Where Do Red Hat Horsewomen Come From?

Long, long ago in a place where nobody locked their doors and horse trainers still mentored kids for free (Valparaiso, IN), I was a horse crazy little girl.  My first outdoor "horse" was a blue Schwinn, middle weight, girl's bicycle.  That "horse" and I rode cowboy style and sped all over town performing rescues and other heroic acts.  About that time my best friend Suzie (whose dad was a "rich" dentist) got a beautiful black and white mare named Lady of Spain.  Suzie showed Lady English flat saddle, Western, bareback, Parade and Costume.  Who knew then that Lady was very special to do all that and tolerate kids, too?  Since Lady was a "show horse in training," I was privileged to muck out her stall, brush her, and lead her around to cool her out after Suzie rode.  That was enough for a while -- though I was dying to ride.  Eventually, Suzie let me sit on Lady's bareback to cool her out.  Little did I know what a good start that was for balance.  I don't know why, but even though Suzie had a real horse she still played stick horses with me.  Our stick horses were special, they had full English bridles with snaffle and curb bits made of hangar wire, and ropes to hang their stick bodies on our shoulders, so we could address our reins and ride properly with two hands.  Our mentor, trainer and rider Marsha Nobel would judge our "horse shows," critiquing our seat, our hands, getting our leads right and posting on the correct diagonal.  We had ribbons and everything. We were VERY serious.  Marsha even wrote an article about our stick horse shows for Horse World magazine.  Suzie eventually got a second horse, a beautiful Saddlebred gelding named Valiant; so she finally let me really ride Lady with a saddle and everything.  We did lots of show ring work and some road riding.  I still wanted a horse.

By the time I was 16, three of my four siblings had grown up and moved out and both my parents were working, so we were a little better off financially.  My parents paid me a generous allowance for cleaning our big house and cooking supper six days a week.  I scoured the papers for a horse. I finally found one for $100 (which was cheap even back then).  I wrote what eventually became "THE LETTER" to my dad; it was a detailed business proposal outlining how and where I would take care of a horse, including board, hay, grain, vet, farrier, tack, time, etc.  My dad, notorious for saying "no," said YES!  My Mother, friend Suzie, mentor Marcia and I went to try out the Mustang-type buckskin gelding "Jody."  He had one speed, gallop, and didn't seem to know what a curb bit and great pulling on the reins meant -- so we bought him, of course.  He was the most beautiful golden color with a pretty head.  He also had a deformed hoof and sidebone, with a dropped hip in the back and an ewe neck.  I didn't care.  He was so "pretty" (aren't rose-colored glasses wonderful?) that I changed his name to Dark Nugget.  I think I rode Nugget every single day for the next two years (sometimes only bareback) from the field to the barn in the most severe weather, but every day.  Nugget may have been the most unlikely horse ever shown flat saddle equitation in 4-H.  Suzie, my younger sister Karen and I became active in the Porter County 4-H Horse and Pony Club.  With our help the club started hosting fun shows at the Fair Grounds in addition to the 4-H Fair Horse and Pony show.  Our club was the first to bring riding horses to stay on the fair grounds through Fair Week.  The first year we had a tent with tie stalls.  No matter, we were happy.  Eventually, a horse barn was added at the Fair Grounds.  My horse show specialty was announcing.  I loved watching the judge or ring steward for signals to "walk, trot, canter, reverse, line-up," announcing winners, calling for the next class and making general announcements on the loud “PA”.  An older sister who lived only a block away said she was always happy when the LOUD horse shows were OVER! Sadly, when I graduated from high school we sold Nugget and I left home for school.  When my dad died, 40 years later, we found "THE LETTER" carefully preserved among his personal things.  I still have it.

Like many Red Hats and Purple Chaps members, I went through a horseless time while I got married, had three children and kept many pets -- dogs, cats, parakeets, canaries, fish, hamsters, guinea pigs...  None of these pets quite satisfied me.  So, in 1978 we bought our first family horse and moved to our current 2-acre "farm-ette" in the country.  Appropriately, the little bay mare was dubbed "Suzie," after my almost-sister horse friend from childhood. Bill and I have kept one to three horses ever since:  grade, AQHA, Arab, Welsh, Appaloosa, and now the Morgan, and Mustang.  As the kids passed through 4-H and grew up it became apparent that the horses were mine, not theirs.  Bill and I now have two horses, Champ, a chestnut Morgan gelding "with attitude," and Moon, a little grulla Bureau of Land Management Mustang mare.  Champ is more horse than I need at this stage in my life and Moon is new and we are just getting acquainted.

Champ is for sale for the right price to someone with more experience and stamina than I; and that is how I happened to meet Cheryl Royer in 2006.  She and her son Kevin came to look at Champ.  He wasn't what they were looking for, but I really enjoyed meeting them.  Cheryl and I talked about Red Hats and Purple Chaps while Kevin "played" with Champ.  Cheryl gave me a directory book, and the rest is sort of history.  My friend Marry Morrow had also mentioned RHPC to me.  RHPC sounded interesting, so I contacted Queen Mum Jane and joined.   I am particularly interested in the workshops and may eventually join in on some trail rides.  Parades are only a maybe for now, since Champ is too reactive for the hubbub and Moon (all though well trained) is new.

Meanwhile I help a little with RHPC club data back-up and also keep busy as a Charter Member of Savvy Sidekicks, a Valparaiso natural horsemanship club. I love going to "The Softer Side of Horsemanship" with Linda Black, Frank Bell's 7-Step Gentle Solutions with Marry Morrow, Parelli Natural Horse*Man*Ship and other workshops.  I've been a convert to natural horsemanship for about four years.

When I am not horsing around, Bill (whom I have kept now for 43 years) and I sing in church choir and spend time with our six grandchildren.  We have traveled to Cape Town SOUTH AFRICA a number of times in the last 14 years to visit our older daughter Michelle, who is a musician and Yoga teacher there. In April of 2007 we are looking forward to Michelle and her two children, Clara (5) and William (4) moving back to the USA to live not far from us in Kokomo (10 miles, 18 minutes).  What a blessing that will be!

When they get settled in, Michelle and I will return as volunteers for EquiVenture Therapeutic Riding, Inc., run by Bonnie Flynn of Russiaville. Our granddaughter Clara has Cerebral Palsy and Epilepsy and seems to love riding the horses.  I lead a horse, Michelle and another volunteer side-walk and Clara gets a back-rider, too.  It takes four people to give Clara a safe ride.  I'm sure that most horse people understand the benefits of Hipotherapy or Therapeutic Riding.  We are so grateful that Equiventure is only a mile from our home and there are scholarships for the riders.  It is heart-warming to see the different children getting so many benefits out of riding.

My last two years have been complicated with cancer and horse injuries. Most recently Champ spooked, I stopped him, I didn't stop ME.  I didn't break a hip or my neck, but went to ER and have had three surgeries since the September 15th, 2006, fall. The third surgery was in January 2007 and I am on the mend and starting to ride again.  I am not fearful, just weak and out of shape.  I am excited about what the Red Hats offer, especially the Indianapolis Police Mounted Patrol Department "desensitizing" work, other clinics, trail rides, moral support and new friends... and maybe parades.

So that is my "About Me":  Wife of 43 years to Bill; Mother to Michelle, Jeff and Karleen; Grandmother of Ashley, Mandy, Katie, Abby, Clara and William; owner of Champ and Moon, budding natural horsewoman and neophyte trainer; active church member and singer; retired documentation specialist; compulsive editor; and occasional spreadsheet Data Princess.  So far (Bill and) I have enjoyed Red Hats and Purple Chaps and plan to continue the relationship.  I finally have my red cowboy hat and red (and navy) cover for my helmet.  Now to find those purple riding pants...

Still horsin' around. s...