Meet the Horses 2023

Draken - At 31 Draken has done it all and pretty much seen it all. You can read about his championships, appearance at the World Equestrian Games 2010, and other youthful adventures at DrivingDraken.Blogspot.com. Draken has been largely retired since 2010 but is always game for line driving and being fussed over.

Buckman - Draken's pasture mate is in his mid-teens and is an experience riding horse.  He is a slow walker at home but get him off the farm and he moves right along.  Buckman likes a quiet, attentive handler, his ears tell you his thoughts on things. He prefers to meet people on his terms and is equally conservative in his choice of treats.  Buckman line drives but has not yet transitioned to a wheeled vehicle. My pictures of Buckman are typically through his ears as he primarily my riding horse.

Trick and Treat - Joyce Haak is the primary driver of Trick and Treat, minis that she purchased on Halloween 2008.  The 'boys' do it all - they have done parades, pleasure shows, driving trials, and in-hand shows.  Joyce drove them to championships in 2012 at the Saratoga Driving Trial and the Susquehanna Valley Whips and Wheels Driving Trial. They are 32-inch blue roans, as blue roans they change color year-round so you'll see pictures of them with really white coats in July to really dark coats in winter.

Jackson - Jackson is a 15-year-old registered Appaloosa who Joyce purchased in the fall of 2022.  He has a little bit of experience with everything.  We started him in harness this winter.

Reinsmanship Classes

Heads up that DeVries Nature Conservancy and Carriage Museum will be hosting two reinsmanship classes. They're essentially the same class but because the class size is smaller they are allowing it to be offered on two dates. Details are here.

Learn about reinsmanship in this two-hour class with carriage expert Kathleen Haak!

Reinsmanship is communicating with your driving horse through your voice, reins, and whip. Various reinsmanship stations will be set up with reinboards, allowing you the opportunity to try different types of rein materials and rein handling systems. We will also play some games to enhance your whip handling skills. Improving your reinsmanship skills will set you up for success in any type of driving you choose to do, whether in the show ring, on the trail, or out plowing the field.

*Please Note: the 12/17 and 1/7 reinsmanship classes are the same. You are welcome to sign up for one or both.

About Kathleen:
Kathleen Haak drives singles and pairs along with the occasional tandem and four-in-hand, winning several championships along the way. In 2013 she achieved her Level 2 Driving Proficiency with the Carriage Association of America. Her driving related articles have appeared in The Whip, The Carriage Journal, and Carriage Driving. www.KathleenHaak.com

Harness and Carriage Classes

 Mid-Michigan drivers! DeVries Nature Center and Carriage Museum in Owosso, MI is hosting a two-part series on carriage driving. The first is on November 5th and will cover harness. The second is on November 19th and will cover carriages. Information is available here.

Viking Inspired Equine Snowshoes

In August 2019 the Secrets of the Ice Facebook page shared a new find from the Lendbreen Glacer in Norway. You can read about their finds in Antiquity, Volume 94, Issue 374. American Farriers Journal reported: "The snowshoe, which traditionally were made with a ring of juniper. as well as withe that were made from the twisted root shoots of birch. The shoe would have been attached to the foot with a fastener made from withe — a tough, flexible root shoot from a birch tree. The withe was not found with the snowshoe. Researchers will study it further to determine the materials that were used."

.

Viking Era Equine Snowshoe - from Secrets of the Ice Facebook page

Attempt 1

Our first try using common grapevine, iris leaves and some binder twine.

Sadly this attempt fell apart rather quickly as the grapevine kept popping open.

Attempt 2

This leather, grapevine and iris leaf combination held up much better.  Examples of miniature horse walking in the snowshoe are below.  We thought we might have snow to see how well they worked but we only got frost.  There is always this coming winter.

Snowshoe Test 1

 Snowshoe Test 2

Many thanks to Joyce Haak for her assistance in this Covid-19 project.

The Road to Carriage Town

This is a project that I've been working on for quite some time - how the carriage industry affected Michigan cities and towns. How did the rise of labor unions affect carriage manufacturers? Were safety features being implemented to prevent fires, which were a major issue for the carriage industry? Thus far I've written two articles for The Carriage Journal on the topic and have presented two talks. 

This is a copy of one of the talks. I suggest starting at the 4 minute mark as there are some sound issues prior to that.

Making A Change

It has been a few years since this blog has been active, I'm looking forward to getting it up and running again.  The focus will be less on clinics that I'm doing or putting on and more about actual driving.  At this time I'm experimenting with pre-17th century equestrian activities through the SCA and 18th century to present through the CAA.  I've been particularly interested in doing reverse engineering on some projects including creating a Viking inspired snow shoe for a horse as well as looking into full collars for driving.

Jessica Axelsson Clinic

The Three Rivers Carriage Club is hosting a clinic with Jessica Axelsson on April 23rd.  Need more information?  Visit their site at www.ThreeRiversCarriageClub.com/events

Jessica and her pony competing at Walnut Hill.