Covertside Spring 2016

MASTERS IN AFRICA • HUNTLAND’S HISTORY • THE BEST IN BLOODLINES

THE MAGAZINE OF MOUNTED FOXHUNTING

SPRING 2016 • $5.00

s J o h n C o l e s 2 0 16 s

“A Virginia Horseman Specializing in Virginia Horse Properties�

HiCkorY Tree

HiDDeN TrAiL FArm

The beautifully groomed 325 acres of this thoroughbred horse breeding & training farm rests at the edge of Middleburg. The gently rolling land includes a stately manor home, tenant homes, Confederate Hall, the barns and 6 furlong training track. The Georgian Style Training Barn is stunning and includes 28 stalls and a 1/8 mile indoor training track & paddocks. $10,750,000

Magnificent horse property in the midst of the serene countryside. From the picturesque Young Road two driveways access the 107 acres of Hidden Trail Farm. The first leads to one of the finest indoor arenas surrounded by exquisite ride out. The second is the graceful, park-like drive, which parallels a creek and then gently curves up to the elegant manor home. $6,500,000

greeN gArDeN

meADowgroVe

merrYCHASe

c.1823, with a stunning tree lined entrance, offers one of the grand manor homes in the famed horse country of Upperville and Piedmont Hunt. Recently renovated, the home offers wonderful indoor and outdoor living areas.

Porches, gardens, barns, paddocks, riding arena, pond, pool and magnificent mountain views. $4,200,000

Extraordinary 7 Bedroom estate on over 180 acres.

New Gourmet State of the Art Kitchen & Baths.

Gorgeous full wall of windows overlooking a 10 acre lake. Pool and poolhouse with fireplace, spa and new tennis courts. Ideal for horses with 10 stall stable, paddocks with run-in sheds. $3,950,000

Magnificent 155 Acre Atoka Road Estate with gated entry opening into the private drive lined with mature trees. The charming historic manor home, c. 1827 backs to expansive views of fields and ponds. 4 tenant homes, 3 barns, indoor and outdoor riding arenas.

Gently rolling pasture land with fenced paddocks and fields. $3,250,000

wiNDruSH

ASHLeigH

Magnificent country retreat on 41 acres with incredible privacy & beautiful views. The c. 1850 manor home has been graciously expanded into a 7 bedroom home with separate entertaining venue & two-story office with T-1 capability. Pool, tennis court, gardens, greenhouse, 5 car garage. $3,175,000

The 98 acre estate c.1840, 2 bedroom pool/guest house adjacent to heated pool. 2 bedroom tenant home, 10 stall barn with 1 bedroom apt. and manager's office, additional 4 stall & 3 stall barn. Paddocks, pond, & magnificent gardens. 42 acres of this property are in managed Forestry Land Use. Excellent access to I-66. $2,900,000

HouND HALL

SALem HiLL

LAND

Fox HoLLow

Custom Built stone/stucco 3-story home on 100+ acres with 4 bedrooms plus large master in-law suite with separate parking and entrance. Slate roof,game room, custom theatre, workout room, study, office, dog room, custom kitchen, 4 stone fireplaces. Extensive horse facilities include 18 stall barn,2 stall barn, 14 paddocks, large ring and much more. $5,500,000

51+ acre farm with a beautiful 5 BR home with gourmet kitchen, wine cellar, great views, pool, flagstone terrace and carriage house - extensive horse facilities - 9 stall barn, covered arena, outdoor arena, 7 paddocks, 4 stall shed row barn, machine shed. $2,500,000

oAk THorPe FArm

HOPEWELL ROAD - 82.99 acres with access from either The Plains Road or Hopewell Road. Nice elevation and several options for house sites. All wooded, with amazing view potential. Includes a certification letter for a 5 BR septic system. Property is in Easement and cannot be further subdivided. $1,395,000

4 level traditional brick home beautifully blends with the custom cedar Timberpeg-3 season porches & family room addition. Horse facilities include:4 stall, center aisle barn, run-in shed, 3 fenced paddocks on 10 mostly open acres w/easy access to tremendous ride out. Indoor & outdoor entertaining areas, pool with raised spa. $1,435,000

OLD CARTERS MILL RD - 53+ acres of beautiful, open and gently rolling land with expansive views of the countryside and distant mountains. Located in the coveted Orange County Hunt Territory of Fauquier County, this land provides exceptional ride-out potential. A home-site has been studied including engineers report verifying a site for a 5 Bedroom septic, well and potential pond site. Open space easement, land cannot be divided.

$1,300,000

Beautiful 4 bedroom, 5 bath home on over 50 acres with incredible views in all directions. Perfect for horse enthusiasts or great for enjoying country living. Elegant living spaces perfect for parties. Fencing, convertible barn, water features, lush gardens, covered porches and decks for outdoor entertaining and much more. Old Doinion Hunt Territory. $1,345,000

Offers subject to errors, omissions, change of price or withdrawal without notice. Information contained herein is deemed reliable, but is not so warranted nor is it otherwise guaranteed.

(540) 270-0094 THOMAS AND TALBOT REAL ESTATE (540) 687-6500

Middleburg, Virginia 20118

www.Thomas-Talbot.com

Page 30

Fable ’10 represents a long and storied bloodline.

SPRING 2016 • VOLUME 7, NUMBER 1

Features 18 HUNTLAND

BY CHRISTOPHER OAKFORD

Visit restored Huntland, where past and present meld seamlessly.

26 MANY MASTERS ON THE MARA

BY JONATHAN A.G. AUERBACH

Foxhunters run with the beasts of Kenya.

30 A GIFT THAT KEEPS ON GIVING

BY GLENYE CAIN OAKFORD AND CHRISTOPHER OAKFORD Follow one of the most influential bloodlines in U.S. hunting.

KAREN L. MYERS, KLMIMAGES.COM

IN EACH ISSUE:

8

11

From the President p.2

From the Publisher p.4

MFHA News p.6

Last Run of the Day p.48

THE CLUB What’s new and interesting with our members and clubs.

12

YOUNG ENTRY The winner of the USPC Foxhunting Writing contest.

38

BETTER RIDING The challenges of hunting different terrain

SIDESADDLE RACE RETURNS Share in the excitement of the annual sidesaddle race.

14

THE FIXTURE Successful conservation efforts reap benefits for future foxhunters.

44

FARE AND FLASK Aiken Hounds members truly know the fine art of the feast.

36

THE FIND Must haves for you and your horse

46

LIBRARY Humor, hunting and humility make for pleasurable weekend reading.

ON OUR COVER: Huntsman Richard Roberts of Deep Run Hunt during the pack class at the 2015 Virginia Hound Show in Morven Park. PHOTO BY BILL SIGAFOOS SPRING 2016 | 1

FROM THE PRESIDENT

It’s About Hounds

A

2 | COVERTSIDE

www.mfha.com

OFFICERS

Dr. John R. van Nagell, MFH • President Patrick A. Leahy, MFH • First Vice-President Leslie Crosby, MFH • Second Vice-President Joseph Kent, ex-MFH • Secretary-Treasurer Lt. Col. Dennis J. Foster, ex-MFH • Executive Director

MFHA FOUNDATION

Dr. John R. van Nagell, MFH • Chairman PO Box 363, Millwood, VA 22646 (540) 955-5680

HUNT STAFF BENEFIT FOUNDATION Nancy Stahl, MFH • Chairman PO Box 363, Millwood, VA 22646 (540) 955-5680

COVERTSIDE EDITORIAL BOARD DAVE TRAXLER

s the name of our association implies, hounds are at the center of all we do. The more each of us knows about our hounds, the more enjoyable hunting becomes. We all have the opportunity to develop relationships with our hounds, and every effort we make is rewarded many times over.

Think how much it means when a young hound you have taken on puppy walk has a brilliant day in the field, and after the hunt, comes over to you for your approval.

These days, sport commentators stress the importance of teamwork and communication in most athletic events. It is difficult to imagine a more perfect example of these qualities than a pack of hounds speaking to each other on a line across varied terrain for many miles, and being all on at the end.

We are truly privileged to be able to observe these tremendous athletes in action.

This issue of Covertside is dedicated to hounds and hound shows. One of the strategic goals of the MFHA is to provide support to hound shows and those who work so hard to organize them. Hound shows allow us to compare our hounds to the best from other packs in an atmosphere of friendship and camaraderie. Every effort is made to invite the most knowledgeable judges so that each hound receives a detailed and fair evaluation. Remember the advice of Nigel Peel, renowned judge and Master of the North Cotswold, concerning the importance of practicing with your hounds before bringing them to a show. You may have the best individual in the class, but if he is overwhelmed or frightened, he will not show well, and you will be disappointed. I plan to attend as many hound

MASTERS OF FOXHOUNDS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA

We all have the opportunity to develop relationships with our hounds, and every effort we make is rewarded many times over. shows as possible this spring, and I look forward to seeing you there. It will be a lot of fun, and you may learn something that will enable you to improve your pack.

All the best,

Dr. Jack van Nagell, MFH President, MFHA

Emily Esterson • Editor-in-Chief Dennis J. Foster, ex-MFH Dr. John R. van Nagell, MFH Patrick A. Leahy, MFH Leslie Crosby, MFH

DIRECTORS

Canada • Laurel Byrne, MFH Carolinas • Fred Berry, MFH Central • Arlene Taylor, MFH Great Plains • Dr. Luke Matranga, MFH Maryland-Delaware • Sheila Brown, MFH Midsouth • Orrin Ingram, MFH Midwest • Keith Gray, MFH New England • Dr. Terence Hook, MFH New York-New Jersey • Marion Thorne, MFH Northern Virginia-West Virginia • Tad Zimmerman, MFH Pacific • Terry Paine, MFH Pennsylvania • Sean Cully, MFH Rocky Mountain • Mary Ewing, MFH Southern • Mercer Fearington, MFH Virginia • Bob Ferrer, MFH Western • John P. Dorrier Jr., MFH At Large • Daphne Wood, MFH At Large • Mason H. Lampton, MFH At Large • Dr. G. Marvin Beeman, MFH At Large • Ed Kelly, MFH

COVERTSIDE (ISSN 1547-4216) is published quarterly (February, May, August and November) by the Masters of Foxhounds Association 675 Lime Marl Lane, Berryville, VA 22611. Periodical Postage Paid at Winchester, VA 22601 and additional mailing offices.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to MFHA, PO Box 363, Millwood, VA 22646. COVERTSIDE READERS: Direct all correspondence to the same address. Tel: (540)955-5680. Website: www.mfha.com

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FROM THE PUBLISHER

Gathering

A ROBERT KORNACKI

s hunt season winds down, many of us will be spending the spring preparing hounds for the upcoming shows.

Although my home hunt is far outside the hound show circuit, every year I look at our hounds and wonder who would do well in the show ring.

Attending the shows is a heck of a lot of fun. In what other environment do you get

SPRING 2016 Another great gathering this spring will be the Biennial Staff Seminar, in Chantilly, Virginia (see page 23). Now don’t misunderstand: Every MFHA member is welcome to the seminar, not just staff. It’s a major fundraiser for the association, as well as a terrific opportunity to meet other foxhunters, ask tons of questions, and get an insider’s view of the foxhunting world. This year we’ll have a greatly expanded foxhunting shopping expo.

The program this year is better than ever! I had the opportunity to chat with avid foxhunter and Olympic equestrian Jimmy Wofford about his Staff Seminar keynote speech. He promises to offer tips to make hunting better and safer for all riders. Dr. Betsee Parker is opening up her spectacularly restored home, Huntland, for a tour and a party (see page 18) and the educational seminars cover topics of interest to those who ride to hunt and those who hunt to ride. Don’t miss it!

If you have a contribution to Covertside, send it along. We’re always interested in writing, photographs, ideas, criticism, and of course, praise.

Emily Esterson Editor-in-Chief/Publisher

DEAR EDITOR, The charming article in your Winter edition suggests a hunting polo pony is an unusual phenomenon. Having played polo and hunted in England for over twenty years, I can attest that it is quite common there. Jilly Scott, wife of the former VHH Master and now leading hound judge Martin Scott, hunted an Argentine bred pony called Picaflor, brought over by my friend and teammate Patricio Whitney. Simon Tomlinson, formerly married to the first lady of English polo Claire Tomlinson, regularly hunts polo ponies with the Beaufort. ... I had a mare called Samantha, who ended up playing pony club polo at 26, and I always gave her some days cub hunting at the end of the polo season. One doesn’t leave the ground much cub hunting, but she loved leaping the odd stone wall, and tended to walk backwards from excitement when standing at the side of a covert.

Sincerely yours, Stanislas M Yassukovich CBE 4 | COVERTSIDE

ART DIRECTOR GLENNA STOCKS production@covertside.net

EDITORIAL ASSOCIATE EDITOR SANDRA MCGINNIS sandy@covertside.net

CONTRIBUTING

WRITERS

JO MESZOLY CHRISTOPHER OAKFORD GLENYE CAIN OAKFORD MICHAEL STERN

ADVERTISING AND MARKETING SALES MANAGER CHERYL MICROUTSICOS sales@covertside.net 434-664-7057

Kick on! to talk foxhunting all day long? The hound shows are fabulous gathering places where we can meet, greet and trade tales of fun and adventure.

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF/PUBLISHER EMILY ESTERSON publisher@covertside.net 505-553-2671

PENNSYLVANIA/MID-ATLANTIC KATHY DRESS kdress@ptd.net NORTHEAST SPENCER MOORE spencer@covertside.net EVENTS HOPE LYNNE GRAVES events@covertside.net Covertside is the official publication of the Masters of Foxhounds Association Published by E-Squared Editorial Services LLC 2329 Lakeview Rd. SW Albuquerque, NM 87105 Telephone: 505-553-2671 Web Address: www.ecovertside.net www.mfha.com

The Masters of Foxhounds Association seeks a new

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Final Selection

OCTOBER 2016 Interested Candidates Apply at

Christy@MFHA.com

MFHA NEWS

through the program. This year’s class includes Aleigh Taber – Live Oak Hounds; Codie Hayes – Golden’s Bridge Hounds; John Sonny Dean – Radnor Hunt; Lori Townsend – Andrew’s Bridge Foxhounds; Sam Andrews – Santa Ynez Valley Hounds; and Trey Bennett – Tryon Hounds.

4 MFHA WILL ONCE AGAIN

BE ORGANIZING a field hunter competition at the Retired Racehorse Project’s Thoroughbred DENNIS FOSTER

Makeover & National Symposium at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington. Although the deadline for entries has passed, MFHA encourages spectators and

4 THE 2016 HUNTING HABITAT CONSERVATION AWARD was given to Potomac Hunt (see

story page 14). The hunt received $5000 and a beautiful custom-made plate. Pictured are MFHs Skip and Vicki Crawford, Daphne Wood, conservation committee chair, MFHA Board President

supporters to attend the event, which will be October 26-30 at the Kentucky Horse Park.

Jack van Nagell, and Richard Hagen, MFH. 4 A NEW SOFTWARE PROGRAM

TO SCORE PERFORMANCE as slowing down to a trot to

(NE); Robin Gibbs, Smithtown

TRIALS was tested at Belle Meade

4 THE MFHA BOARD OF

manage a trappy fence, man-

Hunt (NY-NJ); Marie Griffis,

this January. The Performance

DIRECTORS HOSTED THE

aging up and down hill fences,

Big Sky Hounds (RM); Donald

Trial (PT) Software is available

ANNUAL MEETING at the Union

and how not to “water ski” on

Milton, Middleton Place Hounds

from a link on the the MFHA

Club in New York City on Janu-

your horse’s mouth. Phillips also

(C); Barbara Mueller, Kimberton

website. Belle Meade noted the

ary 29. Captain Mark Phillips

talked at length about how the

Hunt Club (PA); Jennifer Stew-

software was a huge timesaver.

was the keynote speaker. Phil-

sport of eventing has evolved.

art, Ottawa Valley Hunt (CA).

lips was a leading eventer in the

When it comes to hunting, he

United Kingdom, having won

recommended that foxhunt-

4 THE 2016 BIENNIAL STAFF

Badminton four times. He was

ers exchange the scarlet coats

4 COL. FOSTER WILL RETIRE

also a member of the Olympic

and top hats for less intimidat-

on April 1, 2017. The search

SEMINAR (open to all MFHA members, not just staff) is

teams in 1968 and 1972. Phillips’

ing tweed attire and reminded

for a new executive director

scheduled to take place April

daughter Zara (with his first

audience members to be polite

of MFHA will officially begin

22 - 24, 2016 at the Westfields

wife, Princess Anne) is one of

to landowners. “Don’t forget,

on April 1, 2016 (see the call

Marriott in Chantilly, Virginia.

the world’s top ranked eventers.

when you’re on horseback you’re

for applications, page 5). The

Keynote speaker, renowned

Today, Phillips is chef d’equipe

looking down at people. It gives

Search Committee will review

event rider and foxhunter Jimmy

for the U.S. team, a coach and a

them a bad feeling.” He em-

applications and finalists will

Wofford will offer tips on better

course designer.

phasized that sporting people

be asked to attend the October

riding for the hunt field. Tours

During his speech, Phillips

— whether hunting, shooting or

board meeting.

will include the Middleburg Hunt

discussed how hunting with the

riding — need to stick together.

kennels and Huntland (see pages 18 and 23). MFHA encourages all

Beaufort Hunt as a young man contributed to making him the

4 THE PROFESSIONAL

members to attend the seminar,

rider he became, and also made

4 AT THE BOARD OF DIREC-

DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM IS

as it is an important educational

some great event horses. He

TORS MEETING, the following

ENTERING ITS 10TH YEAR. Fifty

and fundraising event. It will

talked about the importance

were elected to membership:

people have participated in the

include a silent auction and a

of balance and proper training

George (Sandy) Dunn, Jr.,

program and 47 of those are still

vendor fair featuring jewelry,

for jumping in the hunt field,

Kimberton Hunt Club (PA); Vicki

in hunt service. One third of the

tack, clothing, art and antiques

offering such important tips

Fuller, Fairfield County Hounds

huntsmen in service have gone

related to foxhunting.

6 | COVERTSIDE

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THE CLUB

NINE TIPS

4

INFORMATIONAL Great websites answer the

to make hunt websites great

BY CAMIE STOCKHAUSEN

S

O YOU WANT TO ATTRACT NEW MEMBERS TO YOUR FOXHUNT? Your hunt’s website can serve as a 24-hour recruiter and go-to resource for hunt information. A great website is like a receptionist that greets visitors as they walk into the front office of your hunt.

You want your receptionist/website to be current, attractive, organized, and accurate. Bonus points for clever.

Here is a list of the qualities that make a hunt website a winner: 1

ATTRACTIVE

3

questions that people ask first

Great websites have either a

when they learn about fox-

contact form or an email link

hunting. Straight answers on

that will be checked by some-

a Frequently Asked Questions

one at least daily and respond-

page can do the trick.

ed to quickly and cheerfully.

This is especially valuable for

5

CLEAR NAVIGATION Great websites have naviga-

9

CURRENT Great websites highlight cur-

We love jargon in foxhunting,

rent events as well as those in

but if, for instance, you post

the distant future. Delete the

your hunt fixture card, you

old stuff, too. There is technol-

may want to call it “Hunt Cal-

ogy available now that allows

endar” on your menu rather

websites to be updated from

than “Fixture Card” so that

smartphones, so keeping things

those new to foxhunting know

current is easier than ever.

what it is at a glance.

FOCUSED

6

EASY TO FIND

Great websites make their

space and consistent fonts.

message clear on page one.

Get the basics right and your

Potential new members want

Use keywords in the text that

message can shine through.

to know what your hunt does,

Google and other search

where it meets and how much

engines will pick up and rank

it costs to join. The long and

(SEO).

MOBILE-FRIENDLY

storied history of your hunt

The people you are trying to

your hunt should be available

reach have mobile phones and

on the website for those who

Downloadable PDFs of waivers

the patience of gnats with

are interested, but that audi-

and other forms needed for

regard to non-mobile-friendly

ence is small, so those pages

hunting make it easy on the

websites. Getting mobile right

don’t get top billing.

secretary.

and the mission statement of

new member inquiries.

tion (menus) that are intuitive.

Clean lines, enough white

2

8

CONTACT AND RESPONSE

7

WAIVERS

is worth the effort.

Get your website right and it can pay off in garnering more interest in your hunt. In short, your website can start to serve as your digital first whip wrangling new members into the pack and giving established members a little help along the way.

Camie Stockhausen is a member of North Hills Hunt and a communications specialist for Iowa State University. She is also a website designer specializing in horse and hunt websites. Her website is www.camstock.net.

Dennis Foster to Judge 84th Annual New England Hound Show ON MAY 1, GREEN MOUNTAIN

of classes and championships as

whose hounds are the fastest

not less than 3 nor more than 5

HOUNDS (VT) will host the 2016

well as the pack class and horn-

and truest across New England

miles in length ... laid by conven-

New England Hound Show and

blowing contest. Crowd favorites

hunting country,” the Hound Tri-

tional drag method.” After the

Hound Trails at its kennels in

include the Retired Foxhound

als are popular with spectators

start, staff and handlers are not

New Haven, Vermont. Retiring

class and the Junior Showman-

and are now held in conjunction

allowed to encourage or direct

MFHA Executive Director, Den-

ship classes.

with the hound show. Each club

the hounds. Individual hounds

The Hound Trails will again

may enter up to two couple, and

are scored on their speed pursu-

be held in conjunction with the

all hounds simultaneously follow

ing the line; all hounds from a

show. Established in 1923 “for

a line “over natural hunting coun-

single club must cross the finish

Mountain has hosted the show,

the purpose of determining the

try found in New England where

within five minutes of each other

which features a typical prize list

recognized New England hunt

hunting is regularly conducted ...

for their score to count.

nis Foster, ex-MFH, will judge the event.

This is the first time Green

8 | COVERTSIDE

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THE CLUB

GOLDEN AGE

Hunting Past the Age of 75

BY KATIE BO WILLIAMS

Meet foxhunting veterans who still passionately follow hounds.

W

ith age comes wisdom, or so they say. For foxhunters, the more appropriate aphorism might be: With age comes more time to foxhunt.

Every hunt has at least one. You know the type — the sept-oct-nonagenarian still riding an off-the-track orangutan and calling the field master a sissy for leading the field around a trappy fence — the type people call a “tough old bird,” but only when they’re not looking.

In this new series, Covertside catches up with the more notorious of these veteran foxhunters who are still following hounds well past the age of prudence. (“I think I have a screw loose,” one such hero told us.) We’ll feature one in each issue.

SALLY FISH AGE: 79 HUNT: Juan Tomas Hounds

Sally Fish (left) and Penny Giller.

SALLY FISH has a very strict

10 years ago when she had a

philosophy when it comes to

Morgan horse that didn’t take to

making sure she’s still fit to hunt

the flat terrain of more southern

every year: Just keep moving.

winter endurance rides. Running

“My whole philosophy is

up and down the mountain-

you just have to keep moving.

ous terrain of New Mexico after

People say, oh, I’m so sore and I

coyotes seemed like the perfect

say, ‘Are you doing anything?’”

vocation for Georgio.

she says.

A lifelong endurance rider, Fish picked up hunting only

Of course, both 70-year-old Fish and the horse had to learn the ropes — neither one was

SPRING 2016 | 9

THE CLUB trained to take off and run, then stop and stand quietly at a check.

Now, Fish is in the field hounds meet, on a successor to Georgio that she mentions casually once necessitated an emergency dismount after the horse ran headfirst for a grove of juniper trees.

“None of my horses have been quiet horses. That’s just the way I operate I guess,” she

VALERIE DURBON

almost every Sunday that

And They’re Off … Aside!

An annual sidesaddle race spotlights riders who keep this style alive.

says.

Fish is pushing 80 now and says she’s trying to learn to slow down, with limited success.

“I’m a pretty high risk person in the first place, but I’m trying to use my head.”

10 | COVERTSIDE

BY JOANNE MESZOLY

— women riding aside are a rare

in an exhibition race at the

sight in the hunt field. How-

Loudoun Hunt Point-to-Point in

iding aside could easily

ever, those who choose to ride

Virginia. Plans are underway to

slip into the annals of

sidesaddle are passionate about

host this race again this spring.

equestrian history. Even

it. And last spring, more than a

R

“Sidesaddle is elegant and

in foxhunting — a discipline

dozen riders banded together

uniquely feminine in a strong

rooted in enduring traditions

to demonstrate that they could

way,” says Maggie Johnston,

and bygone rules and practices

not just ride — but race — aside,

who hunts with Snickersville

Bernadette Boland and King of Hearts clear the coop in front of Maureen Britell and Gentleman Jack.

VALERIE DURBON

FAR LEFT: Dressed in habits, the women swapped their top hats and bowlers for safety helmets, and wore

Equestrian Style...

protective vests for the race.

Hounds and co-organized and

bers, the entrants were assessed

competed in the event. “We want-

months in advance and required

ed to demonstrate that we could

to attend a training session. “They

[race aside], but also, we wanted

had to prove that they could run

to do our part to raise conscious-

at speed in a group,” says John-

ness about land preservation. To

ston. “We all had to learn how to

maintain the sport [of hunting],

line up and run the beacons. We

we need to keep the space we

had never done that.”

have. And if our race captured the

Middleburg Hunt member Anne

attention of one new person, that

Sittman says that her goal was to

means everything to us.”

“just finish” but she established a

Both Johnston and co-orga-

plan during the course walk. “We

nizer Devon Zebrovious, of the

started on a straightaway, but

Middleburg Hunt, are longtime,

there was a tricky turn around a

avid sidesaddle riders; they were

hill,” she says. “My plan was to take

hunting aside in Ireland in 2013

it slow and approach the turn with

when they heard about “The

control. Then at the bottom of the

Dianas of the Chase” — a two-mile

hill, I’d just let him go.” Sittman’s

sidesaddle race held in Leices-

16-year-old Thoroughbred “Money-

tershire, England. Soon after, the

train” — a former stakes winner —

two began planning a race of their

responded by handily finishing first

own. Named “The Mrs. George C.

in the flat race. “It was a fabulous

Everhart Memorial Invitational,”

experience,” says Sittman. “Funny

for Everhart, who was a regular

enough, the biggest challenge was

fixture in the Middleburg and Or-

pulling him up. He used to race

ange County hunts, the race was

over two miles, so he didn’t think

set at four furlongs and divided

that we were done.”

into two sections — a flat and an

Johnston and Zebrovious are

over-fences race, the latter with a

now gearing up for the next Mrs.

single coop. “We wanted to make

George C. Everhart Memorial Invi-

the race as inviting as possible

tation Exhibition Race, which will

to our riders,” says Zebrovious,

be held on Sunday, April 17, once

who won the jumping race. “The

again at the Loudoun Point-to-

length of the race was modest

Point at Oatlands. This year’s race

and we ran it clockwise to help

will be lengthened to just under a

the riders stay balanced. When

mile, and the over-fences section

riding sidesaddle, it’s important to

will include a timber jump and a

keep your right shoulder back to

coop.

keep your hips straight. So racing clockwise helped, especially with the downhill turn.”

Although most of the race participants are active hunt mem-

from subway to saddle. ..

Schockemohle

Joanne Meszoly is a Marylandbased freelance writer and a member of the Potomac Hunt.

She is a frequent Covertside contributor.

SPRING 2016 | 11

YOUNG ENTRY

2015 USPC Foxhunting Writing Contest Winner

EDITOR’S NOTE: Claire Morris from Buffalo Creek Pony Club won first place in the 2015 Hildegard Neill Ritchie Foxhunting Writing Contest with her essay “The Perfect Match.”

The Annual Hildegard Neill Ritchie Writing contest is open to all D- or C-rated Pony Club members. The objective of this contest is to encourage writing skills, imagination and to improve basic knowledge of horsemanship and foxhunting skills. The submission deadline for 2016 is May 1. Find more information

JENNIFER MORRIS

about the Hildegard Neill The author, Claire Morris, was

Ritchie Foxhunting Writing

inspired to write about the sport.

Contest at www.ponyclub.

Here she rides POA, Dawn with Red

org/?FHAwards.

Oak Foxhounds (NC.).

The Perfect Match

H

ave you ever loved something so much that it seemed to run in your blood? That is how I feel about riding horses. The love of horses has surged through me since the moment I could sit up on one. However, despite my undying passion for horses, I had never been able to find a specific equestrian sport that could win my heart. Although I feared that this may never change, one day, to my delight it did. It all started when a local 12 | COVERTSIDE

BY CLAIRE MORRIS

fox hunt invited my pony club to come and ride on a youth day. I was excited to try foxhunting, but that feeling was by far trumped by the overwhelming enthusiasm that rushed through my veins during the hunt, each cry of the hounds and each nicker of the horses fueled the adrenaline that filled my body. From that moment on, I was sure that I had found the place that I belonged.

The first time I went foxhunting, I was intrigued. At the beginning, all of the horses stirred

around the open field, and the hounds stretched the limits around the Master. I wasn’t sure how much longer the whips and the master could contain the eager hounds. Suddenly, the horn sounded and every single hound bolted in the same direction, noses to the ground. Within seconds, the hound at the head of the pack began to speak. Soon, the rest of the hounds fell in and followed, and the riders in the field pursued them. After following the hounds for roughly half an hour, though it seemed

only seconds, I suddenly heard a shout from the head of the field; it took me a moment to realize that the excited voice had yelled Tally ho! I immediately searched my surroundings, when I suddenly saw a magnificent fox lope by. However, in that brief moment, it seemed as if the fox glanced over at me and saw right through me. At that moment, every part of my body and mind felt at peace and in love. Even though it was my first fox hunt, I still knew that it was the perfect match for me.

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THE FIXTURE

Keeping it Green

Conservation easements and curtailed development help ensure the Potomac Hunt’s foxhunting future.

BY JOANNE MESZOLY | PHOTOGRAPHS KAREN KANDRA WENZEL

G

allop across the open, rolling fields and along the wooded trails that make up the Potomac Hunt’s territory in Maryland, and it is easy to believe that city life is far away. Though a few commuter roads cut though this hunt country, much of it remains rural and rooted in agriculture.

On any given hunting day, the hounds give chase over acres of pasture, through miles of woodland and frequently disappear in fields of tall corn stalks.

It is the rumble of airplanes passing overhead as they descend that reminds hunt members that city life is just a stone’s throw away.

The nation’s capital is thirtyfive miles from Potomac’s hunt country, but the once-suburban neighborhoods and sleepy bedroom communities on Washington, D.C.’s outskirts are 14 | COVERTSIDE

now full-fledged cities of their own. They continually radiate new growth, with new neighborhoods and homes sprouting in fields once devoted to corn, soybean, and other crops.

More than thirty years ago, the Potomac Hunt staked out its present home in the northwest corner of Montgomery County.

Along with landowners and conservation organizations, the hunt and its members have strived to preserve the county’s last bastion of green. This tireless effort to conserve farmland and promote agricultural use has benefited the sport of foxhunting and those who live in the community and visit the area for recreation.

In January, the MFHA Foundation awarded the Potomac Hunt the 2016 Hunting Habitat Conservation Award, bestowed each year to a hunt club, person or organization that has made

an enduring contribution to preserving rural countryside.

“When you consider the close proximity of Washington, D.C., it’s remarkable that the Potomac Hunt has helped keep a large amount of land open and rural,” says MFHA Conservation Committee Chairman Daphne Flowers Wood. “Though we were reluctant to give this award to a Maryland hunt two years in a row [Green Spring Valley Hounds won last year], we felt strongly that we had to select the hunt with the very best entry.”

HOME TURF

The Potomac Hunt’s history is entwined with several families long dedicated to the land, but nowadays, the territory’s footprint is “Potomac” in name only.

When the hunt was recognized by the MFHA in 1931, Potomac was a rural outpost, removed from Washington, where cars

and horseback riders commonly shared the roads; it remained that way for decades. Aside from a smattering of new homes and small neighborhoods, Potomac staved off the county’s booming suburban growth and retained its rural status and reputation as a home for foxhunting — until the 1970s.

In that decade, housing developments caught up with Potomac, and farms and fields gave way to suburban communities.

As a result, the Potomac Hunt relocated in 1980 to its present home in Barnesville, within Montgomery County’s newly designated Agricultural Reserve.

The Ag Reserve, an area of 100,000 rural acres in northern Montgomery County, was spurred by community planners who were alarmed by the county’s loss of historic farms and land. With zoning elements and land use incentives

The Potomac Hunt’s territory comprises cropland, pastures and stretches of woodland.

Over the years, hunt members and conservation groups have fought with tenacity to preserve the pristine, rural parkland near Sugarloaf Mountain (pictured below).

“Though we were reluctant to give this award to a Maryland hunt two years in a row [Green Spring Valley Hounds won last year], we felt strongly that we had to select the hunt with the very best entry.”

— DAPHNE FLOWERS WOOD

to minimize the subdivision of farms, the Ag Reserve sought to insulate the area from development. Primary agricultural preservation areas were limited in residential development to one house per 25 acres, and a program was created to provide equity compensation to landowners within that zone.

The Potomac Hunt made its new home in this area, as did many hunt members who were equally committed to agricultural and rural life. “Quite a few families followed the kennels when we moved to Barnesville,” says Vicki

Crawford, MFH of the Potomac Hunt, and a lifelong member.

“There were those of us who wanted to own the land we hunt, and distance themselves from encroaching development. And at the time, we had tons of country; we never thought we’d run out.”

“But,” says Crawford, “things started to change dramatically in the 1990s.” Consolidated housing developments threatened the Ag Reserve, as did special building rights for family members, which superseded zoning rules.

As a result, hunt members and other like-minded individuals set

out to educate farmers and landowners about easement options and tax benefits.

In partnership with county and state officials from the Montgomery County Department of Economic Development and the Maryland Environmental Trust, the Potomac Hunt hosted meetings to educate landowners about the benefits of permanent easements and other proactive efforts to preserve land.

Local landowner and Potomac Hunt member Mike Rubin attended one of those meetings and shortly thereafter, placed his 126acre property in a protected easement. To date, Rubin has

worked with public and private programs to protect more than 4,000 acres through conservation easements.

But preserving farms through easements was just one piece of the puzzle. Large-scale developments, especially in Virginia’s growing tech sector, loomed over the Potomac River and threatened Montgomery County. In the 1990s, developers expressed interest in building a new bridge over the Potomac River right through the Ag Reserve, linking Virginia’s Fairfax County with Montgomery County. In 2001, Potomac Hunt members and local residents launched “Solutions Not Sprawl,” an organization to fight the bridge plan.

These efforts to stop the bridge were successful and Solutions Not Sprawl devel-

WINTER 2015 | 15

A meet held at Austin Kiplinger’s home, called Montevideo, has been a Potomac Hunt Thanksgiving Day tradition for more than 30 years.

Country Living in Virginia

oped into the Montgomery Countryside Alliance (MCA), an organization that advocates for sensible and productive farm use while preserving the natural environment and land within the Ag Reserve. “A huge swath of the land in the Ag Reserve is reasonably well protected,” says Rubin, who is MCA chairman, and the second largest private landowner within the Reserve.

“However, with climate change, increasing pollution and a steadily growing population, it’s crucial that we not only preserve open space, but advocate for environmentally sensible practices with land use. Clean water and clean air are critical and if we aren’t responsible and proactive, we humans will be the canaries in the coal mine.”

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Rubin is one of several hunt members who have served as integral stewards of the land, supporting conservation efforts and guaranteeing the future of the hunt. Shortly after joining the Potomac Hunt in 1961, when Austin Kiplinger became active in land preservation, he placed most of his 400-acre farm under conservation easement. The farm, which features an historic 1830s Federal-style home, serves as an invaluable hunting fixture for the Potomac Hunt, as well as a site for

point-to-point races, pony club events and equestrian activities. Kiplinger passed away last November at age 93.

Members of the hunt continue to hold off highdensity projects that threaten to compromise the precious green space in this country. Several members joined local residents in an effort to “Stop the Mega Church” when a down-county church proposed building a 118,000-foot structure beside Sugarloaf Mountain, a pristine, rural park which is open for public use. And hunt members were vocal proponents to limit the scale of a large housing development situated a few miles from the hunt club.

Such efforts are ongoing but the rewards are vital, both to sustain the sport of foxhunting and to maintain the rural landscape which is revered and valued by many outdoor enthusiasts. “Foxhunters have learned to work and coexist with other groups who share the land,” says Skip Crawford, MFH of the Potomac Hunt. “This area is a mecca for hikers, biking clubs and birdwatchers, as well as the hunt community. We want to keep it that way.”

Joanne Meszoly is a Marylandbased freelance writer and a member of the Potomac Hunt.

She is a frequent Covertside contributor.

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WINTER 2015 | 17

The crown jewel of Huntland was the kennel, and it was also the biggest challenge in the renovation. The building will be used for education.

18 | COVERTSIDE

Restoring a Foxhunter’s Legacy

BY CHRISTOPHER OAKFORD

Foxhunting history lives on at Huntland thanks to Dr. Betsee Parker.

S

porting history

is littered with people who might justly claim to be America’s greatest foxhunter.

The sport attracts big personalities, and since the days when George Washington carried his horn in Virginia there have been countless Masters who left a deep mark on hunting after spending years (and often fortunes) on their hounds, hunt countries, and the sport they provided. But for Dr. Betsee Parker, owner of the world-famous Huntland estate near Middleburg, Virginia, there is only one candidate who qualifies.

“To me, Joseph Thomas was the most important figure in hound breeding and hunting in American history,” she says.

The kennels, circa 1914 (black and white photos) were the most perfectly appointed of the era, and during their heyday, were said to have housed up to 1000 hounds.

SPRING 2016 | 19

Dr. Betsee Parker and thenMiddleburg huntsman Barry Magner in front of Huntland circa 2011.

TODAY, THOMAS IS CHIEFLY REMEMBERED as the author of “Hounds and Hunting Through the Ages,” published in 1928 and regarded by many as the first truly significant work on hunting written by an American. In his day, though, Thomas was noted for his love of architecture and for breeding American foxhounds on a massive scale. (At one point he was thought to have owned over 1,000 hounds.)

These passions found their joint expression in the kennel he designed at Huntland to house his own hounds and those of the Piedmont and Middleburg hunts, a building Alexander Mackay-Smith described as “the most perfectly appointed foxhound kennels in America.” Thomas’s tenure at Huntland did not last long, and in the years follow20 | COVERTSIDE

ing his departure both stables and kennels steadily deteriorated. But in 2008, Parker purchased the estate and began an ambitious restoration project. Now, Parker uses Huntland not only as a home, but also as a venue to educate people about how such places once worked. And this year, the house and kennels will host a party as part of the MFHA’s Biennial Staff Seminar, to be held April 22 to 24.

THE EARLY LIFE OF J. B. THOMAS

J. B. Thomas Jr. was born in Boston in 1879. His obsession with hounds began early. By age 21, he was already breeding Russian wolfhounds (also known as Borzoi) at a kennel he and three friends owned near Simsbury, Connecticut. Records indicate

that Valley Farm, as it was known, quickly became a thriving concern, but Thomas, ever the perfectionist, was still not satisfied.

In 1903, Thomas set sail for Europe. His journey was not the usual post-graduation tour as described in the novels of Henry James. Instead, Thomas traveled in search of the perfect Borzoi hound. After tours of England and France, where the hounds on offer barely matched the standard of those already in America, Thomas arrived in St. Petersburg. Surely, the hounds of that city’s imperial kennel, belonging to the czar himself, would surpass anything he had seen before? Not according to Thomas, who throughout his life displayed an awkward tendency to speak his mind as undiplomatically as possible. Before returning

Restoring the property — Huntland stables and house (below) — was a huge

JANET HITCHEN

home empty-handed, however, Thomas decided to travel to the estate of H.I.H. the Grand Duke Nicholas, a hundred miles south of Moscow. He had heard a rumor from “the editor of a little sporting paper” with whom he communicated using “parts of several languages” that the grand duke had “some hounds.” His journey by troika took him through villages never before visited by a Westerner and along part of the recently completed Trans-Siberian railway, all of which he described beautifully in his first book, “Observations on Borzoi.”

Once at the grand duke’s hunting lodge, Thomas was escorted around the kennel by an unusual guide, his host’s “clown, a dwarf about three feet six inches tall, bearing on his thumb the Seigneur’s signet ring, a curious relic of mediaeval custom.”

The hounds were, in Thomas’s opinion, magnificent — “the size and evenness in type of the hounds were wonderful” — and he lost no time in purchasing several and shipping them back to Connecticut where they proved an instant success.

undertaking. It took three years and six teams working simultaneously. The property was added to the Historic Register in 2013.

AN EXCLUSIVE VISIT AND TOUR OF HUNTLAND for MFHA members will take place during the 2016 Biennial Staff JANET HITCHEN

Seminar, April 22-24.

HUNTLAND’S ORIGINS AND PAINSTAKING RESTORATION

JANET HITCHEN

In Thomas’s early adulthood, Boston could fairly be described as the center of foxhunting in America. Henry Vaughan, eleven years older than Thomas, was a prominent lawyer in the city and the future inaugural secretary of the MFHA. While Alexander Henry Higginson and Harry Worcester Smith (whose epic 1905 foxhunting battle known as the Great Hound Match introduced many Northerners to Virginia’s hunt country) were both from Massachusetts.

It was, however, a New Yorker who first brought Thomas to Virginia and Huntland.

According to Alexander Mackay-Smith’s account in “The American Foxhound 1747 - 1967,” Thomas’s introduction to the area occurred when he visited his friend Daniel C. Sands, Master of the Piedmont and latterly the Middleburg. Sands hailed originally from New York, but, like many sportsmen, had been attracted to Middleburg following the 1905 match. Thomas’s visit to Sands prompted him to concentrate on breeding American hounds and to look for a base in

America’s hunt country. In 1911, he bought a house named New Lisbon, rechristened it Huntland, and immediately began to establish it as a center of all things hunting.

The house was already almost a century old, having been built in 1834 by William Benton, a builder and master bricklayer from Shropshire, England, who had overseen the construction of U.S. President James Monroe’s house at the Oak Hill Plantation near Leesburg. Benton named his home “New Lisbon” in honor of a house he had admired on a visit to Wales. His design was understated and plain. The house was built in the Federal style, almost square and with a large central hall, and constructed of the highest quality brick, fired under Benton’s expert gaze in a kiln known as “The Pot House,” which stood nearby.

New Lisbon’s first 80 years were comparatively tranquil, despite a Civil War battle being fought on the north lawn in 1863. All that changed, though, with the

arrival of Thomas.

But as Parker explained, Thomas’s priorities were different from those of most new property owners. “He did what any good houndsman would do. He built the kennels first, he built the stables second, and he did the house third,” she said. (Eighty years later, Parker would reverse the process, restoring the house first, then the stables, and finally the kennel.)

Thomas turned his attention to the newly rechristened Huntland only in 1915. First came the state-of-the-art kennel so admired

by Mackay-Smith. Designed by Thomas himself, it was erected in 1911 in order to house Thomas’s hounds and those of the Piedmont and Middleburg hunts. Then, in 1913, came a stable large enough to accommodate the horses needed to mount the staff of the two hunts, all of which were provided and paid for by Thomas.

But Thomas’s stay in Virginia ended bitterly. He and Sands fell out and a vitriolic SPRING 2016 | 21

The Fairfax Hunt (before the merger with Loudoun)

JANET HITCHEN

leaving from Huntland.

dispute over hunt country ensued. In 1919, Thomas’s mastership of the Piedmont came to an abrupt end. Although he continued to own Huntland for another eight years, from that point on Thomas concentrated his energies on his own pack, Mr. Thomas’s Hounds, which with characteristic insouciance, he took on the road, traveling wherever the sport was good and he was invited to hunt.

In 1927, Huntland was sold and the estate’s slow decline began. While the house remained in comparatively good repair, the stables and kennels went unused and gradually fell apart. It was not until Parker purchased it in 2008 that hope for renewal dawned.

RECREATING THE PAST

Historic preservation requires that choices be made. From the start, Parker’s intention was to return the house and estate to the way it had been during Thomas’s tenure, rather than to Benton’s original design. In part this was due to her admiration for Thomas. “I knew all about Mr. Thomas before I bought Huntland,” she said. “In the early nineties, a friend of mine was thinking about purchasing it and I went to see it with her. In the end, she didn’t buy it. But I never forgot it. When I bought it, I wanted to remain faithful to one period particularly and the period I picked was Mr. Thomas’s because I thought that period had the most integrity, it was the most fanciful, and there was still most of the fabric of the house intact. We used whatever we could find: books, samples, family memories, to 22 | COVERTSIDE

recreate it.”

It was a huge task. “Huntland has great bones, but it was not in good shape,” Parker continued. “None of the utilities worked. So there was no plumbing, no electricity, and no heat. The basement at the lower end of the south wing was underwater. The whole north wing of the kennel was underwater.

It was not livable for three years. We had six teams working on it simultaneously.

You have to do your homework and take your time otherwise you might get it wrong.

Most of all, you have to enjoy the process.”

Perhaps the biggest challenge turned out to be Thomas’s pride and joy — the kennel.

“It was terribly destroyed,” said Parker.

Ironically, Thomas’s design had contributed, in part, to the building’s dilapidation. “Mr. Thomas built a masterpiece, no question,” said Parker. “When Huntland was added to the National Historic Register in 2013, it was the kennel that was of most interest because they knew of no other building like it in North America. They asked me to take the most care of anything in restoring it. But Mr. Thomas was not really an architect and he did make some considerable mistakes.

The materials he used, such as a very soft pine, rotted away and the ceilings had collapsed. Fortunately, he had left a blueprint of it in his book on hunting and we were able to make great use of that.”

THOMAS’S CONTINUING INFLUENCE

Parker’s views on Thomas are clear: “I think you can say without dispute that Joseph B. Thomas was the greatest hound man or

Master in American history.” Her reasons for saying this are varied. “I think that because more packs are descended from the hounds he bred than any other. If you count them up, there are at least 55 packs that are descended from Joseph Thomas hounds.

Also, he was not your typical Master or owner of a pack. He was very atypical. He approached it in a very academic way. He studied everything he could about his craft, though he also spent hours and hours in the saddle and watching his hounds.” And as well as being an innovative architect and the author of two wonderful books on hounds and hunting, Parker believes Thomas made a significant economic impact to the area now known as America’s hunt country. “To my mind, he’s probably the most unsung hero of American foxhunting. People in the south were very suspicious of carpetbagging northerners. You have to remember that when Thomas arrived it was only 50 years after the Civil War. But they helped to stabilize the economy, which was in really bad shape. I don’t think that they necessarily knew what they were doing. They had just run out of good gallops in the north!

But the effect was to revitalize what is, to my mind, the most beautiful part of the United States,” she said.

Huntland’s kennels might no longer echo with the sound of hound music, but Parker still has plans for them. “A hundred years ago everyone hunted with hounds and guns; people didn’t mind hounds baying in the middle of the night. Nowadays, people come out from Washington, D.C., for a quiet weekend. You can’t keep a huge pack of hounds where I live. Instead, I want to use the kennel to educate and to hold seminars to teach people about how such places operated,” she said. In this, and in her historic preservation of the estate that brought together so many of Thomas’s most enduring passions, Parker is helping to continue the erudite legacy of the man she dubs “America’s greatest foxhunter.”

Christopher Oakford lives in Lexington, Kentucky, and is the author of the new book, “The Iroquois Hunt: A Bluegrass Foxhunting Tradition.” He is a frequent Covertside contributor.

Register today!

2016 BIENNIAL

STAFF SEMINAR IT ONLY HAPPENS EVERY TWO YEARS.

DON’T MISS IT! April 22nd – 24th Westfields Marriott Hotel, Chantilly, VA Must be a Subscribing Member to attend.

EDUCATION FOR ALL, PRODUCT EXPOS, TOURS

Topics and Activities: • Special presentation

by Jimmy Wofford • Hunting Across America • A Year in the Life of a Foxhound • The Hunt Horse

FRIDAY, APRIL 22, 2016

• Master’s Focused Roundtable

3:00 – 7:00pm:

• Middleburg Hunt kennel and Huntland Tours

Registration

6:30pm: Cocktails & Dinner with special presentation by Jimmy Wofford SATURDAY, APRIL 23, 2016 9:00 – 11:30am:

Piedmont Kennel Visit & Huntland Tour

11:30 – 1:00pm:

Registration

1:00 – 3:00pm:

Hunting across America Seminar

3:00 – 3:15pm:

Break

3:15 – 5:30pm:

The Hunt Horse

6:30 – 9:30pm:

Cocktail Party at Huntland

SUNDAY, APRIL 24, 2016 9:00 – 11:30am:

Master’s Seminar

9:00 – 11:30am:

Year in the Life of a Foxhound Seminar

11:30am: 11:30 – 12:00pm:

Final Bidding on Silent Auction Items MFHA Headquarters Update

• Silent Auction: donated items (hunting experiences, paintings, apparel and more) will be available for viewing and bidding throughout the weekend.

FOXHUNTING EXPO Details: The MFHA and Covertside will be offering a foxhuntingspecific trade show in the lobby outside the seminar. Shop for unique items and hunting supplies! A rare opportunity to visit with vendors.

Hours: 12:00-6:00 on Saturday and 8:00 to 5:00 on Sunday.

Interested in exhibiting at the Expo?

Contact events@covertside.net

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fter spending the day in the field with our horses and the hounds, we make our way back home. With everyone fed, watered and put away, we are left with fresh memories of a lovely hunt. As we walk toward the house, an excited figure appears in the window. Our dogs are our friends, our confidants, our greeters, protectors, our entertainment, and so much more. We spend time, effort, and money to make sure our buddies are healthy, comfortable, and live long lives.

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WHERE DOES IT ALL GO?

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It is difficult with all the products on the market today to make cost effective and smart choices. But with your veterinarian’s help, research and reviews, and by consulting your peers, providing the best care for your pet is an achievable goal.

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Many Masters on the Mara FOXHUNTERS RUN WITH THE BEASTS OF KENYA.

BY JONATHAN A. G. AUERBACH | PHOTOS BY GARTH THOMPSON

26 | COVERTSIDE

The author, Jonathan Auerbach, encounters a lionness from the pride at Olare Orok, which are habituated to horses.

FAR LEFT, the group encounters a herd of cape buffalo.

A

FTER SPENDING A FEW DAYS trekking to the see the mountain gorillas in the amazing little country of Rwanda, I make my way to Kenya to make sure that Tristan Voorspuy, founder and owner of Offbeat Safaris, and all his marvelous horses are still the tip-top horse safari around. My friend, Cameron Sadler, MFH, Moore County Hounds, and a group of 18 foxhunters join me at Offbeat. Voorspuy, the charming old English cavalry officer, hasn’t lost a beat and we were thrilled to see that the next generation, his two children Archie, 23, and Imo, 21, are very capable of continuing the Offbeat tradition of spectacular rides and wild evenings (and the occasional lunch).

Also joining us was Garth Thompson, one of the best guides in all of Africa and to whom we are grateful for these photos. If there’s any moderation in the pace of the trips, it’s that a wiser Tristan lets a “controlled canter” or a “quiet trot” turn into a flat out gallop only

a few times a trip rather than every time we break from a walk.

Having traveled with Cameron nearly 20 times on such trips, I can say that this one had the strongest group of riders. Every tent either had a current or former MFH (including grand poohbah Dennis Foster) or an ardent foxhunter sleeping in it. Tristan himself inherited the mastership of Kenya’s last pack of hounds until the last old hound passed away a few years ago. Amusingly, our second best riders were probably one of the two early teenage lasses (Bella and Adare) who joined us. With such strong riders, I needed to kick on to keep up with this mad lot.

Tristan pulled out all the stops for us. We spent eight nights under canvas, covering four different camps. On a typical day when we did not move camp, we’d ride up to three hours each in the morning and evening and go for an afternoon activity, such as a hike or a swim.

After our first day at Olare Lamun, we rode over 30 miles to Olare Orok, which is known for abundant game, including quite a

spectacular pride of lions. The third camp is up on the Soit Olololol escarpment. The ride up the rocky escarpment is quite an adventure, which is made well worth it when you see the panoramic view from the top over the whole Mara. The final camp is nestled in a curve in the Mara River with a pod of boisterous hippos in the water a few feet from the front of the tents. All day and night they breathe loudly, splash, snort and “he-onk,” so some slept restlessly, convinced that with every sound of the night was a hippo about to fall into their tent!

The camps are traditional fly camps that are assembled and disassembled each move, leaving little trace that a group had been there. The culinary standard, however, is anything but campfire cooking, though it is indeed cooked over a wood-fired oven. We had a full English breakfast every day and dinners often included a delicious roast. One day we even made our omelet out of an ostrich egg. The single egg easily fed the whole group and was much richer than a chicken egg. Tristan is an expert raconteur and would recite from memory adventurous poems such as “The Man from Snowy River” and “The Fox’s Prophecy” over meals or the campfire.

ABUNDANT AND BREATHTAKING WILDLIFE

There is something incredibly peaceful about cantering along with a lone giraffe.

Their long legs make them look like they are traveling in slow motion, despite covering serious ground. My animal highlights of the trip were seeing first a cheetah (spotted by eagle-eyed Bella) from horseback, then THREE rhino two days later. I have seen rhino in Lake Nakuru National Park from a vehicle, but there are only a few dozen still wild in the Mara and we saw three of them!

Full and beautiful horns were entirely intact.

The Offbeat pride of lions at Olare Orok was waiting and again treated us to amazing SPRING 2016 | 27

Moore County MFH Cameron Sadler cutting across the wildebeast herd just seconds before she was t-boned and sent flying. Sadler was dazed but back in the saddle a couple of days later.

interactions. They are the only truly wild lion pride in the world largely habituated to horses and are now at their best. Two huge males, six lionesses, and their fourteen cubs are totally relaxed, as are the horses. I particularly enjoyed an evening game drive, during which we saw their cubs playing king of the mountain atop a termite mound.

Not all the animals are quite as well behaved, however. When Archie was leading a morning ride looking for the lions, they stumbled instead upon a cow elephant with a young infant. The mother had only her right tusk, which made her very touchy. She let them observe her and her calf for around five minutes and then started to get a bit restless.

Archie, sensing a bit of unrest, told the riders, “If we have to go, go that way,” as he pointed southeast. A minute later, she dropped her head, spread her ears, trumpeted and came right at us. Archie exclaimed, “Let’s go!!!” According to Anson (Lance) Taylor from Radnor Hunt, “By the time I turned [my horse] Oldaiga around, I realized I was at the back of the galloping pack with only Archie next to me. When we tried to pull up, she came at us again … and again and again.” Garth estimates that she chased the group for a good two kilometers before deciding that she’d made her point crystal clear.

WILD IN THE WILD

The riders weren’t all that well behaved either. At least that’s the perspective of four or five wildebeest. We came upon a large herd of them on a morning ride and decided to have little gallop with them. Garth and Dennis were in the vehicle alongside taking photographs. The herd was in full flight, dodging left and right as they ran. Cameron was galloping on the far side of the herd, when they all veered sharply across her path.

She tried valiantly to turn her horse, but ended up running straight into the herd at a right angle. Dennis was on the ground by 28 | COVERTSIDE

Dennis Foster crossing the Mara, while hippos watch from a safe distance.

the Land Rover and saw it all. “One wildebeest hit the front of her horse and the other clipped her horse in the rump, knocking [the horse] off balance. Cameron held the horse’s head, turning it sharply to the left, pulling for all she was worth. When a fourth wildebeest came directly in front, her horse went from an off-balanced gallop to a dead stop. Cameron flipped in the air and landed first on her butt then hit her head, landing not more than 25 meters from me.” Suffice it to say that she was very shaken up, mildly concussed, but otherwise remarkably unscathed. Indeed, after taking the day off, she was back on horseback and rode most of the remaining trip.

Crossing the Mara River on horseback is always an adventure and on this trip we did it four times. The water was reasonably low and we only barely wet the soles of our boots, but there were plenty of crocs and hippos joining us in the water. Every log was

a potential croc and every rock a hippo. Back in camp, there was a hippo in our swimming hole in the Mara River who wouldn’t move to another part of the river, so only a few brave souls got in the smaller pool 15 feet from it, as it kept surfacing and making rude noises.

If you love wildlife, horses, adventure with a touch of bravado and truly untouched wilderness you’d be hard pressed to find anything better than Africa. As all hunting is illegal in Kenya, the numbers of wildlife are staggering and the country’s beauty is breathtaking. This was my seventh trip to Africa, so I’m clearly an addict and will surely return.

Our entire group is just as hooked.

Jonathan Auerbach splits his time between New York and Charlottesville, where he hunts with the Farmington Hunt. With a small group of friends he met hunting in Ireland, he has been on nearly twenty hunting or touring trips to Ireland, England, Africa, and South America.

This was his sixth African safari on horseback.

Lincoln Sadler takes flight as an agitated momma elephant comes toward the group.

Offbeat Safari owner Tristan Voorspuy (BELOW) visits with a lionness.

(RIGHT) The 18 foxhunters with their guides pose for a photo during their great Kenyan adventure.

SPRING 2016 | 29

BY GLENYE CAIN OAKFORD AND CHRISTOPHER OAKFORD

A GIFT THAT KEEPS ON GIVING The influential Grappler-Footloose line comes full circle.

CAPTAIN IAN FARQUHAR,

Master of the Duke of Beaufort’s Hunt in England, has been a regular traveler to the United States. But a particular visit he made in 2005 to visit Moore County Hounds Joint Master Dick Webb ended up being much more than a collegial reunion: It launched one of the most influential bloodlines in U.S. hunting. Traveling with Farquhar was a Beaufort bitch named Footloose ’03, who was carrying a litter of 11 puppies that eventually would be dispersed among six American hunts — and go on, either themselves or through their offspring, to be influential in the show ring and in the hunt field.

30 | COVERTSIDE

GRAPPLER

SPRING 2016 | 31

COURTESY GEORGE THOMAS

T

HE FACT THAT THIS LITTER, sired by Beaufort Grappler ’03 and entered in 2006, spread its influence so far and wide is due, ironically, to their inauspicious start in the states, though the pedigree itself was promising, as Farquhar recalls.

“Dick was a good friend, and he was very keen on the orthodox English then,” says Farquhar. “He asked me if I’d bring some over.

Footloose was a line I liked a lot. The ‘Fo’ comes from Heythrop Forelock ’96, and there’s a good line to Duke of Beaufort’s Mostyn ’92. There’s a line to our Whitbread ’97, who is a very, very good dog, indeed, and Why Worry Grantham ’06 sets the family example as grand champion of the 2009 Carolinas Hound Show. Beaming proudly from left to right are Joint he was out of Mostyn’s sister, Motion ’92.

Masters Lynn Dillard, George Thomas, and Jeanie Thomas.

So it’s a double-cross to Mostyn.”

Farquhar also considered the litter’s sire, Grappler, “a very good all-rounder” whose get “So we wound up with Live Oak Gravel ’06 and Live Oak Grateful had performed well for the Beaufort, and the pedigree also included an unexpected — but evidently benign — ’06, and we already had Famous,” Wood says. “I want to say that all of this happened in November, because as soon as we got them we took element. “There’s quite an interesting line there that goes them out, got them acclimated to the back to Exmoor Coastguard ’92, who had pack, and then took them hunting. just a little bit of harrier blood,” Farquhar It was a very quick introduction. We explains. “It didn’t come out very much, but didn’t waste any time, because Famous it is there. ... Grappler was a nice looking dog, was a cracking bitch. We knew the which is a start. He had a good voice, he had potential. And it was also a good shot a good nose, and he was a very honest dog WAS A NICE LOOKING of English blood into our pack.” as well.”

DOG, WHICH IS A START. It was exactly the kind of English blood that Moore County’s Webb treasured. But Moore DOMINATING AT HE HAD A GOOD VOICE, County’s huntsman at the time, a relatively new arTHE HOUND SHOWS HE HAD A GOOD NOSE, rival, was a Penn-Marydel man and less than keen on Ultimately, the rest of Footloose’s English hounds, Webb remembers. puppies by Grappler ended up with AND HE WAS A VERY “He hadn’t been with me very long when I brought Why Worry in South Carolina, Fox HONEST DOG AS WELL. the bitch over, and then we had all the puppies, River Valley in Illinois and Georgia, but he didn’t want to have any part of the English Arapahoe in Colorado, and Blue Ridge hounds,” Webb says. “So I was forced to draft them.” in Virginia. Why Worry, like Live The first of Footloose’s puppies to find a new Oak, took three puppies. One was home was Famous ’06, who went to Marty and Daphne Wood’s Live Grantham ’06, who has gone on to be a prolific sire. “He was grand Oak Hounds shortly after weaning. The Woods liked what they saw. champion of the Carolinas Hound Show, his son was grand chamTwo other Footloose puppies, Greenwich ’06 and Gretchen ’06, had pion of the Carolinas Hound Show, a dog named Braveheart ’09, been entered at Moore County, but when the Woods heard that the and then a grandson named Banker ’13 was grand champion there, rest of the litter was unlikely to get much use in the Penn-Marydel too,” says Thomas. “He was just an extremely athletic hound, and regime getting underway at Moore County, Marty Wood contacted extremely smart,” Thomas says of Grantham. “When we first started Webb and offered to take more of Footloose’s puppies. Webb, eager with him, he’d had nothing done with him, so it was just like starting to see the bloodline get regular use in the field, quickly agreed. a puppy. One habit he had was he drew really, really wide. He’d hunt

Live Oak Fanfare ’10, grand champion of the 2015 Southern Hound Show, proudly displays her championship bloodlines. Looking on (l-r) are Daphne Wood, MFH, Michael Ledyard, Esq., and C. Martin Wood III, MFH.

DR. J. WARNER RAY, MFH

hard, but he was very biddable and never any problem.”

After several seasons, Why Worry sent Grantham to Hillsboro in Tennessee, which hunted and bred him until his death, but Thomas never lost touch with the hound he calls “a fabulous, grand hound.”

“Grantham was one of those hounds that you only find once in a lifetime,” he says. “Everybody knew him, and anyone who hunted with us, when they first saw him, they’d say, ‘Who is that?’

They were just extremely smart hounds with drive and voice,” he says of the Grappler-Footloose litter. “I mean, Grantham would just light up the woods ... I’ve never seen a dog like Grantham that stamped his hounds and passed on a lot of his qualities. When we first started him, he didn’t want to show at all. He was very shy.

He’d go in the show ring and sit down. Then my wife and one of the girls who whipped-in for us worked their behinds off and finally got him to show. And once he decided he was going to be a show dog, he was just fabulous. He really was a ham!”

At Live Oak, Marty Wood was seeing equally wonderful things.

“That litter were just good, hard, typical Beaufort hounds,” he says.

“They’ve got great stamina. The bitches’ mouths had lots of volume but were somewhat high, but Gravel had a roar like a lion. And he hated a coyote. They were just really good, hard-hunting hounds.”

The hunts also found that the litter’s best hunting and showing attributes also frequently carried on into subsequent generations.

“They did,” says Wood. “We bred Famous to our Architect ’04, who carries our best stallion line, back tail-male to Live Oak Drummer ’89. Farrier ’10, one of the dogs of the litter, was made grand champion of the Virginia Hound Show in 2012. His litter sister, Live Oak Fable ’10, was grand champion of the Virginia Hound Show

COURTESY GEORGE THOMAS

KAREN MYERS, KLMIMAGES.COM

Why Worry Braveheart ’09, the son of Grantham ’06, carries on the family tradition as grand champion at the 2010 Carolinas Hound Show.

32 | COVERTSIDE

Live Oak Fable ’10, grand champion at the 2011 Virginia Hound Show one year before her brother, Live Oak Farrier ’10, won grand champion at the same show.

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the previous year. And their litter sister, Live Oak Fanfare ’10, was grand champion of the Southern Hound Show last year. “What’s even more remarkable is that another littermate, Live Oak Farquhar ’10, is one of our great stallion hounds here.”

AN UNEXPECTED GIFT

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Moore County Joint Master Dick Webb, who with Beaufort’s Farquhar was responsible for bringing this productive line to the States, understandably watched its successes with a certain amount of wistfulness. He calls drafting the Grappler-Footloose litter “the big loss to me.” In recent years, Webb is delighted to report, some of the litter’s famous blood has returned to the Moore County pack, now hunted by David Raley. “We’re thrilled to have it back,” Webb says.

The genes’ return was serendipitous. A friend of Raley’s, Shakerag Huntsman John Eaton, sent a bitch to be bred to one of Moore County’s Penn-Marydel doghounds, and, when she whelped, he sent a couple of the puppies back to Raley.

“In the meantime, Mr. Webb had been talking about maybe getting some more English blood again, and he was always pretty distressed that those Footloose puppies had all gone away from here,” says Raley.

“Meanwhile, these pups come up to me and John gives me the pedigree, and I just happen to notice that it’s Footloose on the bottom line.

I’m like, ‘Well, look at that!’ I immediately reported it to Mr. Webb and said, ‘Funny you should mention that you wanted to get that back; I just happen to have a couple of pups.’”

The Shakerag bitch in question was Shakerag Tarnish ’13, a granddaughter of the Grappler-Footloose litter’s Live Oak Grateful ’06. Raley remembers Footloose well. “She was a tri-color with a big, black blanket and a lot of ticking,” he says. “She was pretty light, kind of lean. She almost looked a little more like a Fell type — definitely not an old English type, more of a modern English type.”

Footloose herself never left Moore County, which kept her into her dotage and then buried her there. Raley notes that one of the Moore County Masters recalled her as a far-ranging hound, a fitting trait, considering how widely her blood has been distributed. And, back in England, Farquhar still takes pleasure in her descendants’ successes.

“I’ve seen them at the Live Oak, and people have sent me reports of the American shows,” says Farquhar. “And it’s always very nice to see them doing as well as they have done. I think they have, between them all, made quite an impression, haven’t they?”

Glenye Cain Oakfoard is a freelance writer, frequent Covertside contributor, and a member of the Iroquois Hunt. Christopher Oakford lives in Lexington, Kentucky, and is the author of the new book, “The Iroquois Hunt: A Bluegrass Foxhunting Tradition.”

2016 HOUND SHOW SCHEDULE DISCOVER YOUR LOCAL

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Live Oak Plantation, Monticello, FL Saturday, April 9, 2016 Contact: Kathy Barnett (229) 226-2209 676 Live Oak Lane Monticello, FL 32344

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NEW ENGLAND HOUND SHOW hosted by Green Mountain Hounds Shoreham, VT Sunday, May 1, 2016 Contact: Katherine Selby (802) 434-4424 829 South Street New Haven, VT 05472

CENTRAL STATES HOUND SHOW Stilwell, KS Saturday, May 7, 2016 Contact: Dr. Steven L. Thomas (913) 636-3778 12800 Metcalf Avenue, Ste. 2 Overland Park, KS 66213

CAROLINAS HOUND SHOW Camden, SC Saturday, May 7, 2016 Contact: Berit Osworth, Show Secretary thecamdenhunt@yahoo.com PO Box 2285 Camden, SC 29020

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VIRGINIA FOXHOUND SHOW Morven Park, Leesburg, VA Sunday, May 29, 2016 Contact: Bob Ferrer, Show Secretary (703) 447-2816 17237 Antioch Road Milford, Virginia 22514

BRYN MAWR HOUND SHOW Malvern, PA Saturday, June 4, 2016 Contact: Catharine Klaus (610) 585-2055 PO Box 310 Devon, PA 19333

CANADIAN HOUND SHOW Ottawa Valley Hunt Kennels Saturday, June 18, 2016 Contact: Dr. John W. D. McDonald, MFH john.mcdonald@ robartsinc.com MFHA-sanctioned hound shows are held in the spring.

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BETTER RIDING

North America, The Beautiful

Discover the terrain, challenges and advantages of hunting throughout our great continent. BY CHRISTOPHER OAKFORD

Caza Ladron’s fixtures are covered in bushy evergreens.

The land is mostly public and includes cliffs, lava rock, sandy areas and arroyos (dry

NANCY AMBROSIANO

river beds).

N

hunt for many, many miles,” orth American NEW MEXICO Ambrosiano explains. “The foxhunting is a terrain is really interesting. The widespread af“It can take new riders and area we hunt most is a big hunk fair: Foxhunters horses a couple of weeks to pursue their passion in at least adapt here,” says Nancy Ambro- of land known as the Caja del Rio. It’s a wide valley between 37 of the 50 states, as well as in siano of the Caza Ladron, Santa two mountain ranges and at the five of the 10 Canadian provFe. Ambrosiano, who grew up bottom is the Rio Grande.” inces. And in such a vast area it hunting with the Princess Anne The Caza Ladron’s hunt is no surprise that they enHunt in Virginia, began hunting country varies dramatically, with counter a variety of conditions, with the Caza Ladron when it cliffs, sandy areas, and arroyos terrain, and obstacles. From the was founded in 1999.

— wide, dry arroyos of New Mexico to the We hunt on US Forest Service and Bureau river beds that are prone to flash dykes protecting of Land Management property. So we floods. “Arroyos the banks of the vary in height Annapolis River have the great benefit, unlike many folks from six inches to in Nova Scotia, each hunt has its back east, of having public land over which six feet in depth,” says Ambrosiano. own idiosyncrawe can hunt for many, many miles.

“They’re not a sies. To find out gentle sloping demore, we talked scent. You have to ride up to the to four experienced foxhunters “We hunt on US Forest edge and jump off. The problem about the unique attributes of Service and Bureau of Land is that you don’t know if the their hunt countries and what Management property. So we edge will crumble underneath special demands these attributes have the great benefit, unlike you. So, they’re definitely not place on both horses and riders. many folks back east, of having something to be taken at speed.” public land over which we can 38 | COVERTSIDE

A lot of the land is covered with juniper and piñon evergreens, low and bushy trees that grow in clumps. “There are many, many clumps!” says Ambrosiano. “It’s as if you were to look across the top of a poppy seed bagel. And you say, ‘Is the top completely, solidly covered with poppy seeds? No. Is there a lot of bare bagel showing?

Well, yes. But there are a lot of poppy seeds, too!’”

The trees can create problems for the hunt. “If you’re 50 feet from a hound — or a staff member,” Ambrosiano says, “you might not know they’re there until they step forward into an open spot. What it means for our riding is that we have to have extremely nimble horses because we have sand and rock and cactus, as well as these patches of trees. It’s really a matter of a lot of zig-zagging. And when our riders come off a horse, it’s usually that they zigged and the horse zagged. And although field members need to be able to take their own line, I still want them grouped around me as field master because it’s easy to get lost. That’s why we follow so close behind the hounds, too. It’s great because as a result you see so much of their work.”

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BETTER RIDING

Low tide on the coast of Nova Scotia allows Annapolis Valley to move from covert to covert.

40 | COVERTSIDE

JEFF NEWBERY

The springy juniper and piñon branches can act like giant brooms, sweeping the unwary off their mounts, something to be avoided at all costs because, as Ambrosiano indicates, the ground below is littered with cactus. “Landing on cactus is not something you soon forget!

We have something called a ‘jumping cholla.’ Chunks of it will detach from the main stalks and appear to jump on you.

You can think you’ve got past without touching it, but maybe there was the lightest brush and suddenly you have this chunk of extremely spiky cactus attached to you or your horse.

For us, it’s very common to be standing at a check and for a horse to swish its tail and touch a cholla. All of a sudden, you’ve got this horse thrashing around, with something like a medieval club in its tail!” she says.

The hazard that newcomers need to prepare for most, however, is not so obvious.

The Caza Ladron hunt country is 6,000 feet above sea level and the problems caused by a change in altitude can be far more serious to flatlanders.

“When we have visitors come, we do remind them to drink lots of water and to be very mindful of how they’re feeling because the altitude can be a real jolt,” Ambrosiano remarks.

CANADA Three thousand miles northeast of Santa Fe is the Annapolis Valley Hunt Club of Nova Scotia, founded in 1979 and that hunts from midSeptember to early December, until bad weather closes them down. “If we get to Christmas, we’re doing really well!” says Dr. Paul Johnston, MFH and huntsman. As you’d expect, Annapolis’s hunt country is markedly different from the Caza Ladron’s. “The country is very agricultural and much of our terrain would be similar to New Hampshire. It’s a mixture of upland and agricultural land with lots of crops and cattle and orchards,” Johnston explains.

What makes the hunt unique is the creative way the staff has developed of moving around the country. “We use the beach,” Johnston says. “The

rides are partly to entertain the field, but they’re also a wonderful way to hack the hounds from one covert to another. It’s very safe and as a huntsman it’s a time I can sort of relax. It’s called a beach, but it’s actually low tide. And it’s really not a beach; it’s a packed mud flat when the tide goes out. There are a few soft spots you have to watch out for, but mostly it is a massive expanse of firm footing and you can gallop along it.”

The beach rides do mean that, along with the usual awareness of potential weather conditions, the Annapolis Valley Masters and staff have one other essential requirement — a detailed knowledge of the tides. “The hunt has to coincide with the low tide, otherwise you’d be under 20 feet of water. The water goes out almost a mile. But you don’t want to be doing a beach

ride when the tide’s coming in! It comes in extremely fast,” explains Johnston.

Another unusual aspect of the Annapolis Valley country is the system of dykes, which were built, Johnston explains, to reclaim land along the tidal reaches of the Annapolis and Cornwallis rivers. “A lot of our prime agricultural land would be under water if it weren’t for the dykes that hold back the high tide,” he says.

The dykes themselves do not present much of a problem to the foxhunters of the Annapolis Valley. “What’s actually more tricky is that in dykeland there are big ditches that drain the water out. The ditches flow under the dyke and sometimes you have to navigate the ditches between the dykes. Many a crash has been had jumping a ditch, and many a broken collarbone has been the result!”

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SPRING 2016 | 41

BETTER RIDING

NEW YORK

And obviously, we don’t want to take the hounds too close to them. It’s not that they don’t At Golden’s Bridge Hounds in know about horses so much, New York, “you can be hunting more that their disciplines and at 8 o’clock in the morning in ours don’t really mix.”

October and squeeze in a BroadFoxhunters with Golden’s way matinee, if you really tried Bridge have had to adapt achard,” says Yolanda Knowlton, cordingly and today they face MFH and honorary secretary. problems out hunting that their Golden’s Bridge Hounds is a grandparents little over 55 miles not have north of ManhatAt Golden’s Bridge Hounds in New York, could imagined. “I’ve tan and, according you can be hunting at 8 o’clock in the been a member to Knowlton, is for 20 years “one of the few morning in October and squeeze in a and when I live foxhunts close Broadway matinee, if you really tried hard. started we to the city.” Unnever had anyquestionably, the thing remotely like a road whip. our challenge, much more than biggest problem it faces is the Now, we couldn’t survive without animal rights or even developdwindling amount of country them,” says Knowlton. “Traffic ment, is that people buy these available to hunt over, but there is now a huge problem, not just tracts of land and keep very has also been a cultural shift. the volume, but people moving valuable show horses on them.

“Twenty-five years ago this area was much more rural. Very few people then would have thought about commuting,” says Knowlton. “It used to be there were lots of dairy farms and big horse farms. But it became less real working farms and more small tracts of 20 or 30 acres for sort of gentleman farmers.

And what we have found is that

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KANSAS Almost exactly halfway between North Salem and Santa Fe stands Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, home to the last remaining U.S. military hunt. “The main thing to watch out for here is the prairie dog holes!” says Lieutenant Colonel (Retired) Bob Fullerton, the hunt’s Joint Master, who combined his passion for hunting with a distinguished service career with the 75th Ranger Infantry Regiment. “Years ago, equitation was part of the military curriculum. There were hunts at a lot of places: Fort Benning, Fort Riley. Now, Leavenworth’s all that’s left,” he says.

Fort Leavenworth’s country consists of two major parcels of land. “We used to hunt on the Leavenworth site itself,” says Fullerton, “but now we’ve moved to a place about 16 miles away. We have about 2,500 acres there. It’s mostly of corn and

into the area don’t know to slow down and give us room. Many high-speed roads bisect all of our fixtures and much of the old dirt roads have now been paved.”

bean fields and some wooded areas. It’s very trappy and very quick, wooded, but there are some nice runs along with it. I would say that it is the typical country that many hunts have.

But our jewel, the country that makes us fairly unique, is the Flint Hills. They’re about three hours from here and we go down there twice a year. Open rolling terrain. No trees, period.

It looks like Kevin Costner and the indians should be coming over the hill! None of the property has ever been turned by a plow; it’s just native tall-grass prairie.”

The land, which is used by ranchers to fatten up cattle (brought up from Texas by railroad) before they go to market, comprises some 30,000 acres.

There are no jumps, no houses, and very few roads. “You have to have very fit hounds and even fitter horses, for the staff especially … and be very fit your-

Its proximity to Manhattan means the Golden’s Bridge country is now populated with smaller properties and much more traffic .

HELEN HOUGHTON

Fort Leavenworth’s Flint Hills territory is 30,000 fence-free acres.

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self!” Fullerton says he favors an Irish sport horse, “because the average hunt day is about 25 miles. And we’re able to hunt for hours and hours without even having to open a gate.”

It sounds like perfect hunting country, but inevitably there are one or two pitfalls. “The main thing is that occasionally you will come across a field with prairie dog holes in it,” he says. “Luckily, they gather together. So when there is one field of them you can usually go around it. But as well as needing a fast horse with a lot of stamina, you also need a very careful horse, with a well-developed sense of self-preservation, to help watch out for them.”

Then there is the fog. “There are no real landmarks out there,” says Fullerton, “and you can get disoriented pretty easily. I remember, years and years back, this officer and I were both at the front of the hunt and we had a violent disagreement about which way was home. When the clouds come down over the hilltops, and they can come down pretty quickly, you can literally only see a few yards in front of your face and everywhere looks the same.

Nowadays, we don’t go out there without a compass!”

Christopher Oakford lives in Lexington, Kentucky, and is the author of the new book, “The Iroquois Hunt: A Bluegrass Foxhunting Tradition.”

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SPRING 2016 | 43

FARE & FLASK

from AIKEN HOUNDS, Aiken, SC

Aiken Hounds celebrate hunting with an evening picnic in Hitchcock

MICHAEL STERN

Woods.

CAVIAR PIE, OH MY! Aiken Hounds’ breakfast tradition: where comfort food meets pizzazz!

BY MICHAEL STERN

A

iken Hounds’ opening day draws over a thousand spectators to a ceremony where mounts and riders are trimmed, turned out, tacked up, and braided to the nines. The hounds are blessed and a hundred hunters light out on sand and clay trails through the 2100-acre magnificence that is Hitchcock Woods.

It is a drag hunt (at 102 years old, the nation’s first), so other than a couple of idylls for hounds, horses, and humans to catch their breath, the pace

is go-for-broke — a serpentine steeplechase that flies over one impeccably maintained Aiken jump after another. Finally, after ham biscuits and sherry are passed around, the field thanks Huntsman Katherine Gunter and Masters Linda Knox McLean, Joann Peace, and Larry Byers; then everyone says goodnight.

What, no breakfast? Not this morning, for it is Thanksgiving Day, so club members go their separate ways — some to the Track Kitchen, a horse-district diner where they

Fare & Flask is sponsored by Huntsman’s Premium Bloody Mary Mix

44 | COVERTSIDE

pick up whole turkeys fried to legendary succulence by Chef Pockets Carter. Prior to opening day, Aiken Hounds regularly enjoys a Saturday post-autumn hunting breakfast outdoors near the Woods’ trailer parking area, where the menu can be as informal as chili or pizza. And a month before Thanksgiving, the approaching hunt season is heralded by an evening picnic in Hitchcock Woods. Celebrants gather by bonfire and lantern light at a place known as the Tea Cottage because back in the heyday of the city’s winter colony, riders met there for tea when the hunt was done. The

cottage is gone, but the picnic area remains an enchanted tree-sheltered haven.

The Tea Cottage picnic is a casual meal, last year’s buffet laid out by Bobby Q’s, a local barbecue parlor.

After opening day, seriously good eating begins. On Tuesdays, when the hounds go out in the afternoon, members meet afterward for happy hour at The Willcox, a gilded-age hotel at Woods’ edge that is known for pâté, mojitos, ports and cognacs. On Saturdays after the morning hunt, club members take turns hosting breakfast in their homes. These tend to be lavish affairs, many of them catered by Teddy Milner, known hereabouts as “Queen of the Hunt Breakfast.”

When Teddy caters, the menu likely will include caviar pie, a club-favorite hors d’oeuvre that has been part of her repertoire for some twenty years. It is an uncomplicated dish that marries the pizzazz of glistening black caviar to the velvety comfort of cream cheese and sour cream.

Michael Stern has co-authored over forty books about American food and popular culture.

He created roadfood.com and is heard weekly on Public Radio’s “The Splendid Table.”

the recipe

CAVIAR PIE Caviar pie is heaven on toast points or crackers, although I’d be happy to stand by the serving dish and eat it with a soupspoon.

INGREDIENTS: • 6 hard-cooked eggs, chopped

• 1.5 cups minced sweet onion

• 3 tablespoons mayonnaise

• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened

• 4 ounces caviar • Lemon slices or wedges • Parsley

• 2/3 cup sour cream DIRECTIONS: COMBINE the eggs and mayonnaise and spread over the bottom of a well-greased 8-inch springform pan.

SPRINKLE on the onion.

MIX the softened cream cheese and sour cream until smooth and use a wet spatula to spread this over the onion.

COVER AND CHILL 3 hours or overnight.

JUST BEFORE SERVING, top with caviar, spreading it smoothly edge to edge.

RUN a knife around the pan sides and loosen.

LIFT the pie from the pan to a plate.

GARNISH with lemon wedges and sprigs of parsley.

Serves 10

SPRING 2016 | 45

FOXHUNTER’S LIBRARY

Humor and Tidbits

BY GLENYE CAIN OAKFORD

THE FOX IN THE CUPBOARD: A MEMOIR

By Jane Shilling 339 pages London, England Penguin, 2005

WHILE MANY HAVE fond childhood memories of the chase, there’s also something to be said for joining the hunting world as a sharp-eyed and more worldly adult — and then writing a keenly observed book about it. London journalist Jane Shilling hadn’t initially intended to become a foxhunter but got introduced to the sport when she decided to fulfill her childhood dream of learning to ride, and ended up taking lessons from an MFH. That opened up new and

sometimes mysterious experiences that Shilling describes beautifully, and, in doing so, reawakens in her readers the memory of buying a first hunt coat, of attending a first meet, and of countless thrilling gallops through woods or fields behind hounds. She writes beautifully of these moments which are, as she puts it, “the fluid, filmic emotions of following a hunt; the flitting succession of momentarily overwhelming sensations: melancholy, exhilaration, excitement, pity, dread; the peculiar conviction that at different moments one is the fox, the hound, the horse, the woods. And at the same time as one’s sense of self is swept away by all these other feelings, there remains the ice-chip of mindfulness, the calculation of what one knows or can guess: the

THE FOXHUNTER’S WEEK-END BOOK

By David W. E. Brock 376 pages London, England Seeley Service, 1939

THIS BOOK IS LIGHT and, in places, hilarious, meant for quick perusing over a weekend’s occasional free hour or two.

But it also provides a wealth of practical information about everything from hunting etiquette to deciphering a pack’s canine utterances and a huntsman’s cries, to what to look for in both a quality horse and a quality hound to how to bargain on the 46 | COVERTSIDE

direction of the wind, the lie of the land, the telltale flight of the birds or movement of stock in the fields, the technical business of getting over the country and the fences: mental transactions as simple and as complicated as a poem.”

Consider her more visceral description of a gallop and tell me you can’t see it and feel it as you read: “Bird’s-egg sky, muted late winter colors in a spectrum of different shades of brown: earth and briar, dead leaf, twig and stone. It has rained in the night, so the branches and pine needles are beaded with drops, shooting rainbow points of light where the pale sun catches them and scattering as the horses brush by. The ground feels soft, almost luscious, underfoot. The mare is going effortlessly. We have cleared a couple of little

price of hay. Here are a couple of sage and timeless snippets: • “Beware the road-side grass verge; it looks charming but into its grips your horse, intent on hounds, may blunder, while the refuse of the last Bank Holiday or fine urban Sunday may well cut an artery.”

• “A water-holding furrow is the one to choose; if it will hold water better than its neighbors it will hold you better, too.”

• “Hunting sandwiches differ from all other sandwiches in that they are eaten under vastly more rigorous conditions, and they should be prepared with that in view. They should be so cut, formed, and packed that they can be enjoyed even though eat-

jumps in the woods and now she is brisk but not pulling, ears pricked forward, happy to be out at the start of a day’s hunting, which is what she likes doing best. A thread of vitality seems to rise from the springy earth, up through the mare’s muscles and into mine. I feel wonderful, filled with energy, capable of anything as we canter along the margin of a meadow where a line of old chestnut and oak trees marks the boundary, their twigs tipped with buds that are fat and almost ready to burst into leaf.”

en upon the back of a run-away mustang, in a hurricane of wind and cold rain, by a man who has recently broken his right wrist.”

Along with such tips one gets a few poems, quotes from notable foxhunting works, a glossary of hunting terms, basic anatomical diagrams of horse and hound, and some wonderfully funny anecdotes from a time in English hunting that still bore traces of the Edwardian era. Now out of print, this friendly and wise little book is well worth running to ground via the Internet.

Glenye Cain Oakfoard is a freelance writer, frequent Covertside contributor, and a member of the Iroquois Hunt.

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LAST RUN OF THE DAY Photograph by Michael Gomez

All That Matters Photographer Michael Gomez captured Clare Marie Pinney and her horse Willis retrieving the hound Turbo. The Cedar Knob Hounds were hunting John Menefee’s Iron Horse Farm in Cornersville, Tennessee.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Do you have a photo, story or essay to share with Covertside? Send high-resolution, 300 dpi photographs or essays to editor@covertside.net, or snail mail to Covertside, 2329 Lakeview Rd. SW, Albuquerque, NM 87105 48 | COVERTSIDE

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