EquiVisions Farm
Committed in making a difference for
horses and humans.
The Gift of
Spirit....... Gold Baily
Success
14.3h AQHA, BHAM, ABRA Red Dun Mare
Sire: Gold Bailey Boy Dam: Kitty Success
April 18, 1980 - July 5, 2000
It was shared many times with me over the
years, "only once in your lifetime will you
experience this kind of connection with a horse like
that". In honor, memory and spirit of GOLD BAILY
SUCCESS, I share the following article, which briefly
entails 16 years of the life of a very special mare I was
blessed and gifted to share. May sharing this story be
one of healing for me and all who knew her; and enlighten
your heart with an understanding of why people love
horses and increase your appreciation for the gifts that
horses are.
Painting by Ann Clark
In the fall of 1984, I went to look at GOLDIE - the first horse I was to look at for first horse to purchase. Having ridden some over the past years and with my aunt since I was a child, I still considered myself a beginner with an enormous love for horses. I wasn't sure what qualities I liked the most about this horse at the time: she was beautiful, well-mannered, patient, a smooth ride, and slightly unusual with one blue eye. As the years passed, the list of qualities I liked grew quite long. I decided to buy her from Rick, who took a down payment and generously allowed me to make payments on the remaining balance. Photo by C.Schram
I spent two years riding her with only a bareback pad, riding 5 - 6 days a week (some in an arena) mostly on the dirt roads and trails in the Oxford/Metamora area. We rode all year long - at night during the hot summer days, during the days after work, and many cool winter rides after a big snow. I even began jumping logs and 2 1/2' stone walls out on the trails in the hunt country. I was living a dream come true...actually owning my first horse, spending several hours a day riding over 100 miles a week with her. One time I even wore a pair of front shoes down so much in 3 weeks, that they broke in half when the farrier took them off.
Over the first ten years together we accomplished a variety of things: showed 2 years on the BHAM (buckskin) circuit in about 12 classes a day (halter, showmanship, western & English pleasure & equitation, horsemanship, jumping, trail, etc.); twice raced in a 1/4 mile race (placing 2nd both time), won Best Equine Exhibit in 2 parades; went fox hunting a couple of times (jumping over 3'9" coupes); rode the MI Shore-to-Shore trail ride 5 times (the 1st time bareback, 2nd -English, 3rd-bridleless) each time 250 miles in 9 days (4th & 5th time double-crossing 500 miles in 18 days); and I even rode her in my wedding. I could pony my dog and any horse (young or old) from her - she ignored them bumping her sides and kept them in line if they attempted to bite or misbehave. Spending most of our time trail riding worked well to keep us both fit as we both loved jumping too. We even pulled a few skiers (ski jouring) and toboggans through the snow for some exciting winter fun.
The
sport of barrel racing and contesting events sparked my
interest by my best friend, Dina, who kept asking me to
give it a try. I knew GOLDIE never had any resistance to
"going" (usually willing to give more than I
would ask for) with a "10 minutes ago"
attitude. So at age 14, I sent her for a month of
training to learn the patterns correctly, since I had no knowledge in the discipline. I had learned over the
years that this mare was extremely quick to learn, and
very honest with a heart bigger than she was (at only
14.3 hands). Having her learn the patterns correctly
first, I knew she would be able to teach and take care of
me. In our first year of barrel racing together we ended
up: Reserve Champion Novice Horse & Rider and Horse
of the Year in GLBRA, Sr. High Point Champion Fall Series
NBHA Fun Shows, Reserve 2D Champion in NBHA, qualified
for the 1994 NBHA World Championships, and ran barrels
& poles at the Quarter Horse Congress (all while she
was pregnant). The only time GOLDIE ever came up lame,
was the night before her first go of the 1994 NBHA
Worlds, with a gravel (an abscess breaking at the
coronary band). We never did make a real barrel run that
year, at best we got to ride in the coliseum with the
futurity horses during their warm up time. I said,
"we'll be back"....and we did return, qualified
3 more times (95,96, 98) and ran 2 more times at the NBHA
Worlds in 95, 98. This was the beginning of several years
that we competed contesting in all events together after
she foaled in the spring and was bred back again for the
next year. We even played around team penning
occasionally - she loved going after those cows with her
very natural, "catty" way about them. Photo by Springer
GOLDIE loved to work and "do" things. It didn't matter whether she was trail riding, racing, contesting, jumping or giving a lesson. She seemed to glare at me jealously, when on occasion, I would get another horse out of the pasture to ride. Yet she fit very well into the "females of the 90's era" by multi-tasking as a mother, teacher, and competitor. It was not a problem for her to leaver her foals to go for a ride or make a run. I could take her away to warm her up and she would patiently wait her turn to make her runs. She gave beginners confidence while she took care of them at whatever level of riding they were presently at and increased her ability as the beginners increased theirs. Even after many years of contesting, she would always walk in, make an honest run, and walk out no matter who was riding her. She would make sure to be careful when the footing was bad, take care of who was riding her, honestly give her best and put her whole heart on the line, time after time.
There was an enormous amount that she has
taught me over the years - much more than I ever taught
her. She was always willing to give more than I asked
for, with only a few exceptions. Once I asked her to walk
through this swampy looking mud bog, she quietly and
patiently refused several times I asked. My intuition was
telling me to listen to her. Out of respect for her judgment, we turned around and went a different way. In
these couple of times, in gently asking me to look at my judgment of what I was asking her to do, I realized her
judgment was better than mine. There were a few
occasions when she would pull out some acrobatic maneuver
to save us from having an accident. There were even
several trips through McDonalds drive throes - on
horseback.
She produced 5 colts and finally one filly who all have the same type of "do it all" intelligence, attitude, athletic ability and gentleness. After having started training her 4th colt this spring, again, I was amazed to see her outstanding qualities reproduced. Three of her get have permanent homes with me, one was purchased 4 years ago and happily owned by Jennifer. Pictured left to right (age): Buddy (8), Bailey (4), Lucky (3), Gunner (2), Whisper (1). Photo by C. Schram
Over the years I roughly figured we had ridden over 30,000 miles in the 16 years we spent together. This spring at age 20, I ponied her along on a trail ride and she acted more like she was 2 as she kept trying to pass the pony horse the whole 2 hour ride. By no means did her age reflect her ability, heart and desire. On July 5th, I received a phone call...the attending veterinarian said she would only live 7 -24 hours and a referral for surgery with a grave to non-existent prognosis was given. (If she survived to make it for surgery, only 1 in 300 surgical cases usually survive.) I rushed to be with GOLDIE for the last time, praying for her to stay alive until I got to her. I did not want her to suffer, yet I did not want her to leave this life without me by her side. She had always been there for me. I have always tried to make the best choices, to do everything I could to provide the best care for my four-legged friend, but on this day I could not even choose to save her. My choice was to be with her when she passed on. Carefully, she loaded into the trailer one last time before putting her to sleep for the ride home. On the trip home, I thought about what would be the best way I could honor Goldie. The vision came to share our experience with others, in thought that it might inspire other horse owners, the blessed gift of spirit that horses can be in our lives.
Now I am left with completeness about GOLDIE - there is nothing left that "I wished I would've done" with her that we didn't do. She was one who could "do it all" and did so, safely with desire, heart, honesty and love. As I have also been blessed to experience a wide range of emotions over the 16 years with GOLDIE, many times I learned it was her reflection of me that was present. Many lessons of horse and human spiritual connection occurred and I understand much clearer why I am drawn to the spirit of the horse. I suppose I could hang on to the great loss of my four-legged friend, however, in choosing to let go, I realize the value of how much I have gained in my spirit from Goldie's spirit Both spirits forever a part of each other. It is not something that came by any money or credit card, rather "being in the present" each minute of each hour and day spent together. Whether it was feeding time, grooming her, listening to her eat, watching her in the field, galloping down the trail, flying over a fence, delivering her foals, respecting her judgment, or running at the World Championships.....it was making time for countless, committed hours, working and developing respect, appreciation, communication, unity and love that enriched our spirits and lives together. It is about doing things together, rather than talking about what I "wished and wanted" to do some day. It is expecting what I wanted to accomplish with the understanding there is a process to attain it, which includes commitment, communication, unity, balance, submission and appreciation. It is seeing us for what and where we were, and also for what we could be.
In return, I got much more than just 16 years with a quarter horse mare...I got a huge part of who I am as a "spirit" and "being". I am filled with great gratitude and appreciation for whom she has gifted me to "become". Thank you GOLD BAILY SUCCESS for your "being" in my life.
Be sure to check back as our site is up-dated regularly.
ElectroBraid
Fence
EquiSports™
Massagers
Sports
Saddle® Saddles
Horses
For Sale and Development
Links
Contact
Us
EquiVisions
Farm Home Page
Logos & original images are the property of EquiVisions Farm, copies by permission only.