Two of my favorite subjects are horses and history and I'm always thrilled when I can share something noteworthy that involves both. I especially enjoy hearing details about specific individuals; not just about the events that took place. Often times, all these amazing stories get lost for a long time until someone comes along and rediscovers them again.
I came across some very, very fascinating icons this week. The first was about a little Mongolian mare who became a marine in October of 1952. She was about 14.1 and her favorite past time was drinking beer with her beloved marines. Reckless joined the Marines to carry ammunition to the front lines for the 75mm Recoilless Rifle Platoon of the 5th Marines and she quickly earned the love and respect for all of the Marines that served with her. Lt. Eric Pedersen paid $250 of his own money to a young Korean boy, Kim Huk Moon for her . The only reason Kim sold his beloved horse was so he could buy an artificial leg for his older sister, Chung Soon, who lost her leg in a land mine accident.
You can't help but feel incredible pride after watching this:
The wonderful story behind this mare's memory is that she is getting a monument dedicated to her on July 26, 2013 in Quantico,VA at the National Museum of the Marine Corps. You can read more about the artist, Jocelyn Russell who is creating this fantastic memorial here.
You can follow along on the progress of the statue and get updates on new photos, stories, etc. here on Reckless'official Face Book page. She also has a website here.
The second story comes from a lovely lady I had a chance meeting with in Walmart. How I came to meet her is a great story for another time. In the course of our getting to know each other I learned that her father was in the mounted unit of the Pennsylvania State Police and that he had trained at Hershey. I mentioned to her that we had horses and how much we love them and she mentioned she had some pictures tucked away somewhere. Lo and behold, a few days later, I received an email with some fantastic pictures she had scanned. (I tried to separate them through my photo editor, but after a frustrating round I decided to post them as I had received them in their original form; make sure you scroll through all the way to get the full view of these amazing pictures!) Her email read, "all of the pictures were either taken by him, or have him in them and since he died at the age of 95 a year or two ago, I don't imagine any of the other people in the pictures are still around either. You can always tell him in a line up-he's the tallest one at a generous 6'4"+."
She added, "Dad's name was Carl D. Copenhaver. His horse's name is Shirley. She's a beauty, isn't she? The men all in white are marked 'trick team, 1940'."
She also went on to say that the photos are dated "between 1938-1948. Most of them (were) taken at Hershey, which I think was their headquarters. They used to perform every year at the PA Horse Show. ...(We) went every year for years when I was a kid."
I don't know about you, but I just get chills down my spine looking at these fantastic pictures. During my short time researching the Pennsylvania Mounted Police, I also discovered an interview, given by another gentleman, Harold Trout, who had also served in this unit-it looks like he may have been there a bit earlier than Carl, (1936) but non-the-less, his account is a very interesting read about what influenced him to make the decision to apply for the patrol, how the men were accepted, and the training that they went through. You can read the article here.
I think it just adds even greater respect to all our state police troops in the early days as well as now in our present times. I made friends with a gentleman on Facebook who is a mounted patrol officer in Houston. He is also a wonderful inspiration. He rides his horse bitless and barefoot.
His horse's name is Texan Star; here he is with a co-worker sharing a funny joke...
Patroling the Houston streets....
I will leave you for now with an impressive performance by some very talented police at the International Horse Show in London; check out when they remove their saddles as they are cantering. This gives you an idea of just how skilled these mounted troops really are. It's hard for the average person to also consider the time it takes to train these horses to handle such diverse exercises and surroundings. Remember, they are herd animals; their first instinct is to flee for protection, and it takes an incredible amount of trust and a really strong bond with their partners to allow themselves to be put into these situations which they would normally deem threatening, from extremely loud noises to fire and crowds.
To all these tactical units, past and present, thank you all so much for your outstanding service and dedication. We salute you for your hard work and dedication.
This is a great article for all of those who will be getting their equine partners back into the swing of things after the winter months. Good food for thought and a great refresher! http://www.happy-horse-training.com/how-to-lunge-a-horse.html
We went to a lovely little tack shop in Carlisle where they have saddles on consignment for very reasonable prices. The girls had saved up some money and we decided it was time to see if we could find one to try out and see how it would fit on all or any of our gang. We are a bit spoiled now as the saddles we own appear to fit everyone. The challenge is we have two saddles and if we all want to go riding together we really needed another. While we love riding bareback, we like the security of a saddle on a trail ride. We were really lucky to find two really great fitting ones on Ebay and Craigslist, but recently, our luck hasn't been as good.
The nice thing about this store is they have a 5 day return policy. Two trips later and I suppose I didn't realize just how blessed we were to have bought a used saddle and have it work out, even on just one of our horses. I must admit, I was looking at saddles more for me and how they would look; I wasn't really considering that fitting would even be an issue. I have been spoiled for the entire time I've owned horses because I have always been around folks who have had lots of experience with saddle fitting and had told me right away if what I had would work or not. Now that we are by ourselves, I must admit I haven't much of an idea of what to look for to know if a saddle fits correctly. There's more to it than you think. I figured if it had a medium tree, it would be okay. The first one we picked out was a beautiful Thorowgood that I fell in love with immediately. It was the equivalent of a little black dress for Dancer. With her fancy dressage bridle (and I don't even do dressage, lol!) she would have turned every head. It doesn't matter that the only ones who would have probably ever seen it would have been my daughters, the barn owner who competes in cutting and reining and the rest of the herd Dancer is turned out with. Okay, and I secretly admit that if and when we made the trek to the Gettysburg Battlefield, I wanted her to be drop dead gorgeous when making her debut.
After discovering that the fit was too high and much narrower than it looked, we trudged back to the tack shop, where the owner greeted us cheerfully and listened to our plight. She graciously accepted our return and we proceeded to seek out something else. We ended up with a handsome all purpose saddle which I felt good about because it still had some black in it-remember, the bridle, right? It had a medium tree and I was all set!
We got back to the barn and excitedly pulled off Dancer's blanket, brushed her and placed the saddle on her back. It appeared to fit okay, but looking at where it sat I was concerned about the range of motion ather shoulder. It looked like it might restrict movement. Not that I do much other than walking, trotting and the occasional canter but I was still worried. Because she is the slenderest with a high withered build (Ben and Katie are built like tanks!) I knew in my heart this was not going to work either. After all, I want Dancer to be focused on me, not on how the saddle is pinching her.
I remembered a friend mentioning having her saddle reflocked and that it made all the difference in the world. I briefly considered this before returning the second saddle. The saddle fitter actually comes out to your barn which makes sense-the horse has to be fitted to the saddle, right? Duh, I had so much to learn! I did some checking around and discovered people with this skill (in this area) are few and far between. And yes, they are expensive. But as I discovered over the course of my research, it is much less expensive than purchasing a saddle and is very much worth the investment as like a human, the horse's body is constantly changing. As I was doing my investigating (online of course!) I happened upon a great video explaining the basics of a horse's anatomy and the importance of proper saddle fit:
And if you haven't considered just how important a role your saddle and it's fit plays, this will surely make you think twice. All those issues you are having with your horse could very well come down to this.
Fortunately, the girls had been eyeing a bareback saddle pad for a while at Peggy's place and they talked me into it being a worthwhile purchase. I had seen this type around before and had sort of scoffed at it because it had stirrups. I thought-what is the purpose of that? You may as well have a treeless saddle! Which led me to research if bareback riding is okay for a horse which led to treed vs. treeless saddles. You know how those google searches go-it's like the domino effect!
We have all been doing a lot of bareback riding over the years for lots of reasons, but the most important is the gut feeling that it is much better for the horse than an ill fitting or super heavy saddle and almost just as importantly allows us to improve our seat and balance to be the best riders we can be for our horses. In addition, the pad offers some cushion for the horse's back as opposed to riding with no pad at all. The argument for bareback riding vs. riding in a saddle is primarily the weight distribution. I found a pretty interesting article on newrider.com (a UK website-note all the measurements are British) from which I quote:
"When it comes to scientific research, it's not the results that matter but how they're interpreted and this is especially the case with pressure testing saddles & bottoms. I'm going to throw a little mud in the water now ..... Treeless pressure test: 2 horses; a skinny thoroughbred and a very table topped cob. Same rider, same gaits and same surface used in testing.
The results are the overall averages:
TB weight bearing area - 153sq inches
TB average pressure - 1.6psi
Cob weight bearing area - 182sq inches Cob average pressure - 1.8psi
The treed results we were given for comparison had an average area of 220sq inches and an average pressure of 1.8psi. As you may notice, the treeless gave considerably less area, especially on the TB but the pressure was lower & visa versa for the cob. But both results are within the same bracket as the treed saddle which showed a greater bearing surface. So where is the proof that the larger weight bearing area = better pressure distribution?
There are far more elements that affect pressure readings which shows that weight bearing area is only a very small part of the equation. A 15 stone rider with a saddle that fits him & horse will exert far more psi than a 10 stone rider. Having a saddle that does not allow enough room for movement, will give a higher pressure reading even with the broadest, best weight distributing panels.
Just because a saddle gives a good pressure reading still does not mean its a great fit. If a saddle has been fitted to an atrophied horses shape, it could give a good result because it fits that shape but the atrophy shows it's far from ideal. Mankind has spent far, far longer riding horses bareback or on some form of pad than they have in treed saddles. I see no problem with bareback riding but just as with anything else, it depends on the rider's and horses shape. Pressure on the spine is only going to be a threat to a prominent spined horse but no-one would want to ride that bareback, ouch! There is also a difference riding totally bareback or with a bareback pad which is more beneficial for both concerned.
In the end, it's all down to static vs fluctuating pressures. Our feet have a very small weight bearing area in comparison to our bodies. I know that standing still for any length of time is far worse on my feet, (even in my most comfortable shoes) than moving around for the same period length. Similar principles could be applied to riding whether with or without a saddle."
I also readsomething on yourhorse.co.uk by Janine Burns which I quote here:
"The point of having a tree as part of the saddle is to distribute pressure (in the same way a snow shoe works), hence the results from ....tests. However....The benefit of a Treeless saddle is the flexibility it offers (something not covered in the test) - ask any engineer what they would chose if they had to join two moving objects together (rigid or flexible), hopefully they would chose flexible. Then add in the fact that a lot of horse owners do not take in to account the ever changing shape of their horse (not much of a problem for a Treeless owner but a huge problem for a Treed owner). So, both saddles have an advantage over each other and a disadvantage, and only one of these is covered by the above test.
I am a personal trainer by trade and was a Physical Training Instructor in the military, i know what it is like to do hard physical exercise and i also know what it is like to wear ill fitting kit or the wrong kit...whichever saddle you chose - Treed or Treeless , it needs re-fitting on a regular basis, and if you do extremes of activity with your horse (like hunting) you may need 2 saddles if you are Treed (unlessTreeless of course)."
I think what everyone can take away from this is that it really depends on the horse and the rider and it will depend on many variables like condition and age of a horse, breed, etc. What I have learned is to not discount things that I haven't given an honest chance. And I'm telling you, this bareback pad is really FUN!
I think Dancer enjoys it too-she appears to be more relaxed, her back rounds instead of hollowing out, and she seems to be stretching her neck more; also her head is down. I have started riding her brideless with this pad too and I think she is more responsive! She is licking her lips and sighing contentedly. One cautionary note: I've heard the stirrups canbe very dangerous because the fleece pad can slip. I personally love them but can understand how it could be bad if a foot happens to get caught. As with everything, there is always risk involved. Make sure to check your girth often to prevent any slipping and pay attention to what your horse is telling you and of course, wear a helmet!
The bottom line for me as a horse owner is to do right by them. My motto is and has always been "It's about the horse." Dancer is such a forgiving soul as are all horses and most creatures for that matter. I read somewhere that "horses are very stoic because they are prey animals and need to hide any weakness." The best advice I can give you is to be in tune as much as you possibly can with your equine counterpart and this will help to figure out any problems. Horses are trying to tell you how they feel all the time-it's just a matter of you listening. I suppose until I come into some money I will be riding bareback-I'm not sure having a saddle fitter come out to remedy our second saddle is the answer. Because I would like to hope for the best and ask to have my saddle reflocked. But I think I know deep down that this isn't going to be the right solution either. Sometimes all the reflocking in the world doesn't help some of those inexpensive saddles-how does that saying go? "You can put lipstick on a pig but it's still a pig." There really is no substitute for a good investment in a well made saddle that fits properly. And then I can call the saddle fitter. I suppose it's like anything; cars, houses, you get the idea-everything needs to be adapted eventually. Maybe we can swing it when the kids' braces are paid off? Oh, yeah, I forgot about the college tuition, and my retirement! I suppose it will always be something, lol. Oh well, that pad is working really nice for us right now! What do you think, Dancer?
Dancer and I have been taking it slow these cold winter days. With the numbing weather and often traveling out to the barn twice a day, it has pretty much monopolized any plans for much else; other than making sure the water buckets are filled and ice free and there is plenty of hay for the herd. I often get frustrated with myself because I feel like I should be accomplishing more. But for who? For me? For Dancer? Late at night, when I've had a chance to reflect on the day, I look back and realize it was a good day. I got to spend time with my mare, check on her to make sure she and her buddies are doing fine, and I got to feel her velvet nose against my cheek. I made sure she had a clean stall and a big pile of hay and well, that made her as happy as pie! And I have to remind myself that, like the song goes, "we will never pass this way again." I need to just revel in how it feels to be able to complete the simple act of taking care of my horse-how many people out there have poor health and are unable to step foot outside their doors and may never be able to do so again in their lifetime?
My cousin, Karen, who has had horrible-debilitating-with-extreme-daily-pain juvenile rheumatoid arthritis for almost her entire life said something the other day that really took my breath away and made me think. It went something like this: "Many people complain about the rainy days; but if God told me I could regain use of my legs for just one day, and it was raining that day, I would be so grateful and would spend every minute of it in the rain, full of joy and gratefulness just for the chance to walk."
After I read that, I tried to not be so grumpy when I was dumping water buckets and the water splashed on me, leaving me cold and wet. Big deal, I told myself. I can go home, take a hot bath and change my pants. At least I am here, at the barn, among some of the most wonderful things that make me happiest.
I pray to God as often I can remember to; to make me more aware of my surroundings and I ask Him to help me appreciate all of it as much as I am able. I have been blessed with so much that most people will never have in their lives. I pray to Him to help me not to take it all for granted. I know it can disappear in a heart beat and all I'll be left with is a memory.
In my next breath, I also need to remind myself daily that all I have in this life is His. I only have it because of His incredible grace.
Thank you, Dear Lord for all your blessings. And thank you, cousin Karen for your beautiful spirit.
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