SNOWMAN-The $80 Champion

 In 1956, a riding instructor by the name of Harry de Leyer from Long Island, New York went to a horse auction in search of a school horse. He was late (Maybe the traffic in New York was terrible at that time, too!) and the only horses remaining were those being loaded on the truck bound for the slaughter house. One horse caught his eye, a skinny, gray, Amish-bred plow horse. He took a chance and bought him for $80.

De Leyer knew horses and horsemanship. He fattened up the gelding, and started using him to teach riding lessons. The horse had been born in 1948, bred by Amish farmers, and was a mix between various breeds including draft horses...making him an original American warm blood! I don't know why he was sent to auction at just the age of eight. However, the horse had tremendous jumping talent that was only discovered by de Leyer after he sold the horse to a neighbor and Snowman kept jumping over fences to get back home.

De Leyer started training him to be a show jumper and started winning prestigious shows just two years after being saved from slaughter. Snowman went on to be the United States Open Jumper Champion in 1958 and 1959. He would jump anything...even another horse:

Snowman had such a wonderful temperament that he even won the leadline class and the open jumper class in the same show. For those who don't know, the leadline class is for children under 7 who show their equitation skills at a walk and a trot while their horse is being led and controlled  by an older child or adult. It is amazing that Snowman was so calm that he could be a leadline horse AND a show jumper. The horse was well-loved by the entire de Leyer family as is evidenced by this picture:

Snowman died in 1974 after having gained the love of those who knew him as well as international fame. He even went on the Johnny Carson show. He has been made into two different styles of Breyer horses and is the subject of a best-selling book and maybe even a movie. He was inducted into the Show Jumping Hall of Fame in 1992.

GREAT REVIEW BY VALLEY EQUESTRIAN NEWS

I am so excited to receive this wonderful review of In The Heart of a Mustang from the editor of Valley Equestrian News out of Minnesota. Other great news is that In the Heart of a Mustang has been selected by the Colorado Authors' League as one of just three finalists for their 2016 Young Adult Book Award! 

Everyone needs loyalty, love, and at times healing.

Lucky is the soul who finds all three

In the Heart of a Mustang.

A synopsis by author M. J. Evans followed by a review by Ley Bouchard, VEN Publisher

A boy is told that his father was a brave and virtuous man, a soldier who traded his life to save the lives of countless others. He was the man that Hunter needed to emulate. The only problem is the whole story is a lie, all of it. The truth, which Hunter discovers as he begins his sophomore year of high school, is that his father has actually spent the boy’s entire life in jail, paying his debt to society, but not mending his ways.

A wild mustang mare is rounded up by the BLM. The spring rains had been sparse, the forage on the plains even more so. The mare and her herd are rescued from certain starvation and placed for adoption. In a sandy corral at Promise Ranch, a home for troubled teenage boys, the boy and the mare meet. A weathered, old cowboy brings them together – a mentor for one, a trainer for the other.

The bond that forms between boy and horse becomes one that saves the lives of both.

Review by Ley Bouchard

      In the Heart of a Mustang, MJ Evans weaves a tale of two souls whose spirits meet and are irrevocably changed! Following the subtle nuances of the relationship, we understand how two animals of different species communicate, learn from one another, and those messages impact the lives of everyone around them.  Horse lovers or even one who has never experienced the love of an animal will find this page-turner unforgettable.

     I found In the Heart of the Mustang educational,  touching, poignant; I experienced complete verisimilitude, often wondering if it is a work of non-fiction.

     There are many lessons to be learned in reading In the Heart of a Mustang and each reader will apply their own significance to each one. I most enjoyed seeing through the eyes of the young protagonist, Hunter, how both characters, a wild mustang and a young boy, are able to interact and learn vitally important life lessons, by spending time together.

     The story of a boy and a horse may be geared to a young reader but is definitely a book for all audiences, horse lovers or not.  I found the reading sagacious, clever, and informing.

     I believe In the Heart of a Mustang to be a very important book.  Many people may wonder how places like Promise Ranch or Dakota Boys Ranch benefit people or youth. And it’s a hard thing to explain how working with a horse can be therapeutic. The reader will know and understand this concept upon completion of this fine book by M.J. Evans.

In the Heart of a Mustang may be found at www.dancinghorsepress.com or it is available wherever books are sold.

SPRINTER SACRE - Champion Steeplechaser

Are any of you steeplechase fans? If so, I'm sure you have heard of Sprinter Sacre. This fabulous horse is a dark bay thoroughbred gelding from France. He made his first racing appearance in 2010 at Ascot where he won by a nose. This was over a flat course. His first appearance in a Steeplechase (over jumps) was in December of 2011 at Doncaster and he won by 24 lengths!

Earlier in the month of March, 2016, Sprinter Sacre came back to win the 2016 prestigious running of the Cheltenham festival's Queen Mother race. He was the "come back kid" having won the race in 2013. But then, he spent two years recovering from heart problems. There was great celebration when he returned to the winner's circle!

Two miles galloping over fences can really take its toll as a horse ages. Sprinter Sacre was fouled on April 23, 2006. That makes the bay almost 10. But his owner, Caroline Mould, is still a believer in her horse and hasn't talked about retiring him. His jockey and trainer say he still has the fire in him.

Here is a short video of Sprinter Sacre winning the Queen Mother Race a couple of weeks ago:

 https://youtu.be/SHbZD15zaAQ

About Steeplechases: Generally, a steeplechase is a cross country race (though now they are run on tracks) that includes jumps, though there are some that are called flat races and, as the name suggests, do not include jumps. Steeplechases began in Ireland in the 18th century. It got its name because the horses and riders would race from church steeple to church steeple across country and would jump whatever hedges, rock walls or water ditches that got in their way.

Steeplechases are the most popular in Ireland and Britain. The most famous race is the Grand National held in Liverpool England and made famous for Americans in the movie staring Elizabeth Taylor titled "National Velvet."

There are Steeplechases held in other countries as well, including France, Czech Republic, Australia and the United States.  

Ready to read a wonderful fantasy for horse-lovers:

Read the award-winning THE MIST TRILOGY:

Behind the Mist, Mists of Darkness and The Rising Mist.

Available on its website and wherever books are sold.

www.themisttrilogy.com

CLOUD-WILD MUSTANG OF THE PRYOR MOUNTAINS

As the Pryor Mountains in southern Montana and northern Wyoming catch the clouds so, too, do they catch another cloud...a famous, almost to the level of "super-star," mustang stallion that humans have named Cloud. Cloud is a nineteen year old Pryor Mustang made famous by three documentaries on PBS about him and his herd.

The Pryor Mustangs are genetically related to the horses brought to the Americas by the Spaniards. Wild horses have been running free in the Pryor Mountains since the late 1600's. By the early 1900's they numbered in the thousands. Many were rounded up or killed to make way for grazing of cattle. By 1964, there were only 200 wild horses left. The herd is now protected by the 1971 Wild Free Roaming Horses and Burros Act. This law gave responsibility to maintain the herds to the BLM.

Since that time, the BLM has attempted to improve the mustang's range land through several measures including improving access to water. However, the BLM has set a very low "Optimum Herd Number" of just 120 horses for the Pryor Mountain herd. This necessitates several programs to keep the herd size under control, considering that a wild mustang herd can double in size in just 4 years. The Cloud Foundation, which, like me, supports the use of PZP, a temporary contraceptive, fears the permanent sterilization techniques proposed by some in the BLM. You can read more about The Cloud Foundation here:  http://www.thecloudfoundation.org/

Now, a little about Cloud himself! Cloud is a pale palomino. His unique color saved him from capture by the BLM. Actually, they captured him in one of their round-ups but let him go because of his color.  His life has been documented by film maker Ginger Kathrens. You can watch one of her documentaries here:  https://youtu.be/hJyoqdNChJk  He is quite a super-star. One thing going for him is that his herd lives in an area where the horses are easy to observe and many tourists have come to see the horses in the wild.

Cloud is short and stocky, typical of the Pryor Mountain Mustangs. People who have adopted and trained these mustangs love them for their strength, sure-footedness and their stamina.

In my newest book: In the Heart of a Mustang, I focus on adoption as a great answer for managing the mustang herds as well as the ability horses have to be healers for troubled teens.

 If you are interested in learning more about mustang adoption, go to the BLM website. Click here: http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/whbprogram/adoption_program/schedule.html

Warning: You need to know what you are doing if you want to train any horse...they are big and powerful, not just beautiful! I have trained all three of my horses and have the broken bones to prove it!

In the Heart of a Mustang is available on the website: www.dancinghorsepress.com

or wherever books are sold. It is available in print or Ebook versions

THUNDER AT THE SUPER BOWL

Thunder at Super Bowl 50

I am not a professional sports enthusiast (unless, of course, it is equestrian sports we are talking about!) but I did watch the Super Bowl on February 7 because you really can't live in Denver and say you didn't watch it. Besides, MVP Von Miller lives right across the street from me so I have to support the neighbors.

However, I must say I was really disappointed about two things regarding the television coverage. 1) the cameras didn't focus on Thunder, the Bronco's beautiful mascot, and 2) the Budweiser commercial wasn't about the Clydesdales!

So, I decided to make up for that by writing this blog post about Thunder.

Thunder is the stage name for the gray pure-bred Arabian gelding that is the mascot for the Denver Bronco's football team. The beautiful horse leads the team onto the field at each home game and gallops the field after a touchdown. There have actually been three horses that have been the mascot over the years since the first one made his appearance in 1993. All three have been owned by Sharon Magness-Blake, the rags to riches girl from Philadelphia who married the cable magnet and can now afford all the horses she wants.

The first Thunder was a gray stallion and was the mascot at the games from 1993 to 2004. After that he still made public appearances until his death in 2009. Thunder II and the present mascot, Thunder III have been gray geldings. The latter two have been trained by Ann Judge-Wegener who is also his rider at the games.

As the owner of three spirited horses and the past owner of an Arabian, my hat goes off to Ann. She must be an incredible trainer to get her horses to put up with everything going on at a football game! Think of the loud music and cheering crowds, the cheerleaders shaking pom-poms, the jets flying overhead, on and on. Talk about serious de-spooking! I have one horse that spooks if the neighbor's car has changed parking spots! I rode one of my horses in our community parade and it wasn't fun!

Anyway, Thunder is amazing. Thunder III has been to two Super Bowls, 2014 and now 2016. This year, shipping him to Santa Clara from Denver presented some challenges. In 2014, Thunder was flown by Fed Ex to New Jersey. Flying is not an easy thing for horses, as you might guess, so it was decided to trailer Thunder to Super Bowl 2016. However, we had a big snow storm and what should have been a 44 hour drive with a horse trailer ended up taking 4 DAYS when I-80 was closed for a day! The poor horse!

If any of you are non-horse people, you may be wondering why I describe the three Thunders as "gray." You see, there are actually very few truly white horses. A horse who appears white actually has some black hairs on him, making him technically gray. However, as the gray horses age, they actually become lighter and lighter.

SO: HATS OFF TO THE DENVER BRONCOS AND HATS OFF TO THUNDER!

THE BYERLEY TURK

Many of you are probably aware that the wonderful modern thoroughbred is descended from three Arabian horses. One of them was called the Byerley Turk. Now days, the horse racing industry is very picky about recording bloodlines but no one really knows the real bloodlines of the Byerley Turk and if he was a purebred Arabian or not. He was a spoil of war and such a magnificent stallion that, when the British defeated the Turks at the Siege of Buda in 1688, a British captain by the name of Robert Byerley took the horse from a Turkish officer. (I know, I know, that is NOT very nice but war is NOT nice.)

The Byerley Turk continued to serve as a war horse but for the other side! After the war, he was retired and put out to stud. With the lovely mares he was bred to, he produced many great race horses who carried on his bloodlines, whether they were pure or not!

GREAT REVIEW FOR MY NEW NOVEL:

IN THE HEART OF A MUSTANG

The following review is from Author, blogger and horsewoman SHARON MINER. I so appreciate her wonderful evaluation.

The book, In the Heart of a Mustang by MJ Evans, is the type of horse novel I love to read, one with an interesting protagonist, an endearing theme without being preaching, a detailed setting and cast of characters the reader won't forget.

When 15 year-old Hunter learns that his mother has lied to him about his father, he retaliates by running away and making the wrong sort of friends on the street. To avoid trouble with the court, his grandfather suggests they send Hunter to a boy's ranch in Arizona and grandpa will pay for his stay.

Hunter is not impressed with Promise Ranch at first, and especially when he meets the other at-risk boys and staff including the head cowboy, a horse trainer for the wild mustangs that the ranch adopts. But slowly he learns about life lessons, even after a personal tragedy.

This is a fantastic story for everyone, not just horse lovers. It's one of the best coming of age novels I've ever read!

See more of her reviews here: horsebookreviews.blogspot.com

You can get In the Heart of a Mustang on my website: dancinghorsepress.com , on amazon and Barnes and Noble. Print and ebook versions available.

THE TRAIL OF PAINTED CHRISTMAS PONIES

I have a few painted ponies and this is my favorite! With my stories about the noble and great horses who are chosen to become unicorns when they die, this is one I simply had to have! Of course, there is a secret unicorn in every horse...especially yours!

The story of the founding of the Painted Ponies by author Rod Barker is interesting. The author, who lives in Santa Fe, was on a trip to Chicago to do research for a book. While there, he chanced upon an exhibit of painted cows. Everyone know horses are more beautiful than cows so he went home and came up with the idea for "The Trail of Painted Ponies." Many of the first ones were native American in theme, fitting with Santa Fe. But now, there are all sorts of designs. You can even submit your own design by going to this website: http://www.trailofpaintedponies.com/about-us.php

Except for the unicorn garden, I like the Christmas designs best! Here are some pictures of my favorite Christmas designs.

So if you need to start a new collection...

Need a great gift for your middle-grade or young adult reader...or even adults! Go to my website and pick a great book. I will autograph it and mail it to you. Click here: 

www.dancinghorsepress.com