FLYING CRITTERS

My childhood days.

I was raised on a farm in Rhodesia which is now known as Zimbabwe (Southern Africa). My father bred and trained thoroughbred horses and I can not remember learning to ride a horse.  I spent all my time with the horses either in the stables helping out or riding them. Living far from the nearest town we were pretty self-sufficient growing our own vegetables and eating our own meat, we milked our cows, made our own butter, baked our own bread it was our way of life.  The vets were  not easy to find so we had no choice but to deliver our own babies and do pretty much all of the doctoring not only for the animals but the people too.  My mom was really good at it but she had been a nurse during the WWII.  It was a childhood I would not change - we got up early and stayed outside working and playing all day then came in to shower, eat a good wholesome dinner and go to bed exhausted and happy.

With my dad's help and a great little Arabian pony I was picked to ride on the Rhodesian Equestrian team and although I loved to go to the shows and compete I always wanted to be a jockey.  My Dad let me exercise the racehorses at a very young age and I was hooked.  I loved the speed and the feeling of all that power was like nothing you can describe plus the adrenalin rush was not bad either!  Unfortunately Rhodesia and South Africa forbid girls to ride on their race tracks because of this and the political state of the country I was forced to leave my home in Africa and went to England to pursue a career in thoroughbred horse racing.

ENGLAND.

I arrived in England, a 16 year old girl with no idea how to do anything but ride horses so I went to Newmarket which is England's capital of horse racing.  There I served my apprenticeship as a jockey with racehorse trainer Clive Brittian.  Racing there is very different from racing in Africa and United States.  Their horses are in large stables and they all go out down the sidewalks and through the woods and the town to the gallops and then they canter in single file down these dirt paths.  When they are getting ready to race they then take them onto the grass gallops and here they time them as they gallop up hill.  To watch literally thousands of horses stream onto the gallops in the mornings is like nothing you will ever see or imagine.  We had around 200 horses in our stable all trained by one man.  Each of us looked after (groomed and rode) two to three horses, which we would also travel around the country with when it came time for them to race.  This system has been in place for hundreds of years and the knowledge has been passed down through generations of horsemen. I really learned a lot as I had a great respect for what they knew and it all came so natural to them.  They treated animals like their fathers before them, the good ones had an enormous amount of patience and were so kind and gentle, yet firm and strong.  You can not get this kind of experience and knowledge anywhere else in the world and it has served me well through the years.

But there came a time that I realized I had got as far as I was going in England and it was time to move on and find my place in the world.  I could not go back "home" as there was no home for me to go back to.  My parents were forced to give up the farm by the new government in what was now Zimbabwe and they had moved to England.  So I decided to come to America.

AMERICA

Knowing I could make a better living in "the land of opportunity" I came to the United States and worked on the eastern race tracks (Belmont, Saratoga, Aqueduct, New Jersey, Hialeah, Gulfstream, Calder to name a few). I galloped horses for some really good trainers and also worked as an assistant trainer for a couple of them.  I enjoyed riding the horses that other riders did not like to ride and developed a reputation for getting on any horse so I free lanced for a while which was fun.  We finished work at around 9 a.m. which gave me time to get another job so I found work with the veterinarians on the track.  I was like a sponge and learned from these vets who's knowledge and experience with lameness, metabolics and keeping a horse "in the game" is unmatched.  The hours were long but it was well worth it. 

I was now a single parent and settled down in South Florida still galloping horses in the morning and working for a small animal vet in the afternoon.  I became an American citizen and decided that I needed a steady job with pension, benefits and good pay so I got hired as a police officer by a south Florida agency.  My mother was very surprised and said she thought they were hiring the fox to guard the hen house!"

In 2000 I was contacted by our chief of police who asked if I would be interested in starting a mounted police unit for the department.  One of the trainers from Caulder Racetrack donated an ex-racehorse  who I trained to become my partner.  I  enjoyed my job very much and learned a lot about desensitizing and bomb proofing horses.  In all the years I have spent with horses I have never had a bond with on like I did with my equine partner.  This experience I would not trade for anything in the world!

I retired in 2004 and now I spend my time riding and conditioning my endurance horses  who I compete in Florida, Georgia and Alabama.  I love to take them camping and get to experience new people and places.  We go places only our GPS's can find us and see things that most people can only imagine or see on the Discovery channel. 

Recently I have started Fox Hunting and really love it!  I hope to get more people to come and join the fun we have.  Not only do you get to ride over beautiful country and watch the hounds work with each other and the hunt master you get to meet new people and hear their stories.  Fox Hunting is very social and our hunt encourages everyone to come out and join in.


But my passion is working with young horses using the "old school" methods of ground breaking in long lines before attempting to back them. I love the fact you get a clean slate and can build on it.  I also take in horses that riders are having trouble with and work on their issues so hopefully they can go home and be part of their family as a well behaved horse.  I Use the knowledge I have picked up in a life time of working with horses and some of the most experienced horse people in the business. I truly enjoy passing my knowledge on to other riders, helping them and their equine partners reach their full potential.