Been pretty busy actually. A four day work conference down in Lewiston Idaho, about 200 miles each way, from the 14th to the 17th. Found diesel on the reservation on the way down to Lewiston for $3.99 a gallon! Wish they were closer! Our '04 Chevy crew cab diesel got right at 19 MPG. Not many gas trucks of that size can do that!
Then last weekend Mike and Brenda were to come visit but had to cancel due to Mike's job. So we spent the day Saturday the 20th at the Sandpoint Draft Horse and Mule show. Boy did that bring back memories!!
Most of the readers of this probably didn't know that when we lived in California we had up to 9 horses once, usually 4 or so. We had two draft horses over the years, and in the show season of 2000, we'd been the "crew" for our farrier Larry Roberts, his wife, and their team of 6 Percheron draft horses. Stacy loves horses like I like sports cars, motorcycles and flying.
That summer we followed and were the team of "Diamond R Percheron's". And with our fifth wheel trailer and daughter Laura, we traveled to the Draft Horse shows in San Diego, Ventura, Grass Valley, and ended at the L.A. County Fair in Pomona. It was an interesting summer! I only got my foot stepped on once that summer. Only a minor fracture! But again these are 1200 pound or more horses. As the 'help' we mainly did all the grunt work like pooper scooper, several times a day, feeders and waterers, helped with hitching and we were security when the 'public' came around the stalls before and after shows. But while they all slept in the stalls near their horses, we had our beds and showers and hot meals in our trailer!
The only things, other than my fractured foot, that we got out of it were the memories and Laura got to drive and won a ribbon in a class for beginning drivers with Larry's wife. We learned a lot about the time and expense needed just for a chance of getting a fraction of it back in placing in a show. The show harness, all shiny patent leather and chrome, averaged about $2,000 PER horse, remember 6 in this team. $8,000 for a new show wagon, $3,000 for a one horse cart which was also used for some classes. I don't remember the cost anymore of the 12 lead lines, 2 per horse and they did show all six, but yards of leather for the lead horses. And a LOT of hay for 6 giant horses!
The big shows had the classes for 6 up or 8 up hitches towards the end of the show schedules. Very impressive to see and although probably a somewhat common sight a hundred years ago, when you got three to six teams confined to an area the size of a show ring, pretty dangerous!
They are very long! And the front horses are not really tied in like the other 4 in a 6 hitch. But the big problems occurred because for a show the horses had to be "hot" which meant pumped up on sugary oats to keep them on edge. Now remember, these are all giant horses. If they get upset and decide to do something, they might not be stopped! We saw it happen a few times that year with Larry's as well as others horses and teams. Just never had a video camera around with me when those events happened. And then, back in the fall of 2005, while we were on a trip to our now home, we were called one night because Laura had been told that Larry had been killed in a motorcycle accident on September 7th while on his way back from a clients house. It was really sad. In his 'wild and crazy' youth among other things, Larry had been a motorcycle road racer. Many years later his wife had finally given the go ahead and he'd gotten a fast road racy kind of bike. He'd had it several months but died when he came to a corner too fast and hit a power pole because he couldn't negotiate the turn. Killed on impact at 45 years old.
But after not being at a show in 8 years and being back to this one was like we'd just done it last year. It still is so impressive to feel the power of the animals through the ground as they go by.
We'd never been able to see a show like we could this one since we were always busy, and we'd never seen Mules in 4 abreast, or in 6 hitch teams. Stacy just liked being around big horses again. She started getting ideas about these smaller imported draft horses called Norwegian Fjords. Well, maybe next year we'll clear an area for a corral. I've told her that at the rate things are going, it might be good to have a horse and wagon again! Stacy learned to drive horses as well as be a great rider. There's already a guy that has a buggy like you'd see in Amish country and has started to drive it into town once a week. Don't know how he'll do this winter though!
It did start to rain the last hour or so of the show Saturday night, just as predicted, and then rained all day Sunday so I spent a chunk of the day transferring more home VHS tapes to DVD. Still have a lot to do!
I didn't take my good camera to the show because of the predicted rain but I did have my small Vu-Point all in one camera. Not good video but usually good photos, and pocket sized. I took a bunch of pictures with that. Was sure surprised with the shots! I'll post a few in a day or so for you readers to see. Let me say right now, different.
So whats on tap for this weekend? Weather is supposed to be good so we've got to get into firewood mode. We have some dead trees to take down and cut and split. We've already been using the main wood stove because it's been getting into the low 30's at night all week. But we've got to build up our supply for winter. Stacy has been sewing again and I expect she'll be working on her projects too.
Well there's our update! Type later, Tad
Then last weekend Mike and Brenda were to come visit but had to cancel due to Mike's job. So we spent the day Saturday the 20th at the Sandpoint Draft Horse and Mule show. Boy did that bring back memories!!
Most of the readers of this probably didn't know that when we lived in California we had up to 9 horses once, usually 4 or so. We had two draft horses over the years, and in the show season of 2000, we'd been the "crew" for our farrier Larry Roberts, his wife, and their team of 6 Percheron draft horses. Stacy loves horses like I like sports cars, motorcycles and flying.
That summer we followed and were the team of "Diamond R Percheron's". And with our fifth wheel trailer and daughter Laura, we traveled to the Draft Horse shows in San Diego, Ventura, Grass Valley, and ended at the L.A. County Fair in Pomona. It was an interesting summer! I only got my foot stepped on once that summer. Only a minor fracture! But again these are 1200 pound or more horses. As the 'help' we mainly did all the grunt work like pooper scooper, several times a day, feeders and waterers, helped with hitching and we were security when the 'public' came around the stalls before and after shows. But while they all slept in the stalls near their horses, we had our beds and showers and hot meals in our trailer!
The only things, other than my fractured foot, that we got out of it were the memories and Laura got to drive and won a ribbon in a class for beginning drivers with Larry's wife. We learned a lot about the time and expense needed just for a chance of getting a fraction of it back in placing in a show. The show harness, all shiny patent leather and chrome, averaged about $2,000 PER horse, remember 6 in this team. $8,000 for a new show wagon, $3,000 for a one horse cart which was also used for some classes. I don't remember the cost anymore of the 12 lead lines, 2 per horse and they did show all six, but yards of leather for the lead horses. And a LOT of hay for 6 giant horses!
The big shows had the classes for 6 up or 8 up hitches towards the end of the show schedules. Very impressive to see and although probably a somewhat common sight a hundred years ago, when you got three to six teams confined to an area the size of a show ring, pretty dangerous!
They are very long! And the front horses are not really tied in like the other 4 in a 6 hitch. But the big problems occurred because for a show the horses had to be "hot" which meant pumped up on sugary oats to keep them on edge. Now remember, these are all giant horses. If they get upset and decide to do something, they might not be stopped! We saw it happen a few times that year with Larry's as well as others horses and teams. Just never had a video camera around with me when those events happened. And then, back in the fall of 2005, while we were on a trip to our now home, we were called one night because Laura had been told that Larry had been killed in a motorcycle accident on September 7th while on his way back from a clients house. It was really sad. In his 'wild and crazy' youth among other things, Larry had been a motorcycle road racer. Many years later his wife had finally given the go ahead and he'd gotten a fast road racy kind of bike. He'd had it several months but died when he came to a corner too fast and hit a power pole because he couldn't negotiate the turn. Killed on impact at 45 years old.
But after not being at a show in 8 years and being back to this one was like we'd just done it last year. It still is so impressive to feel the power of the animals through the ground as they go by.
We'd never been able to see a show like we could this one since we were always busy, and we'd never seen Mules in 4 abreast, or in 6 hitch teams. Stacy just liked being around big horses again. She started getting ideas about these smaller imported draft horses called Norwegian Fjords. Well, maybe next year we'll clear an area for a corral. I've told her that at the rate things are going, it might be good to have a horse and wagon again! Stacy learned to drive horses as well as be a great rider. There's already a guy that has a buggy like you'd see in Amish country and has started to drive it into town once a week. Don't know how he'll do this winter though!
It did start to rain the last hour or so of the show Saturday night, just as predicted, and then rained all day Sunday so I spent a chunk of the day transferring more home VHS tapes to DVD. Still have a lot to do!
I didn't take my good camera to the show because of the predicted rain but I did have my small Vu-Point all in one camera. Not good video but usually good photos, and pocket sized. I took a bunch of pictures with that. Was sure surprised with the shots! I'll post a few in a day or so for you readers to see. Let me say right now, different.
So whats on tap for this weekend? Weather is supposed to be good so we've got to get into firewood mode. We have some dead trees to take down and cut and split. We've already been using the main wood stove because it's been getting into the low 30's at night all week. But we've got to build up our supply for winter. Stacy has been sewing again and I expect she'll be working on her projects too.
Well there's our update! Type later, Tad
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