Fête en Hiver
AKA Carnival's Classical Clown
 American Saddlebred #116764 

I first met Chloe in 1992, when I was working in RI, managing a boarding/lesson stable and teaching.  She was purchased as a dressage prospect by one of my students.   At the time she was three and had been backed, but wasn't really "started."

Apparently she had been sold once already and repossessed for non-payment.  We were told she had just been turned out in a field, but when she arrived, after several days journey,  she was 200 pounds underweight and had pneumonia.  Her feet were clubbed, and she was so full of worms the vet started laughing when she did the fecal.  When the new owner asked me what I thought, all I could say was, "Well, she's got a nice eye." There wasn't much else there to judge.

That night one of the other trainers, who was doing a group lesson of six horses, asked me to bring out my new horse in training so she could see it. I told her the filly was very thin and sick, but she said she still wanted to see her. So I brought her out and jogged her up and down once. In the middle of an entire ring of people--parents, students, the works--this trainer hollered, "WHAT A PIECE OF SHIT!"  That was it; that was the beginning of my love affair with this horse.

At any rate, the woman put her in training after we got her health straightened out. I rode her for two months, got her broke WTC and going on the bit.  From the beginning, I could tell she had a brain that loved to work.   Even then, I knew this horse would go sideways like a dream and I really liked her. Then her owner ran out of money and could only pay board, so that was the end of her breaking. I tried to get this woman up on Chloe and convince her that she could ride the horse, but she thought Chloe was too green for her, and she decided to sell her. Well, of course, no one wanted her. The show people didn't because she didn't pick up her knees and the sport horse people didn't because she's an ASB. So she never got sold.

Then I decided to change jobs and her owner (who was totally out of money) decided to send Chloe with me.  So Chloe and I moved to NY where I worked for a Hanoverian breeder. They also thought the horse was a piece of shit; their German trainer told me so to my face, but my trainer thought she was a cute little horse, so I was fine with that. At least I could get something done with her.

When I left that job, Chloe was five. Shortly thereafter, her owner called me and to say that Winter Carnival had died. People suddenly were calling her like crazy looking for any daughters for broodmares. She was offered a lot of money for the horse and she decided to sell her. I was devastated. I went to bed for two days and cried. I didn't even go to work. But somewhere in there, I got on the discussion forum I was on in Delphi (nothing to do with horses, btw) and moaned about MY horse. Well, a woman (whom I only knew from online...and then only for a short time) e-mailed me back and asked how much I needed. So, being desperate, I told her. She said she couldn't give me that much but asked if two grand would stop the sale. Of course, it did and I paid off the rest in monthly payments. To pay back the $2000, my room-mate made the woman a bent stained glass lamp (bent glass is extremely difficult to work with and not many people do it).  I am forever grateful to this woman and I often think of her generosity when I'm hugging my horse.

She's all mine, and she will never be for sale again.

We've never managed to make it to the show ring because my work schedule doesn't allow me many free weekends.  However, I was fortunate enough in 1998 to participate in the John Lyons Certification with Chloe in Colorado.  John really liked Chloe and saw no reason why she couldn't do everything I want her to do.

Forget about my dreams, in 2001 Chloe finally got to live out her dream.  In 2000 before I gelded Jeep, I pasture bred him to Chloe and she became a mom on April 21, 2001.  I've never seen a happier horse.  She tells me she would like to be a professional broodmare...if only I had the room for all those babies!

Chloe and I have been through a lot together.  All my horses have been once-in-a-lifetime horses, but this girl is the most special of the special.  Chloe is the queen of everything. 

 

	Winter Carnival	Supreme Sultan	CH Valley View Supreme
			Melody O'Lee
		CH The Carnival Queen	Flashy Bourbon Peavine
			Radiant Ebony
	English Muffin	Denmark's Colonel McDonald	Hillandale's Colonel Lee
			Denmark Melody
		Delightful Irene	Denmark's Fascination
			Irene's Delight

Chloe's Photo Gallery

Check Out Chloe's Barefoot Journey