The Chronicle of the Horse
THE EQUESTRIAN LIFESTYLE MAGAZINE
Shades of Gray
CAMARGUE A gallery of the photo works of Drew Doggett
BARN BASH
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Easy-To-Make Holiday Party Treats
THE WRITER RIDES
Pulitzer Winner Jane Smiley’s Life With Horses
STYLISH ASIDE
Sidesaddle’s Big Comeback GRAND LUSITANOS
At Portugal’s National Horse Fair
A SUPPLEMENT TO THE CHRONICLE OF THE HORSE
NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2016
HOLIDAY Gift Guide Get Inspired For The Season
LIFE BETWEEN THE EARS Seeing The World With
“Life Between The Ears” Contributors to the “Life Between The Ears” social media accounts transport us to the world’s most interesting and beautiful places—all viewed from the saddle.
EMMA WHITE/@TRAVELS_ON_HORSEBACK PHOTO
MEKNES, MOROCCO Emma White lives in London and rides weekly but doesn’t own a horse. She’s a visual effects artist in the movie industry; she’s worked on films such as Mission Impossible and Wonder Woman. Once or twice a year, she treats herself to an equestrian vacation. “My equestrian escapes are my antidote to working long hours on a computer all day long,” she said. “I always try to go on a different ride each time.” So far, White has been on rides in the United Kingdom, Greece, Spain, Jordan, Morocco, Brazil, Mexico, Botswana, South Africa, Italy, Portugal, Bulgaria and the United States. This photo was taken on a ride from Meknes to Fez in Morocco. “The horse in the photograph is an Arabian-Barb called Ramlia owned by the stables in Meknes,” White said. “She was my horse for the week of the trail ride. She was so sure-footed, with amazing stamina.” The ride encompassed Roman ruins, fruit and olive groves, and the Dead Valley desert. “I go somewhere new each time. Each memory is so special, as I may never visit that place again!” White said. Meknes is one of four Imperial cities of Morocco—Morocco’s four historical capital cities, which also include Fez, Marrakesh and Rabat— and was founded in the 11th century. It’s considered the agricultural capital of Morocco, producing olives, peaches, nectarines, prunes, apples, potatoes, onions and garlic. It’s also home to many dairy farms.
AMY MARCH SMITH/@AMYMARCHSMITH PHOTO
MENORCA, SPAIN Amy March Smith lives in Farnborough, Hampshire, England, and took this photo while enjoying a guided ride on holiday in Menorca, Spain. She balanced her iPad, backpack and reins to get this shot of the coastline of the island in the Mediterranean Sea. Menorca actually has its own breed of horses, the Menorquín, which are predominantly black. They are a centerpiece of the June festival Festes de Sant Joan, honoring John the Baptist. At home in England, Smith recently graduated from high school and is working as an apprentice at a riding school and livery yard. “I hope to learn all about the ‘horsey world,’ as my parents are non-horsey, so it has always been a struggle to get involved with horses and convince them to let me have lessons,” Smith said. “I have been riding for seven years, since I was 9 years old. I hope to have a career with horses in the future!” She also has a passion for photography. Smith currently half-leases Tommy, a 6-year-old New Forest gelding who was rescued from slaughter. “When I first rode Tom, he instantly took a disliking to me and proceeded to run out of the school to try to chuck me off!” Smith said. “The following days, he did the same. Again and again, I got on, and I ended up on the floor. I don’t know why I didn’t stop, but I’m so glad I stuck with him.” After his ulcers were discovered and treated, Tommy reformed into a solid citizen for Smith.
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UMA MENCIA/@UMA1104 PHOTO
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FRANCESCA BELON/@FRANCB07 PHOTO
AREQUIPA, PERU Francesca Cavallero Belon is a veterinary student in Arequipa, Peru. She also breeds Peruvian horses, Lusitanos and Quarter Horses. Here she was trail riding on Bella, a Quarter Horse-Arabian cross. The photo was taken at an oasis in the desert outside Arequipa, which is Peru’s second most populous city. The Andes Mountains border Arequipa to the north and the east, while the southern and western edges of the city are ringed by foothills.
MONGOLIAN STEPPES Originally from the Basque Country of northern Spain, Uma Mencia is now pursuing her master’s in Arab studies at Georgetown University (D.C.). She’s a professional endurance rider who has ridden with the Al Aryam Endurance Team out of Dubai since 2008. In 2015, Mencia completed the Mongol Derby, a 1,000-kilometer race across the Mongolian steppes that is billed as the longest, toughest horse race in the world. She rode 28 horses during the race, covering 18 to 25 miles on each segment. “All I know about this horse are the kilometers we spent together across the steppes and all the things he made me feel,” she said. Mencia has ridden mostly Arabian horses, but for the Mongol Derby she was mounted on native Mongolian horses. “I was greatly surprised by the strength, endurance and bravery of these little—in stature only—horses,” Mencia said. “They are constantly aware of their surroundings, looking for the best terrain, making sure they do not step in holes, and in general are very generous ponies. “This picture was taken in the middle of the Mongolian steppe,” she continued. “It was the third day of the race, and we were about to reach the Urtu (the camp) where we were going to spend the night to continue our journey, hosted by a Mongolian family who would take care of us and our horses. I will never forget their hospitality. I am still deeply moved by the experience, and I often find myself thinking of the time when I will have the opportunity to go back to Mongolia to keep learning from their culture of horsemanship. “A note on the terrain,” she added. “As you can see in the picture, the terrain is quite bumpy. It was quite tricky indeed to navigate, for it was deceiving. While it may look like beautiful green grass from far away, it is very irregular, and it required a slow pace, for the horses would stumble easily while trying to cross it. Apparently, this is something that happens when a place that would usually be filled with water dries. The mud solidifies, and grass grows on it, resulting in these inconvenient yet beautiful shapes.”
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MARYAM AL-MAHMOUD PHOTO
ZEKREET BEACH, QATAR Maryam Al-Mahmoud is a surgeon living and working in Zekreet, Qatar. She’s ridden for 22 years and originally dreamed of breeding Arabian show horses. This photo was taken between the ears of Vivaldi, a Swedish Warmblood mare she’s owned for a year. “Qatar is surrounded by beautiful sea on three borders, and Zekreet is one of the most beautiful locations,” Al-Mahmoud said. “This beach is close to our stables. It was the first ride out to the sea for Vivaldi and me. She loved the water and even chased away a flock of flamingos. “I believe in love at first sight,” Al-Mahmoud continued. “I still remember when I first laid eyes on my Vivaldi. She is a one-person horse; that is what I love most about her. She has healed my broken heart. She has changed me to the point that I’m now hooked on warmbloods and traveled to Germany to buy another warmblood. I plan to compete her and the new horse in show jumping.” Al-Mahmoud also owns two Arabian stallions that compete in hand and under saddle.
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T.E. LAWRENCE OF ARABIA TRAIL, JORDAN Kim Bergman is an avid polo player who plays from December to March in Indio, Calif., then trailers her mounts home to Vashon Island, Wash., for a few months of rest. This photo was taken during a month-long trip Bergman took to Egypt and Jordan. She was fascinated by the horses of Egypt. “The horses, all of them Arabian, are incredibly versatile and even-tempered despite nothing being gelded, and everyone eating freshly picked alfalfa,” said Bergman. “On the flip side, the majority of working animals I saw would probably have a body condition score close to 3, as would their owners. They [horses, donkeys, camels] are an integral part of the socioeconomic system in Egypt.” After 10 days in Egypt, Bergman went to Jordan, where horses are seen much less. “Horses take a lot of food and water—luxury items in the desert,” Bergman said. She and her group rode mules to see some monuments and temples, and when they traveled to Wadi Rum, a valley carved into a granite and sandstone landscape, they leased horses from a professional outfitter. “Fortunately, my husband was reading Lawrence In Arabia: War, Deceit, Imperial Folly And The Making Of The Modern Middle East by Scott Anderson, so being sidetracked into the moonscape of Wadi Rum wasn’t a hard sell to the non-equestrian,” Bergman said. “We slapped on our rental bike helmets and surged ahead, me undoubtedly more eager than he. Our Bedouin guide, Mohammad, rode what you might expect from a Middle Eastern Arabian endurance horse: a lean, leggy, gorgeous gray mare who was in constant motion, even at a standstill.” Wadi Rum is also known as the Valley of the Moon. T.E. Lawrence was a British colonial officer who passed through the area multiple times during the Arab Revolt of 1917-18. “I had a handsome gray, [translated as] Silver Wind, who was willing to keep up with Mohammad on his slippery mare,” Bergman said, “but he was well schooled enough to hold back and even walk at my husband’s pace. A quiet horse on vacations also allows you to drop the reins and take some pictures. I did get my moment to gallop through the Jordanian desert when my husband’s horse was held in check, so all was not lost. Hi-ho, Silver!”
KIM BERGMAN PHOTO
LIFE BETWEEN THE EARS
RICK DAHMS PHOTOS
Sharing Life Between The Ears
Since 2008, Life Between The Ears founder Kristine Dahms has posted stunning photos shot by riders in all corners of the world with one hand on the reins and the other on the shutter. Dahms mines photos with the hashtag #lifebetweentheears, contacts the original poster of the image, then features the photo, complete with educational details about the place that’s portrayed. Life Between The Ears photos appear on a LBTE Facebook page, an Instagram feed, a dedicated website (lifebetweentheears.com), a Twitter feed and a Pinterest page (all under lifebetweentheears account names). Dahms—who lives in Vashon, Wash., with her Welsh Cob, mini horse, pygmy goats, two dogs and two cats—rides dressage and takes quite a few photos herself on the picturesque Vashon-Maury Island. Dahms has taken some of the Life Between The Ears images from cyberspace to print, creating three lines of greeting cards with selected photos from her social media pages. A portion of the proceeds from the card sales goes to the Equine Land Conservation Resource (elcr.org). Cards are available at lifebetweentheears.com/retail.
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