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"Candy" was the first horse I remember ever riding, though I'm told that my sister and I used to ride our uncle and aunt's
horse. Candy was a quarter type sorrel mare that lived at the City Union Mission Farm near Warsaw, Missouri in the late
1970's and early 80's. My cousin kept her horse, Prince, a sorrel overo gelding, there. I spent many an afternoon
racing across the fields with Candy and Prince. On our rides, I got to open and close all the gates because Prince was
a good 16 hands, and Candy was a little over 14 hands. Candy loved to run, and once proved to me that she
had a "past". Based on my experience, my guess is that Candy had once been used as a barrel horse! On one of Prince
and Candy's races, we were in the lead, and Prince was catching up on us. I turned to check up on my cousin and
Prince and lost my balance a little bit, by leaned into the right stirrup. The next thing I know is that at a dead
run, we turned a 360 degree circle and kept on running. Prince won that RACE! But I stayed in the saddle, too!
After I'd went to college, Candy turned up pregnant, and died while giving birth, unfortunately the guys at the farm were
not even aware that Candy had some how got bred. She was probably bred by a "gelding" that had not been castrated correctly.
I see some of her spirit in Domino; and I know she inspired my confidence to ride a horse at a lope and run.
| 1985 Minnie HA HA Kem |
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| KEM at age 21 |
I purchased KEM because I wanted to get a foal from her. Unfortunately, I wasn't very successful in that area.
I didn't know if she was even halter broke at the time of purchase. Come to find out she was more than halter broke!
She was a well broke riding horse with more buttons on her side than I'll ever know how to use! Even at 21 years of
age she still would give the ole spin a try! I sold her to a grandfather, who was purchasing her for his grandson
to work with in 4-H in June of 2006.
| Martin and McCoy "OMITYAMITHEREALMCCOY" |
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| The most gentle foal at birth I've ever known! |
| 1999 Shoshone Twist Seeker |
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We purchased Shoshone at an auction from a "man" who said she was broke for anyone to ride. We saw her being rode
in the ring. He was right, if you drugged her!!! After we got her home and the drugs wore off, we met the real Shoshone.
A horse that wanted to trust but just couldn't. She was broke, but had been treated so poorly that she wasn't safe for
me to ride, even after another 30 days of professional training. I'm just not that good of a rider. I did make
a lot of progress with her while I had her. She learned that everyone was NOT out to get her. The farrier COULD
lift her feet without her being mistreated, her ears could be touched without someone twisting them to control her.
She learned to come to a whistle and eat peppermints from our hands. At the time I sold her, she would let you catch
her in the field and touch her anywhere. I was never able to get her bred. If I could have, she'd never left
the place. I loved her dearly, and cried the day I sold her.
Ms. Sue:
Sue was an older Arabian mare that was given to my sister. She showed us how to live as a senior citizen,
and die with dignity and grace.
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