Welcome to the final horse news roundup of summer, everyone. I’m calling this a good thing, because I think early autumn is the best time of year for spending time outdoors. We’ll ignore the fact that it also means winter is looming somewhere on the horizon. Anyway, here’s what you and your friends can talk about during this weekend’s long almost-autumn trail ride.
- New York City hosted its first horse show since the National Horse Show left Madison Square Garden more than a decade ago. The Central Park Horse Show is under way right now, and it kicked off with the Central Park Grand Prix on Thursday night. Hometown hero Georgina Bloomberg won it with her horse Juvina. NBC Sports covered it live. NYC’s local Fox affiliate aired this awkward morning-show piece to promote it beforehand.
- Zebras. There’s a whole article over on OZY about zebra ownership in the U.S. I don’t really get the appeal of owning exotic animals, but I was pretty happy that one time that I met a pet zebra when I was out on a run a year or two ago. Remember that?
- Boston-area Thoroughbred track Suffolk Downs is officially closing its doors. It has been operating in the red for years and hoped hitching its wagon to the Mohegan Sun casino would be its financial savior. But that casino proposal was rejected in favor of one that will be built on the site of a former chemical plant on the Mystic River waterfront. I don’t really get this strategy of pairing up failing racetracks with casinos. Has it ever actually increased the audience for racing? Or is it just that existing racetracks give other forms of gambling a foot in the door in exchange for sharing profits? I just read the Wikipedia entry on racinos, but it left me with unanswered questions. Hey, I’m supposed to be an equine journalist. Maybe I’ll research and write an article about the casino/racetrack thing. Would you read it? Vote yes or no in the comments.
- Does your city have public bridle paths? Mine doesn’t either, and we’re supposed to be the horse capital of the world. Beverly Hills, California had an extensive network of bridle paths in the early to mid 20th century. This article includes several fascinating photos of the trails during their heyday.
Photo: Los Angeles Public Library
- Tattoos for cancer prevention? Apparently it works. An albino horse named Mighty Whitey got some permanent eyeliner courtesy of a local tattoo artist. This will protect his vulnerable skin from harmful solar rays. Props to the steady hand of that tattoo artist.
That’s it for this week. Enjoy your last weekend of summer!
Leslie PotterLeslie Potter is a graduate of William Woods University where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Equestrian Science with a concentration in saddle seat riding and a minor in Journalism/Mass Communications. She is currently a writer and photographer in Lexington, Ky. Potter worked as a barn manager and riding instructor and was a freelance reporter and photographer for the Horsemen's Yankee Pedlar and Saddle Horse Report before moving to Lexington to join Horse Illustrated as Web Editor from 2008 to 2019. Her current equestrian pursuits include being a grown-up lesson kid at an eventing barn and trail riding with her senior Morgan gelding, Snoopy.