Welcome! Here are comments and photos as the urge arises. Everything is backwards; the latest posting is at the top.
2012 january - A rider who shall go nameless (horse named Jinx, lives in Courtice)
Ok riders, listen up. I want you to put your finger in your ear. That's so what I'm going to tell you doesn't go in one ear and out the other. Hahahaha!
Ready? Right, finger in the ear.
See the picture on the left? Do not do this. It makes the Coach laugh so hard it hurts his stomach.
Ok, you can take your finger out of your ear now.
I must say, it brings new meaning to the phrase 'Get out of your tack!'
2012 january - Winnie
Winnie left us on Thursday, January 19th.
He just turned 40 and had been with Sandy for 28 years.
Rest in Peace Big Guy. You were a gentle soul and a wonderful companion.
2011 september - Which one is not like the others?
Yep, the one without the tail. It's Sandy.
Not sure if she's admiring her boots or looking for Magic Mushrooms but there she is, bum up, like a mare in heat.
Gotta talk to that girl.
2011 september - Caught in the Act
Ok, so this is the classic case of 'leaving too early'.
Note how Ringo hasn't even begun to raise his front feet for the 6-inch crossrail? Note, too, how Stefi is all set, weight forward, in the perfect position for when Ringo is in the air? Too bad that she's about a fraction of a second early.
Poor pony!
It's a tribute to Ringo that he finished the jump. His rider deserved to get tossed on this one.
Hope he got an extra apple for his efforts...
2011 - august - cemetery at Niagara on the Lake
Here it is, the ultimate in serenity, a graveyard. Peaceful, eh?
Ok, two questions. First, rollover the image with your mouse. See the sign? Who learned to spell "Welcome" like that??
Second, (and this is what got me thinking when I took the photo) is Dave being welcomed above the grass or below it????
If below, nice perk!
2011 august - Finally, some colour
As you may know, I've been ranting for years over black horses. They simply should either not be allowed or, if we have to have them, be given a light-coloured rinse (Miss Clairol, are you listening? Think of the market!!!). Why? For a photographer they're simply a black hole. There's no colour, nothing! Then, adding insult to injury, riders typically wear black boots, black helmets and black or dark breeches and tops - "cuz they look good; make me look sexy!". Meanwhile the poor photographer has to push Photoshop to extremes to bring some definition to said dark horse and rider so there's at least something to see in the pic. Argh!
Roll over the picure on the left to see the difference that a Clairol rinse makes. Much better!
2011 august - The face of regret
As you can see from the photo on the left, Stefi got left behind on this jump. Mrs B did what she was supposed to do and all she got out of it was a sore mouth. Stefi knew as soon as it happened that she blew it and claims that she was trying to give B as much of the reins as she could.
Uh huh.
Go ahead, roll over the photo with your mouse to see a close-up of her face as she's feeling guilty.
Case closed. Fire up the Taser!
2011 june - Candace and Casey
Styles look familiar? That's Candace on the left jumping June 3rd this year and Casey on the right in June 2010. Sigh, like mother, like daughter...
2011 may - Palgrave - my favourites
2011 may - Casey on TC
Are you constantly bumping into things? Having trouble getting to your destination? Call me; I've got a tip that will help!!
2011 may - Kyle on Nibs
Here's another way to get off a horse. Kyle, already committed to the jump, demonstrates some quick thinking by reaching for the rail. Notice how being tall has its advantages and as you can imagine, if Kyle had missed grabbing the rail things would have gotten a whole lot more painful.
2011 may - Muffy on Lucy
As you can see, at this fence Muffy had an intimate encounter with Newton's First Law of Motion when Lucy applied the brakes and refused the jump.
Yikes, no seatbelt and no airbag!
2011 may - mounting a horse without a mounting block: by TweedleDee and TweedleDumb
So, Sandy's going to get on Winnie without a mounting block. No big deal, Stefi's going to help. Between them they have over 40 years of experience with horses. Right!!!!
First picture: Stefi counts to 3 but lifts at 3.5. Oops!
Second picture: Stefi counts to 3 but Sandy starts to jump up at 2.5. Result, Sandy's sort of on Winnie's back. Well, not really on, more like sprawled; hanging on as the saddle shifts left.
Third picture: Winnie, knowing that he's dealing with two Losers, decides to bail. Smart horse! Now Sandy and Stefi are trying to get Sandy on the horse as he's walking through the gate.
Fourth picture: Sandy finally gets into the saddle. She and Stefi are laughing their heads off. Good thing these two don't change light bulbs!
2011 may - Fay on Gandalf
It's rare that Fay has an awkward moment but here's one. As you can see in the second picture, she gets a bit discombobbled over the jump and has to apply some right body English to counteract her leaning too far to the left.
2011 may - Casey on TC
Here is an impressive sequence. On the top left photo, Casey commits to the jump before TC is ready, shifting her weight just as he slows down.
TC commits to the jump and Casey becomes a passenger BUT, she keeps her balance. Even better, in the top right photo, she loses a stirrup but is still balanced enough to stay on.
In the final picture on the left, TC finishes the jump and Casey's position is even more exaggerated. Throughout, she stayed on. Yea!
2010 september - Jacqui on Nibs
This is one of my favourite pictures. Jacqui Wignall's on Nibs at Blue Star in September 2010.
In the first picture, top left, she loses her right rein.
She gets it back in the middle picture but not where it needs to be.
In the top right she's trying to re-apply pressure on the reins by widening her grip.
This continues in the big picture on the left, providing us with one of the best equestrian pictures I've taken.
Clearly, if there were points for style and originality, she'd have won, hands down - or in this case, up.