Mystery Bridle

I was reading Susan Bensema Young's blog this weekend about a bridle that she had found on MH$P listing herself as the tackmaker. Susan did not remember having made that bridle, got out her binders where she tracks everything she has made, and confirmed that it was not her work.

As I read that post, and saw who the MH$P vendor had purchased her bridle from, the story was eerily familiar. I, too, had bought a bridle from the same original owner at that same BreyerFest, and it, too, was labeled as having been made by Susan.

I know the original vendor about as well as I know any of my hobby friends - it's all long distance friendships with sporadic meet ups at model shows or events. This friend has always been open and honest with me, and if the bridles she was selling were not by Susan Bensema Young, then I would assume it was an honest mistake. Susan Bensema Young, on her blog, graciously alludes to the same thing - no one is pointing any fingers of blame.

I felt it was important that I verify my own bridle, especially so that, if I ever sell it or pass it on, I can share accurate information about its history. (As the hobby grows, its early history is becoming more and more important.)

So, I contacted Susan, explained the situation, and asked if I could send her photos of my bridle to look at. She agreed, and so I snapped some shots and sent them earlier this morning.

 I had left the bridle in its original package as a means of documentation.

 That blue glow on the bit is just the lighting in my office at this hour of the day.

Susan Bensema Young used the braiding and hardware on the other bridle as a way to determine if the work was hers or that of another tackmaker, so I tried to get shots of that for her.

I cannot imagine creating something so tiny and intricate!

I am very interested in what Susan Bensema Young has to say. If it is her work, hooray! I wanted a sample of her work in my meager collection of tack, and that is why I bought it. If it isn't, I will remove the tag on the bag with Susan's name on it and keep it as part of my tack collection anyway.

After all, it is a very pretty bridle and an example of early hobby tackmaking.

What Constitutes a Horseman?

(Or horsewoman, the term I prefer for myself.)

In the January 25 issue of The Chronicle of the Horse, new columnist Julie Winkel authored the "Between Rounds" column. Her own "horsey credentials" are very good and she is an experienced horsewoman.

But.

Her article came across to me at times as supercilious, condescending  and patronizing. She celebrated her own background of being the daughter of horsey parents and growing up on a ranch where she learned through experience how to care for and ride horses while at the same time taking pot shots at other horsefolk she has encountered.

She wrote about not having the financial means to take professional lessons or to show, but then fussed about big name trainers who went to those shows and won the blue ribbons, calling them "dudes" (she defines that as people who don't know anything about horses or misunderstand them) in the next sentence.

The article had some very good points, but sprinkled throughout were snarky, "better than you are" comments. And frankly, these arrogant remarks made it difficult for me to take her other tidbits about horse care seriously despite those sterling credentials she presented at the end of the article.

I believe that there is always something you can learn, regardless of the field you are in. I am a teacher, I have a Masters degree in Education plus fifteen hours post-Masters studies in Gifted Education. I have published papers in four well-respected education journals (Research in Science Education, Language Arts, Teaching and Teacher Education, and Teaching Children Mathematics.) But I can watch a new teacher who I am mentoring and see things I want to try with my own class.

I'm a mother of six children. I know a lot about parenting, but as I watch my own kids parent their little ones, sometimes I don't know how I would handle certain situations they may be dealing with and am a loss when my own child asks for suggestions.

I am, and always have been, a backyard kind of horsewoman. Unlike Winkel, I did not have horsey parents (despite my father's brief foray into pony ownership in 1936.) My parents supported my horsiness and gave me eight riding lessons, the only formal training I have ever had. (I am not counting the 4-H clinics and training; that certainly contributed to my ability to ride as well as care for my herd over the years.)

All through junior high and high school I managed our horses by myself, rotating pastures, carrying water, grooming, feeding, and learning, learning, learning.  I read Horse and Rider, Practical Horseman, Western Horseman, Equus, and Horse Illustrated avidly.

I learned to drive a trailer and haul horses, how to do basic horse health care, how to tell a good farrier from a bad one, and I even trained one horse under saddle.

Winkel and I have some pretty similar ways as to how we earned that moniker of "horsewoman." And yet, I think she would categorize me as a dude.

The take away for me after reading her article is this: the basic premise or definition of "horsewoman" varies depending on who you are and your perspective. I may be in the "Winkel dude category," but I am comfortable around horses and confident that I can care for my own so that they are happy and healthy. And isn't that the goal, what all true lovers of horses want for the horse?

I am a horsewoman.

A Parent/Teacher Conference Surprise

You never know what might come up during parent/teacher conferences. Usually we discuss a student's academic progress but once in a while I get a surprise from a parent who would like to talk about something else.

Spring, 2004 conferences had one of those conferences.

Craig was at the University of Illinois then, and I was teaching at Yankee Ridge Elementary School in Urbana. My conferences with parents were going well that spring, and next up on my schedule were the parents of a sweet girl, one who I knew was a horse lover like me.

I began our conference as I always do by asking her parents if they had anything, concerns or otherwise, that they wished to discuss.

"Are you going to watch the Olympics this summer?" asked the mother, leaning forward excitedly.

That was NOT what I was expecting to be asked!

I said that I was, and she smiled and said, "Well, we have a family member who made the US Equestrian Team and will be riding in Athens!"

It turns out that my student's cousin was someone whose name was very familiar to me. (I have been a faithful reader of The Chronicle of the Horse for decades.)

It was none other than Chris Kappler on Royal Kaliber!

(Picture pulled from Google Images.)

Well, I TRIED to be professional and steer our conversation back to academics, but I'll admit that that was one conference in which I let my horsey side out. (And in my defense, the parents brought it up and wanted to talk about it! So I'm good, right??)

The rest of that school year my student's family kept me apprised of what Chris and the team were doing as they prepared for the Olympics. I enjoyed having such an unexpected window on the event and anticipated those Olympics probably more than any other before or since.

Royal Kaliber and Chris ended up winning Team Gold and Individual Silver. But... Royal Kaliber also sustained an injury due to the poor footing and needed to be euthanized in October, 2004, never coming back to American soil.

That was shocking and incredibly sad.

Breyer has since immortalized Royal Kaliber as a model in its traditional line.

(Picture pulled from Google Images.)

Of course, I bought it when it came out. It is one of the few models I have that has never been removed from the box. There are mixed emotions when I look at it - it is a reminder of a very happy summer, of a family I knew and a student I taught, but it is also a reminder of the tragedy that took place shortly thereafter.

I keep my Royal Kaliber tucked safely away in my horse room. Maybe some day I will remove it from the box, but for now, I am content knowing that I have the reminder of an exciting summer at my fingertips if I wish.

Puttering with the Ponies

My office/sewing/horse room is often put to use as a bedroom when our kids and their families come for a visit. Rarely do any of my horses get played with or broken by little fingers, but I figured I ought to be proactive since our family is growing (twenty-five members and another on the way.)

So, I did some shopping online, trying to find something that had doors and safety glass that would hold my Hagen Renaker minis and other smaller chinas. (I have a large china hutch in the living room where the large pieces are kept.) I found a couple of good possibilities and put them on my Amazon list.

Craig chose a nice cherry cabinet for my Christmas present  but neither he nor I have had time to set it up in my room. Until this weekend.

 I think it looks really nice. 

I pulled everything off two sets of open shelves and put them on my sewing table. I was going to arrange the models into the new cabinet this afternoon, but decided I would see if Craig could take one more step on installation and secure the back of the cabinet to the wall so that it is not tipped over inadvertently.

But I'm in no rush. Puttering with ponies is very relaxing to me, so I don't mind the wait.

A Collecting Dream Attained!

Most model horse collectors have some elusive pieces that they hope to find and add to their collections some day. I am no exception to that - I may have a large collection, but that doesn't mean there aren't some things I have been looking for for a long time.

I have a real soft spot for circus ponies. I think it's because my father owned a circus pony, O'Boy, as a child. (Go here for a recent post about him.) My sister, Leslie, and I used to pretend we were bareback riders for the circus - we even had little cardboard suitcases we packed with our clothes and pretended to board the circus train to our next destination!

I have many of the Hagen-Renaker circus ponies, and a Donna Chaney mini circus pony resin custom painted as a leopard Appaloosa with red plumes. (I'd love to get a full sized china one, but that is way beyond what I can spend in good conscience.)

Several years ago, I discovered some obscure circus ponies on eBay - the Freeman Leidy ones. I fell in love instantly, but the cost - yikes! And the few that were available were damaged and missing pieces of their ribbons.

Finally I found one that had minor damage and a Make an Offer button. I took a deep breath and put in a very lowball one, expecting that there would be a counter offer. To my surprise, it was accepted without quibble, and I became the owner of my very first Freeman Leidy piece.

I was taken aback when it arrived, expecting a piece about the size of a Breyer classic model. I had no idea that the Freeman Leidys were 11-12 inches tall and very heavy!

But size didn't matter - I fell in love with the piece and crossed my fingers that I might find more.

I found pictures on eBay and other sites of these circus ponies in blue and in purple. There is also a circus coach that goes with them in pink, bue, and purple colors. But the prices were in the hundreds of dollars, and every piece had damage of some sort. (I have learned since that they are very, very fragile, and having been manufactured in the 1940s, fully intact pieces are rare.)

I've kept looking, but they don't come up for sale very often.

Then, two weeks ago, I did an Etsy search on a whim. And up popped two purple ponies and a coach. The seller wanted the same amount as an eBay seller who had two damaged ponies in blue and no coach. Aside from a tiny chip in one tail ribbon, all three of these pieces were mint.

 Head down circus pony in purple.

Figuring I had nothing to lose, I contacted the seller and offered him a significantly lower price on the three pieces. He countered with a very reasonable price, and I accepted and paid right away, pinching myself that I had finally attained one of my most wanted collecting goals.

The box arrived yesterday. Craig texted me at school with this picture:

"It's a major award!" he texted, tongue in cheek. (He really did think I had ordered a lamp.)

The seller did a fantastic packing job - the best I have ever seen, in fact. But still, the plume broke off the head up pony.

I could see why that happened, despite being so well wrapped and protected. The china inside the pony's head is crumbling - it did not take much to break that plume, and most likely the rest of this piece is just as delicate.

I am going to fix it this weekend and then handle it as little as possible.

The coach is hollow and open at the top - I think it may have been intended to be used as a planter.

I have the three pieces displayed in my dining room for the time being. After I fix that plume, I will tuck them into the china display case with my Hagen Renakers, Breyer porcelains, Goebels, Beswicks, and other china horses.

I am so thrilled to finally have these pieces!

Another Super Bowl Connection

I am not a football fan, although I do enjoy the game atmosphere. Craig played football and was All-State for Indiana his senior year, recruited by Notre Dame (but chose to attend Purdue where he was too small for the team), and was recently named to his school's commemorative 100-year team when they selected the best players of the past 100 years and put together a sort of dream team.

Craig's football genes won out over my horsey ones when it came to our kids; all six are huge football fans, while only one is a horsey girl like her mama.

I have tried to learn the game, and even chose two teams to follow: The Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos. (My choices made my family smile and say, "Oh, Mom!")

Our oldest daughter and her family live in the Denver area and avidly follow the Broncos (and the Packers and the Seahawks and...) They took me to the stadium once for an August scrimmage, so I actually have seen the team live and in person.

My classroom colors are orange and blue, too, but actually that is because my college degrees are both from the University of Illinois, a Big Ten team. (If there's anything I will root for avidly myself, it's Illinois basketball! )

But I have another connection to the Denver Broncos - one of  those "who'd have thought" ones.

Denver's mascot horse, Thunder, is ridden by a woman I went to junior high and high school with, Anne Judge-Wegner.

Anne trains Thunder (not the horse's real name) and is a judge and horse trainer, living in Bennett, Colorado.

She is a year younger than me, but we were in choir, band, and drama club together. I remember her as a very nice gal, one who was quiet and even a bit shy.

I actually remember very little of her horsey side. I think that is because, even as a teenager, she was riding in big Arabian breed shows while I was on a backyard Appaloosa mare participating in local fun shows. She and I were both in 4-H together,  though, attending Horse and Pony Club meetings and showing at the local 4-H fair and show every summer.

Our paths haven't crossed since high school, although her family is still here in West Lafayette and her father recently published a book titled The Bronco Girl. 

The book is available on Amazon, but I haven't read it. Anne came back and did some local book signings with her dad when it first came out. I thought about going to one and saying "hello," but had a conflict and could not make it.

I usually don't watch much of the Super Bowl (aside from the Clydesdale commercials...) but I am rooting for Denver in this Sunday's Super Bowl. I am also hoping to catch a glimpse of Anne and Thunder racing across the football field, and hopefully in the winner's celebration.

A Super Bowl Connection to Children's Literature

A big part of my classroom curriculum is classic children's literature - many assignments revolve around classic books or include them in one aspect or another. My students become very adept at spotting what we call "classics connections" in their daily lives and our community. (An example would be the commonly used phrase, "We aren't in Kansas anymore" since it connects to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.)

So, when the teachers were asked to participate in a short movie for the school with our predictions of the score in the upcoming Super Bowl, naturally I chose the Denver Broncos as my team, and made my score a classic connection.

It connects to a book on my top ten list of children's literature, The One Hundred and One Dalmatians. (Don't miss the book - it is FAR better than any of the Disney movies!)

I imagine many in the school will be scratching their heads at my "wild guess" of a score when we show the film tomorrow, but my students will understand and smile when they see it.

(The panther mural in the background is a coincidence - my school is the Hershey Panthers and this is our school mural. I just happened to be standing by it when they came around to film me!)