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TOP STORY

* THEY LOVE HORSES

Continued from Page 1

ses hasn't changed. In fact, there are
probably more horse lovers today
than ever before.
There are approximately 2,311 hor-
ws on the Saanich Peninsula, accord-
ing to the B.C. Ministry of
Agriculture. The total value of horses
‘is $22 million, with buildings and
equipment worth $73 million.

jim Almost 50 per cent of the horse

=|

i

~ owners in the lower-Island area are

involved in racing or showing horses.
This is much higher than the provin-
cial average of 33 per cent. The es-
gtimated $19 million in economic
activity makes the industry a major
contributor to the economy.

In B.C. as a whole, the industry is
valued at $1 billion, with more than
$400 million in economic activity.

Horses are becoming a popular use
of small land holdings. More than
160 full-time jobs are generated from
approximately 315 farms in the area.
. The typical horse owner on the
Saanich Peninsula is female (64 per
cent), between 26 and 45 years of age.
About 46 per cent of the owners have
an annual income between $30,000
and $60,000.

Of horse activities, 28 per cent is

N English showing, while 27 per cent is
_ recreation. Breeding makes up 16 per
( cent while 13 per cent are involved
, qth racing.
yj * The biggest concern limiting
i, growth in the industry is the
\i availability and access to safe places
“to ride. But horse lovers like Joan
y Baker don’t have to worry about

where to ride her mount because she
has her own place in the country. For
Baker, its a farm near Elk Lake
where she rides for pleasure.

“It's my form of relaxation. I find it
very restoring,” she said, adding that
breaking in a horse is what she en-
joys the most.

“It’s something that’s in you... you
can’t put it there.”
If you've just bought a horse, you
won't have trouble finding someone

in Greater Victoria who wil! break it
in, give you riding lessons or board
your horse if you don’t have the space.
And if you don’t have a horse, there
are people who will rent you one for
an afternoon of trail riding.

This is probably the cheapest,
easiest way to go if you like horses,
but can’t afford the time and money
it takes to have your own horse.

For riding lessons, look under
riding academies in the yellow pages.

Judy Cumming of Echo Valley
Farm boards horses and teaches
people riding skills. The average cost
of lessons is $18 an hour.

Owning a horse is popular because
people like the close relationship in-
volved in riding and communicating
with the animal, she said.

Caring for a horse is a big commit-
ment.

“You have to be dedicated because
horses need lots of attention.”

A THOROUGHBRED (leff) casts a watchful eye from a Sandown stable. Jen-
nifer Wick Gop right) has had a horse since she was 12 years old. Muddy
but happy jockey Frank Fuentes (bottom right) smiles after winning on No

Never at Sandown, Saturday.

Photos by CHUCK RUSSELL

Horse prices can range from $1,000
for an ordinary saddle horse to
$100,000 for show jumpers, Cum-
ming said.

Jennifer Wick, manager of Shanks’
Saddlery, joked that “poverty is
owning a horse.” But second-hand
equipment can cut costs in half, she
noted.

Here is the cost breakdown of basic
equipment required to get you going:
rubber boots, $30; breaches, $40; sad-
dle, $400; pads, $35; stirrups, $45;
bridle, $30; bit, $25; girth, $30; irons,
$40; and grooming supplies, $25.

Wearing a hat to protect your head
is a must on the list of equipment,
Wick told This Week. A hat costs

about $50.
Boarding a horse costs ap-

proximately $250 a month. This in-
cludes stall cleaning, regular feeding
and pasture time. Veterinarian care
can run a minimum of $50 a year, and
de-worming costs about $15 every
two months. And don’t forget hoof
care at $25 to $100 a month,

Knowing the horses you work with
is so important, and learning from
them is what makes a good.relation-
ship, according to Bruce Wright of
Tally-Ho Horsedrawn Sightseeing
Co.

“The first thing you learn is that
each horse has an individual per-
sonality; be it in our business, on the
race track or in a field,” Wright said.

For example, one of Wright's 36 hor-
ses, Andy, has the personality of a lap
dog. He is affectionate, willing to
please and easy going.

But one horse called Major is very
dominant and confronts every new

horse that Wright buys. If the new
steed doesn’t back down, a fight en-
sues, with biting and kicking.

Once Major and another horse,
Champ, fought off and on for 24
hours.

“Tt can be very violent,” Wright said.

When all the horses come in for
work, they file in a certain order, with
Major at the front. And no other hor-
ses dare come near him, he said.

‘« hese working horses earn their oats

nd theyre off! The
| spectators, that is.
2 Thoroughbred
: acing at Sandown
| Raceway attracts 2,500
»  horselovers a day duringits
y autumn 13-day event,
_ which sees $2.3 million in
R bets.

\ About 3,000 horses and riders
a are involved in this year’s (Oct.
~ 20 to Nov: 25) sport of kings.
; People love this sport because
| =f the thrill of watching the hor-
ses thunder past at 40 miles per
| hour, according to Derek Todd,
president of the Capital City
Turf Club, which operates San-
down.
The club is made up of six
businessmen who wanted to es-
. tablish the sport of horse racing

in Victoria. The track has been
operating on weekends for 16
years. Todd says there are ap-

proximately 1,500 avid race fans
in Greater Victoria and many
others who attend on a less fre-
quent basis.

But this could all change
depending on a decision by the
B.C. Racing Commission. The
future of live racing at Sandown
park has been shrouded in un-
certainty because of differences
between thoroughbred and
standardbred interests on the
Mainland and the Island.

Vancouver operators want live
racing on the Island to be shut
down in favor of longer Main-
land seasons. This would result
in the Sidney track becoming
nothing more than a simulcast
location for horse racing.

But the Capital City Turf Club
is offering the racing commis-
sion some suggestions on how
racing on the Island can grow.

While the future of profes-
sional horse racing on the Island
may be in doubt, show jumping
is a favorite equestrian event
that is growing in leaps and
bounds. Horse and rider work
together with military precision,
emulating what cavalry horse

and rider had to learn centuries
ago.

Before going into battle, a sol-
dier had to learn how to
manoeuvre his mount in a cer-
tain way. It was a matter of life
and death. The trainingis called
“dressage, an equestrian event
very important in show jumping
competition.

The system is based on the
natural movements of a horse,
combined with the rider’s ability
to coach his mount through
various moves in sequence...
like ballet or tai chi.

Dressage helps show jumpers
like Linda Geddes, who par-
ticipates in several major com-
petitions a year. She uses the
training to practise trots,
canters and extended gaits. It’s
almost as if the horse is waltz-

ing.

Geddes is a real estate agent in
Victoria and the chairperson of
the Vancouver Island Horse
Festival Society. This year’s
Autumn Festival of the Horse
ran from Oct. 7 to 20, involving
farm tours, polo matches,
equine seminars and other

events including dressage.

Jumpers use dressage as a
foundation in “packaging” their
strides and measuring distances
between fences.

“It's art in motion to watch a
jump. Itused tobe gallop and go,
but now it’s more refined. What
happens between fences is just
as important as what happens
at the fences,” Geddes said.

The object of the sport of jump-
ingis to clear all the fences in the
fastest time. Spectators enjoy
the element of danger while
horse and rider take fences up to
five feet high, Geddes pointed
out.

Experienced riders know their
limitations and will not push
their horses into something they
aren't capable of doing.

Because the jumper division
requires more technique and
skill, not many people par-
ticipate, compared with the
hunter division, a more common
event due to its lower obstacles
and longer distances between
them, Geddes said.

Hunters jump over natural

obstacles like hedges, three-foot
fences and small stone walls.
Riders are called hunters,
simulating a hunt, while con-
fronting obstacles.

The most dangerous of
equestrian events is the
steeplechase in England, where
riders push their horses at full
gallop while jumping over huge
hedges. In many cases, riders
fall and horses go end over end,
resulting in injuries.

Bo Mearns, a 45-year-old
hunter-jumper star, has been
riding since she was four. Lucki-
ly, she has only suffered a broken
collar bone and a broken finger
during her years of competition.

“You can miss,” she said, ad-
ding that its a combination of
the horse not being confident
enough and the rider making a
mistake in judgment.

“He has to believe in you when
youre jumping.”

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