From Dawn to Dusk... the journal |
Monday, March 11, 2002 * Cider Scanned this old photo in. Date was probably 1981-82. Color has faded a lot, so I just posted it in black and white. Cider was a beautiful blonde Palomino with an almost white mane and tail. She turned a light golden as she matured, but never really as dark as some. She was a perfect first horse. But she wasn't very tall. If I remember correctly, her adult size was just over 14 hands. This was a problem when daughter was older as B grew tall and her legs were long. So hard as it was, when the time came and her trainer told her she needed a taller horse, we relinquished Cider to another young rider who we hoped would love her as B did, and bought a 2 year old Thoroughbred, Smokey (Against All Odds was his professional name). He was the exact opposite of Cider - tall (17 hands), dark, thin, and nervous. But he and B got along famously. Smokey was high-strung, but was quite good with B's calm quiet nuturing. Trainers weren't as kind and had a harder time with him. But they (Smokey and B) accomplished what they set out to do - which was enjoy each other and the shows. And this horse could jump! ... not always with finesse (which was part of his problem with harsh trainers). But by god, he could jump! We never had the money nor the ambition to go to the big shows, but we did enjoy the little ones closer in. It was a wonderful experience for all of us. Now that B is married and has a daughter of her own, she's already thinking about getting her a horse one day... Rian (I'll look around here for a photo of Smokey to post) |
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