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NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2017
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. Each issue, we share a few of their images. GAMMEL SKAGEN, DENMARK This photo was taken during a bucket list ride for Danish trail rider Annette Larsen. “The story behind the picture is that I have for some time dreamed of riding from Råbjerg Mile (the largest moving dune in Northern Europe), past the sand-covered church, to the top of Denmark, called Grenen,” Larsen said. “This is a ride of 27 kilometers [about 16.5 miles]. We live in the middle of Jylland, and it is a 2 ½-hour drive to reach Råbjerg Mile, North Jutland,” she continued. “To do this, I had to ride through the city called Skagen.” Skagen is Denmark’s northernmost town and its main fishing port as well as a popular tourist destination. Larsen’s ride went by many historic sites, including the famous sand-covered church, or the buried church. The church tower is one of the oldest buildings in Skagen, built between 1355 and 1387 of bricks imported from the Netherlands and Germany. The tower, which is the only portion of the building visible now, was built in 1475. In the 1700s, drifting sand began to cover the church due to desertification of the area. For decades, locals would dig out the front door before services. But in 1795, the church was closed and demolished, though it is believed that the floor, altar and baptismal font still exist under the sand. The tower, now owned by the National Museum of Denmark, has become a famous landmark. Larsen completed the ride from Råbjerg Mile to the northernmost tip of Denmark in one day. Her father ran alongside her, and her husband and son followed with a car and horse trailer. “It was a fantastic trail ride,” she said. “It was so nice to be able to share the experience with [my dad]. My husband and son like horses, but only my son is riding with me once in a while.” She used to show a bit, but back problems have limited Larsen to trail riding in recent years. “I love to ride in the nature and drive around in Denmark to ride places with beautiful nature, often with my friends but also alone,” she said. “I love taking pictures of what I see when I ride; there are so many beautiful places.” Larsen, who lives with her family on a farm in Løvskal, Viborg, with four Quarter Horses, works at a feed and tack store. She’s been riding since she was 6, and she bred the horse whose ears appear in the photos, Eyema Obama, a 4-year-old Quarter Horse gelding. “He is a special horse for me,” she said. “I saw him being born and have been with him every day since. I love to ride him because he’s a super trail horse—he’s calm, he looks where he sets his hoof, he is safe with cars, he likes other horses, but I can also ride him alone. He is all that I need in a safe trail horse.”
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The historic windmill in Skagen village, which was built in 1870.
The view through Obama’s ears as they ride over the dunes and Hans Erik Larsen, Annette Larsen’s father, runs with them. Annette Larsen finished her ride on the spit of beach that marks the northern tip of Denmark.
ANNETTE LARSEN/@TUKAER PHOTOS
Many lighthouses dot the coast of Denmark, and Annette Larsen rode by Skagen’s Grey Lighthouse, which was built in 1858 and is still used.
Annette Larsen and Obama enjoying the views over the dunes during her ride to Skagen.
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JACKIE RAPPEL/@JACKJACK.8 PHOTO
WAPSERVEEN, THE NETHERLANDS In a country full of famous professional riders excelling in dressage, eventing and show jumping, Rob Grootjen and his wife Marianne Grootjen prefer to focus on trail riding. This photo was taken in Holtingeveld, a nature preserve in the Drenthe province of the Netherlands. Holtingeveld is famous for the hunebedden, piles of massive stones marking graves estimated to be more than 5,000 years old. There is also a herd of sheep living here, overseen by a resident shepherd. “For American terms it is very small—it could be your backyard—but we are happy with it, and when we do our best we even can get lost,” said Rob. The ears in the photo belong to Novato, a 9-yearold Andalusian.
NEW YORK CITY Jackie Rappel and three friends took a trail ride in the heart of New York City, riding for 10 hours and covering about 22 miles as they took their horses from Central Park to Bowling Green round trip via 5th and 6th Avenues. Rappel snapped this picture as they walked past St. Patrick’s Cathedral on 5th Avenue. “I have now ridden in NYC a few times,” Rappel said. “Getting to ride in NYC has a lot of meaning to me. As a kid, my father instilled a real love for the city in me. I remember he had glass apples all over his office as he absolutely loved the Big Apple. This whole ride made me think of my dad, and I was happy to be able to share my pictures with him.” Rappel is riding Beckett’s Hickory Doc, a 16-year-old Quarter Horse gelding. “What I love about this horse is his heart. He has a ton of try and will do almost anything for me,” Rappel said. She competes “Doc” in reined cow horse and versatility competitions. “We saw some amazing things from our horses’ backs this day. The people of NYC were so great and kind, the drivers respected us, and the majority did the right thing,” Rappel said. “This is legal. Whether your horse can handle it is another ballgame.” Rappel, from Huntington, N.Y., is a lawyer with her own practice and two children. She grew up riding English, took some time out of the saddle when she started college and only found her way back a few years ago. “First I went back to English, and then about four years ago I switched to western riding, specifically cow horses,” she said.
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“Novato is a sensitive and smart horse, but overall fair,” Rob said. “And when people ask what we think is important for a horse, then we say honesty and trust. “That’s also the way we work with horses,” he continued. “We are aware of the privilege we have to fulfill this hobby in a beautiful environment in the Netherlands. We ride in a freestyle horsemanship style, sometimes bridleless, and keep them outside as much as possible. We live in a society where everything goes fast, and we both work full time. It is a privilege to share these moments. The best memory you can get is sitting on the back of your horse, to feel his warmth and heartbeat, be close to your friends, forget the time and see a sunset between the ears of your horse.”
COLIN MENSCH/@CHMENSCH88 PHOTO ROB GROOTJEN/@TIGRO_GROOTJEN PHOTO
LAKE MICHIGAN, MICHIGAN Colin Mensch and Dusty, his 10-year-old Tennessee Walking Horse, were standing on top of the sand dunes of Lake Michigan when Mensch snapped this photo. “I’m lucky enough to spend my summers riding in Northern Michigan and get to ride daily. This exact spot is where I go when I just need to hit the refresh button; from on top of the sand dunes, Lake Michigan seems endless,” said Mensch. Dusty is one of Mensch’s favorite horses, and he’s worked with him for 1½ years. “He challenges me in so many ways, and I have learned so much from him. But what I love most is how he is always ready for an adventure. He always has his ears pointing down the trail,” he said. Mensch grew up riding and showed as a teenager, but he took a break from the show ring after high school. “I continued to ride horses for pleasure, and three years ago I was lucky enough to be offered an amazing job where I get to train horses and continue to improve my natural horsemanship skills,” he said. “I mainly study under Ray Hunt and Tom Dorrance’s natural horsemanship methods,” Mensch continued. “Every year I go to clinics taught by horsemen and women who studied with them. I’m always trying to improve my horsemanship skills, so I can better help the horses I work with. I also take dressage lessons throughout the year to improve my own riding and to be better connected with the horses I ride. When I’m not at clinics working on my horsemanship, I am out trail riding in beautiful Northern Michigan.”
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HILARY KRAMER/@HILARY.KRAMER PHOTO
RICK DAHMS PHOTO
Sharing Life Between The Ears
MILLVILLE, NEW JERSEY It’s not just the beautiful location at the Menantico Ponds Wildlife Management Area that makes this trail ride special for Hilary Kramer. It’s the fact that she’s still able to enjoy the views with her 26-year-old horse Double Take, or “Digger.” “Every ride on Digger is a gift. A lot of riders have their once-in-a-lifetime horse, but how many have had them for 22 years and counting? I am so very lucky,” Kramer said. The Menantico Ponds WMA encompasses 300 acres in the Maurice River watershed. The freshwater ponds that dot the area are the result of sand mining. Kramer is an amateur rider and competed Digger up to the low amateur-owner jumper classes. “After Digger got up in age, he continued with younger riders and would teach them from level 0 up to high children’s jumpers,” said Kramer. “His most successful young rider was Lauren Fisher.” Digger earned his name by digging holes in the ground during turn-out as a yearling. “Huge, deep holes, almost like a dog would,” Kramer said. “He’s still sound and happy. Digger is kind of wild; he was a born winner, and he’s hilariously naughty. To this day he bucks at least once per ride, just because he can.” Kramer, who also owns a young event horse ridden by Kristin Schlachter, might give foxhunting a try with Digger this fall. “Tally ho!” she said. “I’ll say again, I’m one lucky lady.”
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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.