Happenings

Secretariat Statue Comes To Middleburg

Fifty years after Secretariat’s Triple Crown win, a 3,800-pound bronze sculpture honoring the Virginia-born equine athlete will be on display in Middleburg on Aug. 8. The stop is part of a fundraising tour—which included displays at this year’s Triple Crown races—in the effort to establish Jocelyn Russell’s “Racing into History” sculpture in Ashland.

As part of the event, Loudoun Therapeutic Riding is hosting a free movie night at the Middleburg Community Center from 6 to 8 pm. that evening. LTR also will be selling autographed copies of “Secretariat’s Meadow” and selling raffle tickets for a Secretariat Breyer Horse. The sculpture will be parked at the National Sporting Library and Museum on Aug. 9, with special programming with the artist and Secretariat team planned at that location.

For more information, go to SecretariatForVirginia.com.

Ruritans Put Spotlight On Aldie History

The Aldie Ruritan Club will present a “Civil War History Talk Where it Happened” on Saturday, Aug. 12 starting at 1 p.m. at Mercer Antiques, 39359 John Mosby Highway.

Historian Don Hakenson will tell the story of Col. John Singleton Mosby’s capture of Union soldiers who had hidden in the flour at Aldie Mill in June 1863. Carl Sell, author of several books about Civil War activity and historic houses in western Loudoun, will describe the Battle of

Aldie and Union Captain George Custer’s fall into the Little River.

Books by both historians be available for purchase, with some of the proceeds benefiting the Aldie Ruritan Club.

Bring a chair for this free, outdoor event.

Healing Heroes Poker Ride

The 10th Annual Boulder Crest Foundation Healing Heroes Ride—the East Coast’s largest motorcycle ride to support veterans—happens Aug. 19 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Participants will start in Bluemont or Fairfax and end at Boulder Crest Retreat, making several stops along the way to add another card to their poker hand. Best poker hand of the day takes home the grand prize.

The $30 registration includes breakfast, lunch, and the post ride party with live music. For tickets, sponsorship opportunities and other details, go to support.bouldercrest. org/2023healingheroesrideeast.