Sunday February 7, 2010

As in indicator of how cold, wet and snowy this winter has been in central Kentucky, today seemed like a mild, enjoyable day to be outdoors.  And it was only 22 degrees–not that mild!  But apparently we’ve gotten used to the cold.  We have a little bit of snow, maybe an inch.  By this afternoon the ground began to thaw just a little bit, putting a thin top coat of mud over the frozen ruts.  The mess was just enough to stick to boots and add to the muck on dogs, horses and farm equipment.  It was a reminder that mud season isn’t too far off!

The horses are all doing great.  There wasn’t a lot of activity today, with the usual suspects acting up and everyone else just hanging out.  Only Swannie, Pops and Ring made a half-hearted effort to show off.  All of them ran or bucked for at least a few strides.  Gramps took his usual afternoon nap, stretched out in the snow– black on white.

We had four people tour this afternoon—from Toronto and Maryland–and we had a great time. We visited most all the stallions around the main part of the farm, including Jade Hunter, Awad, Kiri and Sunshine.  I especially enjoyed myself, I think because between being sick last weekend and the rain of previous Sundays, it felt like I haven’t seen the boys in forever.  Jade Hunter was in his shed, but trotted over when he saw the bucket.  Bull inthe Heather now resides across from Jade and he was actually pretty clean, for a nearly-white horse in the mud!  One of the women was interested to learn that gray horses are born dark and turn gray with age—a factoid that often fascinates people.  Ogygian was waiting at the fence for us, and Dan came right over as well.  Flick was more interested in his hay and completely ignored us.  Gulch ignored us as well.  He hasn’t been at the farm long enough to learn about the bucket brigade, but once spring rolls around he’ll figure it out. 

Commentator made sure he came over both for the start and end of the tour, being the double-dipper that he is.  He got the last handful of carrots and was looking for more.  I watched him walk along his fence line today, nibbling the icy snow off the top board.  The horses have water in their automatic waterers all the time, so I guess he just likes snow! 

Today was my first chance to meet our newest stallion, Academy Award.  He is a son of the great Secretariat, and looks rather like him, except in miniature!   Even though I knew Academy Award is a little guy, I was surprised to see just how small he is. He can’t be much over 14 hands.  And I can’t tell you much more than that, since I mostly saw him curled up in the straw sleeping today.  I guess he isn’t a big fan of Wallenda, who is in the stall next door.  I heard the two of them huffing and puffing at one another this morning. But by the time I wandered on down to his stall, he was again curled up in his straw -with his back to the door, ignoring everyone.  I’m thinking maybe he is a bit of a curmudgeon!  He did get up once, for the tour and some carrots.  He sure is cute.  And if he is, in fact, a little curmudgeonly then I bet he hates it when people say that!

This morning Black Tie Affair received the latest dose of his anti-cancer medication.  He is such a classy horse—he stood quietly while the vet set up his IV line, and except for trying to rub his head on me, he barely moved while the pint or so of drug went into his system.  To me, perhaps because I see him weekly and not every day, the difference in his tumors is noticeable—in a good way.  The veterinarian told me, and I am paraphrasing here, that the drug attaches itself to rapidly reproducing cancer cells and kills them when those cells split.  With luck, Blackie’s tumors will die and then eventually heal.  Knowing Blackie, seeing how calmly and stoically he takes everything in stride, I cross my fingers and wish a wish every time I see him.  I took off his blanket today and spent some time brushing him.  He is shedding and by the time I finished, my black sweat shirt looked like a white, fuzzy, hairy sweater.  I had to take a clean brush and brush myself.  It didn’t help all that much, though.

This afternoon our little tour group walked along visiting Kiri and Awad, and across the way at the annex farm Smokey Stover stood by his fence watching us intently.  I figured he wanted some attention, so after the tour left I drove over to the annex to see him.  But I think I was wrong, because he didn’t pay any attention to me.   Or maybe, since I was alone and there wasn’t a whole group of admirers, he just couldn’t be bothered!   It was peaceful and quiet at the annex—there was a hawk sitting on Luke’s paddock fence, just surveying the neighborhood.

We hope you can visit us sometime soon.  In the meantime, thanks for spending this Sunday with Old Friends.

-Val

Sunday January 24, 2010

I am almost positively sure it has rained every Sunday for the past two months in central Kentucky. Except perhaps for the couple of frigid Sundays when it snowed, we have been completely waterlogged every weekend in recent memory.  Today continued the damp trend, with rain falling virtually non-stop all day.  Paddocks are wet and soggy—walking around feels like stepping on saturated sponges.  Ponds are overflowing and water is running across roadways, making driving a bit hazardous.

At Old Friends, the horses each handle this weather differently.   I was sure Dan and Flick were going to slide right through the fence, as they were running and bucking like two big kids on a slip-n-slide.  If they aren’t sore tomorrow it’ll be a miracle.  I wonder if Commentator raced well in wet weather, because he was happy as can be today.  Completely covered in thick, slippery mud, he came at a run for his mints.  He looked like he was having some kind of mud wrap body spa treatment!  No way was I patting him, either—there was no clean part of him to touch.   At one point I heard pounding hooves from farther back on the farm–in the rain and low clouds, the sound echoed until you couldn’t really tell where it came from.  

The older guys were less enthusiastic about the rain–not unhappy, mind you–just more sensible.  Clever Allemont was cozied up in his run-in shed, with barely a whisker to be seen.  Gulch could care less about the weather—he was out grazing like it was a bright, sunny day.  Swannie stood in the middle of his field, looking wet and bedraggled, taking a nap.  Fortunate Prospect came over for carrots, his long shaggy coat dripping on top but wondrously dry when I burrowed my fingers underneath.  Of course, if Gramps is getting carrots, Proper Reality is right across the way, waiting for his share as well.  Even Will’s Way bowed to the rain and went into his shed.  I’ve seen Will stand behind, in front of, and next to his shed.  I don’t think I have ever seen him actually go inside it!

The dogs seemed happy enough in the rain.  Shane and Jake actually laid down in the grass, pretty much impervious to the wet.  Marley ran around in the mud, following me from horse to horse.  Only Duncan, who was confined to the back seat of Janet’s car, was fairly dry.

We had one tour today, a mother and daughter team who met in Lexington for a visit before heading back to their respective cities.  Of course the hardest downpour occurred while they were here. They especially wanted to meet Clever, but no way, no how was he coming out of his shed!  We mostly visited with Norty, Wallenda and Black Tie Affair, inside and out of the weather.  

I spend a lot of time talking about our more well-known residents; in large part this is because so many people remember their racing careers and ask about them.  Still, Old Friends is home to any number of lesser-known horses.  Among our newer residents is a young stallion named Gasconade.  He is a beautiful son of War Chant who was injured on the track and recently retired as a result.  Since he is on stall rest until his leg heals, he is dry and mud-free—a real bonus of late!  I spent some time with him today, running a brush over him and just enjoying his company.  He is a nice, friendly horse who loves attention, with a beautiful reddish bay coat and a pretty face.  Probably no one has ever heard of him—he won a few dollars less than $60,000 in his 13 race career.  So many times people talk about how “hyper” Thoroughbreds are.  But here is a 6 year old stallion, stall-bound for weeks now, and he is easy to be around, sensible, and kind.  There are so many ex-racehorses like him, who with TLC would make someone a terrific friend.  They all deserve homes.

I have to finish with another note from Summerwind Farm across the road.  Since it is baby horse season, a couple of us Old Friends volunteers went over to see a brand new arrival, less than 24 hours old.  He was all wobbly and sleepy, and adorable.  I also met their broodmare Fleet Indian, a really grand racehorse who was Eclipse Champion Older Mare in 2006.   Like so many of the great race horses, she barely deigned to acknowledge the human peon, finally accepting a mint and a pat from me.   

But the surprise treat at Summerwind today was meeting Ziggy the Zebra.  In addition to breeding racehorses, Summerwind is an animal rehabilitation facility and Ziggy is a permanent resident.  He lives in a large field with three donkeys.  He is clearly a character!  Apparently, he bites, he kicks, and in general acts like the non-domesticated wild animal he is.  Nevertheless, despite his nature, Ziggy does like some things about humans.  Specifically, he likes carrots, vanilla wafers, and we discovered today, peppermints. So, I was able to get up close and personal, giving Ziggy two mints—striped candy for the striped horse.  Zebras definitely appeal to the kid in all of us!  And as cool as I thought it was, Tim Ford had even more fun.  He was able to sneak a couple pats to Ziggy’s nose before the teeth came out.  He must have told me ten times that he “patted a zebra!”  Way to go, Tim!

Despite the weather, it was a fun albeit damp, day at Old Friends.  We are eagerly anticipating spring and the gearing up of tour season.  There are so many new horses, and old favorites, to visit!  We hope you will come to see us soon.  In the meantime, thanks for spending this Sunday with Old Friends.

-Val

Sunday January 17, 2010

After a long couple weeks of unusually cold weather in central Kentucky, this week the weather took a turn for the better.  Temperatures slowly moderated all week, culminating in the low 50s yesterday and….gray, damp, unrelenting rain today.   While it was still in the 40s, today was no one’s idea of a picture pretty day!

Not that the horses mind, of course.  There was plenty of mud to entertain everyone, and compared to the previously frigid temperatures, the rain felt nearly warm.  Okay, I am greatly exaggerating, but the horses did seem very happy.  I, however, didn’t relish the idea of walking around in a January rain.

We had a large tour bus visit this morning, about 50 folks from Nebraska.  It was pouring at the time, so no one wanted to be outside.  Luckily, there are four (well, maybe three, as I’ll explain) horses in the main barn who loved the company.  Michael introduced Black Tie Affair, who ate his carrots and then nearly knocked Michael over when he didn’t get refills quickly enough.   When the first shove drew loud laughter, Blackie tried the same trick twice more.  You think he was playing to the crowd?  Oh yeah.

After Blackie, I introduced the crowd to Gulch.  Gulch checked everyone out and was in no way intimidated by 50 Cornhuskers.  He took it all in, eating his carrots and a couple mints with his ears pricked, wondering what all the fuss was about.  I am really looking forward to spring tour season because he is going to love the attention.   Yet another ham, because apparently we specialize in them!

And then we get to the horse that could care less about company.  Wallenda was napping–need I say more?  He had his back to us and didn’t even move an ear.  I tried; I did. I even went into his stall and attempted to roust him.  Nope.  Nothing.   Finally, finally, when most of the group had moved on to Tim and The Wicked North, he reluctantly got up and came over.  He had some carrots, took a drink of water and turned his back on us again.  This is a horse who loves his routine, and it was naptime, darn it.  We disrupted him.

Thankfully, Norty was happy to be patted and admired.  Even covered in mud, everyone remarked on his beauty. There is something about Norty; he looks so smart and dignified I guess. People always notice, and I watch people try to put it into words and end up saying just that he’s beautiful.  But really it’s something more than that.  He has such presence.

A couple of horses have switched paddocks, not that you’d necessarily notice, given the amount of mud covering everyone.  Fortunate Prospect moved back in his original paddock behind the office a couple weeks ago.  This week, Bull moved to the large paddock behind Ogygian (one of the prettiest stallion paddocks on the farm to my thinking; Williamstown has the other).  Gulch is in Bull’s old paddock, next to Commentator during the day and Norty at night.   

Commentator was running around screaming all morning—between the warmer weather, the bus full of visitors and the neighborhood changes, he was all wound up.  I kind of hate to say it, but Tator is like a spoiled child—he fully expects to be the center of attention all the time.  Considering that he hasn’t yet gone through a full busy summer tour season, I can’t imagine what he’ll be like with 100 or more visitors every day.   Maybe that is why he was such a good racehorse—his competitive nature makes him want to be the first and best at everything, even eating treats and greeting people!  But he came at a run for his mints today, and he looks great underneath all that mud.  He is such a large, exuberant personality–he demands that you notice and interact with him.  

I saw my first baby of 2010 today, as Tim and I ran across the road to Summerwind Farm to see a week-old grandson of Jade Hunter.  He was adorable as only baby horses are– bright chestnut with a white face.  After a little nap he got up, had some milk and then nibbled on some of his mom’s hay.  I look forward to seeing him grow up and race someday.

Well, that is my rain-shortened report for today.  I can’t wait for kinder weather, and here in central Kentucky we’ll start to notice early signs of spring in February.  We have so many wonderful horses to introduce people to:  famous ones like Gulch and Commentator, as well as not so famous ones like Leave Seattle, Mighty Mecke, and Malibu Mix.  We hope you will be able to visit us soon.  In the meantime, thanks for spending this Sunday with Old Friends.

-Val

Sunday January 10, 2010

Taking a week off from the blog–be back next weekend, maybe with some wintertime photos from the farm if the weather cooperates and the sun shines!  In the meantime, stay warm and have a great week. 

-Val

Sunday January 3, 2010

There is cold, and then there is cold!  The frigid air covering much of the central part of the country has settled into central Kentucky as well.  You’d think the horses would be cold—I surely was—but they were all happily munching hay or napping.   When I arrived at the farm in today’s brisk 10-degree morning, Dan was laying down in the sunshine having a nap, as was Escaped.  Commentator was standing and napping in the sun across from Bull.  Proper Reality must love the cold because he was alternating between enthusiastically bouncing around and standing at attention, as he watched the farm tractor putter down the driveway.  Black Tie Affair wears a nice cozy blanket, as do a couple of newer horses who don’t have thick winter coats.  But for the most part, the horses were nowhere near as cold as the people.

If you read my post from a couple days ago, you know that we gelded two horses this past week.  My pal Lukas, who normally comes right over when I call, wanted no part of me this morning.  He clearly let me know he did not forgive me for being part of his surgery.  He picked up his head when I called, then very deliberately turned his butt to me.  Boy, do they let us know how they feel!   Luke made his point, and this afternoon before I left the farm I stopped to see him again.  This time he came over and nuzzled me.  So, I guess we’re good.

One of the things that always amazes me is how new horses pair off and become friends.  When Smokey Stover arrived, we paired him with Benburb.  They are BFFs now, the black horse and the white one.  More recently, Seek Gold and a horse named W.C. Jones paired up.  The two of them stood down by the main road today, watching traffic go by. They seemed quite entertained.  Although maybe the mares across the road at Summerwind had something to do with it!  Our newest pairing is Tour of the Cat and a gelding named Malibu Mix.  They began sharing a paddock this week and they are already pals. 

And let me just say this:  on a farm full of pretty horses, Smokey Stover is among the most stunning.  He was standing at the fence today, with his neck arched and the wind blowing his tail, as he snorted at Luke.  You just have to stop and stare.  

Wallenda and Gulch are still side-by-side in the big barn.  I brushed Wallenda, as usual, and Gulch peered at us between the boards in the stall.  So I went in to run the brush over Gulch, and Wallenda kept a close eye on things between the same gap in the boards.  I suppose it is human nature to look for similarities between father and son, and since Wallenda is my boy, I am inclined find those comparisons.  Wallenda has Gulch’s wide, short, fuzzy, ears and their heads are much the same shape.   Both horses eat peppermints the same way—they kind of suck on them for a bit before crunching them up.  Now, I’m pretty sure peppermint-eating styles are not hereditary, but it was interesting nonetheless!

We are settling into what is predicted to be a long, cold week.  In this kind of weather, there is something wonderful about burrowing your fingers into a long winter coat to feel the horse’s body heat, or having a horse nuzzle your cold face with his warm breath.   Old Friends is open for tours all year, including during the winter.  We hope you can visit us soon.  In the meantime, thanks for spending this Sunday with Old Friends.

-Val

Thursday December 31, 2009

At the beginning of a new decade, life at Old Friends goes on.  I suppose the horses don’t know the difference, although they are all a year older.  Fortunate Prospect turns 29—and that is hard to believe when you see how good he looks.  Black and fuzzy, he is only a little sway backed; you don’t notice his gray face until you are up close.  Gramps moved back to his old paddock just behind the office and I think he likes it.  He promptly laid down for a long nap in the sunshine, only flicking an ear when Kent walked right over to him.

As you know, Thoroughbreds officially turn one year older on January 1.  Lots of carrots are handed out on the big birthday!  Tomorrow, Bonnie’s Poker turns 28, as does Clever Allemont.  Ogygian will be 27 and Polish Navy, 26.  Sunshine Forever, Glitterman, Jade Hunter, and Proper Reality will turn 25.  It’s hard to believe, when I watch Sunshine run hard and fast across his paddock, or see Glitterman prance along his fenceline because his neighbor horses are annoying him.

The big news, of course, is that Gulch arrived at Old Friends just before Christmas. Gulch won over three million dollars and an Eclipse award as Champion Sprinter. He also sired Kentucky Derby and Belmont winner Thunder Gulch and more recent millionaires The Cliff’s Edge and Court Vision. 

Prior to being pensioned and arriving at Old Friends, Gulch stood at stud at Lane’s End Farm in Lexington. Lane’s End felt that Gulch would thrive with all the attention at Old Friends, and his outgoing personality would endear him to our visitors.  It’s the well-known horses like Gulch and Commentator that allow us to introduce people to the less famous horses at the farm. People who come to visit the horse they know invariably leave in love with a horse they never heard of!

At Old Friends, Gulch’s stall is right next to his other millionaire son Wallenda, making them our first father-son combo.  Wallenda is bigger and blacker, Gulch smaller and redder.  Yet the two of them share their big, bright eyes and a fine sense of fun.  Both come right over to say hello, and both like to have their faces rubbed.  I have no doubt that Gulch is a ham, just like his son!  And now, as Michael reminded me, Old Friends is home to the last surviving members of the Eclipse Class of 1988—Gulch and Sunshine Forever.

As I said, for every horse like Gulch who comes to Old Friends, there are many horses in residence that you may never have heard of.  Two of them, Du Pars (who we call Lukas), and Cherono, were gelded on Wednesday.   I’ve talked about Lukas before—he’s a very friendly, handsome, and likable horse who loves his mints.   Cherono is a beautiful, bay son of Grand Slam (out of an Ogygian mare) who was owned by Ann and Jerry Moss. After a serious leg injury and subsequent rehab, the Mosses donated Cherono to Old Friends.  Both horses handled their surgeries just fine.  Although, as he came out of the anesthesia Luke acted exactly like he’d had way too much to drink.  If he could talk, I think Luke would have asked “Where am I?  What happened?  Why aren’t my legs working properly?”  But after a few minutes his head cleared and he began grazing like nothing (much!) happened.    Now both horses will eventually be able to have pasture buddies, and they will be happier for it.

Dr. Fraley was at the farm today, working on Early Pioneer’s feet.  Dr. Fraley takes care of Bull, Wallenda, and Black Tie Affair and it’s always fascinating to watch him work.   Today’s work was all about making Early’s feet more comfortable, and you can really tell how much the horses appreciate it.  As Early went into his stall for the night, he kind of looked over at Dr. Fraley as if to say “thanks, man.”  

With tremendous amounts of mud everywhere, it makes telling horses apart more difficult.  Swannie?  Completely covered.  Escaped?  Top to bottom mud.  Bull was more brown than white.  Even Dan and Flick, who are completely different colors, were nearly matched.  But nonetheless, mud is apparently just plain fun for the horses.  Pops and Ring were running and sliding around like kids.  Wallenda went outside and promptly rolled until his whole right side was caked.   They were all happy, happy horses!

And so, at the end of this year, thank you to everyone who has had even the smallest part in the success of Old Friends.  We’ve received help of every size—from farms and owners, trainers and jockeys, individuals and companies; right on down to kids who held bake sales and fundraisers.  We couldn’t do this without all of you.  We sure hope you can visit us soon.  In the meantime, thank you for spending this year with Old Friends. 

-Val

Sunday December 27, 2009

Happy New Year to all our Old Friends supporters and fans. I’ll be back later in the week with a full blog entry, including a report on Gulch’s arrival at Old Friends.

-Val

Sunday December 20, 2009

The holiday season is upon us, and on a gray and quiet winter afternoon, it seemed a perfect day to absorb some Old Friends atmosphere.   We have about an inch of snow in central Kentucky, just enough that from afar the paddocks look like they are sprinkled with powdered sugar. (It’s not until you look more closely that you realize how much mud that pretty snow is hiding!)  Snow fell lightly most of the afternoon, adding to the wintry feeling.

For the most part, the horses were either quietly grazing or napping most of the day.   Even Buddy the office cat was uninterested in sneaking outside.  Visitors are less frequent this time of the year, and the lessening of tours has an interesting effect on the horses.  The old timers–the horses who have been through a couple of winters at Old Friends—adjust with a shrug.  They use the slow season to nap, graze on some frozen blades of grass, or just to gaze off into the distance, pondering whatever it is that horses need to ponder. 

 The new boys aren’t quite sure what to make of the downturn.  Escaped looks hopefully at every car that comes up the drive.  Commentator ran over everytime I passed by his paddock, clearly wondering what has happened to his adulation, and his mints.  Clever is among the deep thinkers, standing at the far side of his paddock gazing across the fields.  Gramps won’t bother to come over for just one person, but Jade Hunter didn’t disappoint.  He loves to be patted.  Mecke, Wallace and Blues were running up and down the hill in their paddock, although Pops and Ring were among those who opted for a nap.  Dan and Flick, both completely covered in mud, wandered over to say hi but didn’t seem too upset at the lack of tours.

 Creator loved the snow, running laps around his field with his head and tail up.  Swannie took a few laps as well, although he was somewhat disappointed when his efforts only got him one peppermint.  He banged on the fence and grunted his displeasure, then wandered into his run-in shed out of the snow.  Du Pars was fascinated as Kent fixed a downed board in his paddock, peering over Kent’s shoulder ready to offer his supervisory opinion.   Smokey and Benburb thought about some exercise—they ran maybe four or five strides before realizing they didn’t really want to exert the effort.  They resumed grazing quietly. 

While I would much rather see visitors at the farm, I admit to enjoying the quiet days with the horses.  I patted Black Tie Affair, scratching his neck and face.  Norty was in the barn as well, but he was napping and didn’t want to be bothered.   Even Wallenda let me know he didn’t want company when I interrupted his morning nap.  Of course, later on in the day he was more than happy to have me peel the layers of dried mud off his coat.  

The very first time I ever visited Old Friends was in January. Today reminded me of that cold day, when I first met Fortunate Prospect, Bull inthe Heather, Sunshine Forever, and when I fell for Kiri’s Clown.   If you dress warmly, this is a wonderful time to meet the horses.  We continue to offer tours daily, although at this time of year an appointment is most appreciated!   We hope you can visit us soon.  In the meantime, from everyone at Old Friends, we wish you and yours a most merry holiday season and a wonderful New Year.  Thanks for spending this Sunday with Old Friends. 

-Val

Sunday December 13, 2009

 

Winter, also known as Mud Season, is upon us.  Instead of writing the blog this week, I thought I’d offer up a photo tour of the farm.  As you can see, mud is everywhere—except on Smokey Stover!

All photos are courtesy of my Pittsburgh friend Carolyn Nicastro.  Thank you, Carolyn!  (Scroll over the photos to see the horses’ names.)

-Val

Sunday December 6, 2009

Now that Thanksgiving has passed, I am forced to admit that 2009 is about over.  It is just so hard to believe that another year is nearly gone!   Here we are, in December, and so much has happened this year at Old Friends.  It’s been a year since we lost Flying Pidgeon and Ruhlmann, and I still half expect to see the Pidge hanging out in his field.  Since last December the main farm has expanded twice—once with the addition of the “back 40” acreage, and again last month with the leased property next door.    The New York version of Old Friends welcomed its first residents this past week.  We’ve met so many new horses; some famous like Black Tie Affair, Bonapaw, and Commentator.  Others, like Du Pars and Appygolucky, were far from well-known.  EscapedfromNewYork didn’t even have a name when he arrived.  We’ve been visited by famous jockeys, met owners and trainers, had great fundraisers, and greeted new fans.  And yet, underneath it all, the point remains the same:  providing a home for retired racehorses where fans can visit and meet their heroes. 

We are so fortunate to have so many kind and gentle horses. Last weekend two little boys visited, leading us to take the “nice horses to pat” tour.  The “nice horse” loop is Black Tie Affair, The Wicked North, Clever Allemont, Danthebluegrassman, Fortunate Prospect and Jade Hunter.   For the record, we also have the Canadian loop—our two great Canadian horses Benburb and Thornfield are at the annex farm.  Then we have the “mare and gelding run”—up to the back 40.  The “Eclipse Award tour” takes us to Blackie, Norty, Sunshine and Hidden Lake, and Millionaire Row covers, among others, Blackie, Tator, Wallenda, Sunshine, Awad, Kiri and Will’s Way!   We can also visit offspring and parents of Kentucky Derby winners (Williamstown, Leave Seattle, Bonnie’s Poker, Polish Navy), black horses, gray horses, horses who actually ran in the Derby.  You can see the list of tour possibilities is nearly endless!

Carolyn from Pittsburgh, whose photos I have posted on the blog in the past, came to visit this afternoon.  Our mission was to visit every horse on the farm, and we did.  Even Bonnie came over to visit, enjoying a couple of mints and a face rub.  She looks terrific—fat, shaggy and content.  Hidden Lake, Kudos, Bonapaw, Futural and Affirmed Success  made their way over for mints, as did Regal Sanction and Easy Grades.   I also took Carolyn over to see the new farm, where she met Smokey, Tour of the Cat, Klassy, Bennie and Luke. 

Tour of the Cat has figured out a way to get dirty and stay that way.  He is a kind of active horse and when he is outside he tends to run around until he gets warm and a little sweaty.  Then, when he is good and damp, he rolls in the mud.  The combo of sweat and mud dries to cement-like balls of dirt that are stuck to his long winter hair like, well, concrete.   Only on one side, though, as his left side is nearly pristine!  It’s far too cold for a bath, and Tour doesn’t like the pulling on his coat when you brush him, so I guess he stays dirty until the next rainy day! 

I’ve said it plenty of times but it remains true—the cooler weather makes all the horses more active and energetic.  Awad feels as good as I have ever seen him, running hard and showing off for just about everyone who comes by.  I suspect he can run nearly as fast as when he was younger, since he has managed to pretty much maintain his youthful figure!  This is not true for a few others—while Will loves to run, no one would say he has maintained his “fighting weight.”  The same is true for Kiri and Sunshine. 

The horses rarely miss a trick when treats are involved.  While one may occasionally choose not to come over to visit, every one of them always knows when people are headed their way.  Still, occasionally one of them takes that to a new level.  EscapedfromNewYork lives in the first paddock on the right as you come up the drive to the farm.  He always, and I mean ALWAYS, meets people as they walk up the drive for tours.  Given the lack of socialization in his past, he has come a long way.  And he doesn’t need to see people walking his way to pay attention.  Oh no, he is way ahead of us–he watches for cars to turn onto the access road from the main highway!  He knows if the cars turn right, they are not headed to the farm and he ignores them.  BUT, if the car turns left, it must be coming to Old Friends and he immediately lifts his head to see if the car brings people.  Because, to Escaped, people equal treats!  You can’t tell me horses don’t have their own kind of logic.  Smart.

I promised I’d post a couple photos from Old Friends at Cabin Creek—the Bobby Frankel Division, so here they are.  We hope you can visit us soon, either here in Kentucky or in New York. In the meantime, thanks for spending this Sunday with Old Friends.   –Val