For the Love of Horses

My grandmother "Chick".

By Dorothy Snowden

Today was a good day, for remembering loved ones who put up with my horse craziness, now, as well as in my past. My grandmother "Chick" was an early influence, with her stories of great horses, memorable Thoroughbred races and travels to famous race places. An avid rider in her youth, Chick became especailly animated when relating experiences of Derbies past, both at Churchill Downs and abroad, at Epsom Downs in England.

The silk scarf, photographed here, was a souvenir from the 1932 Epsom Derby. Featuring the winner of the prior edition, the central horse is surrounded by the past winners, dating back to Diomed's victory in 1780.

I had to wonder if any names on the scarf appeared in my Makeover horse's pedigree. Several famous names emerged with a little research, including Waxy(1793), his son Whalebone(1810), West Australian(1853), Bend Or(1880) and Persimmon(1896). However, this is nothing earth-shattering in respect to pedigrees of most modern American Thoroughbreds, as anything related to Bold Ruler, Native Dancer, Northern Dancer, and Man O' War, just to name a few, can lay claim to some Epsom Derby winner.

The Derby scarf.

My grandmother's love of horses, and willingness to share that love with me, helped form a bond between us. I am sure she'd be proud I stuck with  horses throughout life. As Makeover competitors, we can probably credit at least one person, if not an entire army, who shared and instilled a love of horses in us all.