Horses

I’ve been lucky to have had many amazing horses in my life. Two in particular have had a big impact.

Nantucket Bay – aka Nancy – was a 1983 bay mare who lived out her golden years in Upstate New York before passing away in the summer of 2016. She was the last horse I competed seriously with as a young adult, and I cannot say enough about what an incredible little lady she was. Dressage was never her favorite activity, but she lived for trail rides, hunter paces, and cross country. I used to ride her along the road to meet friends, and she would march along happily, totally unfazed by trucks, cars, and bicycles whizzing by inches from her face (in retrospect – I cannot believe my parents let us do that). Completely bombproof and endlessly patient, she was a teacher for me and for other members of Pony Club. She loved apples and taking naps in the sun.

Marley is a 2007 chestnut gelding by Indian Country and out of Bird’s Nest Soup. He was not a very good race horse, and came off the track with a bowed tendon in 2012. After rehabbing a bit with CARMA, he joined the CANTER program in 2013. He  was initially adopted in the summer of 2014, but made his way back to CANTER after his owner encountered some unexpected health issues. I’d had my eye on him for some time, so accidentally on purpose adopted him (whoops!). Marley’s interests include carrots, making friends with barn cats, carrots, trail rides, carrot stretches, and carrots.