Inaugural parade mini-rant - pictures added

[MySparrow]

Just a little moan, really. I went downtown today to watch the governor's inaugural parade, only because my daughter's university band was marching in it and of course, proud mama that I am, I could not miss it. Found myself standing next to the vis-a-vis that would carry the governor and his wife at the head of the parade. It was drawn by 2 haflingers. I wanted so much to be delighted! But the turn-out was so abysmal that it just made me sad.

The two carriages featured in the parade were rented from a Vicksburg company that uses them to tour historic districts in that Civil War town. Spoke with the owner. His main source of income is in portable toilets. "That's where the money is," he said.

Sadly, the vis-a-vis and the other wagon (a charabanc?) were dirty, the ponies were dirty with rubbed manes, the harness was dirty, the hooves were chipped and unpolished, the whips carried no whips and --- oh, no, please, don't let them, please no don't -- oh, man, they smacked the horses with the reins to start them up.

Never mind that the ponies looked way too small for the carriages.

Haley Barbour is our governor. He owns the biggest, fattest, richest lobbying firm in DC. I'm not one of his admirers, but I thought he deserved better.

I will download the photos I took and maybe you'll tell me that we don't look like a bunch of hicks with such a turnout.

[pricestory]

That is sad and it make all of us look like a bunch of yahoos.

[Trakehner]

Who picked the porta-john guy to provide the carriages? It's really sad to see such a lackadaisical turnout. As you said, it's embarrassing. Even when I'm just driving down the road, the horse, carriage and harness is clean.

[Renae]

They need to talk to whoever does Kentucky's governer's inaugeral parade. Teams of Hackney Horses and Dutch Harness horses were in that one :)

[hobbyhorse23]

Hey now, not everyone who drives is a "fancy Easterner" with them whips and carriages and brass and such! Using the reins to start up a team is an accepted practice in just about every type of driving except carriage style. :D (And I understood why when I forgot my whip once on a beach drive! Good lord it's annoying not to be able to reinforce a "move forward" command. :no:)

Leia

[MSP]

Well it sounds fancy compared to the homemade wagons that attend the Dixie National parade! :D

Can't wait to see the pictures!

[MySparrow]

I have downloaded the images of the parade -- here you go!

http://i7.tinypic.com/6t3cao0.jpg

http://i13.tinypic.com/82c4f3r.jpg


hooves on pair put to larger carriage:
http://i13.tinypic.com/6ou7xnr.jpg

vis a vis:

http://i2.tinypic.com/8aeeqds.jpg

on this one I think the security guy (who would have made a good looking whip) was putting out some fuzz-the-cameras forcefield that made everything out of focus!
http://i15.tinypic.com/89g2zgp.jpg


the reason I was there:

http://i16.tinypic.com/87l4iue.jpg

[MySparrow]

Well it sounds fancy compared to the homemade wagons that attend the Dixie National parade! :D

Can't wait to see the pictures!

Yes, you're right, but then they're supposed to look like homesteaders. Last night's inaugural ball was all furs and finery -- not a "Republican cloth coat" in sight -- and made even more of a contrast to the ponies in the parade.

Sigh.

[MySparrow]

They need to talk to whoever does Kentucky's governer's inaugeral parade. Teams of Hackney Horses and Dutch Harness horses were in that one :)

That would have been more like it! And we certainly have the turnouts to do it with. Dr. Bob Cook, former head of the CAA, lives in the Jackson metro area and still can assemble a beautiful turnout.

[MySparrow]

Who picked the porta-john guy to provide the carriages? It's really sad to see such a lackadaisical turnout. As you said, it's embarrassing. Even when I'm just driving down the road, the horse, carriage and harness is clean.

I have certainly been asking myself that one, and I intend to find out.

[MySparrow]

Hey now, not everyone who drives is a "fancy Easterner" with them whips and carriages and brass and such! Using the reins to start up a team is an accepted practice in just about every type of driving except carriage style. :D (And I understood why when I forgot my whip once on a beach drive! Good lord it's annoying not to be able to reinforce a "move forward" command. :no:)

Leia

:lol:

Yes, but... isn't a vis a vis supposed to be driven carriage style?

[MSP]

Oh my! Pictures are worth a thousand words! What were they thinking?

This really is embarrassing! :eek:

[Thomas_1]

Dale,

I'm with you entirely. I hate to see such stuff. I hate to see horses harness badly, in poor condition with bad feet and driven by slapping reins on their butts.

And I hate to see it in parades and the likes because "Joe Public" watches it and thinks that its all great fun and o.k.

And its not.

IMO Your instinct is right.

Now the reason I don't like it has absolutely nothing to do with folks looking like country hicks. You can be a country hick with a nice simple turn out and with a horse you look after and in particular with decent feet. And you can be a country hick and have a horse that isn't spoilt to such an extent that you have to whap reins on its backside to get it to move forward. I'm from a family of farming "country hicks" and I know that my parents would be as horrified as you were.

[fourh mom]

Oh, we have a new governor now? sylvia




:)

[MySparrow]

Oh, we have a new governor now? sylvia




:)

Same old governor. Just a new inauguration.

[fourh mom]

***putting head back down into sand***

[MySparrow]

***putting head back down into sand***


:D:D:D:D:lol::lol::lol::D:D:D;)

[MySparrow]

bumping this because I want to know if people think those ponies are too small for those vehicles. Thanks!

[goeslikestink]

dale-- even the drivers didnt turn out either in nice gear

how embrassing -


i may be rusty and dont have a lot to do with driving but i sure do like a good turn out

after all its history - love it when the carriage and horses all complete and doing there thing dont mind what carriage or good vechile as some of them are spectacular

i would call it a disgrace to be honest

[Renae]

bumping this because I want to know if people think those ponies are too small for those vehicles. Thanks!

I worked for a commercial driving outfit and we normally pulled a vis a vis like that with a single Quarter Hores/Belgian or Quarter Horse/Percheron cross, so I would think a pair of Halfingers could handle it. The "ponies" on the other vehicle look a little larger, like crossbred draft ponies/cobs, not purebred Halfingers.

But for a state event like a Governor's Inaugeration surely some carriage enthusiasts in Mississippi would have been delighted to be invited to participate? Perhpas the carriage driving club needs to get in contact with the governor's PR office and let them know that they would like to be part of their state's histroy?

[LostFarmer]

Yes I thing they are too small to look correct. It is and eye appeal thing. They have more than enough to start the vehicles. It is like a tow vehicle for a horse trailer you can pull a trailer with less truck than you can stop it with. I would like to clean up the turnout for that occasion but I personally see nothing wrong with a casual turn out for most activities. The picture in my signature line is much less formal but more fun in my opinion.
LF

[MSP]

I worked for a commercial driving outfit and we normally pulled a vis a vis like that with a single Quarter Hores/Belgian or Quarter Horse/Percheron cross, so I would think a pair of Halfingers could handle it. The "ponies" on the other vehicle look a little larger, like crossbred draft ponies/cobs, not purebred Halfingers.

But for a state event like a Governor's Inaugeration surely some carriage enthusiasts in Mississippi would have been delighted to be invited to participate? Perhpas the carriage driving club needs to get in contact with the governor's PR office and let them know that they would like to be part of their state's histroy?

I would have thought they could even look in the yellow pages and shopped around and perhaps hired one on these folks to do the job.

http://www.deepsouthcarriage.com/Home_Page.html

http://www.sheffieldcarriages.com/aboutus.html

Who knows maybe everyone else was booked up and they had to hire the port-a-john guy!

[MySparrow]

MSP, Sheffield Carriages IS the port-a-potty guy!

Interesting that in the little pictures on their website they do show a correct turnout. So it isn't that they can't or don't know how. They just chose not to for the state's Gubernatorial Inaugural Parade. Go figure.

[MSP]

:lol:

Well in light of that I think they deserve a red carpet lambasting Hollywood style! Good grief, no one should get away with out notice for that presentation.

[Renae]

:( And the other company features photos of a horse that is in a breastcollar that is so much too large for him that it is hanging loosely down below the points of his shoulder, the trces are so long that the ends stick out a foot or two in front of the breastcollar, plus they are not through any sort of keeper on the shafts or harness and are sol loose they are hanging low enough for the horse to step over, the shafts are buckled so high that I'm sure the ends poke the horse in the sides of the neck when he turns and the horse has an overcheck on, but it is buckled to the caveson :confused: It looks like a rank beginner harnessed and hitched the horse. (look under special events) I'm sorry if the people who own this company read this and are offended but that is just not a correctly harnessed horse.

[MSP]

:( And the other company features photos of a horse that is in a breastcollar that is so much too large for him that it is hanging loosely down below the points of his shoulder, the trces are so long that the ends stick out a foot or two in front of the breastcollar, plus they are not through any sort of keeper on the shafts or harness and are sol loose they are hanging low enough for the horse to step over, the shafts are buckled so high that I'm sure the ends poke the horse in the sides of the neck when he turns and the horse has an overcheck on, but it is buckled to the caveson :confused: It looks like a rank beginner harnessed and hitched the horse. (look under special events) I'm sorry if the people who own this company read this and are offended but that is just not a correctly harnessed horse.

It looks to me that they were hitching the horse up quickly for the pictures. Note that the woman is wearing the same clothes and background is the same. I think they need to work on their site! Take pictures of the horses and carriages so people can see what they have to offer and then show pictures from actual jobs, events and weddings. I am not so sure I would judge them based on those pictures but the site certainly isn't helping them.

[RidesAHaflinger]

Friends of mine run this first-class carriage business:
http://www.shenandoahcarriage.com/index.html

Maybe Mr. Porta-Potti can call them for some advice. :winkgrin::D:lol:

[hitchinmygetalong]

http://i2.tinypic.com/8aeeqds.jpg

I'm forever being reminded I don't know everything. What's the dealie-bob on their tails?

Thanks! :D

[MSP]

http://i2.tinypic.com/8aeeqds.jpg

I'm forever being reminded I don't know everything. What's the dealie-bob on their tails?

Thanks! :D

Are you referring to the bun catchers, poop bags or what ever the proper term is?

[RidesAHaflinger]

I think it anchors the bun bag i.e. the horsey diaper.

[hitchinmygetalong]

Of course! *slaps forehead and says DUH*

I never even noticed the bags. So, when the horse lifts tail, it lifts the bag? Clever! I've never seen one. Thanks, all.

p.s. It looks kind of uncomfortable for the horse - is it? And I bet it can get rather odorous, right?

[Thomas_1]

Not uncomfortable at all for the horse.

And you empty it regularly so it doesn't get heavy and smelly ;)

A bit like a baby's nappy (diaper?!??)

[Miss-O]

Maybe the port-a-potty guy is so used to dealing with poop he thinks it's okay to go out into public with it all over his horses.:confused::lol: