now has become a standardbred breeding operation of international fame.



You wouldn't believe how huge it is. We just drove and drove and drove along this Scottish stone wall and then took a left and drove and drove and drove until we came to these gates. It's an enormous gorgeaus facility. Someday I'd like to take a tour and visit Count Fleet to share a few words. You can read more about this farm at the following link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stoner_Creek_Stud

Kentucky 2007: Silent Classic and My Girls!

Barbie and Tom take care of thoroughbreds who need special care, either for injuries or senior care, for example. And they also engage in rescuing thoroughbreds too. In this photo, you see Silent Classic, a very important mare who travelled from Florida to live at Valentine Hall Farm. She was born in 1986, the year I graduated from college. Her sire is Danzig by Northern Dancer and her dam is Sweetest Chant by Mr. Leader.

She was a winner at 2 and 3, and earned $78,100. She has 11 registered foals, 9 raced, and 6 are winners. Her children include A Man of Class, Classic Boom, Creative Control, Jamies Silent Bid, Lang Pup, One Special Lady, Song of Songs, Very Classy Lady, and the filly in this photo the 2005 Silent Western. Silent Classic has had children in 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, and then 2005. She's been a productive hard-working racer and mother. Of course, she's related to my girls, in many ways, but here are a few: Nearctic, Nearco, Turn-To, Hail to Reason, Eight Thirty, Man 'O War, Whisk Broom, Blenheim, Gay Crusader, and Teddy! Doesn't she look elegant standing all relaxed and royal in her pasture with her other gal pals?!

Kentucky 2007: Thoroughbreds at Valentine Hall Farm

Here are two photos taken at Valentine Hall Farm this August! In the first, is a snapshot of a foaling field where young baby thoroughbreds are hanging with their mommies! In the second photo are "rescue" thoroughbreds, thoroughbreds who Barbie and Tom found in dire circumstances -- one penned in a chicken coop, one in a dangerous junk yard with untended hooves -- you get the point. Anyway, these grand dames are resting and relaxing in a beautiful pasture in Paris, Kentucky. The fortunes of animals depend on the angels of our better natures.

Kentucky 2007: The Hunter Pony Sale at KHP!

Here are photos from the American Hunter Pony Classic Sale on August 15th at the Kentucky Horse Park. This sale was held in conjunction with the 2007 USEF Pony Finals! In the bottom photo, you see a pony who is related to the stud that is the sire of Hailee's foal. We watched the sale of a few ponies by Blue Who (Hailee's foal's sire) and Blue Rain, the sire of Blue Who. The ponies were selling in the $5,700 to $17,000 range with the lower priced one being a very young 2 year-old who is already 14.1 hands -- people were worried about that pony growing taller than the pony height of 14.2 hands. The higher priced ponies were those which were perfectly 3 to 7 years of age and comfortably below 14.2. We bred Hailee who is 14.2 and a 3/4s inch to a 11 hand pony, so we hope to get an athletic, powerful, graceful, agile medium pony with the best of the Welsh and the sweet coolness of Hailee!

Kentucky 2007: Plump Hailee!

Here's my sweet girl. When I first showed up, she wasn't that interested in greeting me. But after awhile, she remembered me and was willing to accept my love. Here she is looking happy and cute. We shared some private words and stories. Look at how she's battered that halter. She has a real passion about being free!! What a smart young girl!

Kentucky 2007: Hailee and Friends

Here are photos of Hailee with her temporary friends before she is released back with the pregnant girls in the back pasture. She is having a snack with Faith, her old pasturemate and friend from Showgate Stables. When they were young girls together, they used to stand face to face and rub their heads and teeth along each other's backs. They would hang out with Hope, Faith's mom.

In the photo below, she's enjoying an early foggy Friday morning after a relieving night of rain that broke the oppressive heat. They are all hanging their heads over the fenceline, hoping that Marty will give them a snack. They are looking for some food and love!

Kentucky 2007: Hailee and me!

Here is a photo that Barbie's eldest daughter, Montgomery, took! Didn't she do a terrific job!? I just love how she caught the glint of the sun off Hailee's brass name tag on her halter!

Kentucky 2007: Hailee is a Broodmare!

I visited Barbie, Tom and the girls August 15th-17th and had a great time. I'll be reporting over the next few weeks about this Kentucky visit. I went down to see the Hunter Pony Sales at the Kentucky Horse Park and also to see my own little broodmare!


Here's Hailee in her pasture looking plump and fit and sleek and happy. I can't believe how lucky I am!

My Beautiful Nieces at the Blackswamp Festival!

Here are my loveliest nieces! Elena brought them to visit on the Saturday of our BlackSwamp Festival. We went to the kids' section and Emma and Clara *loved* it! Emma enjoyed rocking out with a band named Wilson Lake and the Rock Bass singing songs about burned marshmallows, walking in the woods, the King of Speed (a guy who boats fast on the lake), etc. And Emma had a butterfly painted onto her face and made knocking sticks and her fabulous hat! Clara was a wild rocker, jumping up and down in her stroller and getting a balloon. It was a wonderful day!

Thank you for coming to Bowling Green, you dear girls and my dear little sister!