Ruby Sign prepares to leave.

Taken By Surprise (T-Bone) and his terrible injury.

September 24, 2003   

Hi Everyone!

Wow - it was a bit chilly going outside this morning at 7 am to check on horses and feed. At least the sun was shining......!

There is so much to share about the past week or two - and it is all good. First of all, we were happy to hear that Deb and Bernie Paul made it to Northern IL Horse Fest in Belvidere with their adopted ASAP horse, Letsgo Grace. They were on hand to share with the public about the program and to even offer people rides on the gray beauty they brought along, so thanks to the Paul's for being great representatives of the program and its horses! Next year we hope to have at least five horses at Belvidere to demo - this year did not work out due to cost and other factors. Sounds like Midwest Horse Fair plans are really going well so far - we have three horses prepared to participate next April and are still looking for more, so let me know if you are interested in a demonstration at Madison and we will welcome you and your horse.

This weekend we plan on riding at the Retreat World's Fair in our local area. There will be a parade on Saturday, and anyone who wants to join us is encouraged to phone me at 608-689-2296 - the Retreat World's Fair is a small-town event held about 15 minutes from our ASAP farm and promises to be a great time for whoever comes!

Super Night was fantastic - we had many owners approach our table to share stories about past horses (we heard all about Blue Ribbon Winner, Lynn's Sonnet, Loghouse, Honey Fitz, Fox Valley Festus and Whitney just to name a few), and got to know the gal who cares for the broodmares and babies at Fox Valley Standardbreds. WE were lucky to be down in the mezzanine area and had the chance to chat with Dirk Simpson, Jerry Logan, Jill Peacock, Mary Pionte', Jim Horvath, and several other trainers and grooms. On Sunday at the Windy City Yearling Sale, Tim Wilson Farm had a good turnout. We got to visit with Doc and Pat Walker and also saw Erv Miller and his son at the sale. Sam Lilly was there with a friendly greeting on both Saturday and Sunday. Jack Kelly and I discussed the feasability of owning and racing an ASAP horse that could benefit our charity in some ways, and the ethical pros and cons of such an idea. Your input would be interesting. I was thinking to myself, "Well, the public owns the Green Bay Packers and anyone can own stock in them - why not a mass of people owning a race horse?" Then again, any money earned by a race horse such as this probably would not benefit "masses" of people financially, or ASAP for that matter, but with training bills and vet bills, how else could we work it? Your input would be appreciated!

Pastor Stockwell of CHHA and Clauddean Webb and I have gotten together and are going to, with Balmoral's blessing, have a CHHA display at Balmoral Park each 3rd Saturday night of the month in addition to our own appearance and display. It is one way that we can give back to CHHA for all of their support over the years, and a way for the public in attendance at the races to have a chance to open their hearts and minds to a relationship with our Creator and Lord. You can see the display at Balmoral in October.

Oh, another thing.......I have had two trainers approach me in hopes of finding some quality grooms at the tracks both in Springfield and Chicago. If you have a love for horses and have some horse experience (Standardbreds and harness preferred) give me a call or write me and I can direct you to possible jobs in the industry. You must be honest, hard-working, and enjoy the possibility of travel. Grooms can make anywhere between $300 per week and $800 per week depending on experience, and in some cases housing is provided. We also have programs here at our farm that train people for work in the racing industry.

We have had four juveniles recently referred by Vernon and Crawford County for community service. Two are girls and two are boys, and all have been referred as a result of "problems" in the community which resulted in court action and consequences. These kids expressed an interest in coming to the farm to offer help in the areas of barn cleaning, chores, and horse handling and care. Hopefully these four young people will learn skills and core values that will assist them in becoming the compassionate, responsible citizens of the future.

I was almost thinking of renaming the objectives of our program for youth here at ASAP from core values (which are used universally at most public schools) to FOTS (fruits of the Spirit)..........which, according to the New Testament, are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, greatfulness, gentleness and self-control. If those things could be learned while taking part at our Wisconsin horse rescue, rehabilitation and/or adoption facility, they will be overcomers in life, don't you think? I think I need to daily remind myself of the need for greatfulness, joy, and peace. There is so much to be thankful for each and every day of our lives I speak with many people on a daily basis - especially owners who are considering placing their horses with our program. There are so many situations in life that can get us down - and so many people going through so many things which seem too great to bear - and yet when we compare our own challenges in life with the challenges of third world countries, or other people, we realize how great we have it and how thankful we should be. One woman said to me "Hey - I wake up in the morning and if I am still breathing and able to get out of bed, I have that to be SO thankful for". Wow - something for me to keep in mind!!!

Honey Fitz was at Balmoral Park last Saturday night, thanks to Terry and Katie. With Honey Fitz being the racing champion that he was ($500,000 lifetime), I thought he might go bonkers when he got to the track, but I guess he was a perfect gentleman in the stall at the grandstand and many people came to see him who remembered him as a race horse. Thanks to Katie and Terry for also taking Ruby Sign to his new home in Wheaton, IL - believe me, it was tearful to see Ruby go, as I had become very attached to him! I had lots of practice in "good-bye" last weekend, though, as April and Tillie, the two Paint fillies from Stratford, WI, and Bullwinkle all loaded up to go to their new home in Lodi with a great family that I have become very fond of during their adoption process. The "good-byes" are not without happiness for those receiving them, though, and hopefully the horses will remain for a lifetime with their new families.

Please consider Explosive MS, who still waits for her new home, as well as Derby and now Gray Van Kandy. Andrea Hanson and Rhonda Hanson came down to volunteer last weekend and we saddled up Kandy for a ride. She was a perfect lady who could be ridden around the yard with only a halter and lead rope. Her energy came as we rode down the road a mile or so. About half way through our jaunt, Kandy decided she'd like to go back home. Needless to say, she was not allowed to!!! We came to the conclusion that this older mare with a young, healthy attitude needs a tie-down! She responded well to voice commands as Andrea "eased" her way home after WE decided to go home. LOL......

Spirit was also saddled and ridden on Saturday by the Youngs. Spirit just arrived from Holmen on Saturday - a registered QH that was with the same family his ENTIRE life. This was a difficult decision for the family to make, so only serious inquiries on this gelding please. He needs a home where he will be ridden a LOT.....he loves to trail ride but always wants to lead - he loves to game - and was a gaming horse - and never gets tired. He has poor ground manners at this time - kind of pushy while being saddled and walks all around - but this will not happen once he gets tacked every day. He is a beautiful sorrel with white face and white socks, and I will get you pictures of him soon - I promise!! Tax Day Plus One has been getting ridden by Terry, but she gave him a challenge last week. She needs to go to a home SOON- her retraining to saddle went well, but without an adopter and consistent rider she will become forgetful, or act like she forgot what she learned. Please, please give me a call if you want a young, sound filly with unlimited potential!

One more thing - we were wondering what you thought of having a pre-holiday retraining clinic in Spring Grove in early November. This is an indoor arena with many stalls - and a warm area. We want to get at least 10 people signed up to bring their Standardbred, and we can probably keep the cost to $50 per person for the weekend if we have at least 10 people.
Also, we will be doing a silent auction for items donated during this past year, including a Friesian stallion breeding and many other things. Are you interested? Cast your vote - let me know - by Friday of this week! Either write me at asapinc@mwt.net or phone me at 608-689-2296.

Your friend for the horses,
Susan