O.K. Ms Renee and Ms Martha...I love Neil Diamond....I actually do like those names for the registered name..will have to count letters and see.
Now for my friend Anna, I looked high and low for a rock to throw at you across the ocean but here in Florida we only have sand...so I thought about an orange or grapefruit from one of the trees....nope I decided to make juice instead. Now, I do think you made a good point and perhaps maybe her tail is hindering her from swatting. I am going to cut it to the ground level today. In all honesty the bottom foot is very yellow and not very bridal gown train looking...it should be white. I do think it will look alot better and fuller cut so today you can make a Toast To The Tail
when I chop it.
Renee, thank you for the tail wrapping explanation. This is why w/me its practice what i say and not what I do. I actually worked for Larry ( u.s. team captain ) and mike Poulin and traveled to Japan for 10 days w/them and a morgan horse named Kennebec Count. As a groom, spent counless hours, braiding and wrapping tails. We actually used 2 socks ( 1 we cut 2 holes in ) and pulled tail directly tru making it straighter and easier to put the rest of the tail in the bag....works/worked much better than the store bought bags which I have and do use here on occasion. Back then my role models and idols were my bosses who were very picky w/their horses and I think thats where my obsession with hating untrimmed fetlocks,whiskers,bridle paths,and general grooming come in.
I will try to find an article on Kennebec Count, I love driving and I rode and drove this stallion many times prior to taking the driving world by surprise. I lived in his barn for 2 years just this beautiful stallion in Maine that went on to be a world class athelete. He ended up being a model horse for Breyer and won, I believe 2 world titles for combined driving w/his brother another stallion....yet the owner Margret Gardner was very old fashioned and also used him to haul children around on sleds and I can remember 1 time she used him to haul her firewood...in this beat up old logging harness. I will try to find some info on Count...he was an amazing stallion...but not like the morgans of today....he was a thick working horse first and foremost...Ms. Gardner was a very heavy set woman and thought the original morgans were much better at working and lugging people around...she always hated the pencil morgans of today and bred for the horses she enjoyed most.
SETTING THE STANDARD
KENNEBEC COUNT
In the world of Morgan Horses, the name Kennebec Count is synonymous with carriage driving. He stormed upon the scene in the early 80s and changed the discipline forever.
Born in 1970, Kennebec Count was a golden chestnut with a blond mane and tail, bred and raised by Margaret Gardiner of Woolwich, ME. Like his ancestor Justin Morgan, Count learned how to haul logs at an early age. “We used him to remove driftwood from the beach,” says Margaret, “and to haul firewood. A horse that you use for hauling has to have brains, not brute strength.” Soon, Count would put that intellect to work in the burgeoning discipline of carriage driving.
In the early seventies, Margaret hired a young trainer, Larry Poulin. Larry’s first experiences with Count were on the trail. “We entered a 25 mile competitive trail ride. One day, when we were out conditioning, I felt this funny thing beneath me as I was trotting down the trail. I looked down and Count was extending. It was a great feeling!”
When the season for competitive trail ended, Larry tried his hand at driving. “Once we started driving, Count and I really connected. He was very attentive and at the same time a lot of horse. He liked to work and he had a big heart.”
In the late 70s, Larry and Count entered their first driving events. “People couldn’t believe what he could do,” says Larry, “but I was new and made a lot of stupid mistakes. Once I caught on though, we did really well.” Their first major win was in 1980 at the Myopia Carriage Show and from then on, they were unstoppable.
In 1983, Margaret and Larry made the decision to compete in Combined Driving events in the pairs division with Count and his look-alike son, Kennebec Russel. The pair dominated the CDE scene in the 80s, a feat that is particularly impressive given the fact that both Count and his son were stallions. In 1985 they were the first Morgans to claim the title of U.S National Pairs Champions. The same year they were selected for the United States Equestrian Team and traveled to England to compete at the World Combined Driving Competition. “It was wonderful!” exclaims Larry. “Everybody knew the Morgans were there and they wanted to see them. I remember I was in a warm-up just before my go in dressage and Prince Philip came down and asked, ‘are these the Morgans?’ I said, ‘yes, sir, these are the Morgans.’” They had a fantastic go and won the dressage and placed 8th overall out of 45 pairs!
The following year, Count and Russel were once again named the U.S. National Pairs Champions. In 1987, they returned to the World Combined Driving Competition where they won the cones and were second in dressage. Finally, in 1988, when Count was 18, he and his son won their third U.S. title “…and I retired him right there,” proudly states Larry.
When asked what made Count so special, Larry responded, “Even though he stood 15.2 hand, he trotted like a 16.2 hand horse. He was so fluid in his trot, so elegant and he had a wonderful extension. He really set the example and they’re still talking about him. Whenever I go over to Europe and introduce myself, they always mention Count. They couldn’t believe the quality of the work he could do.”
During Count’s later life, he was used at stud and competed in low-level dressage with Margaret who last rode him competitively when she was 78. In May of 2004, the golden chestnut Morgan passed away and is remembered today for his amazing feats and loving personality.
