$4,500,000 – Stunning classical revival estate on 312 acres along the Rapidan River. Built in 1854, this meticulously restored home features original details.
Justin Wiley 434.981.5528
Peter Wiley 434.422.2090
410 Twelve Ridges Way
$1,995,000 – Nestled in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains, this 3-bed, 3.5 bath home offers modern elegance with 270-degree views.
Matthias John 434.906.4630
$3,750,000 – 35-acre Keswick estate featuring a 6,200 $2,950,000 – Perched atop the Southwest Mountains, sq-ft colonial, guest cottage, pool, and tennis court.
Prime location just minutes from Keswick Hall.
Peter Wiley 434.422.2090
Justin Wiley 434.981.5528
$825,000 – Rare 12-acre Orange County ridge estate. 360° views and renovated mid-century cottage. Justin Wiley 434.981.5528
6-bedroom home offers panoramic views and a Karen Turner-designed kitchen.
FOXHUNTING
In 1917, Carter P. Brown traveled from his home in Michigan, where he was the innkeeper of Castle Park Hotel from May through September, to a place where he could duplicate his business knowledge and equestrian interests from November through April.
That place was Tryon, North Carolina. And, like the rest of us here, he loved it from the get-go.
Tryon Hounds 100 Years of Excellent Sport in a Small Town
By Piper Close
With Carter Brown’s arrival, the role of the horse was about to change. No longer just for work and transportation, horses became sport. He organized the Tryon Horse Show, the Block House Steeplechase, Tryon Hounds Steeplechase, orchestrated the 1956 Olympic Equestrian Team training at Cotton Patch, and, last but not least, founded Tryon Hounds and introduced the exciting sport of foxhunting.
In the early days, every equestrian event became a community happening. Carter Brown’s innate sense of entrepreneurship and community spirit brought people together. Every Wednesday, Tryon businesses and schools closed, allowing the community to congregate and enjoy the equestrian event of the day at Harmon Field. Everyone was welcome.
Among his friends were Ernst Mahler and Jack Kimberly, titans of the Kimberly-Clark corporation. They, too, loved foxhunting, and it was his goal to help them acquire land and build homes they could enjoy during the season.
The first Masters were Walter Hill and John (Jack) Kimberly. Carter Brown was the original Huntsman, but the first professional Huntsman, Arthur Reynolds, was hired in 1939. He also maintained the stable, assuring that all who came to hunt or pleasure ride were provided sound horses to enjoy.
Arthur’s two children, Bucky and Betty (Oare) were accomplished riders, competing at Madison Square Garden wearing Tryon Hounds colors. Betty Oare can still be found in the arena, enjoying the competition of good horses.
During World War II formal hunting was paused, but informal “pot-lickers” kept locals involved. Coming out of those trying years, John Donald was Master and joined by his wife Betty as Joint Master for one year. Betty was also Field Secretary and was instrumental in saving documents and donating them to the National Sporting Library and Museum in Middleburg, Virginia.
Arthur Farwell joined the list of notable Masters, serving ten different seasons between 1952-1976. In 1971 the Holmburg family traveled from New York to look at horses. They fell in love with the area and stayed. At the time, Tryon Hounds had dwindled to five members. Bud Holmburg joined Arthur Farwell as Master, bought the current Tryon Hounds land, remodeled the house that is now the clubhouse, built a new kennel, and drafted in hounds to establish a traditional pack to create a new beginning.
Bud’s wife, Bonnie (now Lingerfelt), served as Master for 32 years and was president for 11 years, building up the membership, returning the club to a very active hunt.
In 1971, Louise Hughston became a Master and served through 2021. During her tenure, George Webster and Bonnie Lingerfelt were also Masters. In 2026, Kerry Holmburg followed in his father’s footsteps and enjoyed the rare honor and distinction of becoming a second-generation Master. And, serving double duty as Master and Huntsman, Robert Ashcom was Master from 1985-1993, and was Huntsman from 1983-1994.
Dr. Dean McKinney came on board as Master from 2006 to 2025. Current Masters include Bonnie Lingerfelt, Nelson Minnick, and Jim Ritchie.
Tryon Hounds has had ten Huntsmen in 100 years. The early years of Carter Brown, Arthur Reynolds, and George Webster were followed by Bill Reynolds, Helge Jacobsen, Spencer Bumgardner, Robert Ashcom, Chip Anderson, Jordan Hicks, and, currently, Beth Blackwell. Beth arrived in 2016 and has taken a leadership role in the study and treatment of leishmaniasis diseases.
Marking their Centennial milestone, Tryon Hounds are celebrating every aspect of the sport with events and memorabilia honoring the past, present, and future.
The year started with The Sporting Life Art Exhibit and Gala featuring art from the private collections of members. The Thanksgiving Opening Hunt and the Blessing of the Hounds were commemorated with a special pewter stirrup cup to toast the occasion and a special St. Hubert’s medallion for riders. The field included several junior riders making this their first opening season hunt. Christmas was celebrated in the traditional manner and offered a special Christmas ornament bearing the Centennial logo medallion. In January, the club hosted a Scots-Irish musical concert and released a coffee table-style book commemorating the 100 Year History of Fox Hunting with Tryon Hounds. Bubbles, Britches and Ball Gowns is a High Tea fashion show featuring traditional, country life, and formal Hunt Ball attire. The year will be completed with a modified Hunt Week the first week in March and conclude with a very special Hunt Ball.
For more information on Tryon Hounds and upcoming Centennial events, visit www.TryonHounds.com
J. Arthur Reynolds, Senior and Junior (“Bucky”) relaxing in their home near Pine Crest, NC, after a day of hunting. J. Arthur’s hand rests on Gigi, daughter Betty’s Whippet. The photo above the fireplace shows the senior Reynolds competing at Upperville in the solid outside course class for conformation hunters. Photo courtesy of the family
Tryon Hounds staff and field moving off for a sunlight autumn day of sport following the Blessing of the Hounds in 2024. Don West photo
SPORTING LIFE HIGHLIGHTS
Upcoming Events
In and Around Horse Country
Spring will soon be blooming with a bouquet of challenging, exciting, and just plain fun events. We encourage you to get out and enjoy the many happenings in Horse Country.
Hunter Pace Events and Spring Races:
The spring races and the hunter pace series begin on the last day of February with the Rappahannock Hunt races. For contact information and more details on all the racing and hunter paces in Virginia, go to www.centralentryoffice.com.
Spring Races, Virginia:
Saturday, March 14: Warrenton Hunt Point-to-Point
Saturday, March 21: Piedmont Fox Hounds
Point-to-Point
Saturday, March 28: Rappahannock Hunt
Point-to-Point
Saturday, April 4: Old Dominion Hounds
Point-to-Point
Saturday, April 11: Blue Ridge Hunt Point-to-Point
Saturday, April 18: Middleburg Spring Races
Sunday, April 19: Loudoun Hunt Point-to-Point
Saturday, April 25: Foxfield Spring Races
Sunday, April 26: Middleburg Hunt Point-to-Point
Saturday, May 2: Virginia Gold Cup Races
Spring Races, Maryland:
Sunday, March 29: Green Spring Valley
Point-to-Point
Saturday, April 4: Elkridge-Harford Hunt
Point-to-Point
Saturday, April 11: My Lady’s Manor Races
Saturday, April 18: Grand National Steeplechase
Saturday, April 25: The Maryland Hunt Cup
Sunday, May 17: Potomac Hunt Races
Saturday, May 23: Fair Hill Races
Hunter Pace Events:
Saturday, March 7: Snickersville Hounds and Casanova-Warrenton Pony Club
Sunday, March 22: Piedmont Fox Hounds
Saturday, March 28: Orange County Hounds
Sunday, April 5: Old Dominion Hounds
Saturday, April 11: Rappahannock Hunt
Saturday, April 18: Blue Ridge Hunt
Sunday, April 25: Warrenton Hunt
Sunday, May 3: Loudoun Hunt
Other Springtime Happenings:
Bull Run Hunt March Madness Hunt Week
Sunday, March 15 – Saturday, March 21 www.BullRunHuntClub.com
The snow and freezing rain that hit much of the country in late February left Virginia locked in what was dubbed “SnowCrete”—frozen so hard it resembled concrete. No hunting, but hounds still needed exercise. Old Dominion Hounds Huntsman Josh Bentley bundled up and walked out the pack with the Blue Ridge Mountains creating a picturesque background. Casey Poe photo
COVER PHOTOGRAPHER:
Stephanie Westover
valwestoverphotography.com
PHOTOGRAPHERS:
Coady Media
Adam Coglianese
Allison Howell
allisonhowellimages.smugmug.com
Mark Jump markjumpphotography.com
Karen Kandra
Melissa King
Tracey Lee
Douglas Lees douglaslees@comcast.net
Casey Poe
Elizabeth Proper
Geoffrey Tyson
Don West
Museum of Hounds & Hunting North America Members Reception
Saturday, May 23, 5:00 pm
The Mansion, Morven Park, Leesburg Open to current members and members’ guests. www.mhhna.org
Museum of Hounds & Hunting North America Exhibition & Sale
Saturday, May 23 – Sunday, May 24
The Mansion, Morven Park, Leesburg www.mhhna.org
Virginia Foxhound Club Cocktail Party & Dinner
Saturday, May 23, 6:00 pm
Horning Blowing Contest, 7:00 pm
Morven Park, Leesburg
Virginia Hound Show
Sunday, May 24, Show begins at 9:00 Morven Park, Leesburg rferrer@patricioenterprises.com
For other hound show scheduling info, go to www.mfha.com.
Upperville Colt & Horse Show
Monday, June 1 – Sunday, June 7 www.upperville.com
Coming in from the day’s action at the Belle Meade Hound Performance Trials held on January 23-24, 2026, in Thomson, Georgia. On the far right is Huntsman for the trials Steven Thomas, former Master and Huntsman at the Fort Leavenworth Hunt, followed by Epp Wilson, MFH/Huntsman, Belle Meade Hunt. Belle Meade Honorary Whippers-In/Hunt Members assisting with hounds are (l-r) Nicole Smith, Dick Dozier, and Mike McCarthy. Allison Howell photo
is published 4 times a year.
Editorial and Advertising Address: 60 Alexandria Pike, Warrenton, VA 20186
For information and advertising rates, please call (540) 347-3141, fax (540) 347-7141
Space Deadline for Summer May 1, 2026. Payment in full due with copy.
Publisher: Marion Maggiolo Managing Editor: J. Harris Anderson
Woodbrook Hunt Club’s Honorary Huntsman Jennifer Hansen shares a special moment with hound Isaid and her appropriately named hunt horse Heart.
JUNIORS
Highlights of the 2025 JNAFHC Championship Finals
By Carla Babcock • Mark Jump Photos
The 2025 Junior National American Field Hunter Championship (JNAFHC) finals, held on November 14 and 15 at the picturesque home of Moore County Hounds in Southern Pines, North Carolina, proved to be an exhilarating weekend. The finals gathered 97 competitors from across North America, representing 31 Hunts and 15 Pony Clubs in the U.S. and Canada, all vying for the coveted titles in the four divisions: First Field 14-18, First Field 13 & under, Hilltopper 11-18, and Hilltopper 10 & under.
The finals highlighted the remarkable skills of junior foxhunters aged 5 to 18. The level of competency in the many facets of foxhunting has grown by leaps and bounds among the juniors, which is a testament to their dedication to the sport. They are also developing an understanding of what it takes to be good stewards of the land, which is the mission set forth by the founders of the JNAFHC in 2003.
The JNAFHC finals were more than just a competition. They served as an important gathering for the foxhunting community, with an opportunity for the juniors to showcase their skills and knowledge of the sport while enjoying the camaraderie with others who share a common bond—fundamental for the future of the sport. Tailgaters and local vendors added to the charm of the event, showcasing equestrian and sporting art, jewelry, frocks and culinary delights, enhancing the overall experience for participants and their families.
The grand finale on November 15 featured a dinner and awards ceremony where juniors were recognized for their hard work and dedication. Division trophies and ribbons were presented, with special awards for Best Turned-Out, Sportsmanship, Horn Blowing, Whip Cracking, Hound Work and Pony Club High Point in each division. The division champions were:
First Field 14-18
Champion - Avery Wismer, Long Run Woodford Hounds & Bluegrass Pony Club Reserve - Samantha Manning, Snickersville Hounds
First Field 13 & under
Champion - Layla Heyworth, Deep Run Hunt Reserve - Laney Howard, Rolling Rock Hunt & Rolling Rock Hunt Pony Club Hilltopper 11-18
Champion - Catie Rae Crane, Live Oak Hunt & Live Oak Hunt Pony Club Reserve - Gus Conder, Wateree Hounds Hilltopper 10 & under
Champion - Emerson Mooneyham, the Camden Hunt Reserve - Hinton Paschal, Moore County Hounds & Sandhills Pony Club
(A complete list of all placings may be found on the JNAFHC.com website and Facebook page.)
As the sun set on the championships, the spirit of competition and community was palpable. Participants left Southern Pines inspired to continue their foxhunting pursuits, while spectators took home memories, and, in some cases, newfound knowledge of the sport. For many, the JNAFHC championships at Moore County Hounds served not only as a display of talent but as a reaffirmation of the enduring bonds between the equestrian community and the tradition of hunting in the countryside.
The JNAFHC is extremely grateful to Cameron Sadler, MFH and her joint masters, along with huntsman Lincoln Sadler, Championship Chairperson Brittany Paschal, and members of the Moore County Hounds for their support and amazing hospitality; the judges, officials, and volunteers who traveled from across the U.S. and Canada to devote their valuable time and support for the juniors; to the many hunts in North America that hosted junior qualifiers, special junior days and hunt clinics throughout the 2025 hunt season; and to the MFHA and the US Pony Club for their collaboration and support.
With excitement already building for the next championship—date and location to be announced soon—juniors are encouraged to reflect on this year’s successes and begin planning their goals and strategies for their next season of foxhunting.
A very large turnout of Juniors in the FF 14-18 division.
Wendy Paschal, MCH, on Doodles in the HT 10 & under division, also celebrating her 6th birthday—the youngest competitor to date!
Lillian Hall, Glenmore Hunt, FF 14-18, with judge Giacomo Wilson (JNAHFC alum and son of Keswick Huntsman Paul Wilson).
Hold The Reins Where Warriors Relearn
Presence, Connection, and Trust
Photos Courtesy of HTR
For those who know and love horses, simply entering the barn or stable can bring an immediate sense of calm. The familiar scent of hay, shavings, feed, and the animals themselves is like aromatherapy for many, calming their spirit and putting them squarely into a happy place. The gentle nickering of the horses as they greet their people and solicit a friendly pat on the neck reinforces the connection. Horses meet people without pretense. Once in the saddle, the rider can feel the outside world melt away. What remains is presence.
These moments can be profoundly therapeutic.
Hold The Reins, based in Tidewater, Virginia, was created to harness this unique power of horses in service of a population that rarely slows down: U.S. Navy SEALs and other Naval Special Warfare personnel. Designed by SEALs for SEALs, Hold The Reins is the only equine-assisted program specifically built around the culture, demands, and lived realities of elite special operations.
Understanding the Need
Few would dispute the assertion that US Navy SEALs are among the most elite, well-trained, and highly effective military units worldwide. While their exploits in anti-terrorism, hostage rescue, high value target elimination, and other special operations have received a great deal of attention in the media, it is nearly impossible for anyone who has not been a part of such an elite military unit to know, let alone appreciate, the difficulty of leaving this elite, team-focused service and transition to “normal” civilian life.
Service in the Special Warfare community is defined by sustained exposure to extreme stress due to the highly dangerous nature of their training and missions, the demand for constant readiness, and the need to set aside feelings, emotion, and often family needs to pursue the mission and fulfill expectations. Compounding this is the fact that nearly all their operations are highly classified and cannot be discussed with anyone outside the team, even with family. Putting one’s life on the line in every aspect of their service, often in remote parts of the world, takes a toll.
Traditional approaches to addressing anxiety, stress, and post-traumatic experiences often fall short with Special Operations personnel. As many SEALs will say, “it takes one to know one”. When that shared understanding is missing, trust erodes. The result can be isolation, fractured relationships, and alarmingly high rates of divorce and suicide.
A Program Built on Shared Experience
What makes Hold The Reins effective is not just the horses, it is the people leading the program.
The organization was founded and is run by former Navy SEALs who understand the culture from the inside. Founders Michael Hall and Richard Garner bring a combined 36 years of service in the SEAL Teams, along with decades of leadership, op-
erational experience, and horsemanship. They have lived the same pressures their participants carry. That shared language creates immediate trust.
As one participant described it: “Every time I leave, I feel like I have had a full reset. Rich and Mike help me figure out the ‘why’ behind what I’m carrying around and how to notice that. They helped me reflect and interact with the horses and I can see my energy reflecting off them.”
– Nick B. (SEAL)
The Founders: Warriors in Two Worlds
Michael Hall, a retired U.S. Navy SEAL as of June 2025, served more than 20 years and led over 350 high-risk direct-action operations worldwide. His career demanded precision, control, and resilience. It also exposed him to the quiet, unspoken costs carried by many of his teammates like grief, fear, and loss held beneath the surface.
Hall envisioned Hold The Reins as a sanctuary where service members could safely reconnect with themselves and their families. Horses, he recognized, offered something rare: honest, immediate feedback without judgment.
Richard Garner, President of Hold The Reins, is also a retired Navy SEAL. Additionally, Garner is a fifth-generation horseman raised on a family cattle ranch in Oregon. He has worked with over 1,000 horses, competed nine times in the Extreme Mustang Makeover, and built the Fish Tail Bar G Equine Training Center in Chesapeake, Virginia. His expert horsemanship, combined with his own military experience, makes him uniquely equipped to guide warriors through equine-based healing. For Garner, every horse is a mirror, every interaction a lesson in patience, presence, and resilience.
Together, Hall and Garner bring two legacies— military brotherhood and horsemanship—into a program designed to heal the invisible wounds of America’s elite warriors.
The Environment Matters
Hold The Reins operates on a quiet 34-acre farm outside the rural community of Courtland, Virginia, that is home to 11 horses, each with unique temperaments and skills that enrich the program experience. Participants engage in groundwork, liberty exercises, bareback riding, and trail work, discovering how horses naturally mirror emotional states with striking accuracy.
When a horse resists, softens, or disengages, it often reflects what the participant is carrying internally, offering insights no classroom or clinical setting can replicate.
In addition to core programming, participants work through obstacle courses, mindfulness practices, and relational exercises that emphasize emotional regulation, boundary-setting, trust, and communication both with the horses and with one another.
A participant sharing the horse’s breath. Some know this as the Indian breath.
The shared experiences in these conversations are what lead to laughter, stories, and often tears, rooting the experience with the horse in the participant’s nervous system.
A participant lies down on the horse while Rich leads him through a grounding mental exercise and breathwork. Michael monitors the horse’s behavior.
In addition to the farm’s 34 acres for core programs, Hold The Reins has access to 4,000 acres of adjacent land and an extensive network of riding trails. The land itself becomes a partner in healing.
Programs That Create Lasting Change
Hold The Reins is intentionally adaptive. No two participants experience the same journey. The program’s core activities—including grooming, groundwork, saddled riding, and narrative reflection—are designed to meet participants where they are, physically and emotionally.
Highlights include:
• Equine-Guided Mindfulness: Practicing presence alongside the horse to regulate stress and reconnect with body and breath.
• Obstacle Navigation: Using physical challenges as metaphors for life transitions.
• Mirror Work: Recognizing emotional patterns reflected in a horse’s behavior, cultivating self-awareness and empathy.
• Bonding Exercises: Learning relational trust through grooming, liberty work, and connection.
For many Navy SEALs and special operators accustomed to silence, stoicism, and mission-first living, these moments become breakthroughs. Participants report improved communication in marriages, a renewed sense of purpose, and a sense of spiritual grounding sometimes after just a single session.
Measurable Impact and a Growing Vision
Since opening to participants in May 2024, Hold
The Reins has welcomed over 90 warriors, spouses, chaplains, therapists, and even FBI agents, hosting more than 210 sessions. The organization provides all services free of charge, sustained entirely through private donations and strategic partnerships.
Looking ahead, the vision is bold: eight more horses, a West-Coast expansion to serve the San Diego-based Special Operations community, and eventually a transatlantic reach to Britain’s Special Boat Service.
The “Combat Boots to Cowboy Boots” initiative aims to help transitioning veterans find identity and purpose beyond uniformed service.
A Different Kind of Healing
Hold The Reins is one-of-a-kind because it is not therapy in the clinical sense. It is an environment where horses teach warriors to feel again through Hall and Garner’s cultural wisdom; where silence is broken not by words, but by the soft breath of a horse and the steady rhythm of hooves. Presence is everything.
Here, America’s most resilient warriors learn that vulnerability is not weakness. It is strength rediscovered.
To learn more, support the mission, or get involved, visit www.holdthereins.org, and follow Hold The Reins on Facebook and Instagram. There you will find links to various podcasts with Michael Hall and Richard Garner hosted by various personalities such as Marcus (The Lone Survivor) Luttrell on “Team Never Quit”. Direct inquiries may be sent to contact-us@holdthereins.org.
FOXHUNTING
$50 Eggs
By Dr. Rita Mae Brown, MFH
Eggs, $50 a dozen. Well, it hasn’t gotten that bad yet, but there’s always time. Inflation and escalating prices affect everyone and everything. Even foxhunting.
First, most of you reading this know foxhunters aren’t killing foxes. A few of you, perhaps first-time readers, may not know that in America we chase, but we don’t kill.
In order to chase, we need land. Hounds and horses on a hard run can cover 1000 acres of rolling territory in fifteen minutes. That’s hard to believe until you’re in the saddle and hounds are all on, the entire pack running a line. The hotter the scent, the faster you’ll go.
Without the generosity of landowners, no hunting. The hunt needs these kind souls to be contiguous. If there’s a large parcel of land adjoining fifty acres over which you are not allowed to hunt, how do you get to the other large parcel, which allows hunting on the other side? This has increasingly become a problem. You really need thousands of acres.
As housing and land prices rise, farms are now on less land. In 2000 an individual or couple might have been able to afford 250 acres. Today, for that same amount, maybe they would be able to purchase fifty acres with a farmhouse and barn. Naturally, some counties are more expensive than others, whether in Kansas or Virginia. However, land values have risen wherever you live. Greater land value means higher taxes, tempting farmers to sell off pieces to make ends meet in thin years.
This means in order to have a viable hunting fixture, a master will need to secure permission from, say, six people where it used to be one. He or she will also be armed with pages of liability waivers, an explanation of the Masters of Foxhounds Association insurance outlines, plus the hunt’s own personal insurance policy. These policies so often come with a number affixed as to how many people can attend an event without extra monies being charged or more paperwork. In some policies, this is fifty people. Usually the number involves events like hunter paces, show ring fundraisers, or even a “turkey trot,” where people ride and find frozen turkeys for Thanksgiving. The number usually does not refer to an actual hunt. Each year it seems to become more complicated. It used to be when you threw your leg over a horse, you accepted that it involved risk. Now, for some, whatever happens is somebody else’s fault.
Other costs are obvious: food, vet bills, materials to construct new kennels or enlarge existing ones. Anything the hunt upgrades will cost money. Chain link fencing will really set back the treasury, but it is the best. Then there’s the cost of keeping horses. One must get them fit, keep them fit, and tend religiously to their shoeing. If you can’t do this yourself, you hire someone to help. Many hunts—usually the wealthy ones— have staff horses, so this cost is either borne by the masters themselves or by the club.
Golf is expensive, too. However, your clubs don’t eat. Your hounds and horses do. This isn’t to say hunting is more expensive. That depends on how much one golfs and how often one travels to go to outstanding courses.
But every hunt is responsible for animals. That takes time, money, and emotion. We love our hounds and horses. Some clubs trap foxes, take them to a veterinarian certified to treat wildlife, and make sure the animal has the same seven-in-one shots you get for your dog. The meds add up. The rabies shots are critical. While we will never know the number of rabid animals of any species out there, we do know who gets reported. There are not many rabid foxes in hunt terri-
“In order to chase, we need land. Hounds and horses on a hard run can cover 1000 acres of rolling territory in fifteen minutes.” Elizabeth Proper photo
tories. The efforts of hunt clubs are important to blunting the spread of the disease. Hunt clubs will never get thanked for this, as most people have no idea. Nor do they know that many clubs feed their foxes when the weather turns ferociously cold. Many of us also attend to injured foxes, returning them to the wild once healed. These are expenses which only a hunt club bears. A few kindhearted individuals will help an injured animal, but many hunt clubs do so as a matter of course.
We also stop hunting when the vixens are heavy. In Virginia this usually happens around the beginning of April. Fortunately, it coincides with diminishing scent thanks to warmer days and nights. Scent rises on warm air, so it’s above hound noses. If you can smell the fox, your hounds can’t. And you can smell the fox—it’s a distinctive odor like a sweet skunk, pleasant. Doesn’t make your eyes water the way roadkill does.
Years ago many city and suburban dwellers knew these things. As each succeeding generation has less to do with country ways, the knowledge is lost. The days our grandparents farmed are slipping away. Now people have a second home or finally move from the city to the country, but they are uninformed as to the life around them. Some will listen to you, others will not. Given that this person has the funds to move to the country or have a second house, they are usually successful in their chosen field. They often believe they can learn as they could in their profession. Yes, you can read about a fox’s life cycle but it’s not the same as observing it or even hearing them chatter. Besides one species, the newcomer must learn how these animals get along with one another. Who is the predator, who is the prey, and as you walk over your property, what does it mean if there is a mob of crows? Usually it means they are bedeviling an enemy. Foxes drive them crazy. One hopes newcomers make the effort and listen to those of us raised in the country, those of us foxhunting, beagling, and basseting. We have nothing to gain by misinforming them, but it is very hard for some humans to understand that a fox in many ways is smarter than the human.
When I was a child in the late 1940s and 1950s, I remember men taking the train from Baltimore to hunt with wonderful Green Spring Valley in Maryland. Once off the train, their mounts and grooms awaited them. In those days most everyone could afford a groom. These men followed hounds over gorgeous
Carroll County territory. These started early in the morning. When the hunt was over, they handed their mount to their groom, climbed back on the train, and chugged back to Baltimore and work.
I never asked Mother—wish I had!—where did they change clothes? Given that most of these men were quite successful, possibly in their offices.
Some men were accompanied by their athletic wives. Others were met by their wife who lived in the country house. Back then there were more women in the field, but not like today. Riding was considered one of the social graces. Now it’s a unique hobby.
Are there any city dwellers who hop on a train to hunt as the sun rises? I think that day is done. Pity. It was fun and so were they.
The loss of familiarity with country life could spell the end of foxhunting, beagling, and basseting if those of us still hunting don’t work to preserve the environment. There’s little we can do to dampen escalating prices, but we can work to keep our counties rural.
Know your County Commissioners. If there is a farm organization where you live, talk to those people. Each county has a land development program, generally labelled as a “master plan” or “comprehensive plan.” Ask to see it. No matter where you live, at some point this program will be challenged. Yes, a housing development will bring income into your area. It will also bring increased traffic with associated road expansion and repair, and new schools for the increased population. See all those yellow buses in a row? You pay for them. The land developers will profit handsomely. They should; it can be risky business for them, but be sure you know what they will off-load to the county expense. Any developer should give something back to the county. (This is something often labelled “proffers” and might include land donated for a school and/or park or other green space kept undeveloped.) If not, they truly are the bad guys.
Get to know other foxhunters, beaglers, and basseters. Learn to work together. If you all don’t do it, it’s a sure bet nobody else will. No one sees what you do out there and you usually see it first. Even the most passionate environmentalist sees the beauty of your area only from a car or bicycle. It’s not the same.
The people coming into the pack sports (meaning they follow hounds hunting as a trained pack, not individual hounds) will need to learn about not simply what to wear and when to wear it, but something like recognizing a downy woodpecker’s call or a pileated woodpecker’s red crest. If you hear a lot of calls and a lot of drilling into the trees, this may be a sign of pine beetles. Not good! If you see a black bear and her cub, leave her alone. If you see poachers, report it to your county’s wildlife people and/or the sheriff’s office, and do tell the landowner there are poachers working his/her property. Poaching is against the law. Don’t interfere with the poacher, though; they can be dangerous to your health.
You are crucial to preserving what we’ve got. Even with a “newbie” to the sport, try not to preach, but entertain if you can. Showing them a raptor following a beagle pack can be instructive and fun. That falcon or owl knows the pack will stir up mice. What the newbie sees will make a greater impression than what they hear, although hearing a pack in full cry reaches most people at a primal level. Maybe you’ll show them a supermoon commanding the skies, silver light washing over hills and meadows instead of being washed out by street lights. They’ll want this for their grandchildren. It starts with you.
As to eggs being $50.00 a dozen—the solution to that is having your own chickens. If you allow them, they’ll follow you everywhere, make friends with your cats and dogs, and give you the best eggs ever for a handful of grain and fresh water daily.
Now there’s a deal.
FOXHUNTING Rappahannock Hunt
In the Cradle of the American Foxhound
The tradition of foxhunting and hound breeding in The Rappahannock Hunt country goes back to the beginnings of foxhunting in the United States. According to Alex Mackay-Smith, in his The American Foxhound: 1747-1967, “The Upper Rappahannock Valley [which includes today’s Rappahannock Hunt territory] is the cradle of the American Foxhound.”
Although it is known that foxhunting flourished in the area during the 18th century (avid foxhunter George Washington was a frequent visitor), the earliest existing records show that Col. Charles Green (1807-1881) of “The Shade” maintained a pack of hunting hounds through the Civil War and thereafter.
One of the most famous hound breeders in America was Burrell Frank Bywaters (1848-1922) of Olive in Culpeper County. His hounds were the foundation stock for many modern hunts. His son, Hugh L. Bywaters (1872-1952), carried on the family tradition of breeding and selling hounds.
In 1926, Hugh Bywaters and Joseph B. Johnson of Sperryville founded The Rappahannock Hunt as a farmers’ pack. The hunt was officially recognized by the MFHA in 1939.
The hunt went inactive during the WWII years, 1943-46, and, as a result, lost its recognized status. But hunting resumed as a farmers’ pack in 1946. Hunt member Curtis Campbell paid the registration fee to the MFHA and so preserved the hunt territory. Rappahannock regained its recognized status in 1953.
Rappahannock Hunt members enjoyed a proper stirrup cup, 1940s style, when hunting at “The Hill” (now the home of Larry Levy). Archival photo
J.W. (“Jim Bill”) Fletcher was appointed joint-master in 1950 along with John R. DeBergh. DeBergh stepped down in 1972 and Fletcher continued as the sole master until 1981, an overall tenure of 31 years.
Rappahannock’s first kennel was built at Fletcher’s “Thornton Hill” in 1952 to house a gift of several hounds from Fletcher Harper, MFH of the Orange County Hunt.
Some farmers were worried the hounds might be chasing and killing sheep. To acclimate the hounds to the little darlings, Fletcher moved a lamb into the kennel. One day at a joint meet with the Blue Ridge Hunt, Ollie Dodson, the huntsman, led hounds on parade from the kennel with a very dignified sheep in the center of the pack giving tongue in mournful “baas” for all assembled to hear.
One of the most spectacular performances by The Rappahannock Hunt hounds occurred while Dodson was huntsman and it wasn’t in the hunt field. The hunt had been asked to participate in the Town of Culpeper Bicentennial Parade of 1959. The crowd was enormous. Spectators lined the streets. There were brass bands and steam locomotives. The noise was terrific. But the hounds ignored it all and marched proudly up the street packed tightly together, amazed riders following closely behind.
The hunt held its first point-to-point races in 1951 at Mr. and Mrs. Leon T. Greenaway’s “Leeway Farm.” They were successful from the start, with the hound race and the farmers’ race being big crowd pleasers. The only glitch came when, in a snow squall during the hound race, the contestants took off on a live fox and were not seen again for a couple of days. Not one finished the race. Rappahannock’s races are now held as the first meet of the spring season with an enthusiastic crowd present at Larry Levy’s “The Hill”.
In 1956, the Masters believed they had a pretty darn good pack, so entered two hounds at the Virginia Hound Show at Mrs. Marion Dupont Scott’s “Montpelier” in Orange County and, lo and behold, those hounds— Bounty and Brilliance—got a first and a second in the “brood bitch” class against some stiff competition.
The pack grew dramatically in size and quality in 1979 when the New Market Hounds of Maryland went inactive and the MFH-cumhuntsman, Gilmore Flautt III, gave his entire pack to The Rappahannock Hunt when he moved to Texas.
During Billy Dodson’s term as huntsman, Fletcher introduced technology to foxhunting, equipping himself and Billy with two-way radios. Billy just could not adjust to these gadgets. When he complained that it rattled around too much at the gallop, Fletcher had a special pocket sewn into Billy’s scarlet coat. Fletcher liked calling Billy, but Billy did not like talking into that unnatural device. Besides, Billy contended that the radio’s range was so limited in the hills and moun-
MFH & Huntsman Michael O. Brown. The terrain shows why Rappahannock Hunt is sometimes referred to as “Rappa-Hang-On” Hunt. Photo courtesy of Rappahannock Hunt
tains of The Rappahannock Hunt territory that he could hear further than it could broadcast. Technology’s day was short-lived—just two seasons—as CB radios became so popular there were no longer clear channels available.
J. A. Bernard Dahlgren and Larry LeHew became joint Masters in 1981 and served together until Dahlgren’s tragic and untimely death in an automobile accident in 1985. LeHew served as sole Master until 1999 when Huntsman Oliver L. Brown was elected Joint Master. They served together until 2000. Janet Payne O’Keefe became the hunt’s first lady Joint Master in 2002 and served until 2009. The current Joint Masters are Brown, R. Augustus Edwards III (2005), and Oliver’s son, Michael O. Brown (2017) who is the Huntsman.
(For the full list of Rappahannock Hunt’s Masters and Huntsmen over the past 100 years, visit www.RappahannockHunt.com/history-page).
Rappahannock Hunt members continue to enjoy mounted hunting in parts of five Virginia counties: Rappahannock, Culpeper, Madison, Orange, and Spotsylvania, from the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains to the plains west and south of Fredericksburg. The territory consists of rolling pastures, open valleys, and wooded mountainsides with timber rail fences, panels, coops, and stone walls.
In addition to foxhunts, Rappahannock Hunt hosts trail rides, social events, hunter paces, point-to-point races, and other equine events. This is a family-oriented community, welcoming all ages, demographics, and backgrounds.
Rappahannock Hunt field in 1969. Archival photo
A cherished tradition in Rappahannock County is the Little Washington Christmas parade. (l-r) Whipper-In Virginia Rushing, DVM; MFH & Huntsman Michael O. Brown; Whipper-in Ashley Brown. Photo courtesy of Rappahannock Hunt
OSMUN’S OBSERVATIONS There Will Never Be Another Jamie
I have written many lighthearted stories for this paper— about dogs slipping out gates, about daily life at Horse Country, about the small amusements that stitch our days together. This one is harder.
I still have Osmun. He is thirteen now, a seasoned Scottish Terrier with opinions, routines, and a deep knowledge of how the world works. Recently, another Scottie came into my life, a perfectly mannered, beautiful young male, just three and a half years old. His name was Jamie.
I had him for twelve days.
In that short time, he ran through the store as if he had always belonged there, greeting customers and staff with a quiet confidence. He slipped into hearts effortlessly, mine included. And then, suddenly and cruelly, he was gone. A ¾-inch stone caused a blockage. Sepsis followed. There was nothing more to be done.
When we lose an animal so quickly, the emotions come hard and fast. Guilt. Shame. The endless replaying of moments, wondering what might have been seen sooner, done differently. Those thoughts are relentless, even when reason tells us otherwise.
What stays with me just as vividly are the memories.
Jamie and Osmun bonded immediately. They drank from the same water bowl at the same time, shared food comfortably, and walked the back fence line together each morning as if checking on the property. They sat side by side watching the ducks on the lake. They slept pressed against me during afternoon naps—two warm weights, breathing in sync. In only twelve days, there were so many moments.
Losing Jamie made me think of all the people who raise their dogs, their horses, and their barn cats with care and devotion, doing everything possible to keep them safe, hoping they will be with us for many, many years. Sometimes, despite all that love and vigilance, life has other plans.
What remains are the visual memories: the way he moved, the particular look in his eyes, the small points of personality that made him who he was. Those deep, steady stares that seemed to say he trusted me completely.
We move on because we must. But we do not move on unchanged.
There will never be another Jamie. And I am grateful—deeply grateful—that in his short time here, he knew comfort, companionship, and love.
JUNIORS
A Hound Clinic at the JNAFHC Finals
Mark Jump Photos
The Junior North American Field Hunter Championship program strives to help young people develop as well-rounded enthusiasts and supporters of mounted hunting. This, of course, means sharpening their skills in the saddle and knowledge of hunting etiquette. But the curriculum also includes understanding the importance of land conservation, developing lifelong friendships with likeminded juniors from the broader hunting community, and learning about the hounds that make our sport possible.
On that last point, the JNAFHC Finals, hosted by Moore County Hounds, November 14-15, 2025, featured a clinic that focused on how to show and judge hounds in the ring. Dr. Jack van Nagell, MFH, Iroquois Hunt, spoke to a rapt group of juniors about hound conformation and showing procedures. Then, aided by Moore County Huntsman Lincoln Sadler, juniors were invited to practice their skills in the show ring.
From Osmun
I am Osmun. I have lived here a long time, long enough to know the sounds of morning before they happen and the feel of the day before the door opens. I know where the squirrels will appear and which ducks are troublemakers. I know when it is cold enough to be grateful for my winter coat.
Jamie came and it was good.
We stretched together in the mornings, the slow front-leg stretch that says, Yes, I am ready, but not too fast. At bedtime there were little yips—not alarms, just conversations. Shall we have one last sip of water? The bowl is big enough for two. It always was. Perhaps Marion will give us a puperoni treat?
He could not jump on the sofa. I could. I did not mind waiting while Marion picked him up. That was just how it worked. Some dogs leap; some are lifted. It made no difference to me. He was beside me, and that was what mattered.
We walked the fence line together, checking things that always need checking even when they are exactly the same as yesterday. We trotted the paths around the pool and slipped on the icy snow making our way to the bottom of the yard. We watched the squirrels, who clearly enjoy tormenting us. We watched the ducks, who pretend not to notice us at all. Sometimes we lay on Marion and slept, our bodies touching so we could feel each other breathe.
Then one day, Jamie did not wake up. I went downstairs and out the door by myself.
I do not understand stones or sepsis or timeframes. Marion tried to explain. I understand absence. I understand when a place smells wrong because someone is missing from it. I looked for him—not everywhere, just where he should have been. That is how we dogs search.
I still drink from the water bowl. I still patrol the yard. But sometimes I pause, because something feels unfinished.
I think we dogs grieve quietly, without shame or guilt. Like me, we simply miss. We remember with our noses, our paws, our habits. Jamie is in the pauses now, in the space beside me on the sofa, in the moment before sleep when I expect a small sound that does not come.
He was my friend.
There will not be another Jamie. That is all right. There was only ever meant to be one.
Dr. Jack van Nagell addresses a group of Juniors eager to learn more about hounds.
Claudia Coleman illustration
Penny Conlon, Goshen Hounds, Redland Goshen PC, with MCH Francis.
Hinton Paschal, Moore County Hounds and MCH Caiman.
Estelle McRae, Limestone Creek Hunt and MCH Rutger.
Julian Alexander, Moore County Hounds, and MCH Aspen.
RUN FOR THE ROSES PIN 1950s. 14K Gold. 1.25" x 1.25". #2353-002 (HC1D)
COPELAND SPODE HUNT PLATES
FRENCH ART NOUVEAU INKWELL Superb design and craftsmanship. 9.5" W × 6.5" H × 5.5" D. #9415-01 (HC1A)
KELSO THOROUGHBRED STATUE
Made in the USA. Hand-cast resin. 12" x 12". #3026-418B (HC1B) $285.00
Highly collectible. 10.5" dinner plates. Set of 12 different scenes. #9165-005 (HC1C)
ROYAL DOULTON DAPPLE GREY PONY FIGURE 1938-1960. Artist W.M. Chance. #9165-007 (HC1F)
CLASSIC OVERSIZED BLUE STRAPS & BITS SCARF #1211-001. (HC3M) $148.00
Many other scarves and shawls are available online and in-store.
SURREY TWEED CAP BLUE 100% wool. Waterproof. Sizes MD - XXL. #3540-FC010 (HC3J) $92.00
MORVEN LEATHER NAVY HANDBAG 10" X 12" x 5". #1971-HB0011 (HC3L) $269.00
LAINIE LEATHER HALTER
Fine English leather. Triple stitched. Solid brass hardware. Available in Cob - Oversize. #327-RBLH (HC4A) $240.00
HAVANA LEATHER LEAD WITH CHAIN
Fine leather. Solid brass 30" chain. #876-17230H (HC4B) $119.50
LARGE HORSE HEAD HOOK
Ideal for home, office or tack room 6.5" Long. $31.95 each
Brass 542-7049-B (HC4K)
Patina 542-7049-P (HC4L) Chrome 542-7049-C (HC4M) Black 542-7049-BK (HC4N)
CLIPPERS WITH T-84 BLADES #12-098942 (HC4G) $209.99
JENNY’S PICKS
Bostrom, Greta. The Girl in the Cave. The narrator is Alma, a thirteen-year-old at riding camp with her best friend, Adriana. Alma has been assigned the grey Connemara mare, Blue, as her mount for the term. Their instructor, Mirka, is very pleased that the two have connected so well, because Blue can be difficult with riders who have hard hands. Gentle Alma, however, is in that in-between stage of life when her body is maturing but childhood innocence still grips her, and early on we see that she has a timid streak—at least with people. Blue is happy with her, and she with Blue.
Things start going amiss from the first day, when Adriana is attracted to the property owner’s daughter, Lexi, who is more sophisticated and has actually kissed boys! Suddenly a wedge is driven between Alma, who has no interest yet in boys and the latest fashion styles, and Adriana, who is on the brink of making the leap. When Adriana notices what appears to be a date carved into the wood of Alma’s bunk—a date that is Alma’s birthdate—Lexi tells them the story of the family who used to live there. One day the daughter went for a ride, and only the horse returned, wild and savage, and had to be shot. No trace of the daughter was found until two months later when her body was discovered—recently killed—at the mouth of a cave. The mother went insane with grief, convinced that her daughter’s soul entered another girl who was born on that date, and went around all over the estate carving the date her body was finally found in hopes of bringing that person to the estate.
Lexi’s spooky account affects Alma deeply. Could Alma be the one who had absorbed the other girl’s soul, and is the now-deceased mother’s ghost going to come for her? When her cell phone keeps getting calls from “Zoi” but there’s no one on the line when Alma answers, and she catches fleeting glimpses of something following her in the dark, she is truly “spooked” like a panicked horse that bolts from a rustle in the bushes. Her best friend, with whom she might have discussed her fears, seems to be picking up Lexi’s disdain for Alma. The only bright spot is lesson time, when she is riding Blue. I couldn’t put this book down, nor skim pages as I often do with a new book just to get a fair idea of its contents. I would guess it’s intended for girls maybe 10-14 years in age. Because the book really deals more with relationships and maturing than riding, it can be enjoyed by non-riders as well as horsecrazy girls and older women like me who still can enjoy reading the books of youth. Recommended! Paperback, 249pp. $14. 95
HORSE COUNTRY BOOKSELLERS
Specialists in New, Old & Rare Books on Horses, Foxhunting, Eventing, Polo, Racing, Steeplechasing & Sporting Art
60 Alexandria Pike, Warrenton, VA 20186 800-882-HUNT • 540-347-3141
Bourdeaux, Sarah-Katrin. Do Puddles Eat Ponies? When I ordered this for Christmas, I figured it was another child’s book just from looking at the cover, with its cute illustration of a horse leaping in fright from a puddle just before him. I was wrong. When I read the back cover, it describes it as “a hilarious, unusual, superbly imagined, illustrated novel for ‘grownups who like horses’.” The narrator, Sharif, is a very timid Arabian, and his narrative begins with his birth—getting pushed out of his mother’s womb and having her lick a bit of the birth sac (his “slimy buddy”) off his nostrils so he could breathe. He soon learns about “the hoofless” that do all kinds of strange things that he doesn’t understand. As he gets older, he begins to take interest in “the ladies.” Then one day he is taken to a barn where he is introduced to a lovely white mare—but the handler guides him to a “lifeless black thing” in front of her stall which poor Sharif is forced to accept as a second-rate substitute for his passion.
Throughout the book we are introduced to new things through Sharif’s eyes, and it’s a hoot to see how he describes them. It should also suggest to the reader why horses might spook at something so inoffensive as a hose on the ground or a dark trailer interior.
I got a kick out of this book and loved the illustrations. Having owned two part-bred and one purebred Arab, I can sympathize with Sharif’s final owner, “the Groupie,” who tries hard to find an activity which her feisty new mount will enjoy doing. Hardcover, 190pp. $19.95
Mackesy, Charlie. Always Remember/The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, the Horse and the Storm. Many of our customers remarked to me how much they liked the predecessor to this book, The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse. When I heard there was a sequel out and one of the book publishers we use had it available, I ordered several, which arrived just before Christmas. What category to place it in is not easy. On the face of it, it looks like a children’s book, very little text and lots of black and white and some watercolor illustrations. However, the text is
in a combination of printing and longhand as if written with an old fountain or quill pen. (Remember those and the blots they could make?)
I have a gut feeling this will actually be more for adult appreciation in the long run. I enjoyed it; I hope you do too. It’s definitely a “feel good” book that you can read to your preschoolers or enjoy yourself for its simplicity—and do not ignore the last page of the book, written for the mole. Hardcover, unpaginated. $27.00
Loving, Nancy S., DVM. What to Do Until the Vet Arrives. Most horse owners know enough to call the vet immediately when they go down to the barn and find their sweating horse rolling frantically in its stall. What about the horse who just looks uncomfortable, maybe pawing from time to time or getting down and back up? Hmm…could be early stages of colic, maybe not. What can you do? Turn to page 52 in this spiral-bound book, that’s what, where you’ll find a list of colic indicators, colic masqueraders, and what you can do or should not do for the horse. This belongs in every horse owner’s stable so it can be snatched up quickly when needed—just make sure it’s in something the mice won’t chew through. Color photos illustrate many problems, such as the bright red gums that indicate cardiovascular shock, green froth coming from nostrils and/or mouth when “choke” is the culprit, pinkish urine caused by tying up. There’s also a chapter on preparing for general emergencies (biosecurity, disaster preparedness). Even if you’re a top-notch horseman with decades of horse management behind you—what if you aren’t here when the emergency arises? Well worth the money for this one! Hardcover, spiral bound, 168pp. $26.95
Slater, Kitty. The Hunt Country of America Then and Now. We just received six brand-new copies of this lovely photo-filled book, a 30th anniversary special limited edition, originally published in 1967 and here revised in 1997. Most of the photos are black and white, but there are two small sections of color prints. The title is a little misleading, however; the hunts covered are all in Northern Virginia’s Piedmont area: the Piedmont, Orange County, Warrenton, and Middleburg hunts are most featured, with brief appearances by other hunts such as Old Dominion and Rappahannock. To Kitty Slater, this part of Virginia was the hunt country of America. Hardcover, 234pp. $75.00
Bull Run Hunt member Jacqueline Juntilla (fourth rider from the left, in the red sweater) and her twenty-four family members. This impressive group was gathered at Locust Hill, Virginia, home of Mike Long, MFH, on December 27, 2025 for Bull Run’s Christmas Sweater Foxhunt. The group includes many accomplished equestrians and competitive eventers who have grown under Jacque’s tutelage. Notably, eight are Pony Club graduates, including members at A, HA, C2, C1, and D3 levels. Photo courtesy of Tracey Lee
FOXHUNTING
An Irish Foxhunting Diary
Text and Photos By Allison McNally Howell, DVM
Recently I traveled to Ireland to check boxes from my bucket list: Visiting Ireland (home to most of my ancestors), photographing hounds, and riding to hounds through the countryside. To say I had a moderate amount of trepidation checking the third box would be an understatement. As a life-long experienced equestrian, I possessed the skills. But as an older rider who no longer bounces when falling, there were doubts as to whether this was a sound choice. Now that it’s done, I’m so glad I did it and lived to tell the tale!
The adventure started out as a photography trip to document the South County Cork Farmers Hunt’s opening meet. I met Adrienne and Sonny O’Donnell in Montana back in May when they were visiting from Ireland to experience foxhunting—actually coyote chasing—out West. Theirs was the invitation I needed to make the trip. Many details were sorted quickly, others were not. The exact dates for the opening meet were determined only two weeks prior to our departure in early November. Dates for hunt season opening and closing are determined by when the cows are brought in off pastures for winter and turned back out in the spring.
My husband Brad and I arrived in Dublin and drove south to Kinsale, a lovely village on the water and the starting point of the Wild Atlantic Way, the world’s longest coastal driving route, stretching over 1500 miles along Ireland’s western edge. The beauty of the autumn foliage contrasting with bright green grass was stunning. Along the way, we stopped at the Rock of Cashel, which is a must see. The O’Donnells met us in a local pub to give us a proper Irish welcome. We visited the South County Cork Farmers Hunt kennels for a walk out the morning of opening hunt at the O’Donnell’s lovely working farm. The light was incredible as we walked the hounds among dairy cattle and a herd of young Irish Sport Horses. We met at the Speckled Door pub in nearby Garrettstown, Old Head, for prehunt fellowship and libations. Brad was nicely mounted and I was dressed out to foot-follow/photograph in the rain and mist. Heading out to cast along the Bullens Bay beach was a stunning sight. The open farmland was a mix of ditches, banks, and drains. There was great sport with seven foxes put to ground. I was able to capture several beautiful red foxes as they outran the hounds across the countryside. A bucket list item for photography! Covering six miles on foot over five hours, I was ready for the post hunt dinner and festivities back at the pub.
The owner, John, generously fed us homemade Irish stew and mashed potatoes, which were divine. Following our meal, we withdrew into a small private room with a fireplace and bar access, a most important detail. I will not admit to the number of hot ports I enjoyed that night. The Irish gift of music and song entertained us for several hours, as hunt members played guitar, harmonica, and small accordion. Beautiful Irish tenors took turns singing ballads and folksongs around the long table. I have to say this evening was one of the best experiences of the trip.
We did more sightseeing as we traveled to Galway, including Blarney Castle and Gardens. And, yes, we did kiss the Blarney Stone and generously tipped the guy who held onto us! Ireland is such a beautiful country and we scheduled our trip to have plenty of time to soak in the experience.
The County Galway Hunt—commonly known as “The Blazers”—traces its beginning back to the late 1700s. In the early 1800s, after a joint meet and the rousing celebration that followed at a local hotel, the building was set alight and went up in flames. Hence the nickname. Giving up my Nikon for the day, Brad and I rode to hounds with The Blazers. I had determined that on this trip I’d feel more comfortable jumping stone walls in pasture land than the huge ditches, drains, and banks with other hunts. Again, we met pre-hunt at a local pub for drinks, to meet members and guests, and pick up our hirelings. The saddles we rode in were flat— like no knee roll, slippery flat. I found they were less so after being soaked with rain. We were wonderfully mounted on seasoned Irish horses who safely carried us through the day without falls. Small green pastures for cows and sheep stretched as far as the eye could see. I lost count of how many walls we jumped after the first 20. Traditional Irish weather was a mix of mists, rain, and sun. At one point, huntsman Mark Ollard’s horse threw a shoe. No problem—another hunt member, a farrier, called for his truck and we all checked in the driveway of a farm. The farrier took off his coat, strapped on his apron, and replaced the shoe without delay. I was able to capture the scene with my cell phone. Baileys Hunting Directory reshared that photo as well as a couple more of mine on their social media site!
Brad Howell jumping a Tipperary ditch on the always-reliable Ruby.
Tipperary Huntsman Gavin Shorten bringing hounds along down a rainy, tree-lined lane.
Allison flanked by the Tipperary’s Aiden Fogerty (left) and Jack Ronan (right) decorated with bits of the Auld Sod.
Early the following morning, we visited the Galway kennels with Mark to meet the pack, a mix of Old English and Modern English foxhounds. The large kennels and stables are connected. It was an impressive yard, large enough for riders and trailers to gather for the hunt. Mark walked the hounds out down a country lane to a big grass field, where the hounds were eager to run and roll.
For retail therapy, we headed to the highly recommended used tack shop run by foxhunter James Neville in County Laois. He entertained us with stories and good humor. We entertained him with many purchases, including a beautiful tweed he had altered in three days for a custom fit. His huge warehouse couldn’t be beat for great selection and fair prices.
The Tipperary Foxhounds are one of the few remaining packs in Ireland to go out three days a week. The Tipps’ hunting country is one of the largest in Ireland and stretches across a prime agricultural area known as the Golden Vale. Their territory is not for the faint of heart and is described by the hunt as “exciting”. I decided this was a good day to photograph, but Brad, on his super nice horse, sailed over ditches, drains, and banks with perfect form. Mud from the very rich soil and recent rains decorated every rider. It was so sticky, clumps clung to wool coats like ticks.
The Tipps were great fun and a jolly bunch, welcoming us with open arms. My driver for the day, Donal, had me at perfect spots every time. He clearly knew how the hunt would unfold, and took me to his home to meet his wife and have tea. I kept looking at the time, anxiously asking, “Shouldn’t we get back to it now?” He replied we had no worries, and then perfectly positioned me for a fantastic shot of the hounds coming down a tree-covered lane, just in the nick of time.
Prior to the hunt, we had visited Gavin Shorten, the huntsman, at the kennels. 12.5 couple went out that day, a mix of Modern English, Old English, with a bit of Welsh for independence. He explained the territory was “over-foxed”, which tends to split the pack. It’s less likely to happen when taking out smaller packs. Gavin has served 11 seasons as huntsman with the Tipps, following four years in the kennels.
We were encouraged to head to the Kilkenny Hounds kennel in Mount Juliette to visit huntsman Jamie Walsh and his primarily Old English pack. The three of us walked hounds down a long country road to a
field where they could stretch their legs. Afterwards, we had coffee in the impressive lounge at the kennels, admiring many historic photos and trophies. This was Jamie’s first season at Kilkenny, having previously served with the Portman in England. We attended the Golden Vale annual Point-to-Point, being very warmly welcomed by new friends, Eileen and MFH Michael Costigan. All of the steeplechasers arrived in two-horse trailers, which I found interesting. Perhaps the big lorries were too heavy for the soft turf. We were ushered to a horse trailer serving hot Irish whiskey toddies. Sunshine and blue skies made the green turf really stand out. Betting was quite keen with several official bookmaker stands, including the trunk of a car holding a large TV screen for off grounds betting. I shot some great photos from the day, but alas, no winning bets.
On our return drive to Dublin, we stopped in at Goffs for the second of four days of the weanling and broodmare sale. Careful not to move a muscle, we watched the weanlings come into the sales ring, going for extraordinary prices. Adrienne O’Donnell said to watch closely as that was Ireland’s economy walking about on four legs. Irish Sport Horses are legendary and certainly lived up to the hype from our observations and experiences.
Our trip to the Emerald Isle seemed to fly past in the blink of an eye. We brought home incredible memories of the warm Irish culture and people. Many new friends provide numerous reasons to visit again. Hopefully, that time will be soon. Photographs help us relive the excitement of foxhunting as well as the hounds and beautiful countryside. If you’ve ever considered “crossing The Pond” to this gorgeous country, do it! For now, I leave you with this Irish blessing: “Wherever you go, whatever you do, may the luck of the Irish be there with you!”
To view all of Allison's photos from her Ireland adventure, along with many other galleries of hunting action, visit her website at allisonhowellimages.smugmug.com.
E. Sue Bopp Agent Equine Division
400 Rosedale Court Warrenton, VA 20186
800-347-3552 Ext. 2805, Office 540-272-4101, Mobile esbopp@marshallsterling.com
Mark Ollard, Huntsman for County Galway (“The Blazers”) and Whipper-in Owen Clinton. Notice the ongoing line of stone walls in the background, typical for Galway country.
Joint Masters of the South County Cork Farmers Hunt (l-r) Denis Murphy, Philip Copithorne (Sonny O’Donnell’s father in law and former Huntsman of the South County Cork), and Sonny O’Donnell, Huntsman.
Saddle Fitting
Woodbrook Hunt Club A Century of Hunting in the Great Pacific Northwest
The flurry of new hunt club formations during the 1920s—more than two dozen of which remain in operation today—was centered mostly along the East Coast where foxhunting had been practiced since Colonial times. An avid follower of hounds himself, George Washington kept a private pack at Mount Vernon. A century and a half later and three thousand miles away, a group of similarly spirited equestrians was organizing their own hunt club in the state named after the Foxhunter-inChief.
The historical record is a bit clouded for the years leading up to the official launch of Washington State’s Woodbrook Hunt Club, based just south of Tacoma. An early benefactor was banker and financier Chester Thorne, one of the founders of the Port of Tacoma and creator of the local landmark Thornewood Castle.
In May of 1926 Irish huntsman Thomas H. Bryan and Major J. E. Mathews, an army officer from Canada, held the reins to the newly formed hunt. With no generous millionaire willing to cover the operating expenses, a club was created for members to share the costs.
Bryan had hunted in England and Ireland and the two men saw that people in the Tacoma area were eager to ride. There was ample country available in what was then the home of Fort Lewis, a US Army base. Bryan hosted a few drag hunts to an enthusiastic response. Cavalry officers noticed the fledgling foxhunting group’s activity on the base’s property and eagerly joined in, along with prominent Seattle and Tacoma businessmen and politicians
In 1929 Major Mathews bought two acres on the hillside above what would become McChord Air Force Base (now Joint Base Lewis-McChord). The Major donated a two-room shack on the property to the club and the members eagerly pitched in, raised money, and turned the building into a comfortable little clubhouse.
The ensuing years saw plenty of good sport, popular social events, and a variety of fundraising projects. But there were also challenges.
Members were twice barred from riding on the reservation when a new general took command at Fort Lewis. Both times local politicians were lobbied to create pressure in Washington, DC, to have the ban lifted. The club’s fortunes were also aided by General Norman Shwarzkopf who served in senior leadership roles at Fort Lewis in the mid-1980s and would personally call the governor or mayor when the club had an issue. “Stormin’ Norman” was also known to prefer the hunt clubhouse to the officer’s club on base.
Another setback came when the pack was nearly wiped out by a rabies infestation. But Woodbrook members rallied to whatever challenge arose and came out stronger every time.
As a drag hunt, the need for effective scenting was an ongoing issue. The objective was to lay a scent line that hounds would eagerly follow but would also give tongue while doing so. At first, the line was laid on foot. But, to save time, an old Model T Ford truck was used. Another attempt for laying scent was to lead “Rebecca,” a slow-moving, obstinate racoon, along the desired line. This ultimately proved unworkable given her uncooperative attitude. Success was finally achieved thanks to the use of a wildcat skin soaked in water and dragged from horseback. Hounds ran well on the line and gave plenty of tongue.
Developing a level pack that hunted as a unit also presented a challenge, in part due to Woodbrook’s distance from other established hunts. With the creation of the Interstate Highway System still two decades away, driving across the country to draft hounds posed a daunting task. Local hounds were trained to hunt singly on racoons (which may have contributed to Rebecca’s contrary behavior).
As rumbles of impending war in Europe grew louder, the US government bought out Major Mathews in 1938 in order to build McChord Field. With a good price for the land and the hunt’s clubhouse, aided by subscriptions from club members, a five acre property was purchased where new kennels and a modern
clubhouse were built and which still serve as Woodbrook Hunt’s home base. The WHC clubhouse and kennels were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.
To help fill the new kennels, that cross-country hurdle was leapt and 2½ couple of hounds were drafted from Mr. Newbold Ely’s pack in Ambler, Pennsylvania. Those hounds proved a great asset and the following season the club was hunting 13 couple, which included 6½ couple of young hounds. The old wildcat skins were replaced with live fox scent which resulted in more music from the pack. The fields were increasing in number and riders began to adopt more formal hunting attire.
A Junior Hunt Club was organized in January, 1941. Drag hunts were held for the young members every other Saturday on the odd hunt weekends. They had their own master, whips, secretary, and treasurer. This taught them a great deal about hunting besides being a lot of fun.
As the war continued on both the European and Pacific fronts, a decision was made in 1942 to cut the pack down to three couple of hounds and have them boarded out. The club house and cottage were rented to servicemen’s families.
In 1946, with the war over, bi-weekly drag hunts were held. The annual horse shows were revived but discontinued in 1964 in favor of hunter trials. In 1962, Woodbrook Hunt Club was awarded recognition by the Masters of Foxhounds Association.
Today, a full century since the club’s official founding, Woodbrook enjoys a lively cross-section of age groups, from lifetime members and veteran riders to proud parents leading their youngsters on ponies. Members come from the entire Puget Sound region surrounding Seattle, making as much as a two hour drive to enjoy the excellent sport. The drive is evidently worth the trip as participation is at an all-time high.
The club’s official 100th anniversary will be celebrated in November with a full schedule of sporting and social events. The week will include several days of hunting including the Blessing of the Hounds, a Hunt Ball, cocktail party at the historic Thornewood Castle, a hunt fixture tour, tea at the Lakewood History Museum to view the WHC display, and much more! For more information, visit woodbrookhuntclub.com/whc-100th-celebration.html.
This shot of Woodbrook Hunt members, with Mount Rainier in the background, appears on the cover of Joy Keniston-Longrie’s 2009 book Images of America: Woodbrook Hunt Club
Woodbrook Hunt Club Honorary Huntsman Jennifer Jansen on the left, aided by Honorary Whipper-In Patty Stiemert on the far right, bring hounds along through a puddled path as the field of members follows. Geoffrey Tyson photo
Any foxhunter with white hair will tell you that years of following hounds changes a person’s DNA. The fixture card sets your life plan for the whole year. Each day you sniff the air, feel the moisture, taste the temperature with hunting in the subliminal reality. It doesn’t matter what day of the year; you are still going to check the important things. Fossils like me know that hunting days are regal. Those are days that warrant the supreme effort of early rising, braving cold temperatures, and no coffee.
Fox Hunting Fossils Notes from the Studio
By Claudia Coleman
I have been a Fossil now for several years, and my DNA was altered when I was seven. We did not have horses, but I was born with the “horse gene” and had just started riding lessons when I became sick for a long stretch. One morning while I struggled with my throat on fire, my mother and I heard the sound of barking dogs coming towards the house. We lived in the country and had dogs, but this was not normal. I looked out my window and saw a gray fox headed straight towards me! He was followed by a sea of screaming dogs, and the whole spectacle vanished around the house as quickly as it appeared. Then I heard a strange horn and saw the cavalry in red and black headed my way! The thunder of horses’ hooves in a blur of black and red dashed past our house and instantly all was quiet again. I had no clue what I had witnessed, but it was far more exciting than Hopalong Cassidy on the black and white television. I haven’t been the same since.
Attending a recent hunt breakfast, I was approached by a bouncy young lady I guessed to be 25ish sporting a cell phone in one hand and libation in the other, who proclaimed what a great day she had out hunting! I chirped right up in hopes of hearing vivid details from the morning. I told her that I too had a wonderful morning following hounds. I explained I had been on foot, as I am in between horses, and I viewed a fox early on who stopped to show off the beautiful sun sparkle on his coat before he ducked into a tight thicket. Ditching discussion of wildlife, the young lady launched into a detailed account of her ride by referencing her phone which apparently had recorded most of the event. I became lost after the fourth fence, but I kept smiling hoping to hear what hounds had done after I walked back home. She told me how much she loved foxhunting and that she had been hunting for five years. Then she asked me how long had I been hunting. Being from the South where ladies lie about their age, I replied that I was a Fossil.
It was apparent she had a problem with my answer, and I noticed her thumb madly scrolling her phone screen. Mind you, I happily launched into one of a zillion wonderful stories of hunts from the past. But when she realized I was talking about dead people, dead horses and dead hounds, she mumbled an excuse to move off to others. I went to get nibble and drink.
Feeling cast to the curb, I was determined to hear details from the morning’s
Born and bred into the Virginia steeplechase industry and racing world, Emily Day has been hired as the Virginia Horse Industry Board’s first executive director. Day served for six years as executive director of the Upperville Colt and Horse Show. She and her husband, trainer Jimmy Day, own and operate Daybreak Stables in Clarke County. Douglas Lees
sport. There were a bunch of kids out that morning so I figured I could get a good hunting report from them. They never miss a trick!
It must have been telepathy because suddenly I was surrounded by several giggling cherubs. A young boy stuck out his hand and introduced himself and asked who I was, did I hunt that morning, where did I live, where did I keep my horse, did I grow up here, and did I want to see his hunt whip he had made? Oh my goodness, YES! I hit the jackpot.
The girls in his tow chattered all about his whip, how amazing it was and that he was their friend extraordinaire. This boy was a budding chick magnet for sure. He was so proud. His whip was wonderful. He told me where he found the stick out in the woods, took it home and let it dry some, then whittled on it till it was just right, and then varnished it. He told me how he had to get Grandpa to figure out the leather part and how to put it on the wood…every detail. I was thrilled. As a Fossil, I was able to give him a few tips for whip making, and that I would show him my personal one at a later time. We were bonded for life. Chick magnets work on Fossils too, you know.
Of course I knew lots of people at this event, but thankfully my new best friends dragged me through the torrents of babbling adults so I could meet all the other children. Those kids asked more questions for which I had more stories. They liked my stories! And I heard their stories from the morning!
I found out they had viewed a fox; when hounds jumped off on a coyote; and how they slid down the scary ravine behind the broken coop by the leaning pine. After that, they had to pull up and negotiate a deep mucky place where a tree was blocking a crossing at the old rice field. One had a broken rein and they had to tie that together and hop back on. Their accounts were like drinking from a fire hose. This was as good as being there.
Back in my studio after the breakfast, I was daubing bits of paint on a large hunting portrait. I could feel the breeze, hear pines gently sway, touch the horses, smell the hounds—it was all there. In a Fossil moment, I wondered if one day I would lose my DNA. Nope. This morning my soul was born again.
Tally Ho!
Howard County-Iron Bridge Hounds hosted New Market-Middletown Valley Hounds for a joint meet from Windsor Valley, Maryland, January 4, 2026. (l-r) HCIB Professional Whipper-in Matthew Lanigan, HCIB Huntsman Kelly Burdge, NMMV Huntsman Emily Lanigan. Karen Kandra photo
Lifelong Virginia Racing Horsewoman Emily Day Takes the Reins at VHIB
photo
Steeplechase Focus Will Be on Virginia’s Spring Circuit
With 10 Point-To-Points and National Steeplechase Meets, Sport Flourishes
By Betsy Burke Donley
The spring 2026 Virginia steeplechase circuit features higher purses and more racing than ever, with two big anniversary meets scheduled.
The Warrenton Hunt Point-to-Point kicks off the expanded schedule March 14, with action running every weekend through the May 2 Virginia Gold Cup Races.
Three National Steeplechase Association-point-to-point hybrid meets plus three NSA meets make the month of April literally overflow with jump racing.
A new hunter pace joins the pairs race calendar, with the March 7 Snickersville Hounds and Casanova-Warrenton Pony Club joining forces to host three divisions at Sunnybank Farm in Middleburg.
Warrenton Hunt Point-to-Point
March 14, Airlie, Warrenton
In its 85th running, Warrenton is Virginia’s oldest point-to-point. Headlining the nine-race card is the prestigious Warrenton Hunt Cup open timber. The program also features the first of five Virginia-bred turf races on the circuit, a unique series offering $2,000 purses and giving spring turf opportunities to Virginia-bred and -sired horses. warrentonhunt.com
Piedmont Foxhounds Point-to-Point
March 21, Salem, Upperville Virginia’s oldest foxhunt club, Piedmont hosts their 85th annual races at historic Salem Farm east of town on March 21. The vast course benefits from a picturesque Blue Ridge Mountains backdrop, with the timber circuit jumping stone walls and fenceline rails from field to field, farm to farm, at times dropping out of sight of spectators and even the announcer.
Pony races lead off the program starting at noon, with seven horse races carded over timber and on the turf. The headline feature is the 3½ mile Rokeby Bowl open timber, a race that often serves as a tune-up for horses aimed at the Maryland Hunt Cup or Virginia Gold Cup later in the season. Recent winners that went on to win those top timber stakes include Vintage Vinnie, Zanclus, Incomplete, and Miles Ahead.
Rappahannock Hunt Point-to-Point
March 28, The Hill, Boston
Longtime Rappahannock Hunt subscriber Larry Levy carved a racecourse out of a hayfield at the back of The Hill four years ago: race fans and steeplechase horsemen have flocked to the opportunity ever since. Pony racing leads off the program, with eight races over hurdles, over timber, and on the turf carded. Post time is noon.
More than $5,000 in purses—unusual in point-to-points—is offered, something that Pennsylvania-based trainer Ricky Hendriks says has helped his decision in making the three-hour trip to Rappahannock. “It’s a good opportunity for the young horses,” he said. rappahannockhunt.com
All Season
Old Dominion Hounds Point-to-Point
April 4, Ben Venue, Washington
Two-time National Steeplechase Association champion rider Parker Hendriks calls the Old Dominion Hounds Point-to-Point and other hybrid meets a great step towards growth of both the “professional” NSA circuit and yielding positive growth for “amateur” point-to-points. ODH joint-master Debbie Welch echoes the combo is “a wonderful marriage for everybody—horsemen, spectators, the hunt and Virginia racing.”
Purse money and sanctioning fees are underwritten at Old Dominion, as at the other Virginia hybrid meets, by the Virginia Equine Alliance. VEA holds licensing for Virginia’s pari-mutuel racetrack, Colonial Downs, and its eight off-track betting parlors. A percentage from every dollar bet on horse racing in Virginia gets plowed back into the Thoroughbred industry.
Old Dominion’s program features two divisions of $30,000 maiden hurdle races and a $20,000 open timber race along with eight point-to-point series races on the 10-race card.
The hunt turned 100 in 2024—this year marks their 52nd annual race meet. olddominionhounds.com
Blue Ridge Hunt Point-to-Point
April 11, Woodley, Berryville
Blue Ridge Hunt joint-master Jeff Lehew calls the hybrid model of offering NSA races on a point-to-point program “the wave of the future.” Blue Ridge has offered NSA races since 2024.
In its 77th running, the April 11 Blue Ridge card features $80,000 in NSA races—two maiden hurdle divisions and an apprentice rider hurdle along with a maiden timber. Five point-to-point races round out the day.
Lehew says other special events include a carriage parade, a NantucketTreweryn Beagle parade, a Blue Ridge Hunt foxhound parade, food trucks, a vendor village, an antique classic car show, stick pony races for kids, and an inflatable pony race for adults. blueridgehunt.org
Middleburg Spring Races
April 18, Glenwood Park, Middleburg
Virginia’s oldest steeplechase, the Middleburg Spring Races were created in 1911 when Middleburg Hunt master Daniel Cox Sands organized what he called the Middleburg Hunt Races. Historic Glenwood Park has long hosted the meet.
Headliner is the grade 2 Temple Gwathmey memorial hurdle stake. The race was first run in 1924 as a memorial to James Temple Gwathmey Sr., a successful owner, amateur jockey, and president of the New York Cotton Exchange who died that year. The race gained emotional significance eight years later when his son, James Temple Gwathmey Jr., a promising jockey himself, died after a fall during a 1932 race.
The Gwathmey has run at distances from 2 1/8 to 3 miles, at four different courses—Belmont Park (1924-1962), Aqueduct (1963-’67), Rolling Rock (1972’75) and Glenwood Park (since 1989.)
Joining the Gwathmey are the Middleburg Hunt Cup open timber and a full slate of hurdle races plus the cross-country Alfred Hunt ’chase. middleburgspringraces.com
2025 Rappahannock Hunt Point-to-Point Maiden Timber (l-r) #11 Bet The Pot (Parker Hendriks, up) – 1st; #10 Golden Answer (Gerard Galligan, up) – 4th Douglas Lees photo
2025 Old Dominion Hounds Point-to-Point Meeting House Mountain Open Hurdle Going Country (Declan Carroll, up) – 1st Douglas Lees photo
Loudoun Hunt Point-to-Point
April 19, Morven Park, Leesburg
The 58th annual Loudoun races return to historic Morven Park near Leesburg for a fusion NSA-point-to-point program. Pony races open the card at 12:30 p.m., with seven races including a pair of NSA maiden hurdle races, a ratings handicap, and an apprentice hurdle in addition to Virginia-sanctioned races on the turf. loudounraces.com
Foxfield Races
April 25, Charlottesville
Two hurdle stakes and more than $260,000 in purses headline the 47th annual Foxfield Spring Races north of Charlottesville. What’s tabbed as “a rite of spring” for the University of Virginia college crowd never disappoints at what race chair Jack Sanford calls “the biggest day of racing” at the Barracks Road racecourse.
Run to benefit a conservation group that manages the historic property and Camp Holiday Trails charity, headliners are the $75,000 Van Clief memorial novice hurdle stake and the $50,000 Good Night Shirt handicap. foxfieldraces.org
Middleburg Hunt Point-to-Point
April 26, Glenwood Park, Middleburg
The featured Middleburg Bowl open timber over the testing, upright Glenwood Park course highlights the day for Virginia’s traditional closing meet of the season. A full slate of hurdle, timber, and turf races round out the card.
Glenwood Park north of town was formerly the private farm of Middleburg Hunt joint-master Daniel Sands. He bought the land in 1907, and by 1911 had developed the bowl-shaped racecourse, and Glenwood has hosted racing ever since. middleburghunt.com
Virginia Gold Cup
May 4, Great Meadow, The Plains, Virginia
2025 Virginia Gold Cup
Speedy Smithwick Memorial Hurdle Stakes
Mission North (#2, Graham Watters, up) – 1st; Holiday Charm (#5, gray, Gerard Galligan, up) – 2nd. Douglas Lees photo
First run in 1922, the Virginia Gold Cup returns to its longtime home at Great Meadow to close out Virginia’s spring calendar. Headliner is the eponymous feature, four miles over timber, with the undercard boasting a Grade I hurdle stake, four other hurdle races, and the popular cross-country steeplechase over varied jumps including a stone wall, high hedges, two ditches, and the picturesque Swan Lake water splash where the field dashes through 100 yards of a shallow pond. It has been a crowd favorite since the division was established two decades ago. vagoldcup.com
Full conditions and entry information is at centralentryoffice.com and nationalsteeplechase.com
51st RUNNING OF THE
SATURDAY, APRIL 4
FOXHUNTING
The Camden Hunt
A Rich Tradition of Sporting Elegance
“In the good old days of the early 1900s, Camden, South Carolina, was a sportsman’s paradise. Mild winters, grand hotel accommodations, direct train access, polo fields, golf courses, horse racing and an abundance of game in the surrounding plantations attracted sportsmen and horsemen from the north to spend part of their winters in Camden.
“These seasonal visitors became Camden’s winter colony. They joined local sportsmen hunting dove, quail, ducks, turkeys and deer on the land surrounding Camden. They also organized and participated in various horse related sports including polo, steeplechase and flat racing and horse shows.
“Visitors would have an occasional drag hunt with foxhounds rented from local night hunters. These hunts became increasingly popular and in 1926 Mrs. Martha Partridge organized the Camden Hunt to provide additional sport for Camden’s horse enthusiasts.”
From the Foreword of A History of the Camden Hunt (1996) by Jeff McMahan MFH
The Masters of Foxhounds Association, some of whose leaders at the time were most likely among the early Camden enthusiasts, fully endorsed the new club and granted official recognition that same year. Mrs. Partridge served as Master until 1941.
The hunt was originally headquartered at the Springdale Racecourse. Drag lines were laid through the woodlands between Springdale and the Wateree River to the south and southwest. In the 1970s, the kennels were moved to their present location northeast of Camden, where new kennels were built. The hunting also changed from drag to live quarry, which includes red and gray foxes as well as coyotes. The pack today is mostly American with bloodlines that can be traced back to the hounds George Washington brought over from England.
The hunt country is nearly 8,000 acres and consists of pine forests, lush wetlands, and the Carolina Bays with ancient hardwoods. The footing is mostly sandy and very horse-friendly. The territory features miles of marked trails and is well-paneled with post-and-rail jumps, logs, coops, and Aiken fences.
What was stated in A History of the Camden Hunt 30 years ago remains true as the club celebrates its centennial year: “Camden remains a horseman’s paradise.” Equestrian enthusiasts will find ample outlets for their pursuits. Springdale Race Course is a premier Thoroughbred training center and hosts two sanctioned steeplechase race meets annually. The South Carolina Equine Park features horse shows, clinics, and other events throughout the year.
Today’s leadership includes Masters Susan Sensor (2011), Martha LaRouche (2024), and Holly Hach (2026). Professional Huntsman Melissa Rice is now in her eleventh season at Camden, having previously served as a whipper-in at New York’s Millbrook Hunt and Essex Foxhounds in New Jersey.
Camden Hunt’s formal season begins on Thanksgiving Day and ends in midMarch, hunting every Wednesday and Saturday. Less formal cubbing and staff hunting usually begins in mid- September, once there is some relief from South Carolina’s summer heat.
REMEMBRANCE
Donna Truslow Rogers, MFH
January 9, 1940 – December 9, 2025
Donna Rogers dedicated her life to equestrian sports and land conservation. She and her late husband, Dr. Joe Rogers, were founding members of the Museum of Hounds & Hunting NA at Morven Park, Leesburg, Virginia. She helped found the Scenic Loudoun Legal Defense and played an instrumental role in the establishment of the Marion duPont Scott Equine Medical Center in Leesburg. Donna was one of the first women to serve on the Blue Ridge Cattlemen’s Association and was one of the founders of the Virginia Horsemen’s Association.
An accomplished rider, trainer, and racehorse owner, she was an active member of the Virginia Steeplechase and National Steeplechase Associations. The Commonwealth of Virginia General Assembly commended her in February of 2025 for her exceptional contributions to the Commonwealth and the equine community and her commitment to preserving open spaces and historical sites.
Donna was a member of the Loudoun Hunt/Loudoun Hunt West for 60 years, Master for 20 years, and Loudoun Hunt Race Chair for over 20 years. She played an instrumental role in the merger with Fairfax Hunt in 2013 to form what is now Loudoun Fairfax Hunt/Loudoun Hunt, assuring sufficient territory and membership for foxhunting to continue in Loudoun County. Douglas Lees photo.
Joan Elizabeth Jones, Ex-MFH
October 23, 1930 – November 3, 2025
Joan Jones was three years old when she rode a horse for the first time, on her grandfather’s Ohio farm. She would eventually earn a reputation for being able to “ride anything,” which, in her world travels, included elephants, camels, ostriches, and even an alligator. By comparison, even the most cantankerous horse was no problem.
The Camden Hunt Conservancy, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, was formed to help safeguard the territory—including the Carolina Bays and ancient hardwood groves—and to assure the future of foxhunting and community education. Those who value this legacy are asked to make a gift to the Conservancy to help ensure that the next hundred years begin with strength and purpose.
A vibrant junior program focuses on introducing young people to the sport of foxhunting and creating the groundwork for future hunt leaders to assure this “horseman’s paradise” continues to serve the Camden sporting community for many years to come.
She graduated from Ohio State University with a BS in Art History. This led to working as an artist for the National Geographic Magazine. Her husband, Richard Jones, was a career Marine Corp officer. When stationed in the American Embassy in Cheshire, England, Joan taught horseback riding to children of service members and raised and trained Thoroughbred horses. The couple eventually moved to Virginia, first to Manassas and then settled in Marshall where she continued her work with Thoroughbreds. She was a successful competitor in countless horse shows and steeplechases.
Joan was named joint Master for Bull Run Hunt in 1974 and served with distinction for many seasons. She was a vital member of the Virginia Foxhound Club for 50 years, serving as President for much of that time. She was the cohesive force that guided the
Foxhound Show through those years and touched hundreds of sporting enthusiasts through her love of foxhounds and bassets. Photo courtesy of the family
Virginia
Douglas Lees Photo
Melissa Rice, now in her eleventh season as Camden Hunt’s Professional Huntsman. Melissa King photo
RACING
Horses and People to Watch
Virginia Equine Alliance
Three Virginia-Breds Appear in Initial Kentucky Derby Future Pool Wagers
A Virginia-bred horse appeared in each of the first three pools of the Kentucky Derby Future Wager which were available on Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Martin Luther King holiday weekends. It’s Our Time, Secured Freedom, and Crossingthechannel made the list of 39 individual 3-year-olds that fans were able to wager on. The Derby itself will be contested at Churchill Downs on Saturday May 2.
Double Down Stables’ It’s Our Time raised plenty of eyebrows when he powered home to a dominating 17-length victory in his career bow August 16 in a $100,000 maiden special weight at Saratoga. The Not This Time colt followed up with a fourth in the Grade 1 Champagne Stakes October 4. The first-time out winner, bred by Amy Moore’s South Gate Farm in Millwood and trained by Tom Amoss, appeared in the first two wagering pools.
Secured Freedom, fresh off a 4½ length maiden special weight win at Santa Anita December 28, appeared in Pool #3. The winner was bred by Audley Farm Equine in Berryville. In his only other start, he finished a respectable fourth in a maiden special weight November 22 at Del Mar.
Trainer Mike Trombetta’s 3-year-old colt Crossingthechannel scored a tight maiden-breaking win at Aqueduct January 4 and was also included in Pool #3. The son of Omaha Beach prevailed in that $80,000 six-furlong race. The winner was bred by the late Larry Johnson and is owned by Johnson’s Estate at Legacy Farm in Bluemont, VA.
Dr. Richard Harden, Long Time Virginia Equine Vet, Recognized at VRC Meeting
Members of the Virginia Racing Commission recognized Dr. Richard Harden for over two decades of service to the Virginia Racing Commission and Virginia horse racing industry at its December meeting.
Dr. Harden brought his extensive expertise as a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine to the Commission, serving in critical roles including Commission Veterinarian and Equine Medical Director. Throughout his tenure, Dr. Harden was a steadfast advocate for the health, safety, and welfare of the equine athlete, ensuring that the highest standards of veterinary care and integrity were maintained at Virginia’s racetracks. A proclamation was presented to Dr. Harden noting “appreciation for his years of faithful service and significant contributions to the horse racing industry in the Commonwealth.”
Virginia Racing Commission Awards Colonial Downs a Record 48 Race Days in 2026
At its December 15 meeting, the VRC approved an expanded 48-day live Thoroughbred racing season at Colonial Downs in 2026. This will be the most live racing days ever held in one season at the New Kent track in its nearly thirty-year history.
The season will begin with a special three-day Virginia Derby meet on March 12-14 anchored by the $500,000 Derby on Saturday, March 14. After a sold-out 2025 race that drew more than 8,000 race fans, the stakes will serve as a Kentucky Derby
qualifier race. The winner will secure a spot in the Derby field.
Following the March meet, the racing season will continue with 45 days of live racing each Thursday through Sunday from June 25 through Labor Day, Monday, September 7. The summer meet will include the annual Colonial Downs Festival of Racing with the iconic Arlington Million, the Old Dominion Derby, and additional high-profile graded stakes races throughout the summer.
A record total of $110 million was bet over last year’s 44-day meet.
Riverdee Stable’s Cool Jet Wins Eclipse Award as Top Steeplechase Horse of 2025
When it comes to steeplechase racing, Sean Clancy has pretty much done it all. He was a champion steeplechase jockey, bought horses at sales and put together numerous partnerships for flat and steeplechase horses. He competed in over 1,000 jump races, won 152, and his horses bankrolled over $2.9 million in purses. He is also a three-time Eclipse award winning journalist and on January 22, he accepted another Eclipse award. But this time it was as an owner—of 2025’s top steeplechase horse.
With purse winnings of $190,500 from six starts last year, Cool Jet was the star of Clancy’s Riverdee Stable. The 10-year-old Jet Away gelding won three graded stakes, including the Grade 1 Commonwealth Cup at Great Meadow. The Jack Fisher trainee also captured a pair of Grade 3 stakes at Foxfield and at Montpelier.
“Cool Jet had a terrible year in 2024,” said Clancy. “Everything went wrong. But to see how he came back in 2025 was a real thrill. He tries hard. He’s an overachiever and is just a neat horse.” Early in 2025, Cool Jet took third at the Blue Ridge Hunt meet April 12, then came back in two weeks and was a runner-up at Foxfield’s spring meet. Just one week later, he wired the field in the Commonwealth Cup Stakes with veteran rider Bernie Dalton up.
“Only in steeplechase racing can you wheel a 9-year-old back in a week, put a 57-year-old jockey on and win a Grade 1,” said a smiling Clancy.
He has operated Sean Clancy Bloodstock and the Riverdee Stable since the early 2000s, but 2025 was stellar. Riverdee earned its first ever NSA leading owner championship with 13 jump wins from 54 starts, good for $516,800 in purse money.
Shenandoah Downs Ushers in its 2026 Harness Racing Season on April 11 Shenandoah Downs in Woodstock, Virginia, is gearing up for its 2026 pari-mutuel harness racing campaign and will host a pair of 7-week meets. The spring season runs from April 11 - May 24 followed by a fall session which runs from September 19November 1. Pacers and trotters will compete in twelve races every Saturday & Sunday at 1:05 PM at the Shenandoah County Fairgrounds. Parking and admission are free and the action is family friendly. More details are at www.shenandoahdowns.com.
Double Downs Stables’ It’s Our Time won by 17-plus lengths in his career debut at Saratoga. Adam Coglianese photo
D. Wayne Lukas’s American Promise won the 2025 Virginia Derby at Colonial Downs. The 2026 edition is on March 14. Coady Media
Riverdee Stable’s Cool Jet soars over a fence in the Grade 1 Commonwealth Cup Stakes. Douglas Lees photo
Dr. Richard Harden was recognized for years of service as the VRC Equine Medical Director. VEA photo
Sunday, April 19, 2026
A full day of racing starting at noon at
Featuring:
Junior Pony Races
Hurdle and Flat Races and National Steeplechase Association
Hurdle Races including:
Maiden Claiming Hurdle
Ratings Handicap Hurdle and Apprentice Rider Hurdle.
Rail Spots, Mid-Level Terrace Spots and Upper Lever Sponsor spots are available for a memorable day at the races for your family and friends or a corporate event.
New this year!
Founder's Hill Level and exclusive Paddock Overlook Level both with spectacular views of the horses' paddock, the stretch and finish line!
For more information and to purchase tickets, parking/subscribers/sponsorship information please visit: loudounraces.com
