Eating a piece of apple pie is probably the last thing you’d expect a big-time jockey like Mike Smith to be doing on his day off. But maybe Smith figured he’d earned it. His most famous mount, Zenyatta, had just won the Eclipse Award for 2010’s Horse of the Year, and Smith had already put […]
The historic art deco race palace known as Hollywood Park, in Inglewood, Calif., has thrown open the starting gate on its spring concert series, with music under the stars most Friday nights through May. The track, which was opened in 1938 by the Turf Club under the chairmanship of Harry Warner of Warner Bros., and […]
The University of Southern California’s equestrian team ended its best season by missing the IHSA National Finals by two points. USC made it to the regional Zone 8 Finals, April 2–3 at the Fairplex in Pomona. There they missed by a heartbreakingly slim margin the chance to compete at the Intercollegiate Horse Show Assn. Finals, […]
I often hear, “So what brought you to Santa Ynez?” My response: “It’s a long story, but the short answer is…my mare.” I can’t remember a time in my life when I didn’t want a horse. As a child I cried, begged, pleaded and prayed that one day I’d have a horse of my own. […]
The second annual Palm Springs WestFest and Frank Bogert Memorial PRCA Rodeo, presented by Spa Resort Casino, rode into town on March 25-27. Former mayor Frank Bogert was a cowboy and a celebrated rodeo whose statue adorns the commons area in front of Palm Springs City Hall. WestFest and the rodeo in Bogert’s honor were […]
Waving one hand in the air, blood pumping with adrenaline, 21-year-old California cowgirl Kaylynn Pellam whirls astride a spinning bull. She doesn’t make the eight seconds required to qualify her for the next round, and flies to the ground. But she dusts herself off and prepares to ride another day. “God made dirt, and dirt […]
It’s not easy finding a suitable horse at 101, even for a rider as experienced as Bert Bonnet. When the Shadow Hills–based horseman lost his beloved mare, Cassie, in a freak street accident on Dec. 4, he knew he had to get back in the saddle. Friends rallied, trying to come up with a good […]
The Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks is putting the finishing touches on its landmark Los Angeles County Trails Manual. The document, expected to be issued in late May, is the first cohesive blueprint for trails development that the county has put together, and is highly anticipated by members of the equestrian community. […]
From the early 1960s through the mid 1980s, the U.S. was a dominant force in the world of show jumping. Represented by a dynasty of equestrian elite including Frank Chapot, William Steinkraus, Mary Mairs Chapot, Kathy Kusner, Conrad Homfeld and Joe Fargis, our team won at every major venue in the world. What is often […]
In the battle over Los Angeles city park trails, equestrians and hikers won a narrow 11th-hour victory over recreational mountain bikers. A March 1 vote by the city council effectively put the future of the city trails back under the purview of the Department of Recreation and Parks rather than the Department of Transportation, which […]
