One of the things I often ask fellow Quarter Horse enthusiasts when I first meet them is “How did you get involved in this?”

There is always some kind of story behind their decision to don their Stetson and pull on the jeans, and sometimes IT is because jeans are more flattering than jodhpurs!

I can vividly remember what set me off on a tangent away from what I call my usual “Point and Go” horses. I had my pony when I was a child, a 14.2 hh TB/Welsh Grey mare called Blaze, she was wonderful and I did everything with her. The sad day I sold her when I was 18, after discovering work, boys and going out and the fact that I really was too big for her meant that I didn’t own a horse for about 5 years. When I did decide to get another horse, a lack of cash meant that I bought a royally bred, but very cheap and slightly batty ex racehorse mare, Silks from Doncaster sales.

Strangely enough there are a few people on the quarter horse show circuit, who at the time were getting into Quarter Horses who remember Silks, as although I bought her as a riding horse, she turned out to be really quite talented, if you could keep her calm, and to keep her calm meant keeping away from loudspeakers, and really the only competitive event that normally doesn’t have loudspeakers blaring is Dressage. I was very lucky in that there was a local equestrian centre that ran very competitive dressage competitions and on one of our visits I became aware that a horse who appeared regularly in the regional equestrian magazines was stabled there.

Glad I’m Tardee Two was at the time scooping honours all over Europe in Halter competitions – I knew this, because I read the articles, and had seen his picture, especially when Vicki Michelle, you know the woman from ‘Allo ‘Allo had been pictured sitting on him promoting the UK/USA Day show that used to be held in Felsted. However, I still wasn’t sure exactly what Quarter Horses could do, or what they were like, as I hadn’t actually been down on the yard to see this horse, (I was too busy being exhausted by having to lunge, and ride Silks in for hours before a test, plus she wouldn’t ever stand tied up to the horsebox, nor stand still, so I always had her with me and we were constantly on the move, BUT she did know that as soon as she was on a “surface” she had to behave in a certain way, so it sort of worked!) but on the grapevine I’d heard that this stallion was so very pretty, and so very laid back and had the most amazing temperament.

To be honest, I wasn’t sure I believed the stories, as I’d been up to see an Irish Draft Stallion recently as I’d been thinking of breeding a foal from Silks and had been scared out of my wits when this stallion came out of his stable full of attitude, vim and vigour, and I’d not wanted to go within about 100 yards of him, and was a bit off stallions or the thought of them! So back to the vivid memory that changed my mind…. Imagine if you will, my dressage test was at 12.10 (for some reason I remember this). I’d arrived at the venue at around 9.30 am. I Lunged Silks for about an hour and a bit, and now was riding her in for another hour or so, she was in season and having a few female moments, and I was knackered! Around this time I saw Roma Phillimore ride into the warm up area on this incredibly shiny and well mannered horse. I remember this vividly because she was talking to him as she was riding around and I remember hearing her say “and that’s Silks, I think we’ll keep away from her, she looks rather bright today!”

As I continued on my circles, transitions and general wearing out (of both me and the horse) regime, I kept an eye out for this horse because he (although to be honest I did think he was a “she” as he was so pretty) was so laid back, and I just liked the look of him, you know when you see a horse and just think, Wow! AND Roma only had to warm him up for a short while, (the envy, I was green!) and then went in to do her test, which I saw some of and was very good. She then got off and stood outside the arena chatting to someone and her horse just stood there next to her watching all that was going on. I know this is normal behaviour for the majority of horses, but not normal for me and Silks. It was only later when I was looking at the scores on the board I checked to see the horses’ name - Glad I’m Tardee Two, and I realised that this was the Quarter Horse stallion I’d read about.

Do you know, seeing Tardee (and I feel I can call him Tardee, as I have met him since – so we’re obviously friends!) at that time set me off onto the internet and I joined the AQHA UK. I really had no intention of buying a quarter horse, as I had Silks, and then at that time another ex point to pointer called Micky, but I was interested in the Breed and began to do a little research on the internet, just because I was interested. I ended up with an email pal in Canada, Simone Posche Mottle who showed Quarter Horses, but also taught dressage and was generally horse mad. In 2001 I visited Canada for the first time and had a whale of a time, went cattle penning - once they realised I was English there were calls of “Tally Ho” as I went wandering up the arena in the general direction of the cows, wandering is the only description really as I wasn’t wearing my glasses and had to get right up close to see the numbers of the calf’s and by that time they were long gone, so I just had a merry time trolling up and down the arena getting in everyone’s way and laughing my head off!

As I visited Canada at that time in January, there was quite a lot of snow (knee high) and it wasn’t until my last day that Simone showed me the rest of her herd (around 60 horses at that time) that were outside and I met her stallions Mini Me, Luke (LJ Classic Luke). I remember wading through this knee high snow and looking at some of her horses, really nice warm bloods, TB’s and quarter horses and then out of the herd this munchkin marched. He looked like a bay Shetland pony. His coat was so long, about 4” around his head, he was just this blob of hair and he marched up to us and grabbed the back of my coat and followed us around as we waded through the snow looking at the horses. Wherever we were, this hairy midget thing followed.

Simone was laughing at him and she formally introduced Luke to me with the words “Luke is going to be really good when he grows up”. My reaction. Well I have to say I think probably my jaw dropped and I looked again and no, he still looked like a hairy midget and I much preferred the slicked off shiny foals in the barn, but he was cute and very friendly, but he was also hairy and very very small, and I couldn’t see why she was so excited about him. Fast forward a year or so, and I have one of my “things must change” moments, and I decide to go travelling, leave work and head off into the yonder in an intrepid kind of way. First stop Canada, to see Simone and “Royce” and those lovely foals I remembered – one of them, Alex (LJ Classic Jaguar) having won a Reserve Canadian National Championship the preceding year in Halter. Simone had explained that the first crop of foals were being started under saddle and most of them were in the barn, and came face to face with the Hairy Midget, who had changed beyond all recognition

I went with Simone and Luke and the other horses to their first show of the season, to Moosejaw on the map it was 6” away from where we started out, just outside Edmonton in Alberta (couple of hours I thought). 13 hours later we arrived, in a snow storm with temperatures of minus ridiculous amount. The show sheen, shampoo and gel had frozen solid. Shows over there are a little different to here, as you arrive with a dirty horse and then do the shampoo and set stuff on site in wash racks. I wasn’t coming out of the wash racks as it was the only warm place and I was being a candy ass European and feeling the cold. Luke had had his first trailer journey, first bath and first show all at once, and didn’t bat an eyelid.

The next day after about 2 hours sleep, Luke won his halter class, and during the break, Simone decided to ride him in the arena. Now the only place to work in your horse was in the main arena during the lunch break or after the classes had finished for the day. I nearly had a heart attack when I saw how many horses were in the arena, reiners, pleasure horses, people lunging halter horses, I stood and counted. 62 in an arena the size of Towerlands – everyone was very aware of where everyone else was, but still there’d be reiners doing run downs and everyone just got out of the way. Into this Luke came – he’d had about 30 days riding by this time. He stood at the entrance and his eyes got big and then he just walked in and although he had a few bobbles, you could see him gaining in confidence, Even when a reiner backed into him and another slid to a stop in front of him, he just carried on. I still wasn’t looking to own a Quarter Horse.. honest! But Luke did make me laugh

A few months on, and I was still in Alberta and still visiting the farm, and still playing with Luke. In June, I’d been watching one of Simone’s assistants working Luke and she called me over and told me to sit on him and ride him about the round pen whilst she did something with another horse. Oh dear, that was the beginning of the slippery downhill slope. I got off him and walked to the office and actually asked if he were for sale – of course he was, so I bought him. Not to bring back to the UK, too expensive and afterall I didn’t want another horse. I bought him so I could learn and show him in Canada and then would sell him when I came home and then perhaps have a look around when I got back to the UK – perhaps.

At this point I wasn’t actually riding Luke. However, at the end of July at Reddeer I’d done my halter and showmanship classes when Simone told me to saddle Luke up so she could ride him in the warm up arena between classes – or so I thought. Once saddled, she told me to get on and get out there. Again, a huge amount of horses were being warmed up and being the chicken I am I sort of kept to one small corner before getting brave and getting in the thick of it. The Canadian National Championships loomed up at the end of August, and I was preparing to come home two days after that. We showed in Halter, Showmanship and Nov Am HuS, and Luke behaved impeccably. Luke was then ridden by Simone in a HuS Futurity for Junior horses, as he was only 2 at the time, and the youngest (and smallest even though he was growing, he had started his bum high phase with his back end being some 3” higher than his front!) in the class he did well to get 3rd and he tried his best and I thought he looked wonderful, but then I’m biased aren’t I? On the last day at the show, I became aware that someone was at all times dogging my steps and stopping me going back to the barns, it was only after a few hours that I was allowed back and walked into a Surprise Leaving Party.

Guess who was the other receipient of the party? A cake with Bon Voyage Luke and Lindsay with a plane iced on it appeared, and yes you’ve guessed it, after a lot of deliberation and soul searching I’d decided that I couldn’t leave Luke behind and he came to the party too! I left in late August and Luke arrived in the UK, in early November 2002. Since he’s been a resident of the UK, he’s travelled to AQHA shows here, and in Germany, amazingly winning a gold medal in Kreuth as a three year old. I show him in AQHA shows, although to be honest, I’m not terribly competitive, I like to do well, but as long as we have fun, and we do our best and I enjoy it then I’m happy. We’ve continued to meet a lot of very nice, friendly and encouraging people. I like western people, the first season I showed, I knew hardly anyone, by the second show I may not have known people’s names, but everyone was always very happy to say hello and so welcoming. First and foremost, Luke is my horse, one I like having around, and part of me, if you want to know me, you have to know Luke too! I show him, but I also hack him about and he still makes me laugh (he can also make me cry as well when he’s being a prat!).

He’s a member of the family, even my mother will save apples for him and my dad – well, during the winter he achieved an ambition to ride a horse, and the horse was Luke. And Silks? Well Silks, (long since retired), along with Glad I’m Tardee Two, those two really started this off in a weird roundabout way. Well Silks slavishly loved Luke, who wouldn’t after all? Tragically she died from a heart attack at the end of last year. And Tardee? Well in 2003 I did take Luke to a clinic where Tardee stands at Stud, so they were in each others company so to speak, although I don’t think they realised how it brought it almost full circle for me (although Roma who owned Tardee way back then knows, as I've told her numerous times!) So, how was it for you?