TEAM MARSH TACKY BLOG
Changes This alone has made Bama a hero to Leighton. Bama was given to us on loan as a horse for me to start under saddle. His owner, David Grant, local breeder of Marsh Tackies, Thank you to Frances J. Karon and Giles Anderson of Trainer Magazine, Danielle Hodsdon, Jonathan Sheppard and Wylie Few guessed what lay As Cortez left that bay Equine progeny survive Learning to thrive Dining on sparse marsh hay Survive they did Among marshes they hid Until tasked by master’s bid Many soon discover They tame like no other As brothers, horse and human, they did Bonded by grit and savvy In the swamps they did carry Marion with Brits to harry Unparalleled in history And replaced by machinery But Lowcountry child, Marsh Tacky, still tarries Not only did the Marsh Tacky become South Carolina's State Heritage Horse in June, an article that appeared in S.C. Living I questioned whether this was too much horse for me. I questioned whether I really knew anything about horses! I got some
-- Posted on Thursday, February 17, 2011 by David Grant
As I have grown older, I have learned that change is inevitable - whether you are a person who makes changes or lets changes
make them. Change will come. Change can be good; change can be bad. Some have control over change; some do not.
Our beloved Marsh Tacky horses had no control over the changes in their world. Some would say they were victims, but I say
they were survivors. The way they have survived is one of the best equine stories ever told.
If you have followed the history of horses in America, you should have determined that horses were brought here for human
use, to serve a purpose, and when that purpose "changed," so did the type, the quantity and geographical location of the
horses.
When I first became involved with Marsh Tackies years ago, I was curious, and I have to admit doubtful in their lineage. "How
could they have remained pure for 500 years?" I questioned.
And what is a Colonial Spanish horse anyway? I began to research all the information that I could find to follow the story of the
first horses in America. We all know it is a fact the Spanish brought the first horses to American soil. But, as I have read about
how the Spanish began their conquests and established settlements and the incredible hardships endured by humans and
animals, especially horses, I was amazed at how they were able to increase in numbers. You can be sure it was the survival of
the fittest. If you read the stories of the first Spanish conquest for exploration, not settlement, you will read with amazement
about the human and equine feats of stamina and resolve. After reading more and more about the first horses in America, it
started to come to me that the Marsh Tackies were descendants of the same horses of the conquest. I was totally sold on doing
my part to see that change would not eliminate this wonderful breed of horse in modern America.
Change. The Marsh Tacky back in the 1970s was the cheapest horse you could buy in the Lowcountry. People would even give
you one. My, how things have changed.
Change. The Marsh Tacky has gone from being the common horse of the Lowcountry to being our State Heritage Horse, to
having a breed registry, to being owned by folks in at least five states. My, how things have changed.
Change. Some men go through crisis as they change, as they get older. The ecomony has caused a change to me personally,
physically and financially. I feel blessed and humbled that the Good Lord has sent a "buffer" during my change in life, my
beloved Marsh Tackies.
If not for the support of my family and the many letters, emails, phone calls and yes, even the painful but necessary sale of
some of my horses, I have endured this change.
I have shared with my Team Marsh Tacky family that I pray often, that I would always be up to the task of representing this
wonderful breed of horse with integrity and passion.
So here's to every single Marsh Tacky in our great breed and to each person who has crossed my path. May we together see
that "change" will always be beneficial to preserving the great legacy this horse has brought into our lives.
Pee Dee Cowboy ~ February 2011
Leighton Bell: "Dear Santa, I want a Pony"
-- Posted on Thursday, February 17, 2011 by Wylie Bell
(To those of you who might not be familiar with Leighton's newspaper, The Link, I occasionally write a humor column for the
paper, and the subject 99.99 percent of the time is the editor, my goofball husband. Here is one that is long overdue, but I felt it
worked well with the races coming up in two weeks. This will publish in next week's edition of The Link. Oh, and anyone who
doesn't know, Leighton has a Ric Flair fetish. And yes, I mean fetish!)
birthday, he was dialing the North Pole hotline when he thought his horse was about to be sold out from under him.
Since last spring, Leighton has been riding a 5-year-old Marsh Tacky gelding named Sweet Home Alabama, or just “Bama,”
who is the color of a butterstick. Unlike the last three, four, five (or has it been six?) horses Leighton has tried to pard’ner up
with, he and Bama have bonded well. When I say bonded, I mean Bama is the one horse that hasn’t bucked Leighton off.
First there was Apache, who wasn’t very agreeable with anyone on his back, let alone Leighton. Then came Charlie, who must
have had a personal vendetta against Leighton for as many times as he dumped the Buford boy on his golden mullet. Next we
put Leighton on a little filly (thinking he might do better with the ladies), but she not only threw him off, she showed him her
manure-making end as she took off for home.
And then there was Chuck. Good ol’ Chuck was supposed to be Leighton’s “racehorse” during the Marsh Tacky Beach Race in
Hilton Head last year, but Chuck wanted no part of racing – nor Leighton Bell. He gave Leighton the ultimate 8-second ride by
tossing him on the sandy shores of Coligny Beach in front of thousands of people who thought Leighton was part of the halftime
show.
I was about to give up looking for the “perfect” horse for Leighton and start researching the “perfect” saddle for him – one with a
seatbelt, when Bama got delivered to us as an unbroken horse. Bama arrived at our house tucked away in a horse trailer with a
hay bale and a promise that he was “gentle.” The hay bale made me suspicious, as if we’d just lost a contest, and this was our
consolation prize. The hay, however, was a testament to the fact that this horse could eat. And like Leighton Bell, Bama’s not
going to miss a meal – even if he’s on the road.
Maybe it’s the mutual blond factor these two share, but Bama and Leighton have the same easy-going, that-don’t-concern-me
attitude. Bama defies the adage horses are afraid of two things: objects that move and objects that don’t. Bama is afraid of only
one thing: objects that don’t contain food. Leighton is also only afraid of one thing: objects that contain vegetables. (Minus his
garden.)
Promises about horses rarely come true, but Bama has proved to be gentle. However, he is far from gentle when it comes to
other horses. Whenever Bama meets a new horse, he skips the pleasantries and goes right for the throat. There’s no sniffing
noses or playful romping. Bama flattens his ears and bares his teeth in a not-so-subtle warning that he’s the Pasture Master.
“Don’t you see; he’s the Ric Flair of the horse world? The bad guy that everyone loves to hate,” Leighton said. “If only he could
Woooo!”
But just as Leighton was figuring out a way to strap a saddle to Bama with a WWE championship belt instead of a girth, I had to
tell him that his “Nature Boy” had been sold.
told me a few days before Christmas that he had a buyer for Bama. I said, “Can I make you a counter offer? Leighton will be
heartbroken to see this horse go.” That’s when David and I hatched our plan to take Leighton for the ride of his life.
With only about a 12-hour notice that his horse would be leaving in the morning, Leighton spent a long sleepless night trying to
find a way to stop this transaction. When his ranting on injustice and unfairness became more annoying than amusing, I
suggested he write a letter to his Congressman.
“Better yet, do what every other child is doing right now. Write a letter to Santa Claus, and tell him you want a pony for
Christmas,” I said. “Bama is not just a pony,” Leighton said. “He’s a trailer-ridin’, hooves-flyin’, oat-stealin’, rearin’ and sneerin’
son of a gun. Woooo!!”
When David showed up the next morning, he handed Leighton a lead rope, which Leighton took to mean, “Go get Bama.” But
before he could walk away, David grabbed him in a man-hug and said, “Leighton, I’m a cowboy, not a horse thief.”
As David handed over Bama’s registration papers, Leighton wiped away a tear that might have been caused by the brisk
morning air and said, "You know, David, my heroes have always been cowboys."
Wylie Bell is a guest columnist of The Link and is married to proud Marsh Tacky owner Leighton Bell, the only cowboy making
shirts for the Feb. 27 Marsh Tacky Beach Race that say, “To be the man, you’ve go to beat the Bam,” a la Ric Flair.
Making my Debut as a Writer
-- Posted on Tuesday, November 02, 2010 by Daniela Snyder
Someone once told me that I should always follow my dreams and take my chances, even if I'm bound to fail. To me, writing
meant just that - a dream that was ultimately going to fail. I never thought that I'd ever succeed as a writer, because I always
believed with all my heart that I could not write. On the other hand, I have always had a strong interest in human stories of real
people.
Then one day, I met this incredibly brave person, a female steeplechase jockey, "the" only professional female
steeplechase jockey in the country, Danielle Hodsdon. She's one of those people I immediately felt compelled to write about,
someone who walks quietly amongst us doing remarkable things in an insanely dangerous sport that is by many considered
cruel to horses.
The publishers of "North American Trainer" magazine, a publication we had taken photos for in the past, took a huge gamble in
allowing me to write a full-length profile about Danielle. I had absolutely no idea where this article would wind up taking me. I
was just writing it to see if I can do it. Having witnessed and photographed some the most horrific steeplechase accidents, I was
not a big fan of the sport, however my outlook completely changed when I visited Danielle at her training barn and spent some
time talking to her.
I took the outline of her interview and added some words to it, soon realizing that there are two distinct sides to all equestrian
sports, the horse side and the human side. In the end, Danielle's story touched on all of those aspects, but also became a true
tale of inspiration. There is no greater joy than writing about a person who is authentic, whose outside reflects the values of the
heart. The authentic person is the real deal, what you see is what you get. Danielle is such a person, her inner values and
motivations are clear. So is her undying love for the horses she rides. It is my hope that my article will give the reader
a fresh new insight to the Sport of Kings and one jockey's passion that is second to none.
The full article will be available soon.
http://www.trainermagazine.com/america/news/251/27/Danielle-Hodsdon---the-leading-steeplechase-rider-in-profile
Bell.
On a Ship far away
By David Grant
On a ship far away
"Lucky" to find Sanctuary
-- Posted on Monday, October 11, 2010 by Wylie Bell
A horse named "Lucky" hangs his head in humble gratitude before Sally Boss and Kathy Hancock. His body - with its jagged hip
bones, protruding ribs and scarred flesh - is a roadmap of the long journey it's been for him to find sanctuary in their loving
care. Where once he stood amid piles of wormy manure and the skeletal remains of other horses less "lucky" than he, this horse
now has a clean pasture and fresh water and hay.
But most of all, Lucky now has a second chance, a chance to grow strong and healthy and become someone's riding partner
and lifelong friend.
Palmetto Farms
Lucky came to Palmetto Farms, a nonprofit horse rescue and sanctuary started by Boss and Hancock, when he and 13 other
horses were seized in June from a Cheraw resident. Boss took in the rail thin, sickly herd on her 28-acre farm halfway between
Cheraw and Chesterfield, S.C. Pointing to the fractured back of one mare and the fractured shoulder of another, crippling
injuries that were never tended to, Boss said, "There's no place around here for these horses to go. You can't ride them; no
one's going to want them."
Boss and Hancock's mission for Palmetto Farms are working on clearing 22 acres of land to build more pastures and dig a pond
for a natural water supply. She's also working on a lease agreement to use a neighbor's 40 acres for additional pasture land.
Once completed, the farm will be able to handle 60 to 80 horses.
"While we want to provide a home for these horses that need permanent sanctuary, we do want to be able to adopt out the
healthy ones and find foster homes," Boss said.
Assist the cause
Boss and Hancock also have to feed all these horses hay through the winter, in addition to providing veterinary care.
"It costs $300 to $500 a month, depending on the needs of the horse, to support just one horse," Boss said. They have held
fundraisers and are planning a benefit trail ride at H. Cooper Black Recreation Center in Patrick, S.C., in December.
"Besides financial needs," Boss said, "volunteers are needed to give love and attention to these horses, which have emotional
scars as well as physical scars. People don't realize how affectionate horses are. They're just as loving as a dog. Only bigger,"
she said.
As if to prove her point, Orion, a thoroughbred standing 17 hands tall and weighing over a thousand pounds, gently tucks his
nose into Boss's shoulder for a rub. Once a hunter jumper, Orion's career ended with a shattered knee, now held together by
pins, but luckily, his life has not. He has found sanctuary. Hopefully, many more horses will.
GENERAL INFO
Palmetto Farms
1200 Pleasant Grove Church Road
Cheraw, South Carolina
(843) 703-9124
Visit their farm on Facebook - Search Palmetto Farms
Summer Update of CMTO Activities
-- Posted on Friday, July 23, 2010 by Wylie Bell
This has been a busy summer for Carolina Marsh Tacky Outdoors, starting with a trip to the Lowcountry for a photo shoot on
Bugby Plantation. (Thanks to our host, John Sosnowski, and to Jenifer Ravenel and Susan Day, who put us up for the night
and joined us in the hot and muggy swamp hours before sunrise.) As always, Dwain Snyder took some incredible photos with
his wife Daniela who helped direct horses and people during this small window of opportunity as the sun rose over the salt
marsh. We look forward to sharing these photos with everyone in the future.
Magazine has drummed up more interest in the breed and has kept CMTO busy with visitors to the farm. We thank the editors
and writers of that magazine for an amazingly accurate and well-written piece.
We've started several young horses this summer, and all three are quickly developing into "horses of a lifetime". Southern
Breeze, a 3-year-old filly, was started by me. She has been my biggest challenge so far, but also the horse I've connected with
the most. Maybe because like me, she can be stubborn and doesn't always like to be told what to do (women right?). But with a
little kindness, urging and patience, she will do what's asked of her, reaffirming her trust in me and my decision making. She is
built like her sire, DP, and she has a nice broad back, so I usually don't even bother putting a saddle on her, which she seems
to appreciate during this sizzling summer. She's always eager to go with me when I go to the pasture to get her, and I think she
enjoys the brushing and being fawned over in general.
She's been in the swamp on several trail rides and for a hog hunt, which she did well on. During one particular ride with David
Grant and Marion Broach, we took the horses swimming in a pond. I pulled one of my old childhood tricks and did some
horseback diving (off Breeze's back). We were having a lot of fun -- and then the property owners ran us off like we were a
bunch of teenagers. (Luckily, they didn't threaten to call our parents.)
The other two 3-year-olds under saddle this summer are Simpson and Southern Spirit. Simpson has been steadfast from the
beginning. He's carried many different riders into the swamp this summer and already has a lifetime of experience hog hunting.
He is an incredible horse, but we expect him to develop into something really special for CMTO. Spirit was started as a stud, but
he has since been gelded due to anatomical complications. He is earning a spot among CMTO's remuda in the swamp, having
done really well a a young stud. I will be taking him for a couple of weeks this summer to put hours on him outside hog hunting.
As far as hog hunting, it's been a rough summer for CMTO's hunting posse, due partly to the heat, but also to some evasive
hogs. The ones who are not evasive are the big, bad mean ones who don't go down without a serious fight. On one hunt early
this summer, the dogs caught one such boar in a thick briar bed. As David said, that hog didn't even move from his thorny
hideout. He said, "Want some? Come get some." And something was got, that's for sure. Seven dogs, three grown men and
one adventurous 14-year-old boy fought that hog for what seemed like hours to me. Me being the one who waits with the
horses and tries to figure out what is the best tree to climb if that big, bad hog breaks loose.
On that same hunt, we had a dog get snake bit and we lost DP, CMTO's prize stud, in the swamp. David had stepped off DP to
take some photos of the hunting party, and DP, who might have been a little miffed at David for a disagreement they'd had
minutes before about standing still, decided to head back toward the trailers... at a gallop! So, we quit hunting hogs and spent
the rest of the time hunting a horse, who hours later showed up at the trailers as if to say, "Where y'all been?" Goes to show
that when you're dealing with animals, you just never know what's going to happen. But one thing is for sure, CMTO is going to
ride rough, we're going to get wet and muddy (and oftentimes, bloody) and we're going to push our horses to excel at their
natural abilities, which is to traverse terrain most horses could not. These young horses, we are seeing, don't have the strength
as the older stock, but they will develop into the same solidness we see in horses such as 6-year-old Sage, who is like a
bulldozer. I got to experience Sage during one particularly hot and muggy hunt (as if they aren't all like that).
With a machete in hand, David has disappeared on foot into a thick stand of briars and bamboo shoots on the edge of a
marsh. He and Hunter Rogers, our 14-year-old adventurer, work on chopping a narrow path through the brush toward a
popular (we are promised) hangout for hogs trying to escape the daytime heat. The rest of us, riders and horses, are standing
in a steamy huddle of sweating bodies, biting yellow flies and thick mud when David impatiently yells for us to come on. Sage,
whom David was riding point, is standing riderless in front of the group, so I jump from my horse to Sage, and point his head
toward the narrow gap in the briars. With one hand holding the reins of my horse and the other shielding my face, I let Sage do
his thing, which is crashing through the brush, leaving a path wide enough for a Cadillac. Sage doesn't need any cues from me.
This is his job and he knows it well.
Historically, these Marsh Tackies were workhorses, and that's the tradition CMTO wants to continue: to develop all-around
using horses that can be counted on each time you call on them to perform. All you have to do is hang on and enjoy the ride!
Starting a Horse is not always a "Breeze"
-- Posted on Friday, May 7, 2010 by Wylie Bell
Meet Southern Breeze, a 2-year-old Marsh Tacky filly who has accepted her first saddle and rider, me, Wylie Bell. Unlike her
name, though, Breeze did not arrive at my house like a warm and fuzzy summer breeze. No, she roared in with all her sassiness
like a full-blown hurricane.
First of all, she did not want to load. And when this big girl puts on the brakes, she's planted like an oak tree. But we got her on
the trailer eventually. At my place, she met her first admirer, my Appaloosa gelding named Apache, who -- bless his heart --
thought he's a stud. She spent her first days with him gushing all over her and kicking any other horse that tried to come near
his new girlfriend. To say the least, she was very nervous and uncomfortable in her new environment the first couple of times I
worked with her. She showed a lot of aggression toward me, something I had not encountered before in the few horses I've
worked with. So yeah, this big girl scared me. I felt like I always had to be on guard from both ends between the nipping and the
kicking out. (She never tried to kick me, but she didn't like things near her hind end.)
good advice from a very talented horse trainer, Scott Poindexter: Take baby steps. And we did. And she finally started relaxing,
and so did I. I also began to understand that Breeze really is a soft summer breeze. All those threatening gestures were as thin
as air. She accepted the saddle with little resistance. She accepted me with a couple of squeals, but that's when I started to
realize that she was just saying, "Hey! You can't do that!" And I said, "Yes, I can." And she said, "Oh."
This big stubborn nippy girl who wouldn't step up into a trailer has since walked with me up the brick steps of my front porch. I
could have lead her all the way onto the porch and probably plopped her down in a rocking chair and enjoyed a cold beverage
with her. (But then I remembered she was under age.) I don't expect everything to be a "breeze" with her from here on out, but I
do know that she trusts me and I trust her. And that is the key to creating a lasting partnership with a horse. Thanks for
reminding me, Breeze.
The Pee Dee Cowboy goes to the Country Club
-- Posted on Friday, April 16 , 2010 by David Grant
The ever elusive Pee Dee Cowboy was seen recently pulling into the grounds of the prestigious Florence Country Club.
Security was notified when he was seen toting a sword and a bullwhip. After a brief demonstration with the bullwhip and sword,
he was allowed to go in after security was impressed with such skill from a curious looking fellow. And he told them he was there
to speak to the "Pee Dee Committee of the National Society of Colonial Dames of America in the State of South Carolina."
Quite a crowd gathered as he marched into the greeting hall and announced who he was looking for! Finally the receptionist
peeked out from behind her desk. And politely asked in her best impression of John Wayne, "Howdy, Cowboy," to which the
Pee Dee Cowboy could only reply, "Mighty fine, M'am!" He was introduced to 35 right fine looking, seemingly well to do prim and
proper "dames." In his best English, he bellowed out, "How y'all doing!!" Once the tables and chairs slid back a little, everyone
settled down. The PDC announced he was there to tell them about a very special breed of horse that helped settle this state
and probably "toted" their ancestors to and from, across their ancestors' vast plantations. Finally, after he said he had two
points he wanted to emphasize and after explaining exactly what a Marsh Tacky is, the group started, for lack of better words,
to calm down.
First point the ol' boy pointed out was the extreme hardships the horses went through on the voyage from overseas to America,
and once they got here, how they persevered through extreme conditions. He was throwing in some tidbits he had picked up
from various readings from the secure section of the Florence library, that kinda loosened them dames up a bit! Then, when he
got around, with great enthusiasm I might add, to the hardships of the men and horses went through on some of Gen. Francis
Marion's great escapes and battles (with some little known information thrown in), they were really loosening up. That seemed
to egg the PDC on, and he started ad libbing in that ol' redneck fashion of his, and then, he had them laughing and asking
questions!
Then he pulled out that sword and whipped it around his head to demonstrate how the Swamp Fox's militia would swoop down
on the British dragoons and their heads! You could hear a few "Oh my's" and "I didn't realize all this!" Then the unthinkable
happened. They invited the PDC to stay for lunch. Well, that ol' boy sat right there amongst that elite group of ladies, and I'll be
damned if he didn't seem right at home!!! Well, so much for class separation anymore.
It was rumored after the talk, some of the ladies were seen talking to the PDC and reliving some of their wild times riding and
courting on their family plantations. My, my, how that ol' boy was working the room. He left there with many a "Hey, cowboy, that
was interesting to say the least!" The last comment overheard came from one of the older ladies: "Where was that dude when I
was young?!" I think the PDC overheard, because I heard him mumble something about, "It ain't how you start, but how you
finish."
And some crazy mumblings about the legend continues!!
By Captain Bob Slacker,
Florence Country Club Security